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Hello Fellow Forumites,

I have recently completed my collection of original Postwar Lionel Catalogs. Does anyone know if these catalogs are under any sort of copyrighted status? This question was spurred by my desire to enable easier access to these catalogs online for fellow hobbyists. I acquired my collection simply because it was the easiest and most cost effective way to view the art and valuable reference information in the catalogs. To put it quite bluntly, would I get sued by anyone for putting scans of original catalogs online? The MyFlyerTrains website has (I believe) every postwar AF catalog online, would it be any different for Lionel catalogs? Any information on this subject would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

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Can't specifically answer your question, but you *do* know there are several DVDs available that have all the catalogs on them, right?  You might also google "copyright law" to see what the limits are.  There have been reprints made of most of them, but that may be limited to pre-war issues due to copyright.  But as I mentioned, I have no authoritative word on it.

First, do the catalogues indicate they are protected by Copyright?  Second, you could also make an inquiry with Lionel.  Third, there are a series of famous catalog books published by Greenberg that are quite pricey.   I'm not sure if those books are copyrighted, but the books reproduced the catalogs exactly as printed by Lionel.  I believe, however, that those catalogues were published under license from Lionel. For example, this volume is for sale on Amazon:

"Greenberg's Lionel Catalogues, Vol. IV: 1945-1954 Hardcover – December, 1989

I can't vouching any way for the accuracy of the following, but here's a link with info:

       http://www.nolo.com/legal-ency...rotection-29483.html

Finally, it's very thoughtful of you to even consider making the effort to share the Postwar Lionel catalogues with others.

Last edited by Dennis GS-4 N & W No. 611

Current copyright law for works such as catalogs extends 95 years from the date of publication.  The disclaimers at the bottom of the MyFlyerTrains website suggest Chuck Harrington obtained permission from Lionel, which probably will agree to any use, subject to certain standards, that promotes Lionel products and does no harm to their brands.    

Last edited by hobby-go-lucky

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