Interurban Memories
Available for the first time on Audio CD
From the CERA Archives
Interurban Memories, recorded in 1960 and 1961, features Hi-Fi stereo recordings of two of the last three Interurbans in the US- Pacific Electric and the Chicago, North Shore & Milwaukee, aka the North Shore Line. First issued on LP in 1961, Interurban Memories has been out of print and almost impossible to find for decades. Now, Central Electric Railfans’ Association has digitally remastered these historic recordings, and they sound better than ever.
Hear the sounds of these fabled electric railways in their twilight years. With the original liner notes by Ira Swett.
Order online or order by mail
B-146 Update
We are now putting the finishing touches on our next book Chicago Streetcar Pictorial: The PCC Car Era 1936-1958 before sending it off to be printed. The good news is CERA has decided to go “all in” and the book has been expanded another 16 pages, to a total of 448- fully twice the number of B-145.
However, in order to add these extra pages, and make the approximately 700 images in the book look as good as they can be, we simply need a bit more time to finish the job. As of the moment, we expect that the book will ship in August. This will give our talented designer the additional time he needs to remove the imperfections from 60-year-old images, and match colors from shot to shot.
We know our members will be very understanding, since B-146 has to stand the test of time, as the most important book about Chicago streetcars to appear in the last 40 years.
This book is a two-year entitlement for those who were CERA members in both 2012 and 2013. We gave those who were members in only one of the two years a chance to “step up” and make up for the missing year so they could receive the book. Many of you did so, and the deadline for this was June 1st.
Those who were members in only one of the two years will receive copies of How the Medal Was Wonand A Rainbow of Traction as their entitlement- in other words, two books for the one year. By the time you read this, all those books will have been shipped.
Our pre-order for B-146 has also been quite successful, and as a result, fully 2/3rds of the entire expanded print run has already been spoken for. Like many CERA books, we expect this one will sell out in a short period of time, and will quickly become a collector’s item that will increase in value over the years. Don’t miss out! Reserve your copy today, if you have not already done so.
Chicago Streetcar Pictorial Round Table
CERA plans something truly spectacular for our September 26th program- the Chicago Streetcar Pictorial Round Table. We are inviting all the living photographers who are represented in B-146 to take part in amoderated discussion about their work and their interest in documenting Chicago streetcars. We will showcase their images and there will be a question-and-answer session as well.
This will be a unique, once-in-a-lifetime “oral history” event that will be videotaped for future release. Since we expect this program to be completely “sold out,” we will give our current members (and others who have pre-ordered B-146) first crack at attending. More information will follow soon by mail on how to get your tickets. Get to meet these legendary photographers in person, talk to them and ask them questions.
ERHS Collection Update
The demand for AR-1, our Complete ERHS Collection DVD, has been very strong, and to date, we have sold nearly 200 copies. This collection features all 49 bulletins from the Electric Railway Historical Society on a single data disc that can be viewed on a computer. In addition to the 1,826 pages in these bulletins, there is an additional 113 pages of bonus material- an incredible bargain!
It has taken us time to get caught up with the demand, but by the time you read this, all current orders will have been shipped. So far, we have received reports of just five defective discs, all of which were promptly replaced. We thank you for your patience.
-Your CERA Directors
