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SOME ELECTRIFYING RAILROAD ARTISTS Portraits of the Rails COMPILED BY JIM PORTERFIELD I


T IS WITH GREAT PLEASURE that we revive our popular annual survey of North America’s working railroad artists and how they approach a specific theme. The call for


works sought


portrayals of an often-overlooked form of motive power: electric trains. Electricity has moved trains for more than 125 years, spanning significant portions of


STEWART BUCK Y-Camp Special, 19x25”, Pastels


In the summer of 1951, a two-car Fort Dodge, Des Moines & Southern Railway interurban glides across the lush central Iowa countryside on a trip to the YMCA camp north of Boone. These two-car specials were a common sight during the summer months, transporting enthusiastic youngsters from the Des Moines area to the Y-Camp, nestled in the beautiful Des Moines River valley. The Fort Dodge Line ran electrified trains on the longest interurban in Iowa from 1907 until 1955. An 11-mile segment of the line is operated today as the Boone & Scenic Valley Railroad.


the three more commonly known motive power eras, steam, transition, and diesel. Clean, efficient, reliable, and highly cost effective, electric traction remains in use today, especially on busy intercity corridors and to propel our urban mass transit systems. From a once-vibrant network of local streetcars and trolleys, to heavy mainlines of modern commerce,


artists find worthy subjects. They do so with style, spirit, and insight, showing us how electric railroads were once a part of everyday life from city to country and everywhere in between. We hope you enjoy your tour through this special gallery. To learn more about the artists in our 2016 survey, please turn to ON THE MENU on page 57.


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