Missouri Pacific Railroad

STEAM LOCOMOTIVE BUILDERS PHOTOS

From the collection of:

Robert D. Loevy
Professor of Political Science
Colorado College

Loevy Home Page

On July 26, 1950, J. J. Hitzman of the Missouri Pacific mailed a set of 15 builders photographs of the railroad's steam and diesel locomotives.

The address and return address on the envelope were hand typed.  That suggested the builders photos were given only to close friends of the Missouri Pacific and not distributed as part of a mass promotion.

The late 1940s and early 1950s were the time when steam locomotives were rapidly being replaced by diesels.  This collection of builders photos aptly illustrates what railroad motive power looked like when both steam and diesel roamed the rails.

The Missouri Pacific was nicknamed the Mopac.  The return address on the envelope read: J. J. Hitzman, Room 108, Mo. Pac. Bldg., St. Louis, Mo.  Printed on the return envelope was the Missouri Pacific herald and two slogans: "A Service Institution" and "Ship And Travel By Rail."

The Missouri Pacific was merged into the Union Pacific Railroad.  The two main lines of the Mopac, one from St. Louis to Texas and the other from St. Louis to Kansas City, remain active and busy railroad lines in the early 2000s.

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