Transportation - Overview
Americans have always been a people on the move—on rails, roads, and waterways (for travel through the air, visit the National Air and Space Museum). In the transportation collections, railroad objects range from tools, tracks, and many train models to the massive 1401, a 280-ton locomotive built in 1926. Road vehicles include coaches, buggies, wagons, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles, and automobiles—from the days before the Model T to modern race cars. The accessories of travel are part of the collections, too, from streetlights, gas pumps, and traffic signals to goggles and overcoats.
In the maritime collections, more than 7,000 design plans and scores of ship models show the evolution of sailing ships and other vessels. Other items range from scrimshaw, photographs, and marine paintings to life jackets from the Titanic.
"Transportation - Overview" showing 2 items.
Railroad Station Agent Hand-Signal Lantern, 1930s-40s
- Description
- This railroad hand-signal kerosene lantern was manufactured by the Handlan Manufacturing Company of St. Louis, Missouri around 1930–1940. The lamp was used on the Eastern Shore (Maryland) Lines of the Pennsylvania Railroad. The lamp has a metal body, a blue glass globe encircled by protected metal wire, and a meal handle and base. The top of the lamp is inscribed with the Handlan logo and the text “HANDLAN/ST. LOUIS USA.”
- Before the advent of portable two way radios, train crews communicated via hand signals during the day, and lantern signals during periods of low visibility or at night. This lantern with the blue globe was used by station agents to signal a train to pick up train orders, or to mark equipment that was being worked on and wasn’t to be moved.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Handlan Manufacturing Co.
- ID Number
- TR*335440
- catalog number
- 335440
- accession number
- 321691
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Railroad Hand-Signal Lantern, 1930s-40s
- Description
- This railroad hand-signal kerosene lantern was manufactured by the Handlan Manufacturing Company of St. Louis, Missouri around 1930–1940. The lamp was used on the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad. The lamp has a metal body, a red glass globe encircled by protected metal wire, and a metal handle and base. The top of the lamp is inscribed with the Handlan logo and the text “HANDLAN/ST. LOUIS USA.” The red glass globe bears the stamped text “NY NH & H R.R.” which stands for the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad.
- Before the advent of portable two way radios, train crews communicated via hand signals during the day, and lantern signals during periods of low visibility or at night. This lantern with the red globe was used by station agents to signal a train to stop, sometimes to pick up Form 31 train orders.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- maker
- Handlan Manufacturing Co.
- ID Number
- TR*335441
- accession number
- 321691
- catalog number
- 335441
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center