About the Ernest Roberts Railroad Photography Collection

A word about the Ernest Roberts Railroad Photograph Collection represented on this website, clearly noted in the digital watermark on each collection photograph:

A passionate photographer and collector of vintage railroad photographs, Ernest Roberts worked as a mechanical engineer for Western Electric in the Baltimore area for thirty years.  He earned his engineering degree at Johns Hopkins University at night school, and he served in the National Guard.

Retiring at forty-nine when the Western Electric plant closed, Ernest opened a shop in Cockeysville, Maryland selling prints of his railroad photographs as well as camera equipment.  All of his prints were made in his own darkroom.  His loving daughter accompanied Ernest on many of his outings to Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia and other locations where there was heavy railroad activity.  Through Ernest’s daughter’s generosity, many railroad images in Ernest’s collection have been made available to Marc Schuman for printing for sale to railroad enthusiasts.  Some vintage negatives survive in excellent condition, suitable for silver halide photographic prints made in the dark room.  Others have been digitally scanned and restored and are available for sale in digital print form.

As with other photographs available on the site, all are matted on archival backing board with two inch borders top and sides and a wider five inch border on the bottom edge.  Many of the prints available for sale are non-standard sizes owing to different film formats commonly used in earlier times that are now obsolete.  Always wait for the receipt of your mounted prints before ordering matting and framing for your precious railroad photographs.