The Great Train Robbery was America’s first narrative film. Produced in 1903, it contained many of the plot elements that became a staple of succeeding Hollywood westerns.

The film was produced at Thomas Edison’s studio and surounding locations in New Jersey. Ten minutes in length, audiences were mesmerized by the film’s action sequences and made the film the most profitable of its day.

In these scenes, the gang robs the mail car of the moving train – the scene includes an early use of special effects as the landscape can be seen rushing past the open door in the background.

The gang forces the train to stop and shoots a passenger who tries to escape.