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    Of all the trains that ran to Atlantic City in the glory days of American railroading, the Central Railroad of New Jersey’s Blue Comet is probably the most famous and fondly remembered. Inaugurated on February 21, 1929, two round-trip Blue Comet trains ran each way between New York and Atlantic City making the trip in 3 hours. The cars of the train were painted in a two-tone Packard blue and royal blue scheme with a band of Jersey cream painted along the center of the cars, running the length of the train. Each car was named after a comet. Three powerful Pacific type steam locomotives built by the Baldwin works in 1928 were painted in the same two tone blue with gold striping. These engines could easily handle the train at 70 mph as it streaked through the Jersey Pine Barrens. It’s deep throated 3-chime steamboat whistle could be heard for miles. 
    Passengers from New York had to take the 23rd St. ferry from Manhattan to the railroad’s terminal in Jersey City where they would board the train. The Comet was a deluxe coach train with reserved seats at no extra cost. There was a dining car featuring a blue plate special for $.85 to $1.00 and full dinners for $1.25. Fish, chicken or steak was served. Passengers all had access to the observation car on the rear of the train with it’s parlor lounge and open observation platform. In it’s advertising, the railroad referred to the Blue Comet as “The Seashore’s Finest Train”. 
    The Blue Comet was an immediate success even after the stock market crash of October 29, 1929. But the deepening great depression took it’s toll on ridership. Their service was cut back to one trip per day in 1934. The train valiantly soldiered on through the 1930s but was finally discontinued on September 18, 1941. Highway competition along with economic conditions doomed the handsome train.
    Part of the Blue Comet’s enduring fame is due to the Lionel Corporation’s Blue Comet standard gauge electric toy train set which is a sought-after item among toy train collectors. Several of the Comet’s original cars still exist, some awaiting restoration and one of the observation cars is part of a restaurant while all three of the original blue locomotives were scrapped, Central Railroad of New Jersey’s No. 592, a fast Atlantic Camelback type locomotive which pulled the train when the blue engines weren’t available is preserved today in the B&O Museum in Baltimore.

 A week ago we stopped by the craft show in Media, P.A. Media is a great town for art and craft lovers. The main street is home to not only the famous Media Theater, but many quirky little shops selling unique works.  We ran into a few local artists we've meet on the art show circuit before. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't the most ideal. The wind was incredibly strong and a few participants packed up early because they feared it would damage their work. Still it was a good learning experience for us to get ideas on how to display our work at street fairs. Lansdowne's outdoor show is coming up in the fall so we wanted to see how people use the space they're given and how they tie down their tents. Even if the weather wants to be difficult during the fair, we should be ready! 

Throughout the summer, we're looking to travel around to see various art shows and fairs. Picking up ideas and connecting with other local artists is super important to us. Stay tuned for more posts reporting from art shows. Check out upcoming events in Media. It's such a neat town with lots to see and if you go treat yourself to pizza at Pinnochio's .😋💕   http://visitmediapa.com/

Lots of great stuff! Check out our railroad products!

We added a few new photo products to the store! They look great on the new phone cases Redbubble has added. The Skeeball picture was taken on the Ocean City boardwalk. Any arcade fan will love these phone case wallets! The Tower is a staple of Philly and Delco nightlife. Most of us have great concert memories from here. Mine include Ringo and His All-Star Band and Bob's Burger's live 😁  And I know it's not the typical peacock photo, but I love the attitude this bird has. Plus if you do love these colorful creatures, more peacock photos are in the works. Stay tuned for more products, and thank you for continuing to follow and support us!

We ordered some of our store products so we could see them for ourselves and they look awesome! I am particularly proud of the pillow and travel mug. Thank you  Redbubble for making our work look great on your products😉
Also, if you're wondering what these products are like or are trying to decide between a few, contact us with you're questions. We're happy to talk!

 I don't know about you guys, but the warm weather that we're finally getting has me day dreaming about the beach 🌞👙  My family grew up on the Jersey Shore and every summer we spend family vacations and make day trips. We love the shore and it's the perfect way to live up the summer! Many of my dad's silk screens are shore inspired. I love them for their design and color, plus they look great as phone cases, on bags, and even travel mugs. If you're like me, you are already looking at what bathing suit to buy this year and slowly preparing your beach gear for memorial day weekend, stop at our store to see if any of our beach items suit you. And you can expect more to come in the next couple of weeks. See ya down the shore! 😎

Kranefeld Pictures Ink is officially open on Red Bubble. Our store is small now, but during the next few days we'll be adding many more items. Click here to start shopping 🌻   

A little about our first product: The Shofuso Japanese House and Garden is a hidden gem in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park.  Every April, during the peak of trees blooming, the city hold a cherry blossom festival called Sakura Sunday. It is always a colorful celebration that celebrates Japanese culture in our own backyard. The Shofuso House is open April through October and you can read more about it here! 🎏

Kranefeld Pictures Ink is close to opening! Here's what you should know about us: 
We produce paintings, graphics, and photography.
Our work can be bought as prints but also mugs, journals, pillows and much more!
We're from the Philadelphia/Delco area and much of our work is inspired by our home.
and most importantly we're super excited to share our work with you! 
visit our contact page to see what social media we're on so you can follow us and get updates on new products as they come out. We look forward to doing business with you!