Reviewing Hopper’s 1923 print show at Sardeau Gallery, the critic for The New York Times commended The Railroad as a masterpiece of descriptive realism, “with its magnificent curve as true in its freehand interpretation as engineering science could make the original,” but he also applauded the artist’s “definitely personal point of view.” Clearly personal are the parade of oddly tilted telephone poles Hopper used to emphasize the dramatic sweep of the rails, and the patches of sunlight that draw attention to the figure at the side of the track, whose purpose and destination are not revealed.