Railroad Zippos

Railroads revolutionized transportation in the United States, replacing rivers, canals and horse-drawn coaches as the primary means of transportation. By the beginning of the 20th century, thousands of miles of  track had been laid, linking towns and cities across the US together. Rail travel peaked in the1920's as the use of the automobile exploded and air travel became a viable alternative.  In the subsequent decades the railroads declined and as a consequence advertising by the railroads was less prevalent than that of automobile and airline companies.  While the railroads did advertise on Zippos, Zippos with railroad related themes are scarce.

The images below are presented below courtesy of  Zippo & Rippo, a great resource site for the Zippo aficionado.

1970 Zippo for Burlington Northern which was created in 1970. In 1996 it merged with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway to form the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway.

1966 Zippo for the Santa Fe Railway similar to the Zippo to the left, except it that it reads "Working for Safety".

1947-53 Zippo that reads "Lehigh PX", presumably the postal exchange for Lehigh Valley Railroad in existence since 1846.

1963 Zippo with an Indian holding the emblem of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway which was started in 1873 and merged into Burlington Northern in 1996.

1978 Zippo with the logo of "mo-pac", or Missouri Pacific Railways.  Founded in 1872, through a long history of mergers by 1980 had become one of the largest railway companies in the U.S.  In 1982 it merged with Union Pacific and Western Pacific Railroad companies to create the "Union Pacific System".

1969 Zippo for  Burlington Northern was a United States-based railroad company operating from1970 until it merged with the Santa Fe Railway in 1996.

1974 Zippo with the emblem for Union Pacific Railroad which was incorporated in 1862  and is today the largest railroad network in the United States.

This 1972 slim Zippo with a sleeping "Chessie", a mascot for the  Chesapeake and Ohio Railway.

1947-53 Zippo for The Alaska Railroad, Mt. McKinley National Park Route.  Mt McKinley has since been renamed Mt. Denali.

1947-53 Zippo for Alco (American Locomotive Company) Diesel-Electric Locomotive Graduate School by General Electric.

1950-53 Zippo for The Alaska Railroad, Mt. McKinley National Park Route.

This Zippo has been engraved with the emblem of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers which is part of the Teamsters Union, representing railroad engineers in the US and Canada.

Zippo with an attached badge with the letters "IR", the logo for the Indiana Railroad.

1972 slim Zippo version of  an Indian holding the emblem of the Santa Fe Railway.

1984 Zippo with a graphic of a train advertising All-Good Mfg. Co., G.T. "Red" Blackwell, Oneonta, Alabama.

1991 Zippo with the logo of the Missouri-Kansas- Texas Railroad.  Founded in 1870, the "MKT" is commonly referred to as "the K-T", its stock exchange symbol which evolved into "the Katy".

1976 slim Zippo with a crane and a train for Winters Railroad Service Co. of New York.

1967 with an attached logo for Westinghouse, a company that contributed to the development of the railroad industry with the invention of the rotary steam engine and the airbrake.

1955 Zippo with an engraved emblem for the Pennsylvania Railroad.

1969 Zippo with logo of Peoria & Eastern Railway Company. "Safety First Place 1968". The company was founded in 1896 and was a subsidiary of the New York Central System.