The ticket agent at Newark Penn Station raised his eyebrows… and invited me into his office. It was 1969, and I had given him a cross-country itinerary for three us which included a segment from Prince George to North Vancouver over the Pacific Great Eastern. “You’re the first person in twenty years to request that line!” The PGE and BCR via RDC and more, including steam!

Horsepower was the main thing – just get the tonnage over the road but for the observer, B&O’s mixed bag of external and internal combustion power made for a show full of suspense and variety

There are other surprises as well, but mostly just good train watching: “20th Century Limited”, “Empire State Express”‘ and other Limiteds alongside freights with pacemaker box cars, flexi-vans, and tri-level auto racks.

Next we view typical action in the early years with a colorful mix of hand me-down EMDs: Five units on a heavy coal drag out of Pittsburgh’s Rook Yard, the 2662 screaming up the 5% grade at Mogadore as the engine dies while passing the camera, a cab ride through the P&WV tunnel district, some yard action, a few wrecks, and some stunning winter scenes.

See authentic narrow gauge action in the 1950s by Colorado Railroad Museum founder Bob Richardson. You will see wedge plows in action on the Sapinero Branch during the “Big Snow” year of 1953, along with the drifted-in Crested Butte Station.

Ride ALCO RS-2 #900 on the “Steel King” through the street at Warren – Visit the Cleveland Docks – Watch Bloomsburg Branch Fs and Patriotic SDs in the snow at Olean.

Trans-Siberian remains the backbone which unites a vast continent. See heavy passenger and freight activity, along with vistas of Moscow, St. Petersburg on its 300th birthday, followed by cities and villages across Siberia en route to Ulan Bator, Mongolia.

Here is the Viewliner story – from Amtrak’s prototypes, to design, construction, and revenue service.

The photographer O. Winston Link (1914-2001) earned praise both in railroad and photographic history for his amazing portraits of N&W steam. Fifty years after Mr. Link made his famous portraits of steam in the night, we revisit many of these places to see what has changed and, surprisingly, what has not.

This is Tain #1 – the oldest name train in the US and America’s longest and first Coast-to-Coast route!

26,000 daily trains! Speedy Shinkansens, and slow mountain lines. Luxurious overnighters to lowly diesel cars.

Akron rails are changing as we enter the new Century. Towers, industrial sites, wild and wacky goings on spice up this wide-ranging railroad romp around northeast Ohio.

View the variety of the 1950’s in the Rubber City region. B&O, Erie, Pennsy, New York Central and the AC&Y.

First Class U.S. Mail was sorted by clerks aboard a fleet of cars which once numbered over 4,000. Here you will enter their secluded world, hemmed in by stanchions stacked with parcels, rows of hanging pouches and, above, boxes lining both sides.

This is the story of one of America’s most scenic day trains. The Laurentian to Adirondack saga has more twists and turns than the track high above Lake Champlain with turbos, heritage coaches, full domes and more over a 40 year career.