Collecting Railroad Items, Rare Or Not, Is Right On Track: Chicago Tribune

Here is a very interesting story from 1985 that was published in the Chicago Tribune:

Collectors of railroad or train memorabilia are constantly trying to track down items that interest them. Their interest ranges from tickets to timetables to dishes.

Some collectors specialize in a particular item such as railroad lanterns or switch locks. Others collect items relating to a particular railway company, and still others (referred to as ``railroadiana roadies``) want anything and everything that`s railway-connected.

... Sleeping car wool blankets marked with a railroad`s name or logo are worth $65 to $150. Hand towels may be worth $10 to $25, pillowcases $4 to $10 each, headrest covers, $6 to about $12, and sheets, $10 up.

Trainmen`s caps with metal badges intact are valued from $35 to $175. Cap badges, minus the caps, have various values, and examples can be found, along with other types of railroad-related memorabilia, in ``Railroad Collectibles --Third Revised Edition,`` by Stanley L. Baker.

Here's the full story.