C&O RAILROAD - 1948 -BRASS WALL LAMP SET - INT. SILV (02/10/2011)...

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C&O RAILROAD - 1948 -BRASS WALL LAMP SET - INT. SILVER

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C&O RAILROAD - 1948 -BRASS WALL LAMP SET - INT. SILVER

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Sold Date: 02/10/2011
Channel: Online Auction
Source: eBay
Category: Advertising

Here is a very rare 1948 – Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad – 13 ¾” tall by 3 7/8” wide (across the circular base) brass - silver plate very large wall mount – light – sconce set made for the interior of one of the Chesapeake & Ohio Dining Cars or Lounge Cars. These wall mount vintage brass holders are one of the rarest pieces of dining car type silver items there was for the C&O, as not many of these were ever made and even fewer survived over the years. If you collect C&O Railroad items, dining car silver and china, or even hotel silver, you seriously might want to consider this set your collection.

These wall lamp holders – sconces were used aboard the railroad’s dining cars, lounge cars, and possibly other cars (but can’t confirm which others) and would have been mounted on the side of the walls of the car to provide a subtle (standard DC power of the time) lighting and decoration for the interior of the cars. These were permanent fixtures that were part of these cars, but also matched the style of dining car silver plate and china items that were used for table settings. The holders may have had a shade or a globe on them and would have most likely been for DC electric current wire to be ran to them, which was the standard method of lighting for most railroad cars.

The holders were made by the International Silver Co. and has the datemark of 1948. One is clearly marked on the inside of the holder that mounts to the wall “Chesapeake & Ohio”, while the other has the name partially scratched out (but you can still see it). Both are marked as “Silver Soldered”, but they appear to be made of brass (very very rare). Both have the catalog numbers of 05091, E304. Again, the set is brass, which is a rarity in itself. The holders are the heavyweight type Steamship, Restaurant, and Hotel silverplate. Both are in exceptional condition with hardly much usage at all. Both are very ornamental in their design and are truly a works of art in the area of railroad silver.

During the 1948 postwar era, the C&O was operating many new streamliner trains. Some of these included the George Washington and Fast Flying Virginian. In 1933, the railroad had also introduced its famous sleeping car advertising campaign of the famous “Chessie” cat to promote “Sleep like a Kitten” while aboard the railroad for travel. During the postwar streamliner era, Chessie’s advertising image was going strong!

Some of these towns and cities that these sconces may have traveled through while aboard one of the cars included Chicago, Illinois; Peru, Muncie, Richmond, and Cottage Grove, Indiana; Cincinnati, Covington, Maysville Toledo, Fostoria, Columbus, Valley Crossing, Ohio; Louisville, Frankfort, Lexington, Ashlnad, Portsmouth, and Maysville, Kentucky; Huntington, Charleston, Alderson, Rondeverte, and Cabin Creek, Junction, West Virginia; Clifton Forge, Covington, Natural Bridge, Virginia Hot Springs (The Greenbrier Hotel), Newport News, Norfolk, Fork Union, Clupeper, Alexandria, Fairfax, Manassas, Eagle Mountain, Old Point Comfort, Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Virginia; Washington, D.C., and many other cities, towns, and stations across the C&O system.

A wonderful addition to your Chessie Cat, Railroad China, Home Furnishing / Home Decorating / Interior Design, or Railroad Silver Collection. The actual item looks much better than what the digital images shows it as. Buyer to prepay item along with $14.99 which includes shipping, packing, and handling in the United States. I will combine shipping on multiple orders to save on shipping whenever possible. Payment must be received within Ten (10) days from the end of the auction. No returns on any items. All sales are final and items are sold “as-is”. I cannot be responsible for emails that are sent but blocked by servers with spam filters. If you cannot contact or do not hear from me, please contact me through eBay. International buyers please note, import duties, taxes and charges are not included in the item price or shipping charges. These charges are the buyer's respon...