The Accommodation Train

This amusing print spoofs people who travel with too much luggage and their pets. Here, a large woman (shown in a side view) is laden with belongings as she approaches a train, where a conductor (at left) stands in the railroad car doorway and looks at her. In her right hand, the woman holds a straw basket, a birdcage (with a bird inside), and an umbrella; in her left hand, she holds a large brown bag, while holding a squirming white cat under her left arm. A small white dog scampers beside her; on the platform behind them, there is a wicker-covered bottle (labeled "CATSUP") and a green hatbox. At the lower right, a boy in tattered clothes points at her and chuckles.The train locomotive is in the right background.

Nathaniel Currier, whose successful New York-based lithography firm began in 1835, produced thousands of prints in various sizes that together create a vivid panorama of mid-to-late nineteenth century American life and its history. People eagerly acquired such lithographs featuring picturesque scenery, rural and city views, ships, railroads, portraits, hunting and fishing scenes, domestic life and numerous other subjects, including political cartoons, as an inexpensive way to decorate their homes or business establishments. As the firm expanded, Nathaniel included his younger brother Charles in the business. In 1857, James Merritt Ives (the firm's accountant since 1852 and Charles's brother-in-law) was made a business partner; subsequently renamed Currier & Ives, the firm continued until 1907.