Audio of old departing train announcements?

October 14, 2009 7:17 AM

Where online can I find historic audio of train conductors or platform announcers calling out the coming stops on a train and then saying "all aboard"?

This past weekend I was at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento. In one of the exhibits they had what sounded liked genuine old-time announcements of a train's coming stops, something like (made-up cities) "San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Cruz, Los Angeleez, all aboard!"

I'm looking for as many recordings of such announcements as can be found online. I prefer the ones that call out the stops and then bid the passengers to board. If you remember Mel Blanc's "Anaheim, Azusa, and Cu-ca-monga!" then that's exactly what I'm looking for, only genuine and longer. I've googled like mad but only come up with some very modern announcements about security or prerecorded subway/metro announcements.

posted by Mo Nickels to Travel & Transportation (2 answers total)

Jim Lehrer (from PBS' Newshour) was apparently a bus station conductor in Texas when he was young, and regularly recreates the bus call he used back then. I've heard it on Imus in the Morning and it sounds exactly like what you describe (though for a bus instead of a train). I know he includes it whenever he gives a commencement speech but couldn't find the actual audio on the Net.

Hope that helps.
posted by Alexdan4 at 8:42 AM on October 14, 2009

There's a railroad samples page here, and I found another one from the Alaskan Railway here.
posted by Hardcore Poser at 9:26 AM on October 14, 2009