John Swatsley (American, B. 1937) "Best Friend of Charleston Locomotive" Signed lower left. Original Watercolor painting on Illustration Board painting.
Provenance: Collection of James A. Helzer (1946-2008), Founder of Unicover Corporation.
This painting is the original which appeared on the Fleetwood First Day Cover for the U.S. 22c Best Friend of Charleston stamp issued October 1, 1987.
As railroads came to be built, American ingenuity and spirit took over, and the design and production of locomotives in this country soon became reality. While sail cars and horse drawn entities were not unknown, it was the experimental steam engine which quickly fired the imagination of the nation's mechanically-minded entrepreneurs. The Charleston & Hamburg Line had as its chief engineer Horatio Allen, who in 1829 had designed the "Stourbridge Lion" -- America's first operational locomotive. The success of the imported Lion gave Allen the encouragement he needed to attempt an American-made version. Thus, the first American-built steam locomotive was produced at the West Point Foundry and was named, "Best Friend of Charleston." In December of 1830, it became the first locomotive ever to pull a train of cars by steam power along American railroad tracks. And one month later, the six-mile railroad began formal operation hauling some two hundred guest passengers, most of whom were shareholders and their families, at a speed of twenty-one miles per hour, and marking its progress by intermittent explosions from a small Army field gun, specially requisitioned for the trip. Later, the two hundred guests were replaced by a much more realistic number -- forty to fifty -- of paying customers who traveled the Charleston & Hamburg Line.
Image Size: 13.75 x 12 in.
Overall Size: 20.25 x 18 in.
Unframed.
(B10102)
Condition
- By registering to bid for this auction either in-house or online and/or placing a bid in this auction the BIDDER/BUYER agrees to all the terms and conditions of Helmuth Stone Gallery Auctions.
- All silver, gold and/or jewelry lots or invoices containing said lots MUST be paid for via WIRE TRANSFER, no other forms of payment will be accepted.
- All items are sold as-is where-is and no guarantees are made of any kind. All sales are final; no refunds will be given under any circumstances.
- Helmuth Stone Gallery provides condition reports as a courtesy to our clients and assumes no liability for any error or omission. Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client and is only an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact. Descriptions are our opinions and should in no way be construed as a guarantee of any kind as to age, condition, mater. The bidder assumes responsibility for ensuring that the condition of the item(s) meets with their satisfaction prior to bidding. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging.
- Online images can sometimes be low quality due to the uploading process, original high-resolution images can be requested via email at HelmuthStone@gmail.com
- We recommend looking into shipping quotes prior to bidding, shipping quotes can take up to a week or more post-sale as we host our auctions through multiple online platforms and shipping can become backlogged, if you would like a list of local shippers please email us directly.
- Our auction catalogs are hosted through multiple online platforms along with phone and in-house bidding. Bids placed on other platforms are not shown through this catalog. Because of this, even if it appears you are the only absentee bid or bidder on a lot, you may already be outbid or may have placed a bid equal to another bidder. Therefore, we always recommend bidding live.
- Unless otherwise stated in the description, all items are sold without additional documentation or COAs. If any supporting documentation is available an image will be available online via the catalog listing.