Rail & Road Auctions was started by industry professionals seeking to provide a more focused auction experience for transportation collectors. We wanted to put our expertise in transportation towards something that was more about passion than profit. We cherish every piece that comes through our door because that piece is history itself. Whether it’s Railroad, Automotive, Nautical, or Aviation collectibles, they represent a unique place in time and bond countless memories to an era that is entirely gone. We take pride in standing out as an auction house that understands and cherishes the pieces it handles for their historical value and not just their dollar value.
Railroadiana: As the only auctioneers in the Midwest that specialize in Railroadiana, we are excited to receive inquiries about full sized railroad equipment, signals, lanterns, signs, china, keys, locks, passes, timetables, paper, builders plates, locomotive hardware, and related articles.
In 2022 and 2023 Rail & Road Auctions sold more lots of railroadiana at auction than any other auction company, making us the largest volume railroadiana auction company in the United States. Rail & Road can handle your ENTIRE collection. We won’t pick and choose what we’ll sell for you.
We can and will travel outside of the Midwest to pack and relocate your collection to our Lafayette Indiana warehouse where it will be expertly cataloged and photographed. We auction to a national and international audience using multiple bidding platforms to expand our reach around the world.
If you’re curious whether your collection or individual piece is something others may be interested in, contact us. You’ll find us easy to talk to and see that our passion for railroads and transportation is unmatched. We invite you to come learn more about why Rail & Road is a market leader in the sale of quality Railroad memorabilia.
Automobilia:
Our passion for transportation memorabilia extends beyond railroading to automotive as well. For a detailed look at our automobilia consignment process, please click here.
We are interested in items from ANY TIME PERIOD including newer items. We are looking for but not limited to:
- Dealership Memorabilia and Promotional Items
- Drag Racing & Open Wheel Racing Memorabilia
- Automotive & Transportation Toys. This can include pressed steel toys, pedal cars, model kits, and more.
- Signage
- Literature
- NOS and Other Parts Collections
- Promotional Models
- Service Department Items, Signage, Cabinets, etc.
We can and will travel outside of the Midwest to pack and relocate your collection to our Lafayette Indiana warehouse where it will be expertly cataloged and photographed. We auction to a national and international audience using multiple bidding platforms to expand our reach around the world.
If you are searching for the right partner for your automotive memorabilia collection, please contact us. We’re happy to listen to your unique situation and find ways for us to partner with you to find the next group of caretakers for your items.
Nautical:
Beyond the rails and the road, Rail & Road Auctions extends to the open water. Whether it’s large ocean liners to smaller pleasure craft, Rail & Road can connect your nautical collection with a new group of caretakers. Types of nautical memorabilia that we work with include:
- Steamship China & Dining Menus
- Nautical Advertising
- Nautical Toys
- Lanterns
- Ephemera Including Playing Cards, Advertising Smalls, Paper, and More
Aviation:
The friendly skies also extend to Rail & Road Auctions. Our expertise in all things transportation lends itself well to Aviation collectibles including :
- Airline China & Dining Menus
- Aviation Toys
- Airline Guides & Timetables
- Ephemera Including Playing Cards, Advertising Smalls, Paper, and More
Transportation Art: It’s unfortunate that transportation art is so often overlooked. It contributes significantly to the preservation of the era and is the purest distillation of nostalgia. That’s why Rail & Road Auctions is proud to be the only auction company dedicated to its sale. All forms of transportation fine art are accepted for evaluation. In 2020, our Transportation Art Auction included notable art from Angela Trotta Thomas, Robert L. Hunt, and the private railroad art collection of the former owner of Lionel Trains Inc., Richard P. Kughn. In 2021 Rail & Road continued to build it’s reputation for selling historical Transportation art by the selling an original painting commissioned by New York Central Railroad entitled, “In the Hudson River Valley” for $10,800. 2022 was another high water mark as Rail & Road set the record for an original Howard Fogg painting commissioned by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad at $23,800. As Rail & Road continues to grow, we are committed to bringing more attention to this genre of artwork.
Transportation Book Collections:
Rail & Road is proud to offer dedicated book auctions where nearly every title is sold individually (The exception being matched sets). We have found that this method significantly improved the resale value of these books, far surpassing what others would offer our customers and also relieving them of the burden of cataloging and shipping hundreds of books.
Transportation 35mm Slide Collections:
Discover a new era of transparency and convenience in the world of slide collecting with Rail & Road Auctions. We’re not your typical slide auction service; we’ve revolutionized the experience to ensure buyers and sellers alike get they want. To find out how we’re working to revolutionize transportation slide auctions click here.
Model Trains: At Rail & Road we have over a decade working along side of Stout Auctions of Indiana the leading toy train auction house in the United States. Stout Auctions works with trains from G to Z scale, and all scales in between. Model trains consigned to Rail & Road are transferred to Stout Auctions, putting our consignors trains in front of the largest model train auctions in the United States. Likewise, Stout Auctions trusts Rail & Road to handle Railroadiana consigned to their company. Our two companies work hand in hand to produce outstanding results from our consignors and create an ideal situation for collections with both Railroadiana & Model Trains.