The WPA & the Golden Age · The American Golden Age
Panama-Pacific International Exhibition, San Francisco - Southern Pacific Railway
Southern Pacific Railway, 1915
What it is
Southern Pacific Railway issued this 1915 panorama to sell tickets to the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, the fair San Francisco staged to announce its recovery from the 1906 earthquake and the opening of the Panama Canal.
Why it matters
The copy line - 'the greatest, the most beautiful and the most important in history' - is railroad boosterism at full volume, aimed at travelers deciding which coast to cross.
What to notice
A railroad's panoramic sales pitch for the 1915 exposition: 'the greatest, the most beautiful and the most important in history.'
The years America learned to argue, sell, and dream in ink.
Provenance
- School
- The American Golden Age — the Poster before 1931 (United States)
- Format
- Exhibition poster
- Poster published
- Southern Pacific Railway, 1915
- Source
- Southern Pacific Railway brochure, 'High points on four great highways to the California Expositions' (1915)
Rights: CLEAR. Public domain — U.S. 95-year rule (published 1930 or earlier). Gated by the poster’s own publication year. Cleared by registry on 2026-07-18.
Format
The full-resolution, color-managed file — restored honestly, yours to print and keep.
Sized to protect print quality — this scan supports sizes up to 40x60" cleanly.
Size
$29.00
