From the late 1940s onward, Wallace W. Abbey masterfully combined journalistic and artistic vision to transform everyday transportation moments into magical photographs. Abbey, a photographer, journalist, historian, and railroad industry executive, helped people from many different backgrounds understand and appreciate what was taken for granted: a world of locomotives, passenger trains, big-city terminals, small-town depots, and railroaders. During his lifetime he witnessed and photographed sweeping changes in the railroading industry from the steam era to the era of diesel locomotives and electronic communication. Wallace W. Abbey: A Life in Railroad Photography profiles the life and work of this legendary photographer and showcases the transformation of transportation and photography after World War II. Featuring more than 175 exquisite photographs in an oversized format, Wallace W. Abbey is an outstanding tribute to a gifted artist and the railroads he loved.

About the Author

Wallace W. Abbey (1927-2014) spent his career as a railroad journalist and public relations executive, primarily in the Upper Midwest, from the 1940s through the 1980s.

Kevin P. Keefe is a Milwaukee-based journalist and a member of the board of directors of the Center for Railroad Photography & Art.

Scott Lothes is President and Executive Director of the Center for Railroad Photography & Art and a freelance author and photographer whose work appears frequently in Trains and other publications.

The Center for Railroad Photography & Art, www.railphoto-art.org, is a nonprofit arts and education organization whose mission is to preserve and present significant images of railroading.

Reviews

This superb oversize volume showcases the best railroad photographs of Wallace Abbey selected from the nearly 25,000 black and white images made during the course of his life, a collection that is now archived at the Center for Railroad Photography and Art in Lake Forest, Illinois.

* Michigan Railfan *

Wallace W. Abbey profiles the life and work of this legendary photographer and showcases the transformation of transportation and photography after World War II.

* Moderl Railroad News *

Wallace W. Abbey: A Life in Railroad Photography profiles the life and work of this legendary photographer and showcases the transformation of transportation and photography after World War II.

* Model Railroad News *

Their selections of black-and-white photos and passages of flowing commentary both create and complement the smorgasbord of railroad history spread before the reader.

* Railroad History *

"Wallace W. Abbey, a photographer, journalist, historian, and railroad industry executive, masterfully combined journalistic and artistic vision to transform everyday moments in transportation into magical photographs. This stunning book tells his story and features more than 175 of his best photographs."

* Trains Magazine *

"The book features more than 175 gorgeous photos from Abbey's collection, as well as details about Abbey's work ranging from his time at Trains magazine in Milwaukee to running public relations for the Milwaukee Road during the firm's high-profile bankruptcy."

* Urban Milwaukee *



Book Information
ISBN 9780253032249
Author Scott Lothes
Format Hardback
Page Count 240
Imprint Indiana University Press
Publisher Indiana University Press