Ivan Akimovich Sushchenko (Russian, B. 1930) "Empire State Express (Train)" Signed lower left. Original Oil painting on Masonite.

Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation.

This painting was originally published on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 2c Pan-American Invert: Fast Express stamp issued March 29, 2001.

Since the invention of the first steam locomotive by Richard Trevithick of England, in 1804, the 19th century has been fondly remembered as the Golden Age of Railroads. The first public railroads using steam engines to haul freight and carry passengers were used in England during the 1820s and 1830s. In America, railroads linked isolated cities of the East to frontier settlements in the West. In 1830, the South Carolina Canal and Railroad Company began the first regularly scheduled steam-powered train service in the United States with its locomotive, the Best Friend of Charleston. Following that, the number of locomotives and railroads in the eastern United States quickly increased. Historic first-runs of locomotives included the DeWitt Clinton on the Mohawk and Hudson Railroad in New York and the John Bull on the Camden and Amboy Railroad in New Jersey -- both in 1831. Although railroads developed rapidly in the eastern United States after 1850, none extended into the remote regions west of the Mississippi River. When Congress passed the Pacific Railroad Act in 1862, however, it opened the way for America's first transcontinental line. Track was laid eastward from Sacramento, California, and westward from a point near Omaha, Nebraska. On May 10, 1869, the two tracks met at Promontory, Utah, and North America became the first continent to have a rail line from coast to coast.

Image Size: 9 x 13.75 in.
Overall Size: 11.75 x 16.25 in.
Unframed.
(B16911)

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11.75 x 16.25 in