Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Categories: North America | Travel | World

Once the United States could boast of the most developed railway transport system in the world, but after the Second World War, the Americans actually deliberately destroyed the mass transportation of people by rail.

The last breath of the Great Railway Era was the 1950s, which were the beginning of the end. At that time, the Sunset Limited was still running – the oldest named train in the United States, running since November 1894. We suggest you take a look at its cars.

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

These amazing photos from the digital collections of SMU libraries were taken by American photographer Robert Yarnall Ritchie and demonstrate the luxury of the Sunset Limited Southern Pacific Railway in 1950.

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

At the beginning of the XX century, the length of the US railways reached a fantastic 416 thousand kilometers even by modern standards. In the 1950s, the "Great Rail Pogrom" began in America, which led to the decline and degradation of almost all railway transport, and especially its passenger part.

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

But then the Great Rail Pogrom began, which lasted until the 1970s. Grandiose railway stations built in the rail "golden era" were ruthlessly demolished, reconstructed and simply abandoned.

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Already in 1957, a sharp reduction in passenger traffic on the railways began. The development of high-speed air transport made traveling by rail for a long distance an anachronism. By 1965, only 10,000 passenger cars remained in regular operation in the United States, which was 85% less than in 1929.Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950sComfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Comfort and luxury on the rails: here's what train travel in the United States looked like in the 1950s

Keywords: USA | North America | Train | Travel | World | Railway | Cars | 50s | 1950s

Post News Article

Recent articles

the 6 healthiest alcoholic beverages in the world
the 6 healthiest alcoholic beverages in the world

It is implied that drinking alcohol is a fact that does not have a very good effect on health. But this is all a human tendency to ...

Taking souls in the Nude: hot photographs of Mikhail Kovalenko
Taking souls in the Nude: hot photographs of Mikhail Kovalenko

Photographer from St. Petersburg, Mikhail Kovalenko — a very versatile photographer. His artistic heritage portraits, ...

The fragile art: exquisite ceramic Bacon Martha Rodriguez
The fragile art: exquisite ceramic Bacon Martha Rodriguez

Ceramics is one of the most fragile and delicate forms of art. Mar Bacon Rodriguez (Martha Pachon Rodriguez) from Colombia has ...

Related articles

The transformation of the old "Boeing" in a cozy house over the lake
The transformation of the old "Boeing" in a cozy house over ...

A quarter century ago, American Joe Ann Asseri bought a decommissioned aircraft «Boeing 727». It took her many months, ...

The Golden age of porn, inside-out bystander
The Golden age of porn, inside-out bystander

80 years are considered the Golden period in the history of the porn industry. Consumers then it was still possible to surprise, ...

The cult of peanut butter: why Americans can't do without this product
The cult of peanut butter: why Americans can't do without ...

Peanut butter, or butter if you like (it's the same thing), is a favorite dish of millions of Americans.  Moreover, this product ...