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Homestead Scrappers: 1908
... Maybe from Lucy furnace. (The Gallery, DPC, Factories, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/02/2018 - 1:03pm -

1908. "Loading scrap. Homestead Steel Works, Homestead, Pennsylvania." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. The ghost in the craneThe crane operator seems to have done a little shuffle during the exposure. The lack of a handrail on the cab platform and the ladder for the repairmen to get on the bridge give me the heebie-jeebies. An interesting scene, with open hearth charging boxes being loaded by hand with, it would appear, wire mill scrap and pig iron. Maybe from Lucy furnace. (The Gallery, DPC, Factories, Railroads)
Waiting for the Light: 1943
... locomotive classes over a given profile. Although some railroads reported CTE down to the last pound, any calculation more precise ... more detail if wanted. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/19/2013 - 11:35am -

March 1943. "Kiowa (vicinity), Kansas. Train waiting for a block signal along the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad." Photo by Jack Delano. View full size. Arm up?Isn't the signal up, which would signal clear? Help me here, please? Highball?I'm no expert on reading signal aspects, but I believe it's displaying a "proceed." Time to goThis retired railroader says proceed thru the block at prescribed speed. I believeit's the Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe RailWAY. Clear!Yes, that signal is displaying "proceed". Grade Crossing AheadThere's not much to go on in this photo for figuring out the exact location, but just beyond the second signal there appears to be a hard line crossing the tracks from left to right. That might be the now-abandoned Missouri Pacific branchline to Hardtner, KS. Assuming that Rt. 2 follows the old MP right of way (it has some very railroad-like broad curves to it), then this photo was taken near the intersection of Main Street and Railroad Avenue in Kiowa. As for the signals. The square ends on both signals visible would indicate that they are interlocking signals (which fits with that being the MP crossing up ahead) and not a manual block (round end) or automatic block (pointed end) signal. The other two posters (at this writing) are correct, the signals are set to clear. So, the description given is just writer's license. PuzzlesPhare Pleigh makes good observations. There are more questions in my mind, though: 1. The far signal, on the pole, is on this side of the crossing - that is, it is beyond the crossing, and so does not govern moves over the crossing. 2. There is only one track at the far signal, so only one route should be possible. However, both signals are showing clear, which would mean conflicting (opposing) routes - which should not be possible. 3. The near switch is in front of the cantilever signal, so it is "outside" the interlocking; the signal does not govern moves over this switch. The second switch is "inside" the interlocking, and is protected by the signals. I would have expected to see another signal governing moves from this track, quite possibly a dwarf; I can't see one in the picture. 4. The far switch *should* be set for the other track, but again I can't see the position in this photo. An interesting picture. And the train is probably waiting for a clear signal, since the signal on the cantilever is clear for a different train (I think). Aspect not litI agree...Dave, we need a zoomed in view of the switch points in the background. Also, I also will echo that the arms of the semaphores are in the clear position, however, I would have expected, even in bright daylight at this angle, to be seeing the clear light through the semaphore lens. It appears to be dark or just a little light (probably from the background) getting through it. With the bulb on the other side it should be brighter than it is. edit: After tterrace's generous post of the zoomed photo, can we throw a monkey wrench into the comments and possibly say that the level crossing in the distance may not be a diamond but a vehicle crossing? I ask this as us railroaders would expect to see a signal protecting the other side of the crossing. Yeah, I don't see any crossing warning signs on either side of the main to warn vehicle traffic, nor any telegraph/phone lines paralleling the line, but I also don't see any bulky diamond hardware sticking out of the side of the mains rails as I do with the guard rail and switch point areas. This makes me believe this is a road crossing. Also noticed that the locomotive probably is sitting on the main as there is a spring frog on the left main rail with the spring mechanics on both sides of the left rail and a visible flange gap on rail the locomotive is on. [This is as big as it gets. - tterrace] TrainspottedIt is a "Clear" Signal but you will notice: 1. It is on a cantilever station rather than on a pole similar to the signal a little farther down the track. That would imply that the signal is governing one of the tracks diverging off to the left. If it were for the track on which the locomotive stands it would likely also be on the pole. (Yes, I understand ATSF did use cantilever signals right next to the track they are governing). 2. The aforementioned pole signal is also showing a clear indication. Unless the signal system is malfunctioning it could not display this aspect to the track on which the locomotive is standing (not to mention the track that has the clear signal on the cantilever). 3. The answer seems to be that the locomotive is on an auxiliary track and that the signals govern the two tracks diverging to the left. The cantilever signal probably also governs the crossing at grade a short distance ahead. Thanks!For all the info regarding how signals worked and how to understand the sources. A very intricate business indeed. Engine LocationOk.. I'm going to go out on a limb and try to figure where this was taken. According to the shadows it appears we are travelling to the west. On the left side, marked by the row of telephone poles is Route 2 which runs between Attica, Ks and Kiowa, Ks. Very far ahead on the right hand side is, what looks like, a grain elevator. I think that is the grain elevator at Hazleton, Ks. The roads I cannot identify exactly because I can't determine distance by a photograph. There is a railroad cross marking immediately to the right. It doesn't look well travelled so, I will guess, it leads into a field. They still have those today. The next major road just beyond the signals could be Minco Road or Tri-City Road which is closer to Hazleton. I don't know of any other grain elevators between Attica and Kiowa. So, I think we are somewhere within a mile or two east of Hazleton, KS. Another thoughtIt would seem likely that for one reason or another, the semaphore system was not in service at the moment this picture was taken. Is it possible the ATSF was in the process of installing the signal hardware, but had not yet put the system into service? Up until about 10 years ago the old Monon line (now abandoned) between New Albany, Indiana and Bedford, Indiana was controlled by semaphore indication. At some point shortly afterward the signal system was taken out of service and an order to that effect was issued. Train crews were instructed by the order to disregard the semaphores and be governed by DTC. I believe there are pictures on the web of what appear to be CP and INRD trains running “stop” semaphore indications in that territory. Regarding the Shorpy image, my guess is the train was running with timetable and train orders, waiting for an opposing train to clear the main at the far switch. Why I love Shorpy!It's wonderful, the level of engagement we get, as folks chime in with these great details; always fascinating! I'm just surprised no one has (yet!) counted rivets and kinks in lube lines and told us which locomotive this is. I capitulatePiyer, I think you are right. I asked a good engineer friend of mine who basically said the same thing. {Jim said} There are railroad diamonds that have no protection whatsoever; no interlocking signals, no manual gates, no stop signs. After viewing some aerial maps I've changed my mind and think that it is an unprotected railroad diamond crossing which no longer exists. My guess of the track layout, judging from the placement of the signals, is that the mainline comes from the distance and continues on the farthest-to-the-left track visible in front of the steamer. The facing semaphore signal is to the left of center of the steamer's track and beyond the points of the closest switch and governs, I think, the facing movements on the far left track. In the Bing aerial photo I've marked **PIYER, his attachment was EXACTLY the same place you linked!** what I think is the Santa Fe mainline (and the diverging branch at the wye) in blue, the yard or auxiliary track that the steamer is on in green and the middle track, which might be the Kiowa Siding, in yellow. I'm just assuming that the railroad crossing at the diamond, which I've marked in red, is another railroad and not just another Santa Fe line because of the overall track layout in the area. And yes Dbell, I agree, that is one of the reasons I keep coming back here, the level of expertise and civility of the folks that comment here makes this just awesome. Flat Pair SignalsThe masts of both of the signals have number plates, indicating they are Permissive Signals rather than Absloute Signals, and thus are block signals rather than part of an interlocking system. Unlike most other roads, on the Santa Fe square end signal blades were used on block signals. The question then remains as to why the signal to the left would be showing a clear block when we know there's a train, as we are on it. Close examination of a zoomed image shows that the points of the switch adjacent to that signal are aligned for the siding. The signal is showing that the route for which the turnout is lined, that is, the siding, is clear. The signal in front of our engine also shows clear because we can proceed through the spring switch. This was a signal system in wide use on sidings on the ATSF, which they called Flat Pair Signals. An answer???Looking at BING, which is nice enough to include abandoned rail lines, I see that the MP line crossed the Santa Fe further south than I had original thought. Flipping that map (http://binged.it/11eaawr) so that south is up and north is down, I think we are pointed in the same direction as the locomotive. Much has, obviously, changed over the years, but it would now seem that the interlocking signals aren't for the crossing but for the south leg of the Santa Fe's wye / branchline junction. If you allow that the yard might have originally been on the opposite side of the mainline so as to serve both main and branch lines, then this can fit with the image here. As for the lack of signals at the grade crossing... The line from Kiowa to Hardtner is / was (abd. 2002) the Kiowa, Hardtner & Pacific Railway from birth to abandonment, and merely operated by the MP. It is conceivable that the KH&P was dark territory and that trains had to stop clear of the crossing and get permission to cross from the Santa Fe dispatcher - a cheaper option than a manned interlocking, the expense of which, as the second railroad on the scene, would have typically fallen on them. Final puzzle pieceFrom my timetable collection, I dug up Missouri Pacific system timetable #18 - October 25, 1981. According to this, the Hardtner branch crossed the Santa Fe a total of 7 times between Hardtner Jct. (Wichita, KS) and Kiowa in route to Hardtner. These crossings were protected by (n to s): a gate, a gate, a manual interlocking, a stop sign, a stop sign, a gate, and a manual interlocking. The last one presumably being the crossing we are looking at here. Locomotive: Class 4000 Mikado(2-8-2), one of a group of 101 (4000 to 4100) built by Baldwin between 1921 and 1926 (Maybe there's another photo from Mr Delano from this set that shows the specific number?) and scrapped between 1950 and 1954. This is based on the "40" that I can see on the sand dome. [Here you go. - tterrace] Colour?I know nothing about trains, but I do know the train community is *very* specific about making sure train colours are correct especially in black and white photos. Anyone got a colour reference for the train? More photos & cluesHere are several other helpful photos from this set. The opposite side view shows more of the track layout and another has the engine detail. Piyer, I'd say you're right on target in the BING photo! The LOC photos DO show the yard on the wye side of the main. Presumably as train lengths increased, the sidings couldn't be lengthened on the town side of the tracks, so the whole shebang was flip-flopped. Topo maps show remnants of a road in that location going from the present adjacent farmhouse across the tracks to the former airstrip, and a curved track bridging the wye ends (that scar still visible). That is definitely a crossing with another railroad. Look at the height of the telephone poles on both sides. In 1943, highways didn't get such vertical clearances, plus, there are tie ends barely visible "behind" the far signal. There are also 2 vertical "somethings" just to the right of the cantilever mast (one near each track). In the cab window view, the far switch points are definitely reversed toward the wye (and apparently the cantilever is reflecting that route). That much just makes sense. (all this more visible in the massive LOC TIFF images) Mystery solved? ATSF 4097According to information available to me, ATSF 4097 was built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1926, construction number 59398. For those not familiar with railroad terminology, I have written out the following information in long form. I recognize many of these details will be of more significance to locomotive historians who would be satisfied with the usual technical shorthand. Principle dimensions: cylinders: 27 diameter, 32 stroke, in inches driving wheel diameter: 63 inches working pressure: 200 pounds per square inch calculated tractive effort: 63,000 pounds* weight on drive wheels: 260,200 pounds total locomotive weight: 342,000 pounds tender capacity: 5,000 gallons oil; 15,000 gallons water tender weight, fully loaded: 298,600 pounds total wheelbase, engine and tender: 79 feet, 1.875 inches total length over coupler pulling faces: 89 feet, 9 inches Like all locomotives in the '4000' Class, it was built with a Schmidt superheater, Walschaert valve gear, Elesco feedwater heater (except 4007) and Delta trailing truck. It was built as an oil-burner. It was sold for scrap to Commercial Metals Co. on 27 January 1956. GENERAL NOTES: Dimensions given are typical for the 1926 Baldwin-built locomotives (4086-4100) and do not necessarily apply to any specific locomotive at a specific time. It would be surprising if any locomotive matched the dimensions exactly even when new. In particular, recorded weights could vary significantly between rolling the same locomotive off and then back onto a scale. Weight on drive wheels varied with spring tension (in the suspension system) and changed with wear or simply shop setting. *-The dimension seemingly of most interest to railfans is also the least relevant -- that of calculated tractive effort (CTE, usually shortened to tractive effort=TE). As the name implies, it is a theoretical calculation of the maximum amount of force available to be applied at the driving wheels. It is, at best, vaguely accurate for comparison purposes between locomotive classes over a given profile. Although some railroads reported CTE down to the last pound, any calculation more precise than the nearest thousand pounds was pure fiction. In fact, the ONLY way of determining what a locomotive can haul is by controlled road tests using a dynamometer car. Those already interested in the ATSF will no doubt already know my sources, primarily S. R. Wood and E. D. Worley. I can provide more detail if wanted. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Point Bridge: 1900
... 2011. (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, DPC, Pittsburgh, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/03/2012 - 1:37pm -

Pittsburgh circa 1900. "Point Bridge and coal barges." Note the Duquesne Incline railway next to the Solomon & Ruben sign. 8x10 glass negative. View full size. Duquesne Incline StationHere's another view of the incline's upper station. It's the frame building behind the streetcar. This photo was taken on Grandview Ave about 1920. The streetcar's destination number was "40 Mt. Washington". The old Point Bridge is goneBuilt in 1877, it was replaced in 1927. The replacement was closed in 1959 and demolished in 1970. But the Duquesne Incline is still there and is still in operation. On the edgeWatch that first step, it's a doozie!! Hope no sleepwalkers lived in those buildings up there! Location, Location, Location I think, "Solomon & Ruben, Reliable Clothiers" could have been to Pittsburgh what the "HOLLYWOOD" sign was to Los Angeles. Talk about placement. Looks like a color picture to meGiven all the coal and its widespread use at the time the picture was taken, I don't think a color picture (if it were available then) would look much different. At least in those days times were simpler in that it was common to look at things as being either black or white. 145 Years EarlierI just got done researching the heck out of this very spot for a drawing. Amazing how fast things change. For your enjoyment: Fort Duquesne on July 9, 1755, the day of Braddock's Defeat. Bridge speed limitDRIVE NO faster than A WALK UNDER PENALTY of the LAW Stiffened Chain Suspension Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Vol VII., 1878. Bridge Superstructure. Subjects Exhibited. Point Bridge was designed by Edward Hemberle, Engineer of the American Bridge Company. It consists of tower and chains, with platform suspended therefrom in the same manner as in a regular chain suspension bridge. To this is added a stiffening system above the chains, and rigid posts arranged between chains and platform so as to prevent the roadway from undulating or oscillating independently of the structure above. The stiffening appliances above the chains consist of rigid chords running in straight lines from the top of the tower toward the center of the chain, and connecting thereto by a hinged joint at each end. Between these chords and the chains there is a system of bracing, composed of posts and diagonal tie-rods, all connections being pin-jointed. The chain, being a catenary, or curve of equilibrium, bears all the permanent load of the structure without straining the stiffening trusses. This object was accomplished by erecting the bridge completely before connecting the ends of the straight top chords to the centre joint. The rods are provided with turn-buckles, and are so adjusted as to be strained under moving loads only. The total length of the bridge is 1,245 feet from back to back of anchorages, with one middle span of 800 feet between centres of piers, and one independent trussed side span of 145 feet in length at each shore. The roadway rises from both shores toward the centre of the channel, with grades not exceeding 3½ feet in 100 —the highest point of the roadway being 83 feet above low water. The saddles upon which the chains rest on top of the towers are 180 feet above low water. The deflection of the chain is 88 feet, which is considerably more than is usual for suspension bridges, but the stiffening allows of increasing the deflection and thereby reducing the strains in the chains as well as their weight. The bridge is 34 feet wide from centre to centre of outside railings, and this space is divided into a roadway 21 feet wide and two sidewalks of 6½ feet each. History of Bridge Engineering, By Henry Grattan Tyrrell, 1911. Chapter XII. Suspension Bridges. 311. The Point bridge (Fig. 115) at Pittsburg was designed by Edward Hemberle, and built in 1876 with a center span of 800 feet and two side spans of 145 feet each, making a total length of 1,250 feet. It had a 20-foot roadway and two 7-foot walks with a clear height beneath of 80 feet and cost $525,000. The river piers were of stone and the towers of iron, 110 feet high. The 8-inch eyebar cables have stiffening trusses above the chains in the form of segmental chords, and the design is such that all uniform loads are carried by the cables, causing no stress in the stiffening trusses. It was the longest span with flat eyebars in America, and toll was collected upon it till 1896. In 1906 it was repaired at a cost of $92,000. Current CrossingTo add to what Larc mentioned, the Fort Pitt Bridge replaced the (new) Point Bridge in 1970. +111Below is the same view from July of 2011. (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, DPC, Pittsburgh, Railroads)
Union Station: 1905
... it all in later years. (The Gallery, Boston, DPC, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/29/2012 - 10:09am -

Boston, Massachusetts, circa 1905. "North Station." An update of this view. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Re: No One RidesThat made my day. You gotta wonder where people get their ideas about how people lived in olden times. Cowboy movies? "Little House on the Prairie"? Can I use my Metro card?Except for issues of infection, illness and a change of clothing, I think most modern city dwellers would fit into this scene nicely. How much for a street car ride? Remember Mr Kane's friend Mr Bernstein's memory of the girl in the white dress? We old men remember the girls in white dresses. I'd tip my hat, too. No One RidesIt is interesting to note that in so many of these old photos there are horse and wagons, yet no horseback riders. I wonder if there was some kind of special tax on horseback riding, because you don't even see hitching posts. I certainly would have ridden on a horse vs walking. Very strange indeed. [All those streetcars you see in these pics -- they are for those 99 percent of city dwellers who didn't own a horse. - Dave] Saddling UpTo Ride a Horse: first you have to keep the horse. In the city or town, this could well be at some livery stable at some distance away, unless you had a small estate. You have to feed and water the horse, shovel the manure, and clean the hooves daily, putting up with flies and bad smells all the while. And where shall we keep the hay and oats? To ride, we must bring out the horse, brush down, apply saddle blanket, get saddle, put on horse, pass girth underneath, lash up to saddle rings, pull tight, get the bridle on, retighten the girth, make sure the horse is reasonably happy with all this, and finally, mount. Reverse entire process when returning home. Horses were necessary in the country but smooth-running, clean electric transit was justifiably very popular in the city. Wagons of course were needed for hauling freight, and the rich could afford a carriage and driver. Nice to see a couple of polite men.Even in a busy Boston street there are two men who acknowledge a lady passing. Re: No one rides no. 2That's why I love this site and read all comments. Pondering all the photo details and anomalies makes us question our assumptions about how things were done in the past, and perhaps question present practices too. I enjoyed both the original question and the explication from Dr Q. Horseback RidingThere are lots of old pictures of people astride usually in a big park with a bridle path. Generally only the wealthy could maintain a riding mount and riding was considered a pastime/sport. I'd love to see some pics of Durlands Riding Academy in Manhattan on here! [They're already here! - Dave] The GahdenFuture site of the Boston Garden (and present site of its replacement, the "TD Garden"), home of Cousy, Russell, Heinsohn, Havlicek, the Joneses, Cowens, Bird, DJ, Chief, McHale, The Big 3, et al. Not to mention Orr, Espo, Bucyk, Sanderson, and the rest of the Big Bad Bruins of the 1970's. North Station today still functions as the southern terminus of the North Shore commuter rail line, but the train station part of the building is essentially invisible from the street. Nothing like the Transportation Temple of yesteryear shown in the photograph. Regardless, Causeway Street is full of pedestrian traffic every day, and many nights, in much the same way as it was 105 years ago. One of those irreplaceable urban gathering places. Horses in the CityEven Paul Revere, a successful merchant, didn't bother keeping his own horse in the city. He borrowed Brown Beauty from John Larkin across the river in Charlestown. It must have been a lot like having a car in the city is now; unnecessary and too much trouble for most. Although I have seen the remains of what look like they may be horse stables in Richmond which are now used as sheds. Two Depots in OneThe section at far left was once the Boston & Lowell RR depot. The center (North Union Station section) was an addition. A very LARGE addition! Far better then the buildings that replaced it all in later years. (The Gallery, Boston, DPC, Railroads)
Blind Curve: 1941
... at me. (The Gallery, Landscapes, M.P. Wolcott, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/18/2020 - 3:42pm -

September 1941. "Road leading out of Carlton Tunnel along bed of old narrow gauge railroad on the west side of the Rocky Mountains from Leadville, Colorado." Medium format acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Lucy and Desi may have made this drive in "The Long, Long Trailer." Driver BewareThe views are to die for. Hell Gate!The Carlton Tunnel was formerly the Busk-Ivanhoe Tunnel of the late lamented Colorado Midland Railway, maintained for many years as a toll tunnel business by the last owner of the railroad, A.E Carlton, a Cripple Creek banker. The tunnel itself would have been a couple of miles in the rear; this vista was known in railroad days as Hell Gate, although I have never seen what it looked like without rails. It was a very popular scene for advertising photos, and L.C. McClure and W.H. Jackson both photographed it. MPW must have been on her way to Aspen (still a mining town in those days). I never knew she passed this way. The river to the left is the Frying Pan. You can still drive this route, although the Carlton Tunnel is sealed, and the road diverges from the railbed and crosses the divide via an adjacent saddle. The Busk-Ivanhoe Tunnel replaces a much higher bore, which is still open, and the roadbed up to the east portal is now a nice hiking trail. Leadville memoryI was in Leadville a few years ago and saw an old photo in an antique shop of a buggy with two local women in it going up a steep road with only a foot or so of dirt separating them from a fall to eternity. This reminded me of that and made me shiver all over again. Look whereThis is one of those roads where my wife would be yelling "Look where you're driving, don't drive where you're looking" at me. (The Gallery, Landscapes, M.P. Wolcott, Railroads)
Beacon Beckons: 1902
... sharing an anecdote. (The Gallery, DPC, Landscapes, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/09/2019 - 2:33pm -

Dutchess County, New York, circa 1902. "Mount Beacon Casino and power house, Fishkill-on-the-Hudson, N.Y." At right, a car of the Mount Beacon Incline Railway. 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Photographic Company. View full size. Up in smokeImagine that. Fire in 1927 destroyed both the Casino and adjacent hotel. It brought an end to all development on the Mount. Both goneA current look at the same vantage point from Google 3D shows that everything here is long gone. Mount Beacon Incline RailwayMount Beacon had a basic appeal to many Americans because of its role in the Revolutionary War, when it served as part of the Continental Army's early warning and signalling system. In fact, the mountain takes its name from the beacon fires lit upon its summit during that conflict. The Mount Beacon Incline Railway faced a lot of fires (1927, 1934, 1936, 1967 and a final, catastrophic one in 1983). Nowadays restoration takes place. In the Hudson Valley Magazine you can read about the pro's and con's. On the 1886 view on Fishkill-on-the-Hudson, N.Y. the railway did not even exist, nor the casino. View full size. What Happened? Fire (Natch)Per this website: https://theotherhudsonvalley.com/2018/05/06/mount-beacon-casino-trail/ The Casino and Beaconcrest Hotel burned to the ground on Oct 16, 1927, but a new resort was built the next year. However, the Great Depression decreased patronage, and the incline railway and resort never fully recovered. The final ride of the incline railway occurred in 1978. The powerhouse and casino were burned to the ground in fires in 1981 and 1983. Hotel gone, rails still in placeLast year I hiked up that mountain and followed the rails as much as I could. There are still the trucks from railcars (maybe the one shown here?) sitting overgrown and abandoned. No great insight to share, just sharing an anecdote. (The Gallery, DPC, Landscapes, Railroads)
Standard Service: 1940
... Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Gas Stations, John Vachon, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/14/2019 - 11:35am -

April 1940. "Gas station on a sunny afternoon. Dubuque, Iowa." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Hairy CatConsidering the Cat's hair in this self-portrait (https://www.shorpy.com/node/25187), I wonder if Mr. Vachon was peering over the camera and looking at the lens (or out the window) the moment this exposure happened. [He was looking down into the viewfinder. - Dave] That does double for me!I loved all my twin-lens reflex cameras and wish I had kept them. But nnnnoooooo ... Current view?The Page Hotel, located in the upper left, was located at the corner of Fourth and White streets. This view from Google Maps, appears to show approximately the same view. Not sure if the existing brick building across the tracks is the same one in the current view. U.S. 61 Freeway There NowBased on this article, the Page Hotel stood at Fourth and White Streets, about where the U.S. 61 freeway is now. http://www.encyclopediadubuque.org/index.php?title=PAGE,_John Heavy metalBeing a steam locomotive fanatic, I would want a room facing the tracks in the hotel. Unfortunately I wouldn't be born until Nov. of 1940. Looks like a busy crossing and with the baggage carts must be right at the depot. John VachonJohn Vachon's FSA pictures are sadly underrated. He was highly influenced by Walker Evans, whose plain and unpretentious portraits showed little evidence of advocacy or drama. Vachon had the same style, but his subject matter often differed from that of Evans. Vachon was young and inexperienced when he was hired by FSA head Roy Stryker. He fell in love with the camera, and loved touring the country for the first time. He photographed just about everything he saw, in this case a gas station near the railroad tracks. Consequently, his vast collection of pictures has become a valuable document of how life and the built environment looked in the 1930s. If you build it they will comeIt's kind of hard to see but if you follow the road (4th Street) from the bottom towards the top of the picture you will see a baseball stadium in the distance. It was known alternatively as Municipal Stadium, 4th Street Stadium, or John Petrakis Park. It was built in 1915 and was razed sometime in the 1970s, I believe. It hosted several minor league ballclubs. Double visionUnlike commenter Jim Page, I'm a newcomer to twin-lens reflex cameras, having started to collect them last year. I found this image of Jack Delano somewhere in cyberspace. I believe that's a Zeiss Ikon Ikoflex around his neck. Being a serious fan, I just had had to buy one. Gas PricesWhat's up with the sign? Prices? Octanes? [Yes. - Dave] Photographer's viewpointWell, we can see where the photo was taken from in radiochris's modern shot. There was a fire here, tooThe six-story brick building shown in the "Current View" post is the Canfield Hotel, built in 1927 as an addition to the existing four-story wooden structure. In 1946 a fire destroyed the older wooden building, killing 19 people, including owner William Canfield. The picture would have been taken from the four-story wooden part. An account of the fire: http://www.encyclopediadubuque.org/index.php?title=CANFIELD_HOTEL (The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Gas Stations, John Vachon, Railroads)
Desk Job: 1942
... Was the Stacking rings. (The Gallery, Albert Freeman, Railroads, WW2) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/01/2018 - 2:11pm -

            " -- and where do you see yourself in five years?" 1942. "Salvage. Stacking chips in the game of war. Even better, if possible, than the individual citizen, American industry has learned to waste nothing. With every ounce of steel and steel scrap vital to the war, this employee of the Boston & Maine Railroad has been assigned the job of sorting steel washers. Here, as in all industry today, anything reusable is put back into service; the remainder becomes scrap to feed the nation's insatiable steel mills." 4x5 inch nitrate negative by Albert Freeman for the Office of War Information. View full size. Job SecurityMy guess is that the war ended before he completed that task. TediumThink I will print this out and post on my office wall for when I am having a rough day. "Well, you could be THIS guy." I spotted an error in stacking 1014th row from the right. And after the stacking is completed. Short course in the mundane job of railroad spike straightening will be offered. Tower of HanoiStack N smaller on larger washers and you can move the stack to another peg, one washer at a time, never putting a larger on a smaller washer, in one less than 2 to the Nth power moves. Ah, memoriesI remember doing this as a kid, and to this day, I can generally recognize the difference between a 4-40 and a 6-32 screw by sight. I also have drawers (alas, only partially sorted) of washers, screws, bolts, nuts, and miscellaneous electrical parts that my grandfather collected prior to his death 54 years ago. The scary thing is how often I find something that I need in those drawers! Especially handy are the box wrenches that Chevy and Ford used to provide for owners to tune their vehicles--they will go places that a standard one won't. His favorite toy in PreschoolWas the Stacking rings. (The Gallery, Albert Freeman, Railroads, WW2)
Self-Propelled: 1940
... pump your way along the track! (The Gallery, OKC, Railroads, Russell Lee) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/20/2018 - 11:43am -

February 1940. "Railway workmen with handcar. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma." Photo by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Hard work all the wayThese two Frisco Railway employees work hard all day long. Getting to and from work on a hand car was part of the labor, as there is no clutch on this machine. If you stop pumping the handles, it slows down. These guys are carrying tools to correct small track defects - a jack, maul, shovels, spike puller under the rear of the deck, a lining bar under the front. There must be a track bolt wrench on the other side of the deck next to the track gauge. SAFETY FIRST, BOYS, mind the loose tools under your feet while you pump your way along the track! (The Gallery, OKC, Railroads, Russell Lee)
Bicycle Crossing: 1943
... Elmhurst either. (The Gallery, Bicycles, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/11/2014 - 12:07pm -

January 1943. "Freight train operations on the Chicago and North Western Railroad between Chicago and Clinton, Iowa. The train rushing through the town of Cortland Elmhurst, Illinois, on its way to Iowa." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. My Trusty SteedLooks like the kid in the picture is riding an old Schwinn prewar bicycle. Likely an old DX frame style before they came out with the cantilever frame. I think Jack mixed up his captionsI'm fairly certain that we are in Elmhurst looking west towards the station from about Haven Road. If correct, that means the train is heading east, not towards Iowa. Maybe someone could link the Google street view? Nice photo, though. ElmhurstTrain is eastbound through Elmhurst, probably entering Proviso Yard. The tall bank building and other buildings can be seen on streetview. The track layout has not changed much over the years. Looks like ElmhurstIt looks like grubemed is correct. Here's the street view looking west from Haven Road in Elmhurst, IL. About two blocks west you can see the five storey building on the left of the photo. View Larger Map Some CNW quirks visibleThose horizontal signal heads were a peculiarity of the CNW, though they display perfectly conventional color light aspects. Another distinction hidden in the photo is left-hand running. When the main line was originally laid, the stations tended to be located on the south side of the tracks; when they double-tracked, the second track was laid on the north, and eastbound (to Chicago) traffic stay on the south track because commuter traffic would prefer to wait in the station inbound in the morning. Thanks BTW for the location update. I couldn't square the photo with Cortland but I couldn't quite convince myself it was Elmhurst either. (The Gallery, Bicycles, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Man-Cave Caboose: 1943
... experience. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Pretty Girls, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/21/2013 - 10:25am -

January 1943. "Freight train operations on the Chicago & North Western Railroad between Chicago and Clinton, Iowa. The caboose is the conductor's second home. He always uses the same one and many conductors cook and sleep there while waiting for trains to take back from division points." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. PinupsSeveral appear to be by Vargas, clipped from Esquire perhaps. Humble chapeauxStormy Kromer cap on his head, another hanging on the wall. I bet they loved theirs as much as I do mine. Ha!I love the placement of the "Dining Car In Opposite Direction" sign. I've ridden passenger trains since my youth, and those signs used to be ubiquitous; ubiquitous on trains that had dining cars, anyway. It was a great, way for keeping the herd of passengers properly oriented. There's no such thing now on Amtrak, and there's frequently heard chatter among passengers debating whether they should go one way or another for a meal. I think the Superliners had illuminated directional arrows at one point; but they were never too prominent and, as far as I know, they've been dispensed with by now. Think Night of the Living Dead, with passengers wandering about more or less aimlessly. September 25I'm guessing that says "1st snow 9-25 5pm." Do you suppose it was common for train crews to record the first snow of the season? Snow in SeptemberUnfortunately the gams of the reclining nude (not of the Amedeo Modigliani variety) obscure the snow related details of September 25, 1942. The attached weather map gives us a clue however. It appears as if a train from Chicago to Iowa would have been in the white stuff most of the way. The calendar features a historic trio of the famed CNW 400 locomotive fleet; Chicago to St. Paul, Minnesota---400 miles in 400 minutes. PinupsCover the era from late '20s to 1943 when the photograph was made. Especially cute is a charmer from about 1927 made like a little fan right under a young lady dressed in the styles of the day. Love this! I love this picture! My house is right on this rail-line.. looking at them right now out my office window as I type. Thanks for posting this picture! Caboose HumorI love the sign posted over the doorway: "Dining car in opposite direction". It looks like a sign from a passenger train advising passengers that they were going in the wrong direction, if they were looking for the dining car. Having had the exasperation of walking through several cars and discovering it was all for naught. Then having to retrace one's steps dodging other passengers through a moving train, a sign like this would have been very helpful. Ah!! To once again eat and sleep on a train is something I doubt I will ever again experience. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Pretty Girls, Railroads)
Scenic Petoskey: 1908
... the way I remember it. (The Gallery, DPC, Petoskey, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/29/2012 - 6:12pm -

Circa 1908. "R.R. station at Petoskey, Michigan." Not just a city, Petoskey is also the official state stone. 8x10 glass negative, Detroit Publishing. View full size. The Tank Engineon the nearest train has an interesting collection of bits and pieces on the tank top - fire irons, brake hoses and what look like grate sections - and some really ordinary-looking coal in the bunker. It hasn't yet been fitted with gauge glasses, so the poor old crew have to get by with try-cocks to see how much water they have in the boiler. Glad I don't have to fire the thing. I also like the oil or acetylene headlight, with its roller blind to cover it during meets. Passenger PigeonsThis is also the city in Michigan where, when this was taken, it had been 30 years since the last large stand of roosting passenger pigeons had been decimated (with only smaller flocks to survive until the end of the century). There is a plaque to commemorate the event. Petoskey StoneAn unusual material. It is a fossil stone used in jewelry. Why did it take so long?I wondered as I looked over the baggage cart and noticed of course, there were no wheels on luggage back then. Why did it take so long to invent them? One source says a guy named Ali came up with removable wheels between 1914 and 1920 but there is no proof and no patent listed. Best bet is Bernard Sadow in 1970 with a patent in 1972. Manufacturers still do not pay him any licensing fees. Great triple train photo - thanks Dave. Park it in PetoskeyIt looks like Pennsylvania Station, now at one end of Pennsylvania Park; the tracks still run through but the train doesn't. View Larger Map Still around.The train station still exists and is still involved in travel. It's at the corner of Bay and Lewis and, unfortunately, has been converted to office space and is currently the home of Andrew Kan Travel. The covered concourse has been enclosed but the station looks largely intact. Michigan State StonePetoskey stone is actually fossilized coral from the time when Michigan was inundated with a saltwater sea. When it is polished it makes for a lovely semiprecious stone. Petoskey and MeMany years ago at an industry convention I met an appliance dealer from Petoskey. I don't remember the fellow's name but the store, I believe, was called Puff or Puffs. We had an advertising session and I remember all his ads had their logo, a train with smoke rising from the engine forming the letters P-U-F-F in each cloud of smoke. We hit it off and talked for quite a while. He said they didn't sell a lot of room air conditioners because it really never got that hot on the Upper Peninsula (I wonder if that has changed?). However they put the advertising emphasis on food freezers because of the predominance of their hunting population and that helped them get through the summer. That I still remember this after 40 or so years shows that the guy impressed me. Old switcherFrom the looks of the larger engine (Likely a 4-6-0) on the main with the standing train, I'd have to say that the nearer locomotive is probably an aging 4-4-0, or 2-6-0 that is living out its life having been sidelined to switcher use. Contrary to what Mark said though, there are sight glasses visible at the very top edge of the firebox, suggesting that there has been a rebuild at some point to bring her up to more "modern" standards. By the look of that ungraded coalI wouldn't want to be shoveling those larger chunks into the firebox. Hand firing a steam locomotive was a horribly hot filthy job at the best of times, but in the heat of summer: no thank-you! However, I can't recall any hoggers who didn't have to serve as fireman before 'moving to the right side of the cab'. Not the Upper PeninsulaPetoskey is not in the Upper Peninsula. Those of us who are in the UP are noticing some pretty darn warmer winters and hotter summers than we care for. Lake Superior seldom freezes over anymore, which it did on a fairly regular basis from 1965 until the 90's; at least that's the way I remember it. (The Gallery, DPC, Petoskey, Railroads)
New Jersey Zinc: 1911
... likely the former. (The Gallery, Factories, Mining, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/21/2016 - 10:54am -

Paterson, New Jersey, circa 1911. "American Locomotive Co. Rogers Works. 0-4-0 locomotive for New Jersey Zinc Co." 8x10 inch glass negative. View full size. Fireless steam locomotive This may be a fireless steam locomotive and not a saddle tank. They were often used as industrial switchers, especially at armament factories. NJ Zinc Co / Palmerton PA Superfund siteTheir zinc smelting operation deforested a long section east of town that has been the site of a Superfund reclamation project. Hike east from Palmerton along the Appalachian Trail and you'd swear that you were on Mars. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palmerton,_Pennsylvania "Light Locomotives for Domestic Service"Order one here! Surprisingly intactNow the Paterson Museum. You know those times... when people speak of the majesty and beauty of the great steam engines? This is not one of those times. Salt of the EarthA subsidiary of New Jersey Zinc, Empire Zinc of New Mexico, was the subject of the 1954 movie "Salt of the Earth," based on the Bayard, N.M., miners' strike. DerailedThe Rogers Works produced nearly 6,200 locomotives starting in 1837, and in late 19th century was the second largest locomotive builder in the US. Besides the pocket size industrial locomotive shown here they built surprisingly large main-line locomotives as well, and were known for quality and innovation. Surprisingly, the plant had no direct rail connections, and all incoming materials and outbound finished locomotives were hauled by horse-drawn wagons several blocks on the streets of Paterson to the nearest rails! The plant closed in 1913. BTW, did you spot the photobomber? Photo Bomberto the right mid picture behind the large post. Took a while Interesting little WorkhorseLet the thing with the majesty and beauty of the steam locomotive to get away, and focus on the image. There is an interesting locomotive with a lot of interesting details. The compact design reminds us that there is a locomotive for use under technical equipment (loading bridges etc.). Steam Locomotives for the real underground use are rather unsuitable (What to do with all the smoke?). Also interesting is the artifices which had to apply the designers to go from the low-lying frame back to the standard coupling height. The generously dimensioned buffer beams indicate that the track position in the field of application would not likely to have been the most amazing (In the event of a derailment preventing such buffer beams that the wheels of the locomotive firmly dig in the mud). Further interesting the saddle tank - a feature that was actually more common in England. The equipment with external engine and internal control is also not been so common in North America at the time. The nameplate on the smoke chamber support is another unusual detail - but was on the smoke chamber (the normal place for this plate on north american locos) just not a place because of the saddle tank, so they just have shifted the nameplate down slightly (in Europe, especially in Germany were nameplates on the cylinders usual). The cover of the cab with (Yes what, anyway? Fabric? Tar paper?) Is another detail that you as looks more on wagons to locomotives. And the lack of side doors finally point out that the locomotive may have been coupled in everyday life with any Tender well - another meaningful reason for a single wide opening in the rear wall of the cab will not occur to me. Not fireless.This is not a fireless locomotive. It's one of a type of small locomotives that were typically called "Contractor" locomotives due to their size. Rogers was known for producing these small locomotives, with most of them being coal fired, while a few were oil fired. This one is most likely the former. (The Gallery, Factories, Mining, Railroads)
Night Train: 1943
... with their jointed boilers. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/07/2013 - 3:46pm -

March 1943. "Barstow, California. A view of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe yard at night." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano. View full size. 2-10-2 "Santa Fe Type"The Santa Fe steam locomotive 1691 in the photo, is one of the earliest examples of a locomotive type which was named after the railroad. They descend from the 2-10-0 "Decapod" type, to which the Santa Fe added a one axle "trailing truck" under the cab in 1903, for better tracking on the steep and curvy Raton Pass grade in Colorado and New Mexico. This begot one of the most popular wheel arrangements in America for heavy freight service. Maybe We'll Steam AgainThere's a group up at the University of Minnesota working with some 501c3 organization refitting a Baldwin to run on Biomass. They think they can get better emissions, efficiency, and power than diesel once they get it right. Even got themselves a website: http://www.csrail.org/. It would be awfully neat if we could see these kinds of things again! That Odd TenderThat slopeback tender behind the first loco was uniquely used on the Santa Fe, and was not original equipment on that particular engine. It came originally attached to one of the 2-10-10-2 mallets used to push trains over Cajon Pass. Built early in the century, they were the world's largest locomotives in their day, yet proved so impractical and labor intensive that they were short lived, like most behemoth locomotives produced in that era. They were scrapped in the 1930's, and MAY have been (I don't have my Santa Fe books handy, so don't quote me on it) converted into two 2-10-0 types. Engines died, but tenders, especially practical designs like the slopeback, lived on until the very end of steam. Whale, not slopeThat type of tender was known on the Santa Fe as a whaleback. Slopeback tenders were typically used with switch engines not road power - though, as always, there were exceptions. The biggest problems Santa Fe had with the 2-10-10-2s were with their jointed boilers. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
St. Clair Tunnel: 1905
... automobile tunnel was third. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/21/2012 - 12:01pm -

Port Huron, Michigan, circa 1905. "St. Clair Tunnel." Oh, and please note: "No Admittance." 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing Co. View full size. Signaled block systemDoing just a little research, I discovered traffic through the tunnel was controlled by a signaled block system. The train dispatcher shared quarters with the block system equipment on the Sarnia side, and the building in the picture housed the equipment on the Port Huron side. It appears to be that the switch was an early dual control, subject to remote operation by a control operator, and also to hand operation by train crews as circumstances warranted. Great snippet of railroad history. Tempting Yeah, fer sure, I wanna be in that tunnel when a train comes through. Not likely! The first one !According to Wikipedia, electrification of the St.Clair tunnel was completed in 1908. Maybe some astute railfan could verify this? Also this was the first full-sized underwater railroad tunnel built. Who do you believe?Interesting discrepancy. The year of this photo is 1905 but some detailed historical research indicates that electric trains didn't start running until 1908. The contract to electrify the tunnel wasn't awarded to Westinghouse until 1906. http://loc.gov/pictures/item/mi0363/ (relevant bit about electrifying the tunnel is on page 32 of the report. Click the Data Pages link) [The "year of the photo" is not 1905 but, as noted in the caption, "circa 1905." Meaning around, in the general vicinity of. - Dave] AdvertisingCould it be that the lettering on the lawn is an early form of advertising to be seen from the air? [I don't think so. - Dave] 102 years laterThis is how it looked in September 2007. Sometimes a Tunnel is just a TunnelCould this BE more Freudian? Long and LastingThis tunnel was over 6000 feet long and was in use from 1891 through 1994. It was replaced by a tunnel with the same name in 1995. Life imitates artThis makes me think of Alfred Hitchcock. See the movieGo to the following link to see an Edison-Biograph film made between 1896 and about 1905: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQzXCoQRbas At 4:01-4:51 the camera is mounted on the front of a locomotive going through St. Clair Tunnel. The film was made before the above photo, because the railroad is not yet electrified. [You actually go through the entire tunnel; the film negative is reversed to see the interior of the bore.] The rest of film is full of some neat eastern railroading too. Sort of like seeing some of Dave's old photos starting to move... Sometimes a tunnel is just a tunnel.Sir Alfred Hitchcock liked these shots bunches! And he used them too. Hey, Sleepy!Welcome to Shorpy. But wake up and pay attention. In particular r-e-a-d the captions. Dave let you off light. This time. Freudian SlipTrain + Tunnel = SYMBOLISM!! The lawn letteringTo be viewed by passengers on the other rail alignment, visible to the upper right. St. Clair River Tunnel The Railroad and Engineering Journal, Volume 62, 1888. The St. Clair River Tunnel. — After a long period of waiting, work on the proposed tunnel under the St. Clair at Port Huron is again actively under way. The developments so far are most satisfactory, the measurement showing more than the required thickness of clay everywhere, with no fault or break discoverable. The shoe on the American side was successfully put in place recently, and the shaft is now being excavated. On the Canadian side good progress is being made, and the brick lining has been lowered by successive drops of from 4 to 8 ft. each, until it is now half way or so to bed-rock. A blower for forcing air down the shaft and the electric light plant of the machinery will soon be in place. The tunnel is to be built by a separate company, but will be used by the Grand Trunk Railway trains. Encyclopædia Britannica, 1891. River Tunnels. — Small tunnels under navigable streams are quite frequent in the United States. In Chicago a number have been bored under the Chicago River in order to connect the several parts of the city without bridges. The project of a tunnel under the Detroit River, through which railroad traffic should be carried without interfering with navigation, has long been discussed. Various towns have, from time to time, been selected as sites for the beginning of operations. At Port Huron, some miles above Detroit, the River St. Clair is now being tunnelled in order to avoid the carrying of cars upon railroad ferry-boats. When completed, the tunnel will shorten the distance between Buffalo and the cities of Detroit and Chicago. It will be over a mile in length, 2310 feet being under the river, 1810 feet under dry ground south of the city limits of Port Huron, and 1160 feet on the Canadian side; 1500 feet of the portion under the river will be almost level, falling eastward only enough to cause the water that leaks into the tunnel to run to the Canadian side. The total length of the ascent on the American side will be 4900 feet, and on the Canadian side 4970 feet. The length of the open cutting or approach at the Port Huron end of the tunnel will be 2820 feet, and at the Canadian end 3270 feet. The depth of the lowest part of the tunnel below the surface of the water will be 81 feet, which is 15 feet higher than had been at first expected, on account of anticipated quicksands and water-pockets. The minimum depth of the top below the bed of the river will be 15 feet. The tunnel has a clear internal diameter of 20 feet, and is intended for a single track. A double-track tunnel was at first proposed, but it was found that two single-track tunnels could be built at less expense than one doubletrack. Should this tunnel prove successful and profitable, the company intends to build a second one. The cost of the tunnel is estimated at $1,500,000. Souvenir History of Port Huron, Michigan, 1906. … the most notable and absorbing sight are the great St. Clair Tunnel engines, which were built expressly for taking heavily loaded trains through the great underground international railway thoroughfare. You enter a well-appointed car and take a seat the bell rings, and the great train soon begins to trundle away toward the approach to the largest submarine tunnel in the world. Broad banks of blue clay rise on each side, abutted with heavy stone masonry. The train increases its speed, and if you can get near the rear car door of the last coach when the train plunges into the tunnel and a moment after daylight is changed for darkness, the opening which you have entered as it recedes looks like a beautiful landscape placque hung upon a wall of inky darkness. The train thunders on, and in less time than you can describe the trip the express commences to climb the grade on the Canadian side and has stopped at the Sarnia depot, and you have ridden through a tunnel measuring 6,025 feet from portal to portal. and under the greatest water highway of the world. FirstThe St. Clair Tunnel was the world's first underwater tunnel between two nations. The Michigan Central Tunnel between Detroit and Windsor was the second and the Detroit-Windsor automobile tunnel was third. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads)
Cozy Depot: 1943
... View full size. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/08/2014 - 10:29am -

January 1943. "Freight train operations on the Chicago & North Western Railroad between Chicago and Clinton, Iowa. At the end of the trip, conductor John Wolfsmith [last seen here] waits at the little railroad station for a suburban train to take him back home to Chicago. A welder who works at the rip tracks is trying to thaw out his frozen air hose." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Rust Belt Riviera: 1941
... (The Gallery, Industry & Public Works, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/06/2019 - 1:36pm -

January 1941. "A section of Rochester, Pennsylvania, on the Ohio River. Photographs show Ohio River town in western Pennsylvania -- bridges, houseboats, coal barges, railroad yards. Abandoned stove and glass works. Automobile graveyard. Cemetery and gravedigger. Substandard housing occupied by Negroes." Photo by Jack Delano for the FSA. View full size. High WaterIn 1937 there was a devastating flood. So my guess is that there is not a whole lot close to the river. I live in Leavenworth, Indiana. A town that was moved uphill after that flooding. Prime Real EstateOther than that gaggle of railroad tracks that property right next to the river should have been prime real estate. So why was it a slum area? Did it flood often? What is it now? Inquiring minds want to know. Beaver Valley BowlingThe tall building has been repurposed as a bowling alley, and a Goggle street view spin around Rochester shows it has survived in the Rust Belt better than many places. Mostly Highway NowIt's difficult to approximate exactly where the original photo was taken. The area now has a divided highway and a jumble of access ramps running though much of it, but my guess is that the photographer was standing somewhere along Pleasant Street at the top of the bluff. The large building in the center of the photo still (mostly) stands, and appears to now house a bowling alley and pool hall. It's available!https://www.timesonline.com/news/20181211/beaver-valley-bowl-building-fa... Hollywood beckonedThe large brick building was the Beaver Valley Brewery, and is now home to the Beaver Valley Bowl. The bowling alley appeared in two movies: Wonder Boys and Kingpin. You can see the exterior and interior in this clip: https://youtu.be/gO0VwzCuuBM Update: Beaver Valley Bowl also appears in the Netflix series: I'm Not OK With This. Looks uninvitingA short distance behind the photographer is the Beaver River, where it joins the Ohio. Across the Beaver River is the town of Beaver, where my grandfather died 5 years to the month from when this was taken. There's little wonder why my grandmother packed up dad and his brother and moved back to the Philly area where she had family. Still StandingThe large building in the upper center of the frame and the smaller buildings farther away from the camera are still there as are all four mainline tracks. The Pennsylvania Railroad signal bridge has been replaced by another one a a few hundred yards west of this location. This view is looking east toward Pittsburgh from Rochester and likely was taken from the bridge crossing the tracks and then the Ohio River. Small Town, Big Railroad"The Standard Railroad of the World" - The Pennsylvania Railroad (Now part of Norfolk Southern) looms large in the town. Tony Dorsett (Footbal) and Christina Aguilera (Singer) hail from here. (The Gallery, Industry & Public Works, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Sawdust Memories: 1936
... history. (The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Factories, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/26/2019 - 1:34pm -

July 1936. "One of the largest sawmills in the world. Employs many of the Resettlement Administration homesteaders at Longview, Cowlitz County, Washington." Medium format negative by Arthur Rothstein for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. On the way upThere seems to be a ladder leaning on or nailed to everything around. So far I haven't spotted a single set of good old stairs. Got Wood?Wooden walkways, wooden power poles, wooden water tank, wooden rail cars, wooden stanchions supporting a wooden bridge (with metal trusses); my question is, when did it all burn down? Long-Bell Lumber CompanyNever burned down which is a major disappointment to me. Here is a snip about how the town got its name. "When Long-Bell applied for a post office, the U.S. Postal Service advised that there already was a “Long View, Washington,” and rejected the request. The company discovered that Long View was a flag stop on the Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railroad in Benton County, servicing only three rural families. After negotiations, the community agreed to relinquish the name “Long View” if Long-Bell would build them a covered platform, at a cost of $25, to protect the mail sacks thrown from passing trains. The name “Longview” in Cowlitz County became official in January 1923, with the establishment of a U.S. Post Office there." Here is link https://historylink.org/File/8560 to a very interesting city history. (The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Factories, Railroads)
Incline Saloon: 1907
... the car. (The Gallery, DPC, Duluth, Eateries & Bars, Railroads, Streetcars) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/13/2012 - 6:45pm -

Duluth, Minnesota, circa 1907. "Up the incline railway from Superior Street." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Don't even think of trying itI love the sign at the base of the incline, "WARNING Walking on this railway is positively forbidden. It is DANGEROUS." Multi-layered DuluthAh, Duluth: life at the top of the map, as they say. This picture just has layer after layer. It's a hot day: every window that can be opened is open, even in the dubious-sounding furnished rooms available above Mr. Donovan's Incline Saloon. In other layers: it appear that Gramps may have a significant wait to use the telephone, as he's in line behind at least two ladies. Between the two idlers who seem to have nothing better to do than to observe the hottie on the train is a barrel of something frightfully sticky-looking. Does this help the train? What about in the winter? There doesn't appear to be anything (like cog-railways have) to make the train work properly when there's ice. Are they just risking it? And the guy center-bottom-left appears to be preparing for a monumental sneeze. This is why we look at Shorpy's pages. This looks like great funDangerous and yet fun. Very Not FlatThe track sure does undulate up and down an awful lot, like a very lame roller coaster. Here in Cincinnati all the inclines but one maintained a constant grade. The one that didn't (the Main Street/Mount Auburn Incline) got noticeably steeper at the very bottom. I've never found out if they had any way to keep the platform level, which would be a big deal if carrying a streetcar or carriages. This one doesn't look like it deviates enough to really matter much, but it's an operational puzzle anyway. So inclinedI lived in Duluth for many years and you do not need an Incline such as this to head to the local saloon -- but the incline sure helps a bunch if you're in doubt. Just driving in the winter will help you find a saloon or find God real fast. Awesome Thanks - My Grandpa used to tell me stories about riding the incline as a young boy. This site is amazing. Counterbalanced carsI was on an incline railway years ago at Niagara Falls and it seemed the two cars were almost in balance with each other and the engine or electric motor at the top added only a small amount of power to move one car up as the other car descended. Both cars were connected with a haulage cable riding over a large powered drum at the top end, the cars themselves having no propulsion. In this view I notice the car on the left track has a trolley pole similar to that found on a streetcar running on tracks on the street. The trolley wire terminates at a feeder on the steel pole the "dude" with the Smokey the Bear hat is leaning against. The trolley wire is suspended above the track with horizontal brackets extending out from poles next to the track in normal single-track street railway operation. I assume the trolley wire is for lights within the car and its headlight centered on the dash. The trolley pole must always be on the downhill end as it probably is not long enough to reach the wire if turned on its base to the uphill end of the car. There does not seem to be a trolley wire over the right track. Strange if the two cars are identical. With the varying slopes, the haulage cables would be quite high above their idler pulleys at times. Fascinating! Thank You. A Worthwhile ReadA good account of the history of this line, together with many interesting photos can be found at the Funimag Photoblog. The car in the photo was a repurposed streetcar body pressed into service after the original cars were destroyed as a result of a 1901 fire in the powerhouse at the top of the incline. Prior to the fire there were two cars, each counterbalancing the other. The cars were 16 feet wide and could accommodate the horse-n-buggy trade. The fence at the bottom was originally a gate allowing for teams to drive straight into the cars. The small building at the foot of the right-hand track is a station. During the time of this photo there was only one car in use, counterbalanced by a wheeled flat weight on the other track. The repurposed car had its door on the right (as we view the photo) and the station building had to be placed to allow access. If you look carefully up the incline you can see footbridges built to allow access to the car from stations along the way. These blocked the right-hand track but the flat counterweight was able to roll along beneath them. Everybody look innocent!Here comes the constable. Another great view of Duluth InclineThanks Dave, this photo is new for me and it is great as usual! Mike Cash is absolutely right, there was only one car and a flat counterweight when this photo was taken in 1907. I guess the old man with beard is waiting for the incline as the ladies do and not for the telephone because this door is the unique access to the incline. The waiting room seems to be full of people. Note, behind the "WARNING ... DANGEROUS" panel, there is another door. The car of the incline will stop just beside that door and the door will be just in front of the unique door of the car. (The Gallery, DPC, Duluth, Eateries & Bars, Railroads, Streetcars)
Inside Track: 1943
... Gallery, Baltimore, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Marjory Collins, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/17/2014 - 6:46pm -

April 1943. Baltimore, Maryland. "Trucks and trains unloading goods underneath elevated trolley." Medium format negative by Marjory Collins. View full size. The Guilord Avenue Elevated RailwayBegan at Guilford Ave. and Chase Street and ended at Guilford Ave. and Saratoga Street. That was a distance of 8 blocks. The line was discontinued in 1947 and razed. The photo is of the intersection of East Pleasant St. and Guilford Ave. Here is a present day street view of that intersection. The building on the left survives and has been converted into storage units. View Larger Map Baltimore Terminal WarehouseThe building on the left that survives is the Baltimore Terminal Warehouse, which was built in 1894 with an addition in 1912. Not So Pleasant StreetAbout two blocks west of JellyBelly's location map is an infamous hill known to many a teenager and adult of mid-century Baltimore. In the 40's and 50's before the Maryland DMV moved to Glen Burnie if you lived in Baltimore the driving tests were taken on the streets of Baltimore with real traffic and not in a fenced in trafficless parking lot. The terror and bane of all aspiring drivers came when the Tester told you to make a left off of Guilford onto Pleasant and go up to St Paul Street and make a right. Sounds simple now but in those days most cars were gear shifts and not automatics. Back then there was a stop sign at the top of Pleasant instead of a light thus you had to come to a complete stop and look for traffic coming your way, change gears while alternately playing with the clutch and gas pedals so you wouldn't stall out or drift back too far or go ahead into the cross traffic. Fortunately DMV had moved when my driving test time came and I didn't have to worry about that hill and it's been so long since I have had to shift gears I'm not sure if I could pass that test now with out a lot of practice. +71Below is the same view from July of 2014. (The Gallery, Baltimore, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Marjory Collins, Railroads)
Robert Hill: 1943
... occupation "Machine Labor". (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/25/2009 - 1:57am -

March 1943. "Topeka, Kansas. Robert L. Hill, steel car repairer and rivet driver, at the car shops of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad." Medium-format nitrate negative by Jack Delano, Office of War Information. View full size. Wonderful portraitI'd echo allie's sentiments. Mr. Hill's handsome, dignified face and bearing reveal something about his character, at a time when many of his countrymen regarded him as a second-class citizen. I hope this image has been copied to a more stable and durable medium, for posterity, than the nitrate it was captured on. [These images have all been copied and preserved by digitization. - Dave] CastingSamuel L. Jackson will play him in the movie. What a portrait!I hope Mr. Hill's grandchildren have copy of this photograph. It is such a beautiful image of this gentleman. My grandfather was a welder, but passed away before I was born. The only photos I have of him are of a frail old man. I would love a photo of him in his prime, like this one. RivetingI love this man's face. It's a face of courage and a proud dignity. I would have liked to have known him. Robert L. Hillhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_L._Hill Same name, born 1892 in Arkansas, fled to Kansas and worked in a meat plant in Topeka..... Could this be Robert Jr.? Heck, if he is 51 this is Robert Sr.! Robert Hill -- 1940 US CensusRobert Hill, born about 1900 in Arkansas, was married to a Mattie (born about 1903, in Arkansas). Five children, two boys named Wilson (age 17, born in Kansas) and Earl (13, born in Kansas), and two daughters, Viola (age 21, born Arkansas), and Georgia (age 19, born in Kansas). There's an infant named Winifred, age 2 months, listed in the household. Her relationship is not stated, but as she's listed directly under Viola, it's probably her daughter, making her Robert's granddaughter. They lived at 608 East 18th Street in Topeka, and owned their own home (value $1,200). Robert earned $1,728 in 1939 ($28,000-$29,000 adjusted for inflation to 2013 dollars), making him by far the best paid man on his census page. Employer is listed as the Santa Fe Railroad, of course, his occupation "Machine Labor". (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Cow Town: 1943
... to sleep many nights. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/05/2012 - 6:07pm -

March 1943. "Hereford, Texas. Passing the depot on the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad between Amarillo, Texas, and Clovis, New Mexico." Nitrate negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. It's Still ThereAlways good to see these old places survive. View Larger Map HerefordI've got personal photos taken from this same spot, only facing the other way to capture a nice view of the co-op elevator instead of the old depot. I'm not sure what my interest in the grain elevator was other than the huge "Hereford Grains" sign on the side of it. I wish I'd turned around and snapped a photo of the old depot to present you instead but the Google version is also okay. When I was in Hereford, a container train passed through town every 20 minutes all day and night long. It's a busy railroad town. It's also a busy feedlot town with all the aromatic scents that go with it. You folks on the east coast miss out on so many olfactory experiences that go with where your BigMac started from. CleanWhat I just love about these Jack Delano photos along the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe line is how he makes everything look so CLEAN. Then and NowI really enjoy seeing then and now pictures. You should consider an album of them. We used to have one of those depotsThe Santa Fe RR runs through Chillicothe, Illinois. One of my earliest memories (summer 1944) is a visit to the train station there, an almost exact duplicate of the one in Hereford. My mother took me with her because Eddie Cantor (among other celebrities, I assume) would be making a short stop on the way to Chicago on trip to promote buying War Bonds. My grandfather, a then-retired conductor for the Santa Fe who had worked for some 40 years, often took me with him when he went to talk with some friends who still were still working at the station. When we moved back to Chillicothe, we lived 2 blocks from the depot. The sound of the trains lulled me to sleep many nights. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Despatch Depot (Detail)
... to text Aunt Minnie over in Elmira. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads, Rochester) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/07/2018 - 3:18pm -

Despatch, New York, circa 1906. "Merchants' Despatch Transportation Co." The right-hand section of a larger panorama of the New York Central rail hub now known as East Rochester. 8x10 inch glass negative. View full size. Time TravelerPretty sure with this zoomed view that the guy lounging on the luggage cart is catching up on his Facebook and about to text Aunt Minnie over in Elmira. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads, Rochester)
Mourning McKinley: 1901
... a park now. (The Gallery, D.C., D.C. Street Survey, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/03/2021 - 10:29am -

Washington, D.C. "View from Randall School of H Street S.W., between Half & First Streets, in 1901 showing coal yard and old homes near railroad station. Houses have McKinley memorials. Portrait of President William McKinley draped in black is visible on the house on the left. A flag is at half mast on the right." Along with at least two other McKinley portraits. 8x10 inch glass negative, D.C. Street Survey Collection. View full size. Oddly lonelySuch a stark contrast exists between the pretty house with delicate embellishments casting lacy shadows -- the two older folk porch sitting on an early autumn afternoon; the younger woman dressed like an Old West frontier female standing by, arms crossed; the hatted child playing at the edge of the sidewalk -- and the rest of the landscape, which appears suspended in a dusty, lonely languor. McKinley's destinyThe assassination of William McKinley made Theodore Roosevelt President at the age of 42. When TR became Vice President earlier that same year, his friend Charles G. Washburn remarked: "I would not like to be in McKinley's shoes. He has a man of destiny behind him." Buffalo / DallasI was 7 when President Kennedy died. I never hear mention of Dallas without thinking of his assassination. I've always wondered, did people who were alive when McKinley died have similar associations with Buffalo, where he was assassinated? TRElsewhere in the city, "that damned cowboy" Teddy Roosevelt has just become the new President. All the houses with TepeesI had always assumed that the little turrets, or cones on the corners of houses were purely for appearance. I wonder whether they also played a structural purpose since more than two dozen of them are visible in the picture. McKinley's DeathWhen he died President McKinley was widely and deeply mourned. The trappings of official and Victorian mourning with black crape and formal mourning attire were everywhere. But so also were touching demonstrations by simple people throughout the country where public assemblies and special services in churches were held. The route of his funeral train was lined by ordinary working class people standing shoulder to shoulder with the well off and powerful. People placed coins and flowers on the train tracks and kept the flattened remnants as mementos. At almost every stage of the journey local bands appeared playing the hymn "Nearer My God to Thee," a popular hymn and Mr. McKinley's favorite long before it became associated with the Titanic disaster. McKinley was a deeply religious man and according to popular legend (disputed) his last words were from the opening verse of the hymn. Here is a link to some rare film footage of the official ceremonies and funeral procession. https://youtu.be/gTQrpsZ3tQA LOCIs that the Library of Congress in the distance on the left? Ballast = coalI believe we're looking at a coal dealer. Note that some of the bays are divided so the coal can be sorted as to lump size and possibly some choice Anthracite in there. Seems to be a small cart-ramp extending over yet more bays below. Displaying FlagsFlags are flown at half mast aboard ships. On land they are flown at half staff. Jefferson BuildingThe partially visible large building in the upper left of the image is southeast corner of the Jefferson Building of the Library of Congress, which was completed four years before the image was taken. Lehigh ValleyThe elevated rail arrangement and piles of ballast in the center-right of the photo remind me of all the comments and speculations last week with regard to Earth Movers: 1901. Building IDI'm curious about the complex of large white (at least in this picture) buildings in the upper right. Can we identify that? It's on the MapGoats of Venus has indeed got it right. [As does the photo caption, which calls it a coal yard - Dave] A look at a 1904 Sanborn Fire Insurance map shows this to be the Allegheny Coal Co. The map clearly shows the hard and soft coal trestles as well as the other structures on the site. Even more fascinating, it matches up perfectly with the houses in the image (facing H Street) and accurately shows their construction, with the pink color representing brick and yellow being frame. Even the 2-story frame porch on the house in the foreground is shown on the map as well as the split brick and frame construction of the first house around the corner on Half Street. Building ID FoundAfter much sleuthing, including trying to get the right perspective using old DC maps, I can positively identify the large white building in the upper right as being the “old” Providence Hospital located at the time at 2nd & D Streets SE on Capitol Hill (see the image in the plaque below). I’m a bit embarrassed it took me so long to figure it out--I was born there in 1950. Dating to the Civil War era, the hospital moved in the 1950s to larger quarters in Northeast. The buildings in the photo were razed and site became Providence Park, which still exists today. Incidentally, a number of previously published Shorpy photos were taken around the same time frame from the roof of the hospital, including several pointed back in the general direction of the Randall School—the reverse of where we’re looking from in the photo above. The fall of a sparrowThe prominent group of structures at 2 o'clock is the old Providence Hospital complex. It's a park now. (The Gallery, D.C., D.C. Street Survey, Railroads)
Ironwood: 1899
... and it finally arrived!!! (The Gallery, DPC, Mining, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/21/2012 - 5:58pm -

Iron mining circa 1899. "Norrie group No. 3, Ironwood, Michigan." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Snow CountryTalked to a lady one year that was visiting relatives here and asked her how the weather was in Ironwood so far this winter. She said that it had snowed 180 inches without a thaw. The winter was about half over and she said it was not the norm even for Ironwood. Largest Iron Mine in the World The National Magazine, Vol. 11, 1900. America's Supremacy in Iron and Steel. The Norrie, with its twenty miles of tunnels, in which are employed over 3,000 men, produces nearly a million tons of ore a year. It is the largest iron mine in the world, and the ore in sight shows no abatement of this production, which has been maintained for a decade past. Iron Age, Vol. 72, 1904. The Lake Superior Mining Institute. No. 3 shaft at East Norrie, also going down in the footwall, was visited, but as it presents few new features little time was spent there. It was interesting to note, at all the properties visited, that the development work done and the permanent improvements put in are all of the most substantial and lasting character, far more so than in the past and evidently designed for the utmost service and the longest possible duration. It is one of the developments coming from the control of mining properties by companies having abundant capital and assured of a large and permanent product. Michigan History Magazine, Vol. 6, 1922. Ho! Gogebic County! Mining explorations were first made in the Ironwood locality by Landseer Norrie who came from New York in 1881. He first sunk a shaft in what is now known as the Ashland Mine. Dissatisfied with results here he later sunk a shaft on the Norrie location, in what is now known as the old Norrie Mine. … The Norrie was the first mine to produce 1,000,000 tons of ore in one year. My familia's hometownMy family is from Ironwood. Lots of Italians, Finns, Swedes and Serbs. Dad grew up there and actually worked in the iron ore mines, as a kid as did most of the population. Would love to see more of these! I'm forwarding this one to my relatives still up there. This is God's CountryThis is the town I was born in, of course MANY years later. I wonder where exactly this picture is located? I have been to Norrie park quite a few times, I wonder if it's near that area. Anyone know? Thanks for the picture, I've been looking for one of Ironwood and it finally arrived!!! (The Gallery, DPC, Mining, Railroads)
Rest Stop: 1904
... the rails directly to the ties. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/22/2017 - 7:30pm -

Circa 1904. "Track straightening near Coal City, Illinois." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. MinimalismNo need for tie plates. Spike the rails directly to the ties. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads)
Iron Man: 1941
... a beautiful scene. (The Gallery, John Vachon, Mining, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/17/2014 - 11:40pm -

August 1941. "One end of the Hull-Rust-Mahoning pit, largest open pit iron mine in the world, near Hibbing, Minnesota. The pit is two and a half miles long, three quarters of a mile wide and about four hundred feet deep." Medium format safety negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Grand Canyon of the NorthWe visited Hibbing several years ago, searching for where my wife's grandparents had lived. We found an old town map in the library, and headed out to take a look. We came to the end of a street. The town ended at the edge of a huge canyon, several times bigger than the information posted with the photo. There are hills and small mountains all around the area where they dumped the mine tailings (rock and dirt not good for anything). It is a profound statement to man scarring the earth. Right or wrong it is there for all to see. Could you step back...Just a little further... a little further... just a little mo... uhh, never mind. Scarring?Mother Nature left the Grand Canyon. That's quite a gash in the earth. One might think of retrieving iron as part of building the nation, and this valley as evidence of hard work and determination. Oh, well. Fashionability and all that, eh? It’s no wonder.Why Bobby Zimmerman moved to New York. The mining company may have scarred the landBut they built a High School beyond belief http://www.ironrange.org/attractions/historic/hibbing-high/ Unique hand-molded ceilings in the foyer welcome visitors and accent the breathtaking auditorium designed after the Capitol Theatre in New York City. Cut-glass chandeliers of crystal, imported from Belgium, light the 1800-velvet seat grand auditorium. The cost of each chandelier in 1920 was $15,000 and today they are insured for $250,000 each. The auditorium boasts a magnificent Barton pipe organ, one of only two that still exist in the United States. Containing over 1900 pipes, the organ can play any orchestra instrument except the violin. Bob Dylan and Kevin McHale attended school here. The BeholderWithout iron ore, there would have been no steel. Without steel, how would America look today? The mining boom left behind beautiful schools, Carnegie libraries and other public buildings not typically seen in such small towns. Not in the least, three generations of my male ancestors worked in or for the mines. They built families, and their houses too. As far as aesthetics go, one could also argue the vibrant rust red of the ore, the deep blue of the Northern sky and the bright green of the brush make for a beautiful scene. (The Gallery, John Vachon, Mining, Railroads)
New Jersey
... M&E's trek westward. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by John.Debold - 09/18/2011 - 10:33pm -

I think this was in South Orange, NJ. judging from the street names on the photo. I just got this at a flea market. View full size. Mountain StationThis is Mountain Station on the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western RR's Morris and Essex Division. The original Mountain depot is the Mansard-roofed structure on the left, past the road crossing. This station dates back to the 1860's, at least, and survived into the early 20th century, when track improvements required its removal. The small shanty on the left was the post of the crossing watchman, who manually lowered the crossing gates, of which there were MANY on the M&E's trek westward. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, Railroads)
Retarder Tower: 1942
... today. (Technology, The Gallery, Chicago, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/03/2013 - 9:31pm -

November 1942. "Chicago, Illinois. South classification yard seen from retarder operators' tower at an Illinois Central Railroad yard." Medium format nitrate negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. Fantastic imageI admit I am a railroad "groupie", but this picture is incredible. Jack Delano may be the Ansel Adams of railroad images. The ultimateTrain Set. Not a groupieBut a rail fan like me and many others who love trains, would this be Markham yard on the IC? (IC the train) Something to considerAs we enjoy these photos, we should give a tip of the hat to the photographers who often risked life and limb to make them. In this Delano photo take a look at the tower off to the left. I've been in such towers, and whether Jack had to climb up a straight ladder or take an outside spiral stair, there are spots with no handhold and the top higher than it appears. Bulky photography equipment in those days would probably have hung from his body by rope as he climbed or pulled up hand over hand by rope - no easy task. Then they had to produce artistic photos and develop them carefully. Devoted people! [In this case, Delano was shooting 120 roll film, most likely using a camera similar to the one he's shown with here. -tterrace] The Proviso YardsActually located in west suburban Hillside, Illinois. These yards are 1/2 mile from where I grew up in the 50s and 60s. I bet you're right, ferrochrr. All the big yards in the "rail hub of the country" begin to look alike! Proviso?Proviso yard would be C&NW RR, (UP RR today) not the IC, as for climbing up into RR towers, they were not hard to do, sure the stairs could be a little steep, but certainly not difficult to manage. I've been in a few towers myself for photo opportunities as well. Connection queryCan someone explain how the levers on the control panel were connected to the switches in the distance? Looks to me as if only a few inches of movement on the lever would activate a switch on the rails that must have been relatively large. How was it done? Cables? Motors? Is the same principle used in modern railroading? LeversTo answer some questions, the levers in this photo were connected to the points by means of electrical connections. Previously they were mechanical, in that the levers pulled a number of point rods that activated the retarders and switch points. Sometime around 1930, IC upgraded their systems to a more modern type that used motors and electrical impulses to activate things. Believe it or not, though largely modernized, a similar system is still in use today. (Technology, The Gallery, Chicago, Jack Delano, Railroads)
The Dining Car: 1902
... and I often heard those as a kid. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/18/2012 - 7:03pm -

Circa 1902. "Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad dining car." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. More on The SilverwareI believe that the waiter would set the appropriate utensils for each course from the attractive arrangement. There isn’t a lot of room at these tables and I have been to restaurants where the waiter set the silver before each course. Strange Display?The Silver Ware display on the tables looks awfully strange...wonder why that was placed that way? DL&WThis is what train buffs call "High Varnish." Mighty nice. I'm pretty sure I haven't missed an opportunity, every time the DL&W is featured here, to mention that when my grandmother rode that line, over 100 years ago, they all said that the letters DL&W stood for Delay, Linger and Wait. Style of Long Ago....Incredible elegance that was probably taken for granted back then. Superbly designed (notice the condiment racks on the bulkheads), hat racks, nighttime dining with electric lights overhead. And electric fans! What will they think of next. The use of mirrors that visually make the dining car larger than it appears. This dining car appears to have it all! The man in the aisle does have a bit of a ghostly appearance, though. According to Lucius BeebeThe varnish diners were meant to give the traveler the same dining experience as the First Class hotel they left and the one they were traveling too. Re: Strange Display?I didn't notice it at first, but you are correct in that the layout is quite unusual. Of course, I absolutely love it, and will try the layout the next time I have a formal dinner party. It almost looks as if it is supposed to represent the railroad crossing sign. Thanks to a co-worker, the silverware layout has been identified as a "Dragonfly Pattern". - gen81465 Try Your SkillHit the fork handle, flip the knife and spoon into the vase. Win a free order of fries. Railroad nicknamesRegarding Jazznocracy's comment, it reminded me of a small rail line many years ago that served the timber areas of East Texas. Its official name was the Waco, Beaumont, Trinity and Sabine Railway [WBT & S]. However, due to a constantly precarious financial situation throughout its short life, combined with improper track maintenance as a result, most folks said WBT & S stood for Wobbledy, Bobbledy, Turnover and Stop. It would be interesting to find out how many other "unofficial" railroad nicknames were out there using the letters of the rail companies. DL&WAlong with "Delay, Linger and Wait," another DL&W nickname was "Dread, Long and Weary." My dad was a lifelong DL&W/EL employee and I often heard those as a kid. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads)
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