A photographic journey · Scranton, Pennsylvania
Electric City & Steamtown
The City Still Moves
Photographs by John Alexiou
Scranton's history has a way of showing up in the everyday view. The Electric City sign sits above the rooftops, a reminder of the city's early electric streetcars. A short distance away, Steamtown National Historic Site keeps another part of that story close, with its roundhouse, rail yard, and old locomotives.
What catches my eye is the change in scale. At night, the sign becomes a bright circle above the city. Down in the yard, the tracks, cars, and steel walkways make their own patterns. Then Big Boy comes through, and everything around it gives you a sense of just how much machine you're looking at. Union Pacific No. 4014 visited Steamtown in June 2026 as part of its coast-to-coast tour for America's 250th anniversary. These photographs include its arrival on June 14.
I made the Electric City photographs in 2025 and the Steamtown photographs in 2026 with my DJI Mavic 4 Pro, using its Hasselblad L3D-100C main camera and its medium telephoto and telephoto cameras. I like seeing these two sides of Scranton together. The name still shines above the city, and down by the tracks, there's still steam in the air.
Eleven photographs · 2025 & 2026 · From the city lights to Big Boy's arrival
Select a photograph to enter the viewing room
01 · The City Lights Up The Electric City sign glows above green rooftops and a clock tower as evening settles over Scranton. © John Alexiou · 2025 · Electric City, Scranton
02 · A Name in Lights A closer view of the Electric City sign, with its colored bulbs and white lettering against the dark roof. © John Alexiou · 2025 · Electric City, Scranton
03 · Above the Evening Streets The illuminated sign rises above downtown Scranton, with lit windows and streets stretching beyond it. © John Alexiou · 2025 · Electric City, Scranton
04 · Before the Lights The Electric City sign stands above downtown towers and rooftops in the last light of day. © John Alexiou · 2025 · Electric City, Scranton
05 · Iron at Rest Illinois Central No. 790 and another preserved locomotive stand outside Steamtown's red roundhouse doors. © John Alexiou · 2026 · Steamtown, Scranton
06 · Across the Yard Visitors cross the elevated walkway above rows of weathered passenger cars and freight cars at Steamtown. © John Alexiou · 2026 · Steamtown, Scranton
07 · Everyone Finds a View A wider view of the rail yard brings together the crowded walkway, stored rolling stock, and Big Boy in the distance. © John Alexiou · 2026 · Steamtown, Scranton
08 · A Smaller Kind of Steam Steamtown's green Baldwin No. 26 releases a small plume of steam beside its sloped tender. © John Alexiou · 2026 · Steamtown, Scranton
09 · Big Boy Comes to Town Union Pacific Big Boy No. 4014 passes beside the University of Scranton's fields as people gather along the tracks. © John Alexiou · 2026 · Steamtown, Scranton
10 · The Scale of the Machine Big Boy No. 4014 fills the track beside a green-roofed tower, with steam drifting above its long boiler. © John Alexiou · 2026 · Steamtown, Scranton
11 · Steam Through the Yard Big Boy No. 4014 moves through Steamtown's rail yard beneath the elevated walkway and a rising plume of steam. © John Alexiou · 2026 · Steamtown, Scranton
Prints & digital photographs
Bring a piece of Scranton home
Bring the city lights and railroad history of Scranton into your space. Choose a photograph by its number or title, then request a print or digital file.