Promotional items

Curious if anyone reading this has old BM and/or MEC promotional items and what they are. Not referring to dining car china, etc. or maps... more along the lines of trinkets that the roads would have handed out to customers or giveaways produced for special occasions.

I have a McGinnis lighter and a McGinnis pen. I think that those were given only to those who could advance the cause of the railroad. I have seen a card with two pennies on it. The card read something like "this will take you a mile on the Boston & Maine." They were distributed about 1936-37 when the Interstate Commerce Commission ordered all railroad to lower their coach class passenger fares to 2c a mile. I also had, but sold, a Ski Train armband. I also have a couple of B & M luggage stickers. I also have a couple of programs and an Official's Badge for B & M company picnics at Whalom Park 1928 & 1929. (The Whalom items were of course only for B & M employees and families.)

I have a circular sheet metal (aluminum, probably) ashtray stamped with the MEC logo. I was told when I bought it they had been produced by the Waterville Shops sheet metal workers as some kind of company trinket back in the days when such things were fashionable to use and give out. Mine is unused, as far as I know...

I've got an MEC glass that has the pine tree logo and a GP-38. (pretty cheesy, actually.) I also have what I think is a promotional video called "Along the Maine Line" that I've never seen as I don't have a player for it. (It's an old reel-to-reel type tape - wonder if I can get it burned to DVD?), I've also got a bunch of D&H plastic skewers for little pickles and weiners. Wish I could remember how I came across those!

Cowford wrote:I also have what I think is a promotional video called "Along the Maine Line" that I've never seen as I don't have a player for it. (It's an old reel-to-reel type tape - wonder if I can get it burned to DVD?)...

That would be very cool to see! There are a lot of places that do video transfers from various types of obsolete media to DVD. If it's something relatively normal like 8mm, Super 8, or 16mm, you shouldn't have any trouble finding a place that can do it.

Just dug it out (and found an MEC 25-year lapel pin in the process!) Produced 1974 by a Company called Cable Educational Television in Hallowell, Maine. Ok... looks like it'll cost ~$100 to burn. What the heck... I'll send it off later this week.

Woo-hoo! Party at Cowford's house!

MEC407 wrote:Woo-hoo! Party at Cowford's house!

I'll bring my plastic D&H swizzel sticks. We'll need them for the mixed drinks Cowford is serving!