1877 Chromolithograph of the Toledo - Ann Arbor Railroad

A striking c. 1870 - 1881 chromolithograph broadside promoting the Toledo and Ann Arbor Railroad. The route, completed in the year this broadside was issued, is promoted with connections to the Hoosac Tunnel Line, itself opened in 1875, and thus to Albany and Boston. The map further includes a lengthy and rambling story featuring 'Uncle Remus', then a popular fictional African-American folk figure. The Toledo and Ann Arbor Railroad apparently contracted the 'Uncle Remus' name for promotional purposes.

A Closer Look

The advertising broadside features a passenger locomotive crossing the Huron River on a bridge inscribed as the 'The [Key] To Michigan'. In the river a couple in rowboat named 'Ann Arbor' wave. Vignettes at the top illustrate another impressive river crossing, likely of the Huron River Ypsilanti Peninsular Paper Dam, originally constructed in 1867. Another vignette in the upper right details the University of Michigan, highlighting at center University Hall (1871 - 1950). The flanking buildings are unknown. Below the main image is the Uncle Remus story. A timetable at bottom center details routes between Toledo, Ann Arbor, and South Lyons.

Toledo and Ann Arbor Railroad

The Toledo and Ann Arbor Railroad was founded in 1877 by James M. Ashley. Ashley acquired the assets of the 'Toledo, Ann Arbor and Northern Railroad' (TAANR), which filed for bankruptcy in the aftermath of the Panic of 1873. The infrastructure of the TAANR provided the framework for the new TAAR, which by 1878 successfully extended the route from Alexis, Ohio, to Ann Arbor. In 1878, planning to extend the route further north, Ashley incorporated a new company, the 'Toledo, Ann Arbor and North Eastern' (TAANE). He promptly extended the line to Pontiac and South Lyons, where it connected to the Michigan Air Line Railway and by extension, the Canadian Grand Trunk. Yet another company was formed in 1880, consolidating Ashley's railroads as the 'Toledo, Ann Arbor and Grand Trunk' (TAAGT). Ashley's lines continued to expand through additional mergers, new trackage, and savvy business dealings until, by 1890, he operated 285.5 miles of track in Michigan. The fast expansion overextended Ashley and by 1893 he was unable to pay his bonds. The company went into receivership on April 27 under Wellington R. Burt. Ashley resigned. Parts of the line operated until 1976 as the Ann Arbor Railroad.

Uncle Remus

Uncle Remus is a polarizing figure - today more than ever. He is a fictional character construed by Joel Chandler Harris: a good-natured elderly freeman of color confused by the changes wrought by Emancipation and the American Civil War (1861 - 1865). He was developed a foil through which Harris recorded the Reconstruction-era African American experience, as well as African American folk tales - many of which are derived from African folklore. He is, nonetheless, somewhat controversial. Uncle Remus himself is an 'Uncle Tom' character, sympathetic to and nostalgic for the antebellum south. At the same time, the folklore and language preserved through the 'Uncle Remus' stories record an ephemeral moment of the African American experience that might otherwise have been lost.

The present use of 'Uncle Remus' predates the 1881 publication of Uncle Remus: His Songs and His Sayings, but by this time the figure had already been popularized by Harris's dialectic sketches in the Atlanta Constitution. Why the figure was used to promote the Ann Arbor railroad is unclear.

The dialogue here begins with Remus meeting an old friend 'Dilsey Ann' from Putnam County, Georgia. He is astounded to discover she is married and has become prosperous under Reconstruction, 'with diamond earrings, and a gold watch'. She is herself married to a freed slave, 'Mose Turner', who has become a wealthy banker and plantation owner. The tale then takes a bizarre turn. Remus meets Miss Ann Arbor, who has apparently just had dinner with Chief Pontiac (1720 - 1769), despite that figure having died some 100 years prior, and in the process resolved the 'onery' 'injun' problem. She then introduces Remus to Uncle Sam, who laments that Remus does not support black education. Remus rants against the education of former slaves before, gaining control of his emotions, ends with a short ditty intended to promote the Ann Arbor Line,

Dat de Ann-Arbor-line
Am de banner line -
An de swift shure line!

The entire conversation might be allegorical. Ashley, owner of the TAAR, was actively attempting to build connections to South Lyons and Pontiac, and on to the Canadian Grand Trunk. The TAAR reached South Lyons in 1879, but the Pontiac extension was a constant thorn in Ashley's side. He never completed the line to Pontiac, instead striking a deal with the Grand Trunk in 1882 to connect via the Port Huron Main Line.

Chromolithography

Chromolithography, sometimes called oleography, is a color lithographic technique developed in the mid-19th century. The process involved using multiple lithographic stones, one for each color, to yield a rich composite effect. Oftentimes, the process would start with a black basecoat upon which subsequent colors were layered. Some chromolithographs used 30 or more separate lithographic stones to achieve the desired product. Chromolithograph color could also be effectively blended for even more dramatic results. The process became extremely popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when it emerged as the dominant method of color printing. The vivid color chromolithography produced made it exceptionally effective for advertising and propaganda imagery.

Publication History and Census

This chromolithograph is rare - likely due to the rapidly changing fortunes of the TAAR and Ashley. The dating is uncertain. The name Toledo and Ann Arbor Railroad was active only in 1877. The timetable, however, suggests connections with South Lyons, which were not completed until 1879. The use of Uncle Remus as a spokesperson is not impossible in between 1877-1879, he was already a known character, but he did not become immensely popular until after 1881. No printer is identified. This is the only known example.