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George F. Chalender Collection of Railroad Photographs photCL 177
photCL 177  
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Collection Details
 
Table of contents What's This?
  • Conditions Governing Access
  • Conditions Governing Use
  • Preferred Citation
  • Immediate Source of Acquisition
  • Biographical / Historical
  • Scope and Contents
  • Processing Information

  • Contributing Institution: The Huntington Library Photo Archives
    Title: George F. Chalender collection of railroad photographs
    Identifier/Call Number: photCL 177
    Physical Description: 0.42 Linear Feet (1 box)
    Date (inclusive): 1880s-1939
    Abstract: A collection of 66 miscellaneous photographs of railroad-related subjects, with many steam locomotives and several scenes of train wrecks, late-19th to early-20th centuries.
    Language of Material: Materials are in English.

    Conditions Governing Access

    Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

    Conditions Governing Use

    The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

    Preferred Citation

    [Identification of item]. George F. Chalender collection of railroad photographs, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

    Immediate Source of Acquisition

    Gift of Arlene M. Anderson and John Waldron, 1971.

    Biographical / Historical

    George Fox Chalender (1827-1892) was a railroad pioneer, executive, and inventor. He rose through the railroad ranks to become superintendent of motive power of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, 1875-1880. In 1881, he was appointed superintendent of motive power and machinery of the Atlantic & Pacific Railway.

    Scope and Contents

    A collection of 66 photographs (prints) of various railroad subjects, including steam locomotives, stations, and many scenes of train wrecks, approximately 1880s-1939. Subjects include the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad; Denver and Rio Grande Railroad; and a set of six cabinet card photographs titled "View of the Great Railroad Wreck," showing the wreckage (and crowds of people) of the disastrous 1887 Toledo, Peoria, and Western Railroad's "Great Chatsworth Train Wreck" in Illinois. Other images include several photographic postcards of trains and scenes of wrecks from 1939. Accompanying the photographs is a 7-page typescript biography of Chalender, with his portrait.

    Processing Information

    Processed by Huntington Library staff, circa late-20th century. In 2020, Suzanne Oatey created a finding aid derived from a catalog file and cards.

    Subjects and Indexing Terms

    Locomotives
    Railroad accidents
    Railroads -- United States -- History -- Sources
    Photographs