Elizabeth and I arose at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Milwaukee and had breakfast at George Webb, a Wisconsin chain restaurant, which had been recommended to us, located diagonally opposite the hotel. We returned and checked our e-mail before the 8:00 departure of the motor coach to take us to Christopher Transportation Museum in Sheboygan. The two of us had visited this private estate during the 2021 NRHS convention but were looking forward to being there again.
The estate stretches across 500 acres of farm and botanical gardens along a mile of Lake Michigan shoreline. This private venue also features the "Dairyland Express", a 16-inch gauge amusement park train powered by a Wisconsin gas engine that runs on a half-mile of track. The highlight of the tour will be the Christopher Transportation Railroad China Collection. The vast and varied collection features vintage china pieces and sets from a wide variety of American and International air, steamship and rail lines. The collection also includes various railroad equipment and transportation memorabilia. The grounds are a world-class botanical garden and are outstanding. They are worth the trip by themselves. Photography is permitted and encouraged in the garden area, but may not be used for any commercial use without prior written approval from Farm management.
This colourful flower bed with the initials of Christopher Farms and Gardens greets visitors.
An early morning autumnal scene.
Impatiens lined the circumference of this flower bed.
Humming Curves.
A statute similar to those found on Easter Island.
This was the first of several railway signs around the property.
One of the staff leading us through part of the garden to the Transportation Museum; he would later give us a guided tour of other areas of the extensive grounds.
The Jay W. Christopher Transportation Museum sign.
A throwback to a different era.
A Great Northern sign beside the entrance to the museum building.
An introduction to the transportation china collection.
This display takes one back in time to the era of dining cars and telegraph operators. Elizabeth and I started exploring this incredible collection of china from railways all over North America and Europe. I have organized the photographs below alphabetically by railway, and while the display cases are not in order, the china in each is.
Atlantic Coast Line dining car china.
Alaska Railroad.
Algoma Central.
Baltimore and Ohio.
Boston and Albany/Boston and Maine.
Cadillac and Lake City.
Canadian National.
China from Canadian National's Hotel Vancouver and Royal York Hotel in Toronto.
Canadian Pacific Railway.
Canadian Pacific china from the railway's pavilioin restaurant at Expo 86. The inspiration for this design was conceived from "Rainbow War", the movie which played at the Pavilion's theatre. Chinaware in this pattern was only used for the six month duration of the Exposition and many pieces can still be found in mint condition due to their limited use. Information from "Dining With Canadian Railways Volume 1 Canadian Pacific Chinaware" by Will Smith.
Canadian Pacific's Brown Maple Leaf scheme. This pattern, originally manufactured for exclusive use on railway dining cars, was registered in 1929, but was not produced until 1943. It was used in service with the Uniform Crest - Green and Maple Leaf - Blue patterns. Later, chinaware in this pattern was transferred in railway business and Superintendents' cars, the Vancouver station dining room and B.C. Coast Steamship Service. It has been dive-recovered from abandoned CPR dock sites on the British Columbia Coast and Great Lakes. Information from "Dining With Canadian Railways Volume 1 Canadian Pacific Chinaware" by Will Smith.
Canadian Pacific's Green Band. Circa 1908, the Interscroll was re-introduced (originally premiered in the late 1890's) with a fresh new look and adopted as the final version of the overlapping initials. It became the company's standard monogram for advertising ephemera, menus and tableware. The Interscroll appeared as the top mark on many china patterns, silver plate hollowware, cutlery and glassware produced for Canadian Pacific hotels right through to 1965. Information from "Dining With Canadian Railways Volume 1 Canadian Pacific Chinaware" by Will Smith.
Chesapeake and Ohio.
Chicago and Alton Railway.
Chicago and Milwaukee Electric/Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad.
Chicago and North Western.
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy.
Delaware and Hudson.
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western.
Denver and Rio Grande Western.
Erie Railroad.
Florida East Coast.
Gulf, Mobile and Ohio.
Great Northern.
Grand Trunk.
Illinois Central.
Illinois Terminal and Washington Terminal.
Kansas City Southern.
Louisville and Nashville and Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range.
Lehigh Valley and Lehigh Valley Transit.
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific.
Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie.
Mississippi and Tennessee.
Missouri-Kansas-Texas.
Missouri Pacific.
New Georgia Railroad and Dominion and Atlantic.
New York, New Haven and Hartford.
Chicago, Indianapolis and Louisville/New York, Chicago and St. Louis.
Norfolk and Western.
Sperry Rail Service, Detroit United, Chattanooga Traction Company, Illinois Terminal, Union News Company and New York Central Station Restaurant.
Pittsburgh and Lake Erie.
Pennsylvania.
Pere Marquette.
Reading Railroad.
Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac.
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific.
San Diego Short Line.
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe.
Seaboard Air Line.
Southern.
Southern Pacific.
Union Pacific.
Virginian.
Wabash.
Wisconsin Central.
Dining car menus from a multitude of railroads.
Trays and plates from several railways.
Fred Harvey.
New York Railroad Club.
British Columbia Electric Railway, Chicago Milwaukee Electric Railway, Indianapolis and Louisville Traction Company, Brown News Company and Interstate News Company.
British Columbia Electric Railway and Canada Railway News.
Details of two pieces of BCER china.
International Stewards Association, Detroit Tunnel and Grand Central Terminal.
Howard Johnson Restaurants.
Cups and saucers from a multitude of railroad companies.
The collection of bowls and small plates.
Pullman.
Various compotes.
Bethlehem Steel Company and Jones and Laughlin Steel Company.
Various turkey platters.
The first shelf contains china from the U.S. Forest Service. The bottom shelf houses china from the United States Army Transport Service 1861-1945 and the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey 1807-1970. There are also a few pieces from the United States Shipping Board and United States Revenue Cutter Service, which pre-dated the Coast Guard.
United States Lighthouse Services and the National Geographic Society.
United States Naval Training Center.
Strategic Air Command and United States Agency - West Point Academy.
British Railways.
Mobil Oil, Texaco, Standard Oil, Gulf Oil and Pure Oil.
South African Railways.
Presidential Collection from Air Force One, Marine One, Camp David and Air Force Two.
Pan American World Airways.
Northwest Airlines.
Northeast Airlines.
American Airlines.
American Airlines Flagship Fleet goblet.
Trans World Airline.
Bowls and plates from various world airlines.
