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May 1936. "Steam shovels on flatcars. Cherokee County, Kansas." Medium-format nitrate negative by Arthur Rothstein for the FSA. View full size.
It was by P.D Eastman. I remember that because that was one of my favorite books when young and still fondly remember it. He also wrote Go, Dog, Go among others. I always liked him better than Dr. Seuss.
Forget the steam shovels -- I'm in love with that SKY!
Sombody must have stolen number 262
It seems fitting to share this photo on Mother's Day. Surely, you remember the Dr. Seuss classic. The "hero" was the steam shovel-- just like of these-- that scooped up the baby bird and plopped it back into its nest.
We had that type of shovel when I worked at the GM&O railroad. They were called "ditchers" and traveled on a set of rails on the flat cars so they could clean out the drainage ditches beside the track.
Which one is Mary Ann and where's Mike Mulligan?
These are maintenance-of-way shovels of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, used to clean along the tracks. Instead of caterpillar treads they have small wheels that allow them to run on rails placed on the flatcars so that they could move about while working.
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