The Race to Promontory: The Transcontinental Railroad and the American West
This major traveling exhibition celebrates the 150th anniversary of the 鈥淢eeting of the Rails鈥� at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869, through the photographs and stereographs of Andrew Joseph Russell (1830鈥�1902) and Alfred A. Hart (1816鈥�1908). Drawn exclusively from the Union Pacific Historic Collection at the Union Pacific Railroad Museum, these images represent the largest collection in the world of original photographs documenting the construction of the transcontinental railroad between 1866 and 1869.
Appropriately, this transformative endeavor was captured by the equally groundbreaking medium of photography, which was used to document the railroad鈥檚 arduous construction and then capture the moment of its completion and distribute it around the world. From east to west, the Union Pacific line was photographed by Russell, and west to east by Hart, for the Central Pacific.
The Race to Promontory features fifty framed Imperial plate albumen prints by Russell, including images from his album, The Great West Illustrated, as well as rare, unpublished prints from the Union Pacific Collection, including Russell鈥檚 famous image from Promontory Summit, East and West Shaking Hands. One hundred eight stereograph cards by Hart will be also be displayed, and two stereograph viewers will allow museum visitors to view Hart and Russell images in three dimensions. The exhibition will also include archival material from the Union Pacific Collection, commemorative objects relating to the events at Promontory Summit on May 10, 1869鈥攊ncluding the original 鈥淎rizona Spike鈥� from the celebration of the laying of the last rail鈥攁s well as artifacts and records from the construction of the railroad.
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This major traveling exhibition celebrates the 150th anniversary of the 鈥淢eeting of the Rails鈥� at Promontory Summit, Utah, on May 10, 1869, through the photographs and stereographs of Andrew Joseph Russell (1830鈥�1902) and Alfred A. Hart (1816鈥�1908). Drawn exclusively from the Union Pacific Historic Collection at the Union Pacific Railroad Museum, these images represent the largest collection in the world of original photographs documenting the construction of the transcontinental railroad between 1866 and 1869.
Appropriately, this transformative endeavor was captured by the equally groundbreaking medium of photography, which was used to document the railroad鈥檚 arduous construction and then capture the moment of its completion and distribute it around the world. From east to west, the Union Pacific line was photographed by Russell, and west to east by Hart, for the Central Pacific.
The Race to Promontory features fifty framed Imperial plate albumen prints by Russell, including images from his album, The Great West Illustrated, as well as rare, unpublished prints from the Union Pacific Collection, including Russell鈥檚 famous image from Promontory Summit, East and West Shaking Hands. One hundred eight stereograph cards by Hart will be also be displayed, and two stereograph viewers will allow museum visitors to view Hart and Russell images in three dimensions. The exhibition will also include archival material from the Union Pacific Collection, commemorative objects relating to the events at Promontory Summit on May 10, 1869鈥攊ncluding the original 鈥淎rizona Spike鈥� from the celebration of the laying of the last rail鈥攁s well as artifacts and records from the construction of the railroad.
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