New Releases!


SP FAN STEAMTRIPS - Collection of 1950's steam-era specials. Doubleheaded cab forwards on two different runs, AC9 on the Modoc, smaller engines, 4-8-4's, 4-10-2's and 4-6-2's. 8mm films from the Shattock col- lection. Expertly transfered mostly color footage, with music and informative narration. Also some of the final runs in 1958 for 4460, 1744, and others. 71 min $29.95


CHALLENGER GOES EAST - 1992 action as we see Union Pacific 4-6-6-4 Challenger on CSX trackage headed to Clinchfield country. See Louisville-Cincinnati- and east on the former L&N and C&O, and out of Cincinnati on the return trip as UP 3985 on the B&O. Also see it as Clinchfield 676 en route from Huntington to Kingsport prior to the Santa Train. Learn the history and see the world's largest operational steam engine in action. 70 min $29.95


THE 2101 STORY - Ex-Reading 4-8-4 number 2101 is seen mostly in 1977 and 1978 color sound footage on Chessie Steam specials.Learn the his- tory and how it was restored to operate on the American Freedom train. Our coverage shows some historical footage, the transition to Chessie, and the two years of excursion action. Sand Patch, 17-Mile Grade, Allegheny Grade, and rare last run. 74 Min $29.95


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frustrations and alienation experienced by urban blacks during the Harlem Renais- sance, published in 1928. McKay worked for a time as a dining car waiter for the Pennsyl- vania Railroad, and several sections of the book reflect that experience. [ ] Silver Banquet II: A Compendium on Railroad Dining Car Silver Serving Pieces by Everett L. Maffett catalogs more than 2700 pieces of dining car silver hollowware dating from the 1880s, from Silver Press. [ ] Silver at Your Service: A Collector’s


Guide to Railroad Dining Car Flatware Pat- terns by Art Dominy and Rudy Morgenfruh, describes railroad silverware and includes over 200 pictures of patterns at full size. [ ] This Can’t Be Me, self-published (Van- tage Press) in 1986 by David S. (“Moon”) Tin- dall, a fictionalized account of his work as a dining car waiter on the Southern Pacific. Miscellany: Other unusual items that might appeal: [ ] Dining Car and The Harvey Girls, two


of Tex Wilson’s black and white photolitho- graphs, superbly detailed, also available hand-colored in a limited edition of 150, feature text and scenes from rail dining and Harvey House settings; 18″×22″ and 11″×14″ prints (optional framing is additional) from the artist at www.texwilson.com, or by email at texnausma@frontier.com. [ ] Membership in the Railroadiana Col-


lectors Association, a group dedicated to col- lecting and preserving dining car china and menus, and other railroad memorabilia, in- cludes four issues of a fine glossy quarterly publication, Express, and a directory of members. Go to www.railroadcollectors.org. [ ] Napa Valley Wine Train, a 30 minute


Pentrex video, makes you a first-class pas- senger onboard perhaps the best known of America’s dinner trains, item #NVW from Pentrex, www.pentrex.com or 800.950.9333. [ ] Harvey Girls, the 1946 feature motion picture and musical tribute to Fred Harvey’s contribution to rail dining and American history, starring, among others, Judy Gar- land and Cyd Charisse, and featuring the Academy Award-winning song “The Atchi- son, Topeka & Santa Fe” available in VHS or DVD from Netflix and other outlets. For the gift shop crowd, let me invite you to try a display of as many of these items as you have space for. Promote the display with signage or in your advertising — “Now, see our large selection of railroad cookbooks,” enhanced perhaps by a display of railroad china (whether for sale or just for show) and related memorabilia. Readers who are col- lectors, here’s your chance to compare your holdings with what I’ve discovered (and I hope you’ll let me know if I’ve missed anything). A Reader Writes: Mike Bartels has been at the keyboard again, this time calling our attention to “an ad for a rail-themed restau- rant in Omaha, Neb.: Railcar Modern Amer- ican Kitchen. It’s in a shopping center about ten miles west of downtown and doesn’t look like it’s in old railcars per se, but they capi- talize on the theme.” A call put me in touch with Jared Clarke, owner of the new —since December 8, 2012 — dining option. “We aren’t located in any former railroad equip- ment or station,” he confirms. “But our name is intended to celebrate the railroad indus- try and its impact on America’s cuisine. Rail- roads changed the way Americans eat, and Omaha was the rail center of the nation. Our menu is inspired by the contributions the railroad made to America’s culinary tradi-


12 APRIL 2013 • RAILFAN.COM


arrangement. When in Omaha, you’ll find the Railcar in the Stonehenge Center at 1814 North 144th Street. Open seven days a week, the hours vary. For more information, go to www .railcaromaha.com, or call 402/493-4743. Another Reader Writes: Norm Cohen, whom you may know is the author of Long Steel Rail: The Railroad in American Folk- song, the definitive book on railroad-inspired music, wrote recently about a well-made de- cision to stop at the former Fred Harvey hotel La Posada, now restored in Winslow, Ariz. “We were driving recently from southern Ari- zona to Canyon de Chelly following I-40, which just misses Winslow. My wife Verni had overheard someone talking about La Posada and how wonderful it was, so we de- cided to have a look. The hotel is on old Route 66, that is, on one of the short fragments of 66 that wasn’t replaced by the Interstate long ago. Since the old highway is bifurcated through town (one street east, the other, west) we drove back and forth a few times be- fore we found it. Our plan was to stop for lunch at the Turquoise Room, which we did. The menu stressed local foods and Native American dishes. We tried blue corn Piki bread, sundried and rolled into sheets as thin as phyllo dough made by a local Native Amer- ican woman; and Tepary beans, ground up in- to a hummus-like dish. The young woman who served us was very charming but a little green — she had just started working there. After lunch, we wandered around the magnif- icently restored building — one of the grand- est hotels we’ve seen — and grounds, which are still in need of some restoration work (that is being planned). The gift shop was the best we’ve seen in a hotel or comparable set- ting. We were sufficiently delighted that we made a reservation to spend the night on our return from Canyon de Chelly. The hotel rooms range from spacious suites to more modest. We stayed in one of the latter and found it charming and reasonably priced, though lacking some amenities of more mod- ern hotels/motels (e.g., coffee pot, ironing board, hair dryer — all those things we al- most never use). Each room is named after a famous guest who stayed in the hotel back during its halcyon days. Ours was the Will Rogers room. We had dinner in the Turquoise Room, opting for a killer vegetarian platter — a variety of different and unusual sampler sized portions. Other entree options included locally sourced quail and lamb. The wine list was extensive. There are not too many other things to do within Winslow’s city limits — the once major hub for rail and auto traffic (and also, in fact, airplane) was hard-hit by the construction of I-40 — but we would defi- nitely come back if for no other reason than to stay at the hotel again. Amtrak still stops in Winslow twice daily, with the station only a few dozen yards from La Posada. Back when the Santa Fe was still running, the hotel itself was the train stop, its entrance (now the back door) directly adjacent to the railroad tracks.” For more on the Turquoise Room, go to www.theturquoiseroom.net; for La Posada, www.laposada.org.


tion, offering domestic foods that satisfy a variety of tastes.” Clarke also points out that he’s tried to duplicate the feel of a dining car in the placement of his tables and chairs. Looking at pictures on the website, one finds a pleasing decor that showcases old railroad posters and photography, and has the ap- pearance of a “two four-tops per section” seating


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