THROUGH THE ROCKIES BEFORE MODERN TOURISM

[The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad]

Rocky Mountain Views On the Rio Grande, The Scenic Line of the World. Consisting of Twenty-three Colored Views from Recent Photographs.

Denver, Colorado: The Smith-Brooks Printing Company, c1917. Soft cover. A VISUAL JOURNEY THROUGH COLORADO'S ROCKY MOUNTAINS BY RAIL.
Issued by the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad, this handsome large-format promotional album presents twenty-three full-color photographic views celebrating the dramatic scenery of Colorado's Rocky Mountains and the celebrated Rio Grande route. Marketed under the railroad's famous slogan, 'Scenic Line of the World,' the publication combines early color photographic reproduction with the visual language of luxury travel promotion.

COLORADO'S ROCKY MOUNTAINS BY RAIL — 23 EARLY COLOR VIEWS.
Produced for passengers and prospective travelers, the album presents mountain landscapes, canyons, resort destinations, and engineering achievements along the railroad's route, transforming a journey by rail into a carefully curated experience of the American West.

A striking example of early 20th-century railroad advertising, with exceptional large-format color imagery and the original presentation format preserved.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS: A LARGE-FORMAT COLOR ILLUSTRATED RAILROAD PROMOTIONAL ALBUM.
+++ Oblong album, approximately 12 × 10 inches. Original illustrated paper wrappers with string-tied binding. 
+++ The front wrapper features a dramatic color image of a train passing through a Rocky Mountain canyon.
+++ Illustrated with 23 full-color photographic reproductions from recent photographs, each captioned and mounted on heavy dark paper leaves. 
+++ The images depict locations along the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad route, including Colorado Springs, Pikes Peak, Royal Gorge, Manitou, Marshall Pass, Salida, and other scenic destinations.
+++ Includes two text leaves titled 'Explanation of Subjects Illustrated,' providing descriptive commentary for the views.

CONDITION. 
+++ The original string-tied binding is secure, with covers and contents intact. Text and mounted images are clean with light, even age toning. The outer wrappers show light handling wear and rubbing, consistent with a travel publication intended for passenger use. 
+++ The front paste-on image retains strong visual appeal with expected age-related surface wear.
+++ Contemporary ownership inscription on the title page dated October 25, 1926.
+++ The title page has been neatly colored by a child, an uncommon example of personal interaction with a travel souvenir and evidence of the album's continued appeal beyond its original promotional purpose.

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE: RAILROAD TOURISM AND THE MARKETING OF THE AMERICAN WEST.
The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad played a major role in promoting Colorado tourism through scenic-route advertising that transformed transportation into an experience of landscape and adventure. Publications such as this presented the Rocky Mountains not merely as destinations but as a carefully constructed vision of leisure travel.

1917 RAILROAD TOURISM AT ITS MOST SPECTACULAR.
Issued during the golden age of railroad tourism, this album reflects the early 20th-century effort by railroads to attract passengers through dramatic imagery, luxury travel associations, and the promise of direct access to the American West.

The large-format color photographic views provide a visual record of Colorado landscapes, communities, and railroad routes before later changes in transportation reshaped American travel.

GENRES: Railroadiana, Travel Literature, Colorado History, Western Americana, Promotional Literature, Tourism Ephemera, Photographic Albums, Transportation History
SUBJECTS: Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad, Rio Grande Railway, Rocky Mountains, Colorado, Colorado Springs, Pikes Peak, Royal Gorge, Scenic Railways, Railroad Tourism, Early Color Photography, American West, Travel Promotion, Railroad Advertising, Western Landscape

Item #22532

Price: $125.00