American Railroad China: Image and Experience

This book studies and celebrates the remarkable railroad china collection of Jay W. Christopher, and was published to accompany the Brauer Museum of Art’s major exhibition, The Christopher Railroad China Collection: The Art of Dining on Rails (on display from December 13, 2008 through March 22, 2009).

Historian Charles G. Kratz, Jr. discusses in his essay the role of dining cars and dining car china in the history of the various American railroads. Designed by the Chicago-based design firm The Grillo Group, the book is full of color images of pieces from the Christopher Collection, as well as reproductions of archival photographs and archival items related to the railroads.

The book also features contributions by collector Jay W. Christopher, Brauer Museum of Art director/curator Gregg Hertzlieb, and renowned railroad historian and filmmaker Richard Luckin.