Preview
Creation Date
1927
Geography
Baltimore, Maryland; Ohio
Culture
American
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
Diameter: 2.7 in. (6.9 cm)
Weight: 4.9 oz (137.9 g)
Credit Line
Long-term Loan from the Estate of Boris Blick, 2015
Accession Number
2015.158
Condition
This medal is in great condition, with little to no sign of wear. (April 2025)
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings
Obverse:
ONE HUNDRED YEARS
HS (encircled)
©
SAFETY STRENGTH SPEED
Reverse:
THE・BALTIMORE・AND・OHIO・RAILROAD・COMPANY・
PETER COOPER’S
“TOM THUMB”
1827・1927
Creator Biography
Hans Schuler was born in 1874 in Morange, Germany, but he spent most of his life living in Baltimore, Maryland. Following his education at the Maryland Institute’s Rinehart School of Sculpture, he went on to be the first American sculptor to receive the Salon Gold Medal in Paris in 1901. Schuler was interested in sculpting monuments, reliefs, and portraits which could be found around public areas throughout Maryland and DC. Schuler passed away in 1951 in Baltimore.
Description
This medal commemorates 100 years of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad as made clear by the inscription, “One Hundred Years”. The image on the medal’s obverse shows the front of the train on the tracks, which continues into the distance. Additionally, there are faint mountains in the background and a nude figure who appears to be flying and pointing into the direction in which the train is moving. Encircling the bottom of the image is the text, “Safety Strength Speed”. To the left of the train, the creator’s initial’s, H.S. are encircled with a small copyright symbol just below.
The medals’ reverse provides more context, with the inscription “The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company” encircling the image shown. In this image, there is an open-framed boxcar shown holding a wheelbarrow and machinery with billowing smoke being released. Additionally, a figure stands in the center of the car. Below this, the car is identified as “Peter Cooper’s ‘Tom Thumb’”, which is the name the specific train initially used on the B & O railway. Just below this, the dates “1827-1927” indicate the time the railway was created as well as the 100 year marker of its creation.
