{"id":13817,"date":"2026-11-06T09:45:19","date_gmt":"2026-11-06T13:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/?p=13817"},"modified":"2026-11-09T09:33:38","modified_gmt":"2026-11-09T13:33:38","slug":"steam-steel-and-snapshots-new-exhibition-highlights-the-william-a-swartz-locomotive-collection-and-purdues-locomotive-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/2026\/11\/06\/steam-steel-and-snapshots-new-exhibition-highlights-the-william-a-swartz-locomotive-collection-and-purdues-locomotive-history\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cSteam, Steel, and Snapshots:\u201d New exhibition highlights the William A. Swartz Locomotive Collection and Purdue\u2019s locomotive history"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad\u2019s \u201cLafayette,\u201d built in 1837, was the railroad\u2019s first locomotive with a horizontal boiler. A replica of the locomotive is on display at the Linden Depot Museum in Linden, Indiana, approximately 20 minutes from Purdue\u2019s campus.
William A. Swartz collection of locomotive photographs, publications, and records, MSP 320, Box 26, folder 18<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Railway enthusiasts, photography lovers, and history buffs can explore the rich history of steam locomotives through an upcoming exhibition at Purdue University Archives and Special Collections. This spring, \u201cSteam, Steel, and Snapshots: The William A. Swartz Collection of Locomotive Photographs, Publications and Records,\u201d will be on display from January 19 to May 27, 2027, in Archives and Special Collections on the fourth floor of the Humanities, Social Sciences and Education (HSSE) Library in Stewart Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Curated by Richard Bernier, processing and public services archivist, and Elijah Patton, student assistant, the exhibition will highlight the extensive collection of William A. Swartz, a former Purdue student and lifelong photographer and collector of steam locomotive images from around the world. Dedicated to documenting railway history, Swartz assembled an extraordinary collection of more than 40,000 photographs representing 2,642 railway companies across 69 countries. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond photographs, the collection includes locomotive construction records, rosters, publications, newsletters, correspondence, and other materials that provide insight into the history of railways and the people who documented them. Together, these resources offer a comprehensive look at steam locomotives and their role in transportation history. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Wabash Railroad, Engine #566, 1947, William A. Swartz collection of locomotive photographs, publications, and records, MSP 320, Box 90, Folder 12<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The exhibition will also highlight Purdue\u2019s connection to locomotive history, with a dedicated section that will explore the university\u2019s history of locomotive testing and boiler research, connecting Swartz\u2019s collection to Purdue\u2019s engineering legacy and Boilermaker identity. Visitors will explore the collection\u2019s breadth, including photographs of railways in Indiana and the surrounding region, images from countries around the world, and materials illustrating Swartz\u2019s network of collaborators. A reception celebrating the exhibition is planned for February 18, 2027.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about the William A. Swartz collection in the collections resource record<\/a>, or explore the Purdue University Archives and Special Collections website<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Railway enthusiasts, photography lovers, and history buffs can explore the rich history of steam locomotives through an upcoming exhibition at Purdue University Archives and Special Collections. This spring, \u201cSteam, Steel, and Snapshots: The William A. Swartz Collection of Locomotive Photographs, Publications and Records,\u201d will be on display from January 19 to May 27, 2027, in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":166,"featured_media":13818,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[13126,13,13101],"tags":[3863,13102,3],"class_list":["post-13817","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives-and-special-collections","category-general","category-news-and-announcements","tag-archives-and-special-collections","tag-general","tag-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/files\/2026\/11\/train-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C2062&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pT6ms-3AR","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/166"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13817"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13817\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13827,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13817\/revisions\/13827"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13818"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.lib.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}