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Allen H. Tweddle collection of railroadiana

Creation: 1940s-1950s, 1994, 2009
 Collection
Accession: 2015-304

Abstract

Allen H. Tweddle (1949-) is a retired railroad conductor and avid collector of railroadiana. Railroadiana are artifacts related to current or former railways. This small collection consists of photographs, prints, and note cards related to railroad locomotives. There are photographs of train stations, train cars and engines and one stereoview showing an elevated railway street scene of New York City. There is an album containing many different Amtrak trains, several blotters from the Association of American Railroads, and a few series of note cards. Notably there is a large collection of railroad locomotive trading cards from the Topps Chewing Gum Company series called "Rails and Sails" published in 1954.

Dates

  • Creation: 1940s-1950s, 1994, 2009

Creator

Extent

0.5 Linear Foot

General Physical Description

100 collecting cards : color ; 2.5 x 3.75 in. 78 photomechanical prints : b&w ; 8 x 10 in. 8 photographic prints : b&w ; 8 x 10 in. 10 photographic prints : color ; 8 x 10 in. 1 bulletin. 1 photographic print : b&w ; 3.5 x 7 in. mounted on board. 1 photographic print : b&w ; 4 x 6 in. 35 photographic prints : color ; 3.5 x 5 in. 4 prints : color ; 12 x 16 in. 1 portfolio. 1 stereoview. 6 souvenier cards. 12 blotters. 8 note cards : color. 8 note cards : b&w. 1 calendar. 1 phonographic record ; 12 in. 1 print (poster) : color ; 12.5 x 17 in. (2 copies). 1 map ; 11.5 x 16.5 in. 3 magazine clippings. 1 certificate. 1 sign. 3 prints : color ; 10 x 12 in. 1 print : color ; 11 x 14 in. 1 photographic print (polaroid) : b&w ; 2 x 3 in.

Biographical Note

Allen H. Tweddle (1949-) is a retired railroad conductor and avid collector of railroad memorabilia. During his forty-one years as a conductor he worked for Penn Central, SEPTA and AMTAK.

Historical Note

Railroadiana are artifacts related to current or former railways. Railroad companies are large operations which produce vast amounts of marketing material. These materials include advertisements, signs, photographs, cards, calendars, and posters. Many collectors focus on a specific region or railroad. Collectors look to preserve items which represent and document the history and legacy of railroading.

Scope and Content

This small collection consists of photographs, prints, and note cards related to railroad locomotives. There are photographs of train stations, train cars and engines and one stereoview showing an elevated railway street scene of New York City. There is an album containing photographs of many different Amtrak trains each alongside a card with the following information: equipment type, series, number of units, year built, builder, horsepower, weight, and primary service.

There are several blotters from the Association of American Railroads most of which are World War II propaganda about the railroads contribution to the Nations defense. The Association of American Railroads also put out a set of images showing various railway operations. The images are numbered and captioned. There appears to be two sets of the images, as there are duplicate numbers and captions with different pictures above. Neither is a complete set. The photomechanical prints have been arranged in numerical order all together since it is unknown which images go together as a set.

There are a few series of note cards. Three note cards featuring photographs of Tom Kane of Pennsylvania Railroad electric locomotives. A set of note cards with drawings by Jane Curtis of Pennsylvania Railroad stations in Pennsylvania: Westtown, Lansdowne, Wallingford, Moylan Rose Valley, Media, Cheyney, Glen Mills, and West Chester. There is a series of holiday cards by various student artists at the Archmere Academy, created for the American Institute of Architects Delaware Chapter & Friends of the Furness Railroad District Children's Art Contest. The artwork on the front of the cards features railroad stations or platforms. There is also a Friends of the Furness Railroad Disctric postcard and bulletin.

There is a small set of souvenier cards from the Norfolk & Western Railway featuring different locomotives. On the front a locomotive is pictured and the back contains information about the train.

Notably there is a large collection of railroad locomotive trading cards from the Topps Chewing Gum Company series called "Rails and Sails" published in 1954. Each card features an image of a train car or engine on the front and a description on the back.

Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research.

Language of Materials

English

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title:
Allen H. Tweddle collection of railroadiana
Author:
Laurie Sather
Date:
2015
Description rules:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description:
English
Script of description:
Latin

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Audiovisual Collections Repository

Contact:
PO Box 3630
Wilmington Delaware 19807 USA
302-658-2400