Chessie The Railroad Kitten

06/03/2026

BACK IN STOCK AND MADE IN AMERICA

Reproduced again for 2026 by the Fiesta Tableware Company in Newell, West Virginia, the non-profit Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society is excited to again stock the Chessie mug designed in 2022 as a "fantasy" addition to the vintage "Chessie" china pattern from the C&O Railway's dining car service. Featuring our railroad's famous mascot and used on the Chesapeake & Ohio's prestigious dining cars from 1955 to 1971 (and several more years under contract with Amtrak), the "Chessie" china pattern was the last china pattern used in C&O passenger service.

Our friends at Fiesta Dinnerware, with over 150 years of American craftsmanship experience, digitally analyzed the Chessie cat art and coloring of original C&O china pieces from the collection of a long-time C&O Historical Society member to accurately reproduce the 1950s-era design. Like the "fantasy" pieces added to the "Chessie" pattern decades ago by previous C&OHS custom china runs, the new Chessie mug is a modern-mold piece that borrows its meticulous details from the original "dolphin"-style cup and saucer from the 1955 pattern. A contemporary piece with the C&O's decoration, this mug matches all striping found on the top, bottom, and on the handle of the original mid-century cup and saucer.

Remaining quantities are available in person this Saturday, June 6, 10 AM to 2 PM, during C&OHS at the Saint Albans Depot, 400 4th Ave, St. Albans, West Virginia or online at https://chessieshop.com/product/tw-22-143-chessie-reproduction-china-mug/.

All proceeds help support the C&O Historical Society, whose mission to preserve and interpret the history of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway includes Chessie and her family.

05/10/2026

Ready, Set, & Give Early!

Today, May 5th, begins Early Giving to Give Local - and your support can make a huge difference!

The Sportsman Giving Program - Let's Keep History on Track!

Your generous donation will allow the C&O Historical Society to move forward with restoration efforts to preserve and maintain our collection of locomotives, freight and passenger cars, and our facilities at the Heritage Center along with maintaining and enhancing our collection of images and artifacts within our Archives. And if you have not visited the C&O Heritage Center in Clifton Forge, or have not visited for a while, we invite you to come and share the wonderful experience of American Railroading as seen through the history of the Chesapeake and Ohio.

Donate today and all the way through May 19th!
https://www.givelocalah.org/organization/Chesapeake-And-Ohio-Historical-Society

05/10/2026

Celebrate 250 Years of America while supporting a local tradition we all love!

Grab your commemorative embossed wristband from the Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Society and help support the 2026 Heritage Festival at the C&O Heritage Center. These special edition wristbands honor the 250th anniversary of the USA and are a fun way to show your community pride while helping preserve railroad history for future generations.

Get yours today at https://chessieshop.com/product/ac-26-358-heritage-center250th-wristbands

03/18/2026

Come to the George Washington Train Show and learn more about Chessie. Shop for Chessie Merchandise at the Depot Gift Shop at the C&O Railway Heritage Center!
https://www.facebook.com/reel/1423362732770573

12/13/2025

IN STOCK AND SHIPPING FROM VIRGINIA FIVE DAYS PER WEEK

The official 2026 calendar of our famous railroad kitten features the very best of her advertising art created by the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway!

Ninety two years ago, Chessie first became wildly popular with the traveling public. In 1933 she burst on the scene with unexpected vigor, surprising even the C&O Railway, which promptly hired a high-class advertising agency to promote her.

All this endearing art is together and will brighten your walls throughout 2026. Our non-profit organization's biggest fundraiser of the year, the sale of these calendars supports the Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society's mission to preserve and interpret the history of the C&O Railway, which includes Chessie and her family, Peake, Nip, and Tuck.

For more information or to order now, please visit https://chessieshop.com/product/ps-26-200-chessie-2026-calendarchessie-and-trains/.

12/05/2025

For Chessie's fans near the City of St. Albans, WV, just in time for the holidays, the Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society has organized a special offering of Chessie the Railroad Kitten gifts!

Featuring in-stock items for shoppers including calendars, books, flags, blankets, and other accessories, tomorrow in Kanawha County kicks off a busy month celebrating the legacy of the C&O Railway and Chessie with the public that still remembers when travelers could "sleep like a kitten."

Saturday, December 6, 2025, 10 AM to 2 PM
St. Albans C&O Depot
400 4th Ave, St. Albans, WV 25177-2829







St. Albans Chamber

10/06/2025

Chessie is still making headlines!

The Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society is honored by our partners from Lootpress who helped share the news of the 92nd Chessie calendar that continues the legacy of our favorite railroad kitten into 2026.

We are grateful to everyone who has allowed our non-profit organization to continue the longest-running railroad-themed calendar in American history.

In addition to being available online, the 2026 Chessie calendar is available at the C&O Railway Heritage Center and on November 1, 2025 at the St. Albans, West Virginia rail depot.

CLIFTON FORGE, VIRGINIA (LOOTPRESS) - The Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Society is committed to preserving the legacy of the C&O Railway and has recently

08/21/2025

THE "CHESSIE" FAMILY ALBUM

Our beloved kitten, Chessie, and her family, Peake, Nip, and Tuck, advertised the luxury and comfort of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway's passenger trains in one of the most successful advertising campaigns of all time. When this classic advertisement appeared, the invitation to "sleep like a kitten" and "arrive fresh as a daisy" was already a successful call to the traveling public.

Sometimes referred to as "the railroad with a heart" after Chessie's 1933 introduction, the C&O Railway used images of Chessie and her family for decades to advertise its passenger service, and later, its freight service. Chessie's family became known to Americans through calendars, print advertisements, playing cards, railroad timetables, company newsreels, dining car china, and countless other ways that brought Chessie's image into hearts and homes.

Since 1969, the Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society has preserved the history of the C&O Railway and the story of Chessie, Peake, Nip, and Tuck. Through an extensive archive that is Chessie's modern family album, publications, exhibits, and collectables, the non-profit organization keeps Chessie the Railroad Kitten's legacy alive in the minds of those who still cherish her timeless image and the "railroad with a heart."

(1937; from the Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society, archive # AD-176.)

05/05/2025

FAN MAIL FOR CHESSIE

Following our famous kitten's 1933 debut advertising the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway's passenger service, fan mail for Chessie flooded into railroad headquarters.

In this ad called "I'll treasure your letters all my nine lives," Chessie is shown amid some of the thousands of letters the C&O Railway received every year from those who admired the kitten and her work promoting travel by rail. Mail arrived by the bagful written by people from all walks of life.

The legacy of Chessie and her family--Peake, Nip, and Tuck--continue through the non-profit Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society. All year long, the Virginia-based organization receives inquiries and orders from all over the world for Chessie merchandise that preserves and shares the magnificent story of "the Railroad Kitten" that enchanted the traveling public. Ninety-two years later, Chessie's fans still add volumes to the mail.

(As seen in TIME, March 17, 1941; from the Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Society, archive # AD-105.)

05/01/2025

Chessie's legacy touched millions long after her initial decades promoting the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway's newly-air-conditioned passenger cars. Produced by Woodmere China for Wanamaker's Department Store in 1985, these china plates for children became a classic heirloom for many years.

Overages of the item were warehoused after the department store closed. The Chesapeake and Ohio Historical Society has been able to obtain the final new-old-stock pieces from this long-ago run of china that features classic artwork from the famous Chessie calendar.

This 8" plate has a decorative border of a kitten playing with a train set. The center features the artwork "Chessie's Gift" taken from the 1958 calendar. This was the last original Chessie art in the old style prepared especially for a calendar.

Symbolizing the best of Chessie's nostalgia, these final pieces are available in support of the non-profit C&O Historical Society, which preserves the story of Chessie and her family--Peake, Nip, and Tuck--through its archive of C&O Railway Advertising Department files and artwork, publishing their story through books, a bimonthly magazine, and through public exhibits at the C&O Railway Heritage Center museum.

For more information or to order now, please visit the below or call our Business Office at 540-862-2210, Monday through Friday, 9 AM to 5 PM.

To order online, please visit https://chessieshop.com/product/breakfast-plate-chessies-gift/.