9. In the Headlight at CFRHS Library and Archives: Buying Tickets in the Station – The people in the picture are buying tickets so they can ride on the train. The men in the ticket window are the ticket sellers. There are many kinds of railroad tickets—one-way tickets, round-trip tickets, excursion tickets, suburban train tickets, coupon tickets, coach tickets, and Pullman tickets. A Pullman ticket entitles one to a place to sleep at night, or to a reserved seat or a private room on the train during the day. There are half-fare tickets for children and full-fare tickets for adults. Each ticket bears a number and shows the station where the journey starts and the station where it ends. The date is stamped on the back of the ticket. From the 1940s into the 1960s, the Association of American Railroads produced Teacher’s Kits with photos of railroad scenes and explanatory booklets to educate students and their families about the railroad industry. Our CFRHS Archives is fortunate to have materials from 4 slightly different Kits from the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. The weekly posts will feature these photos and the stories behind them. We will also contrast earlier and later photos of the same topic as much as possible. Notice that the rail equipment is either unmarked or is from the “East and West Railroad.” The CFRHS Library and Archives contain materials from the era of steam to that of diesel. Come visit us on Saturdays from 11 am to 3 pm. (fb)

In the Headlight at CFRHS Library and Archives: Reverse: One of the first electric railways in North America was built at the Toronto Industrial Exhibition in 1884 by Charles J. Van Depoele. In 1885 the locomotive was equipped with a trolley pole with underrunning contact wheel – the first use of this method of current collection. The Derby Horse Railway’s ‘Electrical Line Motor” was supplied by Van Depoele in 1888 for use on New England’s first electric railway and was Van Depoele’s third use of the trolley pole. The locomotive is the first built and used for the commercial haulage of freight in the World. Collection of the Shore Line Trolley Museum, East Haven, Connecticut. Photo: Russell E. Jackson. We hope you enjoy viewing this postcard from our collection at the Central Florida Railroad Museum in Winter Garden, Florida. Our library and archives house materials covering railroading in North America from the age of steam to that of diesels. We hope you’ll visit us soon! (fb)