Freight train

In the 1820s, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad became the first incorporated, operating railroad in the United States and changed the country forever. Railways soon connected cities, states, and, eventually, the east and west coasts. All at once, travel became faster, safer, and more affordable, and Americans began a romance with the railroad that would last for decades. Trains influenced many aspects of American life, including travel, commerce, agriculture, and even play. Toy manufacturers of the time recognized and capitalized on the railroad craze, producing miniature trains in mass quantities. Toy trains, such as this Arcade freight train with two boxcars, have enjoyed great popularity ever since, even though automobile and air travel replaced trains as preferred modes of travel by the mid-1900s.