What’s going down the line? The Railroad in the American Mind

Mike Matejka presents a free program “What’s Coming Down the Line? The Railroad in the American Mind” March 24. The Friends of the Durand Library is partnering with the Otter Creek Historical Society to host this presentation. Mike has a passion for railroads and railroad history and is an experienced speaker on this topic.
Illinois is the nation’s railroad crossroads. Railroads not only accelerated Illinois’ economic development and population boom but the train itself became an icon which influenced American culture. People gathered along the trackside to watch the powerful and speedy trains arrive and they marveled at the opulent, Illinois-built Pullman cars. The national land-based transportation network radically changed the economy, how people traveled, and how corporate structure evolved. Rail workers were seen as heroic as they labored in a hazardous occupation. The railroad became a cultural symbol, reflected in advertising, cinema, and children’s toys.
Illinois Road Scholars and Illinois Humanities sponsors this program and is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy Demands Wisdom and the Illinois General Assembly [through the Illinois Arts Council Agency], as well as by contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations.