Synopsis
Promotional film about Indiana and its railroads. 0849 Begins with the development of Indiana told from Eurocentric perspective. Opens with historical recreation: man in period costume sings in a tenor about the Wabash river, about "pioneers" moving to Indiana. "Folks hankerin' to be somebody, have things they could call their own and be proud of. Feeling that way they cleared the land and planted it to crops. The womenfolk helped in the fields. Lean-tos gave way to log cabins, cabins to houses of stone, the wilderness disappeared." "It's a place where one man, any man can do things on his own. " Stock shots: locomotives -- a number of shots. Map showing the development of the U.S. by parcels. Focus on Northwest Territory. Men's choral singing in formal attire. Conductor. Shots of towns in Indiana. Two factories which make prefabricated houses. Assembly line in prefabricated house factory (National Homes, Inc.). Laying rails, ties, and spikes. Firehouse with fire truck leaving. The Capitol. Indianapolis and local landmarks. Good footage of Indianapolis 500. Clark Gable. The logos of the many train lines which intersect Indiana rail lines are shown matted over shots of moving trains. The city of Louisville, Kentucky. Kentucky Derby. Chicago city, landmarks, aerials. Historical recreation of discussion of laying rails in Indiana. Musical number in period costumes about fun riding the trains. • 3:19:09- 3:29:91 A long train makes its way across a low bridge in the green…
Uploader's description on archive.org
Details
- Running time
- 29 minutes
- Collection
- Prelinger Archives
Reviews on the Internet Archive
★★★★ · Ahhhhh! · Spuzz · 2016-07-18
A bit of a better copy of this film here. this film really IS outstanding. A great rundown of the Hoosier train route, commonly known (here) as the Monon line. In this film, we meet up with a very odd looking chap who runs the mail runs? at a stop in the line, visit Chicago, go to the Kentucky Derby AND the Indianapolis 500 and visit all the farm life in Indiana. Oh, did I mention throughout all of this, there's Hoosier themed musical numbers? All of this is in great color.