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Office Xmas Party: 1925
... He was born July 1, 1897, and died on March 1, 1940, in Chicago. He left behind wife Agnes and two sons. Enjoy This Every Year ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/21/2024 - 5:25pm -

        It's the Friday before Christmas, time for a hallowed holiday tradition here at Shorpy: The Office Xmas Party! Which has been going on for 99 years now. Will Clarence in Sales ever get up the nerve to ask out Hermione from Accounting? Is there gin in that oilcan? Ask the bear. December 1925. "Washington, D.C. -- Western Electric Co. group." There are enough little dramas playing out here to keep the forensic partyologists busy until Groundhog Day. 8x10 inch glass negative, National Photo Company Collection. View full size. Leer Kings"That Guy" looks like he could be the son of the older leering man directly to the right of him. I shall call them Denis Leery Jr. and Denis Leery Sr. The two men with them are obviously Christopher Walken as The Continental, and a young Franz Mesmer. Just a little creepy....Some of the looks on their faces, wouldn't you love to know what they were thinking! Debauchery 2.0Four years after behaving scandalously at the Krazy Kat, our bohemian friends find themselves slogging away at desk jobs in the boring adult world. Just WAIT until the Christmas party, though! The oil canOf course the bear and the cabin weren't mentioned -- everyone knows the best part of the party is getting well-oiled! Thank you. I'll be here all week. And don't forget to tip your server. H.P. Lovecraft?Could it be? Standing in front of the "Go Go" guy, half hidden? Maybe Franz Kafka, instead? This would be the guy who takes an extra-long time in the lav in order to scratch unseemly things onto the stall partitions. Every office has one of these guys and in this office, its either him or else its the nearly invisible guy standing across from him on the other side of the tree. Also, the girl on the far left, standing in front of the door, is unforgivably cute. I'll bet she's told a lot of these guys "NO" and that's why she's way over there. The Power Bloc ...Have you happened to notice how Big Boss Man - the guy holding that little stubby cigar - is surrounded by thugly-type guys? This is the power bloc for this office. The guys up on the top left are all from a different Department and are wary of Big Boss Man's thugs. There is a little bit of cross-pollenation, however. The first guy standing on the table at the right is shooting a bemused glance in the direction of his bud in that other Department. He's the shorter, unjacketed guy with the full frontal grin and the eyebrows in serious need of plucking. To them, this is all a goof. They hang out together and keep each other informed as to who says what about whom, which of the girls are doable and what the scuttlebutt is coming down from the top. There's more here but I don't want to get censored. A Story in every faceThis photo can inspire everyone to write a novel because there is indeed a colorful character with his own personal bio in every set of eyes. The bald guy with the candle on his head particularly stands out as one who has a complex persona but so does everybody else in the picture. Some appear depressed, some look beat up, some seem desperate. Make up your own scenarios. Personally, I used to look forward to the office parties when the most unexpected facets of co-workers' personalities would be revealed, giving us the rest of the year to talk about that until the next one. Stuffy old lady accountants and spinsters turned out to shock us the most when relaxed by a "touch of the grape". Lots of fun, too bad they have mostly been eliminated. Thank you for this blast from the past. [That's a "GO-GO" traffic signal on Mr. Complex Persona's noggin. - Dave] WiredCould it be that they tapped the power for the Christmas tree lights from the ceiling fixture? What a mod hairdo!The brunette peeking from behind the desk (right above the black purse) has such a 1960's hairstyle! Fat ChanceThe corpulent boss, stogie in hand, actually thinks that removing his glasses improves his appearance. He also seems to be playing footsie with the marcel-waved cutie who inexplicably has an oil can in front of her. A KnockoutThe woman with the pearl necklace sitting at the very corner of the desk is a knockout! She looks like a present-day actress whose name escapes me. The guy standing up and glaring into the lens at the extreme top right of the photo may very well be the Antichrist. His stare gives me chills. The guy behind him looks like an "evil character" straight out of Central Casting. This is a great photo. Thought BubblesIt would take me all day to write out thought bubbles for what I imagine is going through all those heads, but the lady at dead center seems to be thinking, "What was IN that punch? Did they repeal Prohibition and nobody told me?" The "dark lady" downstage right is thinking, "I hope they snap that picture before I freeze to death down here on the bare floorboards. You would think the electric company would have better heaters in its own offices, but old man Pennyfarthing won't even spring for a rug to keep the draft out." Western Electric (Shock Therapy)Great pic. And I'm sure there are as many stories as people in this one. But let's admit that the lady sitting on the floor on the left has to have the most interesting one. There is a haunted, post-experimental-therapy look to her that immediately reminded me of the psych-ward scenes in "Changeling." Where's the copier?Ahhh, the days before every office had a copier, and every office had some joker trying to get the temp to sit on it! Re: Fat ChanceWait -- so the oil can is worth noting, but not the bear statuette or the small house? Western ElectricWestern Electric was the manufacturing and distribution arm of American Telephone and Telegraph. I suppose that this office in Washington was one of their distribution points. At any rate one interesting thing about the photo is the decided separation of men and women as though they might have come from different sections of the business. I also note that the ladies are sitting on a pretty rough floor, which is something I would have thought they would have avoided in those clothes. As to the glasses, I suspect that the photographer cautioned them that the flash might reflect from the lenses, assuming that I can assert that there was flash. Who knows, maybe there's a window somewhere. That Office GirlI find her the most intriguing face in the picture. She looks almost out of place in this setting... her face is striking. Her expression says that she's part of a back story going on around the office that no one knows about. Wow. I'm falling in love with a woman who's long long dead. How sad is that? GiftedJudging by the peculiar items in the shot I'm thinking they exchanged white elephant gifts at the party. I got a big stuffed fish at our last party. I would have preferred the oil can. This is so great!A bevy of attractive females here but I'm partial to the blond girl standing at the far left of the photo. Wowzer! Also, standing next to Boss Stogie on his left: ladies and gentlemen ... Mr. Joaquin Phoenix. The Black WidowQuick somebody, get the story on the raven-haired woman sitting in front of the desk. She looks like she ate her young; perhaps she has a few "missing" husbands buried in her dirt-floor basement. I get the very distinct impression that if you crossed her, you ended up joining the silent majority long before your time. Dark LadyWell.....the woman at bottom left certainly catches the eye. Something of a femme fatale, I think. Not generally popular with the more strait-laced ladies, like the woman two to her right who's giving her a very frosty look. The younger woman though, above and slightly to the left, is more sympathetic. Since it's not uncommon here on Shorpy for unflattering comments to be directed at the olden-days womenfolk, let me be the first to say what a grim bunch the men are. I'll make an exception for the guy under the tree. Getting Oiled at the Office Xmas PartyThe oil can on the foreground floor is absolutely precious. There can be no rational explanation for it. Then again, one tends to get oiled at the office party. The hot babe is standing, far left, if not the girl sitting left, in pearls by the purse on the desk corner. The fat guy with the cigar has his conjoined twin growing out of his forehead. Girls on one side, boys on the other? Weird. How dare these people all die off before telling us why that guy is holding the little horsey? "Hey, Griselda. Spin my copter. If it says 'STOP - STOP', you are not mine. If it says 'Go - GO', oh you kid!" Most riveting photo ever.I've been a lurker on Shorpy for months, but this photo has prompted me to register and comment. I've been coming back to this picture every day since it was posted, showing it to everyone I know. What strikes me is that though there are several vintage-type characters here, there are also quite a few very contemporary looking people as well. This photograph represents such a vibrant living moment in the lives of these people. Some of them look like they could speak to you right from the picture. And, oh what a story they could tell! This photo takes first place from my previous Shorpy favourite, They Shall Remain Nameless. (But it's so close... check it out if you missed it.) Ansel Adams had the Zone System... I'm working on the points system. First I points it here, and then I points it there ... Shining, gleaming, streaming, flaxen, waxen......hair! I think that's my favorite part of this picture. There's such a great group of hairstyles among the women. A few of those girls were pretty darn good with the curling iron, or whatever they used. I wonder if they're more glammed up than usual for the big party. For some reason, the hairstyles are more striking to me than in other pictures. Anyway, fascinating as always. P.S. I think the guy that bdgbill thinks looks like the antichrist is actually kind of a hottie. I'm going to go on the assumption that he didn't look that intense all the time. If he did...well, I could see bdgbill's point then. Now I KnowMy father worked for Western Electric. The money wasn't very good, so I never figured out why he stayed there. Guess this answers the question. IN and OUTI noticed the IN basket on the desk to the far right, but where's the OUT basket? I sometimes wonder why I have an OUT basket on my desk at work - it's always less full than the IN one. The woman sitting on the floor to the far left bears a striking resemblance to the Italian actress Ana Magnani (The Rose Tattoo). Dramatis PersonaeMona, the woman on floor, far left (one of the few without the Marcel wave), is probably a Suffragist or at least politically active. Maybe she's trying to organize these party animals into a union and all they want to do is balance traffic signals on their heads and be wildly social. Don't mess with these guys!The boss from Hades has what looks like a goose egg on his forehead and the coatless guy on his right has a black eye and cuts on the nose and eyebrow: maybe the partying started the night before. Looks like a smoking hot curling iron was de rigueur for any well-coifed lady. That guyOf the four guys standing in the upper right, the guy who is on the left side, closest to the tree -- which girl is he leering at? Western ElectricIf you flip the picture around, you can sort of read the door sign. I can make out: 504 [Western Elec]tric Com[pany]. [INCORP]ORATED [?]ION DEPARTMENT I wonder what the missing part is. Administration? Office TensionThis must have been just after Phyllis spilled the beans about Dwight and Angela. Poor Andy! The Power Bloc, continuedThe balding gent just over Boss Stogie's left shoulder-- the real power in the office, he certainly looks confident that his recent appointment to regional director will lead to greater things. Boss Stogie's son, Junior (with the candy cane), was on the fast track to becoming a junior partner until he was befriended by Harold from the mailroom (his hand on Junior's shoulder), which displeased Boss to no end. UndercoverIsn't anyone going to ask why the woman in the middle is wearing a hat with a Police badge? Is this a costume xmas party? Could she possibly be a real cop?? My GirlSay what you want about the woman on the floor or the blonde with the pearl necklace, but my heart belongs to the woman standing fourth from the left, middle row. She reminds me of Bernadette Peters. The henchman second from the right at the top has a menacing Snidely Whiplash quality about him. You just know he slipped a mickey into someone's drink. Re: Western ElectricYou know you're a Shorpy addict when you "get" Anonymous Tipster's reference to the photographer's use of flash (or WAS there a window somewhere?!). Nice shot, A.T.! Twins or Sisters?Study the features of the young woman directly in front of the door - then look at the one just to the right of (and looking directly at) "blondie with the pearls". Eyes, hair, smile, shape of face, body build: if they are not twins then they must at least be sisters. It is uncanny! Christmas BackstoryYes, the young lady at the lower left leaning against the desk has the most interesting backstory in the room. Thanks to the passage of time we'll never know what was behind her haunted expression beyond that the woman giving her the evil eye must have had something to do with it. Dave continues to put these evocative photos up knowing our emotions will never be satisfied!! Meanwhile, notice the vintage Chia Pet resting on the scales in the "shipping department" (the desk along the left side). The girl in the fake police hat is looking longingly at it. Chia bunny? Chia elf? The guy in front of the Christmas tree holding the toy, "I got a PONY!" Keep them in their place.I, too, wonder why all the women are sitting on the floor in their silk satin dresses with fur collars. Surely there were some men who would have been glad to give up their places for them (and to sit amongst the women!) How did they get Xmas light strings in 1925?I thought people used small candles until the '60s. How did they happen to have these string lights? Great pic of us back then. [The 1960s being, I guess, when covered wagons brought in the first supplies of wired Christmas lights. - Dave] I spy...Second woman in the third row...Frida Kahlo, at her day job. SpellbindingI cannot stop looking at this picture. So much to see. The Al Capone looking guy is mesmerizing. The guy at top, second from right gives me the creeps. 1920'sI'm kind of young so maybe I'm missing something, but did pretty women not have to hold jobs in the 1920's? This office is worse than the one I work in, I didn't think that was possible. Re: 1920sI'm kind of young too, but I disagree with you. I think this office has quite a collection of lovely women (and some not-as-lovely ones too, just like today). Sometimes, it's hard to look past the hairstyles and the clothes. If you are young (20-something? younger?), you've really only seen one ideal of beauty--you've missed a lot of the different fashions and hairdos of the rest of the 20th century. You also underestimate what modern makeup does for women. There are so many more varieties of it today than there were then, and it's generally of higher quality and easier to use than in the past. If you took one of the women in this picture, say, the girl with pearls sitting next to the desk and plunked her down in 2008 to get a makeover, her hair would be longer, probably highlighted and dyed, and aided by daily washing and a host of conditioners. Then, add some good moisturizer, foundation, and concealer, as well as a lash curler, mascara, and a healthy helping of eye liner, and I'm guessing you'd think her quite the fox. Conversely, take the most attractive woman you know now, and put her in short hair and marcel waves, take away her hair dye and most of her makeup, and I'm guessing she'd look quite similar to the ladies in this photo. Even something as simple as the shape of plucked eyebrows really change the look of someone, and with the change in aesthetics, it's sometimes hard to get past the fashion to see beauty. It works with the men too--you'd probably look a lot different with a side part and a pompadour! That's right . . .. . . pretty women did not have to work in the '20's so, Miss Oilcan's exemption is assured, in my opinion - what a hottie. Foy Las Vegas That's my desk!I have a desk that's identical to the one on the left. I had guessed it was 1940's vintage. It's nice to see it's even older than I thought. Record Breaker?Look at the stats on this photo: 53,000 + reads, and still climbing. That's a lot of forensic partyologists! I wonder if even Dave knew what he had pulled out of the hat with this one? [I am shocked. Shocked! - Dave] re: Xmas light strings LOL! Dave, a lot of your comments (like this one) crack me up! Are you a comedian in real life? Merry Christmas! [Please folks, no applause. Just throw money. - Dave] Hotness quantificationI count 20 women in that picture; most of them you can see no more than their face and hair, and two you can't even see all of that. Out of the 18 you have a good facial shot of, I'd put 3 of them at 8.5-9.5 on the scale... three of them are SMOKING hot. I'd put another 4 at the 7-8.5 mark, meaning serious cuties, and at least three of the others are a 6 -7. Where I work we have 100 women in my office; I'd put exactly three in the 8.5-9.5 scale, and another 10 in th 7-8.5 scale; of the rest, probably only a smattering are really in the 5+ range. So, I have to know ... where do you work that the women are so attractive? Playboy Enterprises? Taking into account the differences in style, these women were, mostly, very attractive, and even a couple of the less attractive weren't awful. The Men of Western ElectricIn the interest of gender equality, I got to wondering about the relative charms of the office boys. I found three who tickled my fancy. 1. The tall smiling fellow whose head is sticking up behind and to the right of Police Woman. His face is open and honest, he's smiling with his twinkly dark eyes as well as his mouth, and although his ears are a bit prominent there's a lovely overall symmetry to his face. I'll call him Dimples. 2. The one man who has the sense to sit down with the ladies. He's a bit older, but I love his soft wavy hair. There's a certain aristocratic but slightly sad angle to his tired half-smile that puts me in mind of a young Prince Philip. I'll call him Phil. 3. OK, here's the hotness - the brash, cocky young sheik peeking out confidently between the heads of Boss Stogie Pennyfarthing and his wan shirtsleeved assistant. He's got the eyes of Frank Sinatra and the hair of Jack Kennedy. I don't know what he looks like from the neck down, but from the Arrow collar up he's all, "How YOU doin'?" I'll call him Frankie. In summary: Were I one of the office flappers, I would ride in Frankie's Studebaker, nurse a secret unrequited crush on Phil, and take Dimples home to meet Mother. Rogues' GalleryI can't stop staring at the chilly filly down by the leftern desk. She looks like three out of every five women I've ever fallen for. It's the eyes. As to the resemblance to Ana Magnani, she might be of Italian descent. I am also like the older gentleman in the upper right. Mr. Leery Senior, was it? Right between Charlie Sheen (or Leery Jr.), Snidely Whiplash, and Mr. Deer-in-the-headlights. What a jovial sort. And a snappy dresser, as well. Conversely, the startled fellow's vest is well off-center and makes him look like he couldn't decide which part of him was the front. Or maybe he was taking a nap under a desk just before the photo op and somebody had to drag him out. Funny how a photograph will turn Bob & Lisa from the office into Dick Tracy characters once you let your imagination do the walking. Thanks to all you for sharing your insights. You were linkedA local blogger from Beaumont's newspaper linked your site today. I will be forever gratful! Nevermind I got absolutely nothing done today and instead pored over your site at length. This is truly an awesome site! This Won't DoOne chubby gal. One chubby guy. As an official with the State of California, I say that this does not pass muster. There was hiring discrimination here. Walk into any State office and you'll see what I mean. Not to mention the plethora of Caucasians. The chubby gal is next to sheet music. Wonder what this melba toast group was singing? They're all dead nowJust think ... they all had their youth, their lives, their personalities, and now they are all turned into worm food. Just a happy thought for Christmas. No, wait a minute. . . okay, I've changed my mind. Now I like Miss Lookingaway, sitting in the lower left. Definitely. She's the one. Foy Las Vegas Oil Can GalThe siren sitting with the oil can is undressing me with her eyes. I'll ignore the fact she is 112 years of age, and let her. [Guess that explains the oil can. - Dave] Houdini?The guy on the left side, just above and to the right of the P.D. hat girl....did Houdini make a special appearance? In any event, he's got a mean set of eyebrows. And you are correct, Stinky, the girl on the far left by the door is surely a looker! Lost in the crowdNobody seems to have spotted Hugh Grant peeking out between Stogie Boss and Bald Guy. Famous facesTo keep Hugh Grant company, fellow British comic actor Rowan Atkinson is peeking out from behind Shirtsleeves. He is not a crookOh, my gosh. There's Richard Nixon on the upper right (with face partially hidden) just below old boss and crooked-vest guys. Roxie & Co.I love this picture, and all the comments! Here's my .02: *Girl with the oil can doesn't want to undress you, she's too in love with herself. You can see it in her eyes; she's a Roxie Hart if I ever saw one. "Eat your heart out, Sophie Tucker." *I swear I graduated with the girl who has her hand on Roxie's shoulder. She's the one who organizes all our class reunions. *If I were one of those girls, I'd probably want to date the guy sitting on the desk, right hand side. However, I have a feeling he'd want to "just be friends." So, *I'd have to go for the one behind Ol' Pennyfarthing. No, not that one, the bald one. Handsome features and sense enough to not put some ridiculous piece of fur on his head. *Girl leering at our castoff looks like one of Cinderella's stepsisters. Drucilla, I believe. Office HottieI think the guy looking over the RIGHT shoulder of chubby-stogie dude is hot. There's something about the eyes that grab me. And the hint of a smile. British InvasionNot only Hugh and Rowan - isn't that the actress/singer Patsy Kensit on the left, standing in front of the office door? Can't Get Over This PhotoI can't get over this picture. It's my favorite one on Shorpy, which is saying a LOT. And, it has nothing to do with my collection of high-end Western Electric phones from 1905-1939. The woman in front, referred to as the "Black Widow," I can't look at her enough. She surely would get a large kick out of the ruckus she would caused in 2008, unless it bored her as also being commonplace in her own time. The woman over her left shoulder has movie star looks. They are on the fifth floor, and I wish I could see the name on the glass door. Then again, the woman obscuring it may be the one to take home to meet the family, so she can stay. The finish on the floor is badly worn, as contrasted by the part under the desk. These fellas were habitually hustling to and fro, and with the feminine charms represented here, it's no wonder. Office romances must have been all there rage therein. I have been hoping the Farkers would be all over this one, except they love to specialize in the one-person quirk shots. I could place the Black Widow in countless situations... Is this the only picture you have on this stunning group? [Afraid so. - Dave] If onlyTterrance had taken this photo! We would know all about it, mystery solved. I thinkthe mysterious suicidal communist was probably a cleaning lady whom the photographer sort of forced to be in the picture and she's embarrassed to be photographed in shabby clothes and feels naturally out place amongst the staff with whom she's always been subservient. She reminds me of Camille Claudel on her way to the madhouse. 50 Little IndiansThis photo looks like a cast of characters who would end up in an Agatha Christie mystery....and I'm pretty sure I know who did it! The Officethis picture reminds me of the TV show The Office. Jim is sitting on the desk in the right corner. Pam is all the way to the left in the back row. Michael is the guy with his hand on Jim's shoulder although he should be the bossman with the cigar. Stanley is the guy between the man holding the horse and the man with the cigar. Creed is Mr Leery. Kevin is holding the horse. Dwight is the only guy in glasses. Kelly is the bobbed woman behind the desk with the permanent smile on her face. Meredith is the creepy woman off alone... she's just waiting for her next drink of alcohol. Andy Bernard is the guy to the right in the back with the striped tie. I couldn't decide who Angela was. Ryan is the deer in headlights next to Andy. Phyllis is in the satiny dress to the right. Oscar is right by the right hand edge. Man I love this picture. AngelaAngela's sitting on the floor with that big lace collar, giving the stink-eye to Meredith. Naughty NaughtySome young lady has just done something naughty off screen left. The Leery Boys approve, the Black Widow and Stink Eye don't, and the young lady behind Stink Eye is too drunk to comprehend. Also, is the bald man by the Christmas tree wearing a traffic signal on his head, set to "Go?" Somewhere in this crowd must be Col. Mustard, Miss Scarlet and Prof. Plum. My favorite pictureI and my co-worker check this site at least three times a day. He has never been on the Internet and when he passes by he will invariably ask "Anything new?" Which I know to mean "Anything new on Shorpy?" This Christmas Office Party is our favorite. We both live in Maryland and have seen many of the areas displayed in these pictures. When we scan the Office picture and see the "mob boss" guy with the stogie and the gun in his pants, he does a great Al Capone voice. I hope my posting this comment will bring new fans to this amazing photo. Merry Christmas everyone!have a great holiday and prosperous New Year. Oh Christmas Twig! Oh Christmas Twig!Considering it is 1925 and an urban area they probably had a hard time locating a showpiece Christmas tree. Probably the best they could do was this poor little immortalized twig. Timeless peopleEver notice how nearly every photo of a large group, from about 1900 on, contains at least one person who looks like he/she could have been photographed in just about any decade, or just the other day? The lady by the desk behind the pretty girl with the pearls looks like a teacher at my kids' school! There is nothing about her teeth, hairstyle, makeup, etc., that gives away the fact that she was photographed in 1925 except, of course, for most of the other people in it. The Timeless DeskI'm still using the exact same desk as the one in the photo; my wife purchased it from McGill university when they replaced the professors' desks in the mid 1960s. Oh what funAdolf (second from right at very top) has quite the leer going on. Peter Sellers could imitate him well. Mystery Lady could have been even more beautiful. I imagine her long hair flowing and her prominent features brought out even more with an expert's touch. What is Stogie Man carrying, besides his eyeglasses? I also wonder who took this photo. It obviously took some arranging, with the piling up of people. Excellent, almost spellbinding picture! I come here about six times a day just to visit it. I wonder who lived the longest, and what year they all died and how? Yes, I'm a morbid one. Office A-Go-GoThe gent at the back is, indeed wearing the miniature street signal (it has 4 arms to the signal so not a railway signal) on his head. Firstly, the only thing behind him is a fire extinguisher hanging on the wall, certainly nothing that the signal could be perched on. And, secondly, if it was sitting on something, it would not be sitting at the angle it is. Then and Now I'm wondering -- in today's world there is usually at least one person at an office party of that size who gets a little too inebriated and winds up making photocopies of their nether parts for distribution to all. Was there a way to do the same thing using a mimeograph machine or whatever other copying technology existed in 1925? Would the tipsy individual first have to draw their naughty bits on some special copy medium? Our grandparents sure had a lot of hardships to deal with. At First Glanceand in the zoomed out view, I thought the gent at the far right might be the office troublemaker and that the folks wrapped him up in Christmas lights for his just deserts. Alas and alack, when you go in for a closer look, it's simply the ravages of time taking their toll on the negative. [This batch of plates has water damage along one side. - Dave] The Lady of the Deskjust wandered in from the Sergei Eisenstein film that was shooting on the set next door. She's on a break between takes of the Odessa Steps sequence. RE: Oh GreatIf CBS could give us Rudolph, Shorpy can give us Western Electric. 2010 InterpretationsThis year, I think the Black Widow has pretty much just had it with that place. Stink-Eye isn't looking at the Black Widow. She's disapproving of something messy on the front of the desk. I can't find Don Draper Nor Joan Holloway, but this sure conjures up thoughts of Mad Men, 45 years earlier. I burst out laughing when my eyes scanned to the guy in the back with the stop and go-go item on his head! Maybe THAT is the flavor of the evening? More GO than STOP? This is the roaring 20s after all and these are certainly modern women.. Yes, this picture and your readers' comments may be my very favorites to date! Some Like It Hot The mademoiselle standing in front of the woman wearing the Policeman's hat could have been Billy Wilder's inspiration for his casting Jack Lemmon in drag. Another WorldThese people are denizens of another universe that, no matter how many photographs we study or books we read, we will never fully understand because we didn't live in it and never will. These are people who knew how to navigate themselves in the distant world of 1925. All of these people were born at the beginning of the last century and were brought up by people from the 19th century. If a modern young person were to be suddenly transported here without preparation he would find it completely disorienting and possibly quite frightening, because of so many technological and cultural and social differences between now and then. Deja vuI loved this picture. But the lass in front of the desk, looking stage right, is memorable. I think I've seen this picture before. Then I noticed the dates of the previous comments. 2208? Surely two years cannot have gone by so quickly. [To say nothing of the 198 after that! - Dave] SteamyThere are some SERIOUS sexual crosscurrents and hot vibes in this picture! Amazing! Slow on the uptakeI'm pretty sure Mr. Semaphore head isn't actually wearing that thing on his head; it's behind him. What is alarming is the second head growing out of his chest. The heads seem to be in agreement to lurk. Oh great!Shorpy is doing reruns for the holidays. Kidding. Merry Christmas. Uh-Oh TannenbaumThat's the most bedraggled Christmas tree I've ever seen. It has more tinsel than needles. An unflattering portraitMy god, this is by far the ugliest group photo I've ever seen! Both girls and guys look like winners from the Walmart Ugly Photo Contest. Kimono-wearing parrot?With a bouffant, no less? Over there, on the scale!! The gal with the candy cane, to our left of the much-ballyhooed oil can chick, seems to be presaging late '60s hairstyles. And yes, the balding dude in the rear with the traffic semaphore on his head wins the covert group-photo clown award in spades. Sad to SaySo many hotties, so many dorks. Season's GreetingsHope everyone has a wonderful Holiday Season, from Walter and all his friends in this, my favorite Shorpy picture. General Electric Crime FamilyOk, a lot of the men look like mafiosi with the big-lips guy in front being the capo. The two guys at the right, top, are hit men. Western Electrical FireI can't believe, in 90+ comments on this remarkable photo, that not one person pointed out the extension cord running from the ceiling light fixture to the tree. I think the answer to the comment about how and when these folks died is: a few minutes after this photo was taken, in a horrible electrical fire. It would be a chore, but could someone pleasecolorize this! BeautyI love the woman sitting on the floor next to the desk looking away. At first glance you think; boy she looks tired, and then you look again and you see how beautiful she really is. She is just stunning. I also find it interesting with the commentary just how similar our comments in the office were to the ones posted on this site. We too made up stories about these folks. I love this photo. Thanks for sharing it. I never tire of looking at this one.Always noticing something new, frinstance, The object on the scale, seems to have some heft to it based on how far the scale dial has moved, maybe a cast iron toy? The young fellow on the far right, Candy Cane in his right hand but whats on his left hand? Looks like it's slipped inside of something, a toy holster maybe? Completion All this tableau requires (perhaps) to make it complete, is a large paper bag on the floor stuffed with goodies, including the obligatory pair of turkey-feet protruding upward in a festive fashion. Best of the Season to All in the Shorpyverse Continuum! Secrets never revealedThere is no question that many secret alliances and not-always discreet hook-ups probably took place during and after this festive celebration 86 years ago. Luckily for those involved, there were no surveillance cameras, cell phone cameras, tape recorders, security guards, texting devices or other pesky snooping devices that could cause the merrymakers a permanent record (and deep lifetime regret) of their missteps. They were the roaring 20's when people gathered their rosebuds where they may and parties were for having the best time you could have. I'm betting many of these revelers took their sweet and sordid memories of that night to their graves. Another Shorpy Party!I love this photo and we're going to test the limits of the reply counter. Merry Christmas everyone and have a grand new year! Lord Almighty!!!It's the butler in the pantry!!! I have never, ever seen so many guilty people in one photograph. Unbelievable that it was not staged. But it obviously wasn't. Wow!!! My hat!How did she get it? "Pure horse, Danno. Book 'em."Having just spotted the drug paraphernalia on the left - the scale, the packaging materials, the kimono-wearing parrot - our undercover coppette in mid-pack has whipped out her official police hat and ignoring the cries of "that baggy's not mine!" is about ready to haul the whole gang downtown. A bust like this baby was sure to bump her upstairs and away from all these dreary office parties. Up to no good?The gal sitting on the floor behind the Oil can has had a drink or two already, and she is plotting mischief. I can see it in her eyes! Was she the good time that was had by all? Cost of that treeCould not have been more then a dollar in 2011 money Must have been last minute!!! The ion DepartmentA quick flip of the door confirms we are in room 504 of the ion Department. FestivusIts good to see this one again. I just keep looking at the people and see more than a few that would have been great company. I hope everyone, viewers, commenters, Dave and webmaster Ken has a great Holiday Season in the company of friends and loved ones. She apparently had a good time with my grandpa.As she is my grandma! "The gal sitting on the floor behind the Oil can has had a drink or two already, and she is plotting mischief. I can see it in her eyes! Was she the good time that was had by all?" 3rd rowfrom the top 3rd from the left. I'm in love. Oh wait. Party HeartyOoooo -- Roaring twenties office party, bathtub gin. Oooooo -- I think I just threw up in my throat a little bit. Shorpy Christmas cardIf Dave would produce an annual Shorpy Christmas card I would buy a few boxes, and I'm sure others would as well. Cards with this photo would be seen in every business cubicle in the country and quite a few places around the globe. It says Merry Xmas for me. So much to read into This picture is as familiar to longtime readers of this blog as our own family photos and as evergreen as that Christmas Tree was before it was cut down. One can imagine so much here, for example that as soon as the photographer finishes with his duties, the Volstead Act will be violated by most of the people in this room (there are a few who look as if they might disapprove), and the usual office party shenanigans will occur, some of which might have consequences in the months to follow even if they all swear that what happens at the Office Party stays at the Office Party. Al JolsonIs that Al Jolson in front of the "Traffic signal" bald guy? He's peering out just a bit from behind the guy with the vest and holding his glasses. 1925, the timeline is right. :) Iconic StatusThis photo has taken on a level of immortality that few others can hope to achieve. A Photograph for the ages that will always be appreciated and admired. A Tradition is born! Thanks to Dave and all that visit here; hopefully someday your office pictures will be shown here and we can all marvel at how far we've come in so short a time. Tiny Tim said it best so I shan't repeat it but that is my wish for one and all. Thank you, DaveI hope this re-posting will bring new fans. Merry Xmas,everyone! Why the oil canThose three objects in front - Maybe just spur-of-the-moment party silliness? Another year olderI just love this photo. There's so much to analyze. Saw it last year for the first time. Here we all are, another year older. That would include those in the picture, in a macabre sort of way. Best Christmas Party EverFirst, Dave, you have cured my holiday depression. I found this during a post-Xmas hangover and there are no words. I was instantly addicted to your site. Thank you. Second, if there is anyone out there with connections to the BAU I would like you to seriously consider imposing yourself on that relationship and get them on it. I'm dying for a more complete story. You must be too if you're reading this. You know who you are. Pick up that phone and give him/her a call. Not Al JolsonWade in NW Florida: if he looks like anybody of that period, it would most likely be Eddie Cantor, not Al Jolson. The other 13I have just spent an extremely enjoyable hour reading all the comments reaching back to 2008. Of the 47 people in the photo, 34 have been commented on. So what about the other 13? Six guys in the upper left have been ignored, plus seven gals in the pack. The most prominent of the abandoned baker's dozen are, to my mind, the two women standing side by side, closest to the tree. Both have bead necklaces: one tucked in, one on the outside. They seem neither hot nor cold, neither suicidal nor drunk. The two of them actually look (dare I say?) like really nice people. NOW it's the holiday season.....when Shorpy breaks out this holiday classic! I wonder what pop-culture figures of the past year will be likened to our hard-partying crew? The face that could sink a thousand shipsThe guy holding the cigar, oh man I want to punch his face! Every yearEvery year when I look at this, I think the same thing: do all those dames hate Desk Woman for the same reason, or different ones? Lots of single women in that officeNo wedding rings on almost all of them. Perhaps a woman worked until she got married, or at least until she had children - and then she was sequestered in the kit home built in one of America's booming trolley suburbs. It must have been a major change for these ladies to go from office life, with its daily human contact and pleasures (such as this office party) to a few rooms, kitchen and nursery figuring predominantly. My grandmother still reminisced proudly about her work as a lawyer's assistant in the 1920s, way back before she got married, had three children, and spent most of her time in the top floor of a Boston triple-decker for the next 20 years. Colorized Version Hidden in Plain SightCheck out https://www.shorpy.com/node/11937 for colorized version in Colorized Photos by members. Dave, do I get a prize for finding it? Talk About Your Lonely HeartsThis could be the Sgt. Pepper album just before The Beatles stepped into the shot Par-TAY!I totally wanna party with this crew. I've always loved the Roaring-Twenties era, and the show Boardwalk Empire is doing a great job with the fashions and the music. I think Nucky Thompson needs to sprinkle a little Xmas cheer on this group. Volstead Act be damned! Young bald guyEvery time I see this, my eyes go to the young, very handsome man who is looking over the shoulder of the rather portly guy on the right side of the photo. Balding men didn't have many options, then, like they do now, but I rather doubt that the premature balding kept all the young ladies away from him! I wonder which of these men were veterans of WWI? At the Ion Department Christmas Party . . .That exotic woman sitting in front of the desk in the lower left STILL seems distracted by something just out of camera, and the woman in front of her is still watching her carefully. It's a wonderful photo worth our annual holiday attention! --Jim Naughty or Nice?This oft-repeated photo is starting to remind me of the traditional holiday tune by Eric Cartman (of South Park fame) singing about the Swiss Colony Beef Log; irreverent but fun. What's printed on that document?Dave, can you zoom in on the piece of paper being held by the guy kneeling in the center, right in front of the tree? It's almost as if he's trying to show it to the camera. Thanks! ------------------------------------- Just a something something TO WISH You and Yours A Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year Division Four Office 1925 Worth a second or third look There are some half dozen ladies in this photo. Like the one right behind the corner of the desk, with the chevron shapes on her dress and the one directly in front of the door on the left that are definitely worth seeing again. Merry Christmas Shorpyites! Is there anybody out there?Surely one of these people in the photo has a living relative (great grandkids, grandkids, etc) that might be able to shed some light on this photo. 2%Of the 47 people in the photo, only one is wearing glasses. Did the Ion Department require perfect vision of its workers? My cueI don't even start listening to Christmas music until I see this picture reheated. It's a classic. The Girl with the Curl -- and the candy cane. There once was a girl with a pretty little curl right in the middle of her forehead When she was good She was very, very good and when she was bad she was even better! Re 2%The cigar smoker on the right in the three-button suit and the gent on his right both are holding eyeglasses, all the more to ratchet up their smashing good looks. Well, maybe just looks. What's Left To Say?Besides their clothes and hair dos, two things that I’m glad have changed: The way Christmas trees look and protective coating for hardwood floors. And I’m guessing they had a White Elephant gift exchange, thus the whimsical gifts. Raise your glassesI'm sure one of our more knowledgeable posters might know better, but I wonder if glasses were removed to prevent unwanted flash effects? Could it be?I've looked at this photo for three Decembers now, and I just noticed that the girl sitting behind the girl with the striped blouse, and how much she looks like she could be Johnny Depp's great-grandmother. Party TimeThe office parties and associated grab bags were created to give us all a chance to regift. Allow me now to wish all of our Shorpy viewers, creators and commenters a very happy Holiday season. Let us all be well, prosper and keep returning to this wonderful site. Love this photo....Like so many of you, I love it when this photo is trotted out! We are so drawn to it and love imagining what this party must have been like, the silly little gifts, the party girls, and those who just wanted it to all be over with so they could get back to work. Each year I am struck by the lady behind the one in the striped blouse. She looks like she could have been in my high school annual from 1970. Yes, I dated myself there! Her hair style looks like it could have been from the 1970's, unlike her co-workers with their many finger waves. Keep posting this one, Dave....truly a classic! An Evocative PhotographThe romance of old photographs is especially powerful in a picture like this. Studying the faces of what we assume are long departed strangers, we can't help speculating about the nature of their inner lives and how things turned out for them. Who ended up married to someone who made them happy or miserable? Which one(s) got ahead and who descended into poverty? Who died young - and so on? With hindsight we know that only a few years after that Christmas party in 1925, the stock market crashed and the Great Depression began. Then World War II winnowed out a great many - how did this group of individuals make out through all those difficult times? There are many such questions which occur to the curious. This is an extraordinarily evocative photograph. The transience of everything is plain to see in this picture if you notice such things. This photois what prompted me to make an account on Shorpy. The first thing that jumped out at me was, is that a man in drag standing with his hand on the young lady's shoulder? The lady in question looks a bit like Drew Barrymore. I noticed the indentations between the eyes of many of the men, and realized that they did take their glasses off for the photo, to minimize glare. No featherweight lenses in those days! Tales from the Jazz AgeI'd like to take a crack at imagining who some of these people could be -- Oil Can Girl (seated at bottom, center) - Never turns down a chance to cut a rug at a speke. Very generous with the contents of her hip flask, which in a pinch can supply fuel for her sometime-boyfriend’s Hupmobile. Desk Girl (seated at bottom, left) - Staring intently at a winged, two-horned leopard and wondering if she should jump up and scream at everybody to run for their lives. Lace Collar Girl (two left from Oil Can Girl) - Wondering why Desk Girl is staring so intently at the office kitty-cat. Time Warp Girl - (immediately above Desk Girl) - Up until a few weeks ago was a liberal arts major at an Ivy League university in the year 1969, then stumbled through a time portal into 1925. Decided to stay and get a job because, well, things are a lot less crazy here. Starlet Girl - (above and to the right of Time Warp Girl) - Avid reader of Photoplay, Picture-Play, Screenland, Movie Weekly, Movie Mirror, and lots more. Passionately believes that her good looks could bring her fame in Hollywood, if only she could manage to stop tossing money away on magazines and save up for the train fare. Hat Girl (immediately above Starlet Girl) - Took a few slugs from Oil Can Girl’s hip flask, now having trouble remembering her name. Trashed Girl (immediately to the right of Hat Girl) - Took even more slugs from Oil Can Girl’s hip flask, but still conscious enough to realize that if she stops leaning on the girl below her, she’ll tumble to the floor. Handsome Guy (standing in the back, left side, farthest left) - All the office girls have swooned over him at one time or another. Been engaged six times, but it always breaks off when he tells his bride-to-be that his mother will be living with them. New Pretty Girl - (third from left, standing) - Just started work this past month. Soon to be Handsome Guy’s next ex-fiancee. Wow, this is way too long already. Anyway, you get the idea. This is fun! White Elephant Gift ExchangeI going with a White Elephant Gift Exchange for an Office Christmas Party. It explains the goofy gifts and the attire. Some of the exchanged presents still have tags on them. No one seems to have noticedbut the shy guy in front of GO GO is none other than Irving Berlin, on a guided tour of the Western Electric facility and already evidencing the reclusiveness of his later years. At uppermost left, we have the mustachioed miscreant looking disdainfully at those beneath him, which is everyone. And finally, we have Grishkin at lowermost right left, a handsome woman whose lean and hungry look hath a troubled aspect not customarily associated with holiday gatherings (apart from those with family members present). She seems to have wandered in from one of those Russian plays that Ira Gershwin makes reference to. All of which can only mean one thing - it's Christmas time here at Shorpy's. Greetings and salutations to all! Times they don't changeThe women definitely place this picture in time by their clothes and hair. The men, especially the back row, center in photo, remind me of my father's photos of the late 1950's. It's all quite timeless. Hey, long time listener, first time caller!I wonder if camp Pierce Brosnan (top row, far left) found the Ion Deptartment accepting of his flamboyant wonderfulness. Festive DressThe bald gentleman in the back has the best holiday hat I have ever seen, the festive Go Go hat atop his bald head. We need those names!The spectacular Massafornian colorized image should have some labels for the people in it. So, here we go. (Gimp and Python/PIL scripts did the job) Thanks for the MemoriesThank you for publishing this picture again this year. It just doesn't seem right to not have these wonderful people wishing all of us a Merry Christmas. I wish all of the Shorpy readers and the Admins a Merry Christmas also. Merry Christmas!I'm a faithful reader of Shorpy, have been for over 10 years now, since I joined up. Every year, I always look forward to the Shorpy Office Xmas Party picture. I don't know what it is; maybe it's the continuity of it. We know every year we'll see it, and every year we'll get to talk about new fictions we've created for the people therein. It's such great fun. Re Office StoriesNice commentary! You really bring life to this party. Glad for TradIt's truly a fun Shorpy-looker tradition to view this pic large and spend an hour time traveling and reading the comments. Hope everybody had a Groovy Solstice yesterday. Happy Holidays! Hair dressersWho did the hair styles back then, terrible...... Sic transit ursusI love the Shorpy Christmas party! This guy still startled me when I spied him on the floor, despite the fact that I commented on him FIVE YEARS AGO. Dean NorrisAh, it wouldn't be Christmas without this delight from Shorpy! The guy behind the big boss's left shoulder looks like a sightly younger version of actor Dean Norris. According to IMDB, Dean Norris was born in 1962 or 1963, but if this post on Shorpy is any guide, he's at least 100 years old. Is he pretending to be younger than he really is? And what's the secret of looking so young? Cheers!Thanks for posting again, this is one of my favourite pictures on Shorpy. Some odd Barnets going on with some of the women though...I'd love to know if there was a gramophone at this party and if so, what the playlist was. Tradition I can almost hear Tevya, singing the song in "Fiddler On The Roof", but not quite. It is of course the Holiday Season, office parties and good will to men and of course women. It is time for us Shorpy Junkies to wish each other the best of the season. Good health, prosperity and peace to all. Thanks to our Hosts Dave and Ken and to our interlocutor terrace for their grand efforts. G-manI had to do ctrl-f for all three pages, and I'm amazed that no one to date has identified J. Edgar Hoover standing in the front row, cigar butt in hand, between vest-and-watch chain guy and three-piece suit guy. I can't believe I didn't notice him when I first commented three years ago. Time for a Shorpy Xmas party!I think we are overdue to have one where we all meet and discuss THIS picture (because with 150 comments, we clearly have a lot on our minds about this W.E. holiday soiree). Merry Christmas ShorpyitesMerry Christmas to one and all, fans of the photos posted in Shorpy. Thanks to Dave and everyone who helps out with the site. I hope the new year is good to all and everyone will be back next Christmas to view Xmas Party. I've been a member for 3 years, 2 days and anonymous for several before that I think. What's with the oil can?I understand the Teddy Bear and little house in the front of the photo. But what is the significance of the Christmas Oil Can? [Yet another beloved Christmas legend inspired by this photo. -tterrace] Do they know?The standing gal, 3rd from the left, and the kneeling gal (center and one row back) both have the same necklace on (7 little cascading chains ending in a pearl). I think that the boss-man, J. Edgar Hoover (on the right with the cigar), is having an affair with both of these gals and he gave them both the same necklace. He thinks it's really funny and smiles when he sees them together; his own little private joke! I wonder if the gals know and are just playing him for whatever they can get? We will never know for sure. Modern Woman+89 One must wonder if oiling the bear will make the Yuletide bright? Thanks again!This is now my official notification that the Xmas season has begun. The Office Party re-post. Threadbare BoughsNow I know where Charlie Brown got his tree. Merry Christmas everyone! Hours and hoursI, like so many others here, have spent hours with this image. I'm always drawn back to the woman in the lower left. She's always struck me as the office outcast trying to get out of the picture. The woman to the right of her, with the lace collar, looks like her boss giving her the stink eye for not participating. Roaring Twenties!Thanks for this flash-back, Shorpy! Love the very mysterious Lady on the left... and still dislike that pompous guy with the cigar. Wee fish, ewe, a mare, egrets, moose... and a hippo gnu year! I have to askDoes "Office Xmas Party" have the largest amount of comments? [That record might be held by Our Lady of Lourdes School. Another much-commented post was The Beaver Letter. - Dave] FinallyShorpy's annual "Office Xmas Party" has arrived! There's my guy standing in the back row, far left still waiting for me. Swoon. Happy Holidays, Shorpyites! And thank you, Dave, for all that you do. Re 2%, and Raise your glassesI think glasses were considered unattractive. I remember lots of members of this generation (my grandparents') or the next who would whip off their glasses whenever someone raised a camera. Tough Day At The Office?The best part about these office parties are the grab bags. It's always the best way to regift. Other than that, I hope Dave, Ken, tterace and all our outstanding commentators and readers have a wonderful holiday and a healthy prosperous New Year. Must have been a heck of a partyAll the way in the back is a tall bald man with a traffic signal on his head! That's better than a lampshade. The body language between the woman on the far left and the woman to her right who is glaring at her is really very sad. You wonder what sort of ugliness was going on behind the scenes. The lady looks like she's been crying a bit. Who knows. It's fascinating to see such a candid photo none the less. An oilcan!Now I know the perfect gift to get for all my co-workers. Merry Christmas Shorpy nation. I look forward to these people each yearThey've become familiar yet remain interesting. As I said years ago, we're testing the counter on this one. Merry Christmas fellow Shorpyites and wish a grand New Year! It was ninety years ago today ...... and the photo never ceases to give. The fun is overOkay, we had our Christmas celebration, now everyone back to your desks and let's finish out the day at 5:00. The lucky onesDue to the magic of photography, this happy group has been celebrating now for ninety years. If you enlarge the picture and study their faces and demeanors, you may get some insight into their characters and personalities in 1925. After seeing this photo for many Christmases on Shorpy, I almost feel that I know some of them as well I know my own friends. Merry Christmas to all, especially the Shorpy staff. What are we missing?Great photo, been seeing it for years now, but I always wonder what else was going on? People are looking left, right, straight, up, down. What was going on out of frame? That lady in lower left looks ready to bolt, especially with the other lady looking on concernedly. If this was a Halloween photo, the massacre would be about to begin. I've been ill, and maybe delirious... Spooky Lady of Christmas PastI remain endlessly curious regarding the woman with her back to the desk. Spooky and haunting, amid all the fascinating characters in this classic shot, she is The One. Department Name for Room 504Western Electric Company Installation Department 5th Floor 1319 F Street Washington DC (From the 1925 Washington City Directory) This department installed Central Office equipment (testboards, operator switchboards, signaling equipment, etc) supporting both local and long distance telephone service. Google street view has an office building that looks old enough to be our Christmas Office party location. Perhaps another Shorpyite can add the street view for us. [It was built in 1913. Interestingly enough, it's just one building away from Harris & Ewing, another source of many Shorpy photos. -tterrace] Merry Christmas, George BabbittThe guy on the right, in front, with the grand forehead, holding the stogie, reminds me of Sinclair Lewis's protagonist in "Babbitt" (1922): "He was the modern business man; one who gave orders to clerks and drove a car and played occasional golf and was scholarly in regard to Salesmanship. His head suddenly appeared not babyish but weighty, and you noted his heavy, blunt nose, his straight mouth and thick, long upper lip, his chin overfleshy but strong; with respect you beheld him put on the rest of his uniform as a Solid Citizen." Room 504Flip the photo horizontally, and you will see that we are on the 5th floor. Who can guess the "department" we are in? Now it is Christmastime for sureI couldn't truly celebrate Christmas without seeing this picture again. It must be after Thanksgiving or Shorpy would not have posted it. Any comments I could make about this picture would only be a pale response to all the previous comments. It just makes me try to think what an office Christmas party like this must have been compared to a modern day party. I look forward to this picture every year for some crazy reason. 294408That's how many people have called up this photo. Over a quarter million! And this isn't YouTube. What an amazing picture. What an amazing site. Merry Christmas to all my Shorpy comrades and a huge thank-you to Dave and tterrace for all they do to bring this amazingness to us every day. YuletideI heard Springsteen singing about Santa on my way to work, and now I see this. It is truly Christmastime now. Oh, Beautiful Lady in the Lower Left......let me unwrap that bear for you, before your nearby friend gets more worried that you're not having any fun. DoppelgangerThe young woman framed in the door on the left looks remarkably like today's woman who was a business partner of mine. Nothing but the best at Shorpy!!Thanks for this expected post! Never noticed this beforeThe men's jackets have creases running the length of the arms. I wonder if this was a customary thing for "the office" or typical treatment "of the times" for pressing? Perhaps this treatment was typical only of a worsted fabric? P. D. Police Dept.I keep being intrigued by the one and only joker in the crowd, our lady with the "P.D. Police ...." hat. There must be another word after "Police," I suppose it is just "Dept." Marching In PlaceSeeing this picture so many times tells me that I'm growing older but these celebrants have become ageless. Along with that piece of wisdom allow me to add my Seasonal Greetings for a Merry Christmas, a joyous Hanukkah Past and a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year to all. Of course we are all in the debt of Dave,Ken and tterrace (who may or may not be on the Payroll) for their addictive posts, explanations and comment rebuttals. From NYC, where the Christmas Eve Fahrenheit is forecasted at 72º. Mel [tterrace is salaried, deals in a service and is bigger than a bread box. -John Charles Daly] Life of the partyMy best guess for "life of the party" status goes to the lady in front with elf buckles on her shoes. I love this image- there so much detail and depth of relational perspective. Afterlife Office PartyThis photograph has become a holiday tradition for me, as anticipated as my Christmas eve tradition of baking cookies, wrapping gifts and gently placing a dish towel under Uncle Trouble's chin so he doesn't drool on his good shirt after passing out on the couch. Scanning the full-screen photo, I wonder if a small corner of the afterlife might be populated by tenants doomed to spend eternity at a perpetual office Christmas party for some workplace sin like stealing lunches from the office fridge, pilfering office supplies, or failing to replace paper or toner in the printer. I can picture Dickensian clarks with ink-stained fingers forever mingling over paper-cupped eggnog with 60's swinging secretaries, Old Kingdom robed Egyptian scribes trimming the tree with bored mid-level Qing Dynasty bureaucrats, and that impenetrable knot of young IT guys and gals speaking in that techno-babble, side-eyeing the boss, forever giggling. I imagine the mirthless rounds of the eternal white elephant gift exchange: the Take Me to the River-singing fish going round and round and round the conference table ad infinitum. I can see the everlasting greasy pile of stale taquitos, timeless sips from the bottle of booze hidden in the file cabinet, Starbucks Christmas Jazz CD playing in an endless loop -- the horror. Goober Pea UpdatedUsing John J's sleuthing on the location of this office, I recently ventured there to see if any resemblance to the photo remains. I got as far as the only door in the hall on that floor. Nothing appeared to remain. Seek and ye shall find . . . GO!TimeAndAgainPhoto, that's a great job of investigating one of our Shorpy.com favorites, but I'm convinced that if you'll just badge your way into that office, you'll find a fellow in there with a traffic signal on his head. I hope so, anyway. Re: Seek and ye shall find . . . GO!Jim Page - I had to badge my way past security and up the elevator before I was stopped by the secured door. Those were the daysI really do miss the office Christmas parties from my working years which gave us an opportunity to meet, greet and schmooze with people we hadn't seen in 20 minutes. Merry Christmas to all, rejoice and be glad. Every Year and I am Still Captivated But I Don't Know WhyThanks Dave, I'm still enjoying this for some reason I don't understand, and I'm still curious about the front and center oil can. SNL Time Traveler?That person standing directly to the left of the tree is either a time-traveling, cross-dressing Pete Davidson from SNL or his Great Grandmother worked at Western Electric Group in 1925! Shorpy - I look forward to this picture every year and am a regular viewer of your site. Even have a couple of large prints on my walls at home, with another coming soon! Thanks for this site - it's one of the pleasures of my day! Yuletide.I love seeing this picture every year. As do my co-workers. Thank you. I have seen this picture for six (I believe) years nowBut today, today there is a new face, one I instantly recognize, that I would swear was not there in any previous year. I once found my wife's doppleganger (Trackless Trolley) in one of these pictures. Today, I find my youngest daughter, Cecilia (16); she's poking her face out between the 2nd and 3rd fully visible women on the left side of the photo (their right) from the tree. Ok, it's spooky Dave.... but I'm starting to believe someone has a time travel machine, and everyone but me in my family is using it. P.D. clocheWonder what she's hiding under that hat? It's timeThis picture (and the myriad comments) are so entertaining, I sometimes search for it when I'm feeling low, even in July! I especially love Oil Can Sally's come hither look. I amost know these peopleMy Great-Great Grand uncle was Dan Richardson, a senior accountant for Western Electric in the New England/Northeast US area. He certainly visited Washington D. C. during his time with Western Electric, and would have met and worked with one or more of the people in this photo. Odd to think I could, via relatives, have been introduced to these people. This is my first ChristmasI see 26 men, 21 women and hundreds of possibilities. Oh My GoodnessI had no idea it was so close to Christmas. We really need to finish the baking... Old Friends From The OfficeAre like warm Gluehwein to heat the cold heart at Christmas. Merry Christmas my Shorpyite friends and a Happy New Year to everyone, especially Dave who keeps all of us in memories. [updated] Phyllis Diller"What I don't like about office Christmas parties is looking for a job the next day." QuorumThis picture puts the "mass" back in Christmas. Sturdy DesksI guess the nine guys head and shoulders above everyone else are standing on two or three of these desks. Curious as anyone about the office relationships and the lady sitting in front of the desk. My eighth year of wondering and guessing about this picture. The scraggly looking treein the picture most probably was bought with donations from some of the people in this picture. Older Shorpyites will no doubt remember the single set of lights on the tree. The lighting "outfit" was an inexpensive 8 light series set, with C-6 miniature based bulbs. When a bulb burned out, it was time to hunt for it with a good one...unscrewing every bulb in the set until it was found. I remember helping my grandmother do just that. For some reason, the C-6 series set was always at the top of the tree. Grandma would get up on a stool, with me holding the good bulb, and switching it one by one until the set lit. Wonderful times. Timeless memories. What Are They ThinkingI've enjoyed this picture year after year, and like many who had suffered through office parties, I often thought what goes through their minds. Click to enlarge. Lady in the foregroundI've also wondered (several years in a row) about the lady with her back to the desk. The thing that really stands out to me, is her hair. As far as I can tell, she has her hair swept back in a bun, which is clearly very old-fashioned compared to all the bobbed and shingled ladies in the office. I know this is a bit far-fetched but her clothes and hair suggest to me that she wasn't an office worker, as they give the impression of having less money to spend on herself. I wondered if maybe she was the office cleaner/ tea lady who was called in to be part of the photo? It could explain why she seems a bit distant from all the others in the group. It's here! It's here!The Shorpy Christmas Cheer office party picture is here! Smack dab in the middle of Prohibition, the gang at Western Electric make merry with two or three hundred stories or thoughts about what the heck was going on in their heads! My favorite is the seductress "oil can" Sally with her bathtub-gin induced come-hither gaze! Merry Christmas! #UsTooI bet if those girls had a voice today there would be some explaining to do. Night Before ChristmasWhen what to my wondering eyes should appear but a company Christmas calendar, the same as last year. Season's GreetingsThis is simply the greatest captured moment in the history of office photography! Nothing puts me in the spirit like --this pic, a glass of egg nog and Darlene Love's "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" on a loop! Merry Christmas all!! The distant gazeAs fun as it is, I think we're way overthinking the motives of the 5 or so "looking away" women. Yes, even the comment-generating pair of the sultry one in the lower left corner and the one sitting to her left who appears to be staring her down. It was evidently fashionable for many decades for women to "look into the distance" for a portrait photograph, and I think that's all they're doing here. My theory is that this practice started as a way to prevent the "zombie eyes" effect of the exposure capturing the blink after the flash. My mother always did it, even when I implored her to look at my camera with everyone else. That GirlIn the middle front, her hairdo reminds me of a poem my mother (b. 1915) used to recite: There was a little girl who had a little curl, Right in the middle of her forehead. And when she was good, she was very, very good, But when she was bad, she was horrid. [Nursery rhyme by Longfellow. - Dave] Every yearI feel sorrier than the year before for the one sitting on the floor with her back to the desk. She looks like she is just waiting for the party to be over so she can throw herself out the window. Reminds me of "The Office"I can find the whole cast from Dunder-Mifflin -- Michael, Jim and Pam, Dwight Schrute, Stanley, Kevin, Angela, and Phyllis. Let's danceHey, did anyone remember to bring their Lasses White albums? ClaireThis pretty gal looks exactly like my wife. I just printed out the image and am going to show her tonight. Work or PleasureIs the machine on the desk at the right (above the In Box) a record player brought in? A radio? Or is it merely some office device like maybe a phone-related routing/switchboard machine? Also, wingtips apparently were in style. Sure SignOf the Season: this picture on Shorpy (Thanks, Dave) and "A Christmas Carol" on TCM. All the best to all wherever ye might be! Ghosts of Christmas pastIt really is curious that we can scrutinize a picture like this every year and each time we notice something different that we did not notice before. This year, while observing enlarged close-ups of these people's faces, I see resemblances to many of my own acquaintances, friends and public figures and one can almost even determine the personality and attitude of each person. I think the young lady standing on the extreme left, second row, closest to the door, looks like a younger Martha Stewart. I also know that these happy holiday office parties are quickly disappearing due to the current lawsuits involving harassment, etc. so the people of my generation (old fossils) can move into the history books with them and just remember how it "used to be" and know it will never be again. This festive group gets a prime spot in that chapter and exemplifies what it was like, for better or for worse. Party on kids, 'til the end of time. The BossThe one sure thing about this photo is who the boss is, probably flanked by his second in command to his right. Ion Dept. XmasI have followed this wonderful Xmas photo for years but have never commented, till now. I always wondered what I might say, since so much has been said. But what really made me start this year -- the thing I’d never really noticed before – the new thing! – is that guy (head) craning behind the Xmas tree. Compared with all the other people, he’s really only half there, penciled in, lacking in the vibrancy and heft of every other person. So I guess my comment is: Merry Xmas, Ion Tree guy! (And Merry Xmas to all my Shorpy sisters and brothers, and of course to our all-puissant but beneficent overlords, Dave and tterrace, who make this daily joy available to us all.) [Or maybe Ion Guy is just tinseled in. - Dave] Was the Electric Company a Communist Front?Psychodramas? How about it looks like Alger Hiss and Whitiker Chambers’ cousins were exchanging Christmas gifts in Washington in 1925. Alger’s stands to the left and Whitiker’s to the right—significant? Whitiker’s cousin looks like someone socked him on the forehead and Alger’s has a smile on his face. [Ahem. Whittaker, not "Whitiker." - Dave] That Temptress!All these folks saying they see something new each year -- nuts. I first laid eyes on the beauty behind the oil can, what -- a decade ago now? And she has had me in her spell ever since. It is now officially Christmas season for me. I'm busy here!You Shorpyites who fantasize about folks from over 90 years ago -- How strange you are. And all your blather is distracting me from my mission of saving the saintly Love of My Life whose shoulder had been latched onto by the Evil Witch with no opposable thumb ... I must complete this pesky time machine before Christmas. Holiday RomanceI see that its time to renew my holiday romance. Every year I fall in love with the young lady the farthest to the left. Brings warmth to my heart, of course, I don't dare tell my wife. Season's Greetings!I look forward to this picture every year. I like that it's been a running thing here for so long, because I see it as a way to bind all us Shorpyites together. No matter where we live, how old we are, what we're doing in our lives, we can all stop here and comment on this picture, wishing everyone a wonderful holiday. Thank you, Dave, for providing that for us. I wish all of you that read this a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May 2019 be the year you've been waiting for. Hip FlasksEven the Bear won't tell, but, I am sure the oil can will. 1925! Prohibition! Almost every woman had one and, I am sure, that there may be a few here. Maybe, that's why Gladys sitting with the Bear and oil can, is smiling knowingly? Even the person who introduced Prohibition had a still in his basement. "It was 93 years ago today" Happy Christmas, John! Happy Christmas, Yoko!...Esther, Mary, Eugenia, Mabel, Nellie, Ida, Clara, Edith, Winifred, Maude, Violet, Gladys, Daisy,Doris, Agatha, Gertrude, Elspeth, Velma, Thelma, Myrna, Hortence... The LevelingTo paraphrase William Makepeace Thackeray "It was in the reign of President Calvin Coolidge, that the above-named personages lived and quarrelled ; good or bad, handsome or ugly, rich or poor, they are all equal now." Most popular galMy favorite - Oil Can Sally - has three gag gifts displayed. That probably makes her the most popular woman in the office. In addition, her provocative smile suggests a hangover was in her future! Still GOGO after all these yearsI love the bald guy just visible in the back row with the traffic signal "ballanced" perfectly on the top of his head. Very steady! It sounds crazy... but I swear the bear moved a bit since last year. That old gang is back!The Christmas Party Picture is back! I'd actually forgotten about it, so a quick check of Shorpy was the most welcome way to end my Friday. The week to come will reveal new snarks about these buddies of ours, and I look forward to that. Thank you, Shorpy! Those EyesThe beauty sitting against the desk gets me every year. She looks exhausted. My Favorite TraditionI don't post a lot of comments, but I check the site every day to see what's new and to read what *other* people have said. This is probably one of my favorite posts on this site because it's great to go back through the years of comments and read people's observations about the image, maybe see if someone has come up with something new. I hope we keep seeing this picture on the Friday before Christmas until the heat death of the universe. It would be a lovely constant. Happy Holidays to everyone at Shorpy. I hope it's filled with love, contentment, and joy. If you like this photo ...You loved the Shorpy.com postcard you just received!!! When mine came in the mail, my wife said, "Do you know those people?" OF COURSE I DO!!! Find the BossI just love the way he stands there holding his cigar. You can almost hear him barking out orders in a very Edward G. Robinson-ish voice. This reminds me of --That photo in "The Shining" of the 1921 New Year's Eve party at the Overlook Hotel. These folks will be back, again and again. The timeless shorpy traditionEvery year when I see the office party pic, my eyes always wind up gazing into the sideways glance of that beauty in front of the desk. I cant help imagining what the conversations of the day were, who brought a flask full of illegal libations, was jazz coming from a tube type radio, did everyone get a little Christmas bonus (it was the roaring 20's mind you), and who has a crush on who? Dave, thanks for all you do. Shorpy is a constant in my day. Be well everyone! I guessed the right number of buttons in the jarMerry Christmas! The Shorpy Ion Dept.A crazy thought occurred to me this year with respect to this beloved standard photograph: what if it were not the Ion Dept. from 1925 but the Shorpy regular contributors from 2019? Which one is Dave? Where is tterrace? And what about so many of the devoted Shorpsters (in no special order) – Jim Page, fanhead, TheGeezer, PhotoFan, Baxado, BethF, TimeAndAgainPhoto, Vintagetvs, OTY, Solo, Jeb70, switzarch, DaveA, JennyPennifer, rhhardin, pennsylvaniaproud, JohnHoward, kines, loujudson, lindab, Jano, StefanJ, jimmylee42, Hayslip, rivlax, Mattie, joemanning, Born40YearsTooLate, GarandFan, mountainrev, perpster, Dbell, Doubleclutchin, Root 66, KathyRo, archfan, GlenJay, alexinv, karenfryxell, Gooberpea, Angus J, 510Russ, Michael R, Brett, BillyB, bobzyerunkl, Alex, jsmakbkr, Marchbanks, Commishbob, Jimmy Longshanks, DoninVa, mgolden, Alonzo, Dag, Juan de la cruz, bobstothfang, Ice gang, Rute Boye, Vonderbees, Ad Orientem, MacKenzie Kavanaugh, JazzDad, Maniak Productions, EvenSteven, Doghouse Riley, John.Debold, Sewickley, Paul A, and jd taylor. And let’s not forget some of the people we haven’t seen for a while: stanton_square, aenthal, Mr Mel. (My apologies to those I have not listed.) Best of the season to you all, my fellow Shorpsters! Who's WhoDavid K - Dave runs the joint, so he's the three piece with the cigar. TTerrace is his major player on this site, so he is the guy looking over Dave's left shoulder. Now we just need someone to post a picture with numbers, and we label them. Maligayang Pasko all. Re:Shorpy Ion Dept@davidk, I'm the one peeking from behind the Christmas tree. I hope everyone in the Shorpy pantheon enjoys all the holidays! Postcards From The EdgeWhen I got mine, I literally jumped for joy seeing the people that I love and cherish so much. Now I can look at them anytime throughout the year, not just at Christmas. And, thank you to DAVIDK for the mention. [@davidk, I would be the guy with the object upon his head] Our own office partyI love seeing this photo every year and thanks to davidk for the guest book entries of our office. Top of the season everyone! Still HereEvery time I see this picture I think that these people could have been my mom or dad.The time and ages represented are almost perfect. It reminds me of aunts and uncles and family friends who are long gone although I will never forget them. I just turned 80 years old this past July and can remember a lot of people who would have been right at home in this picture. Thank you davidk for including me in your list of people who have liked this picture in the past and a big Merry Christmas to Dave and tterrace for maintaining the site. This one never gets oldHow is it that an old picture never gets old? Every year, I always notice something new that I hadn't noticed before. This year it's the guy with the beard, hiding behind the tree. Also, the woman just above and just to the left of the woman in the striped blouse (her left, that is) - could that be Johnny Depp's great-grandmother? I see a definite resemblance. Merry Christmas everyone! Love itI love this photo. The expressions, the faces. Some of the women are quite attractive. The man with his hand draped across the shoulder of another man is interesting. Office desk sultry beautyI wonder why the dark hair beauty is staring off to the side? Was she jilted? Was she sick of the many advances by the suited men, or despondent that the one she wanted got away. Why does the women in the RBG collar stare at her? Does she know what happened? I love the captions from another commenter. Michael ScottIf Michael Scott were the manager of this office, I wonder if he would have said (as he did 85 years later on the TV show), "Unbelievable. I do the nicest thing that anyone's ever done for these people and they freak-out. Well happy birthday Jesus, sorry your party's so lame." Merry Christmas, Shorpy! And for the record, I don't consider this a lame birthday party, and I doubt Jesus would, either. Bal MasqueNinety-five years later, if there even would be a party! With an added suspense -- what does Hermione look like, under that mask? Socially DistantWould they have believed it had someone told them that in 95 years their photograph would be the highlight of 2020 for a group of remote observers? Merry and BrightThis photo has become the official kickoff of the holidays for me. Best wishes to all the Shorpy regulars and particularly those who keep this place running. Neither here nor thereEach year my attention is drawn immediately to the three beauties at the bottom left of the photo: sultry beauty far left floor level, looking off to her right at someone/something off camera; the lady to that lady's left who seems to be watching her with deliberate intent; exquisite beauty just behind the desk corner, beheld with what appears to be fond regard by the lady just behind her to her left; and wholesome beauty smiling behind exquisite beauty, being kept tabs on by the lady in the Police Department helmet. I do eventually get past these women, to study the remainder of visages and postures and wonder about the other long-dead revelers of both genders, but it is these six who take up most of my time each year as I wonder what might have been the complexities of the various relationships. And as always, I hope each one in the photo had a Merry Christmas that year and many years after. I know that the likelihood is slim to none that all lived long and were carefree throughout, but that's still what I wish for in this suspended moment that so many have celebrated for so long, thanks to Shorpy. So a Merry Christmas to beloved Shorpy and its erudite, esteemed company of gazers no less fascinating than any who attended Office Xmas Party: 1925. Thanks Again Dave and Merry ChristmasThanks again Dave, I've been waiting for it. Obviously, we all love this yearly Christmas "surprise". I enjoy everyone's take on this party I missed awhile back. Questions, questionsEvery year I wonder. What is that thing on the postal scale? A misplaced elf? A misshapen magus? Why is that woman with the oil can looking at me? Am I safe? And why is the Christmas tree so scrawny? Merry Christmas Dave!And to all the crew at Shorpy! Thanks for the memories and keeping some of us sane in 2020! What I want for ChristmasI don't care what it is, I want one. [Update, thanks to all the gizmo identifiers. I love tape dispensers! Now I really want it!] Nothing stops this partyOh, thank goodness the Shorpy party is still on! It's the only event the pandemic cannot cancel! Judging youDon't know what got into her holiday spirit. Not too pleased with someone. Re: tterrace What I want for ChristmasIt's a gummed tape dispenser, similar to this one: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/antique-vintage-ornate-cast-iron-... She of the averted gazeI know that we enjoy interpreting what is in - or not in - this photograph each year. However, eight people, including "she of the averted gaze" are looking in that direction, suggesting something was going on while the picture was taken, sufficient to distract. A further basis for interpretation and speculation, perhaps? Merry Christmas. Only one bow tieAmong all those Windsor knots on the gents, third on upper right. In group after group they are always in the minority, even until today. Going to a Go-GoNothing says Christmas like a Go-Go party hat. That machineMay be a gummed tape applicator. National Package Sealer model #206 Do they know?Do you think the two women wearing the exact same necklace (dripping pearls) suspect that it might have come from the same man? Are the pearls from the handsome young gentleman with the pen sticking out of his pocket? Is this an early version of "The Bachelor" that we are witnessing? Which one will he choose? Austerity Christmas?From the Charlie Brown Christmas tree to the lack of any visible food or drinks (except for a few candy canes) to the blank, unimpressed looks on some faces, it looks like an Austerity Christmas in Anytown this year. Well, Merry Christmas TermiteYou can probably still find one somewhere. It's an automatic wetter and cutter for wide, brown packing tape. You just mash down on the handle and it shoots out a measured length of wet sticky tape and cuts it when you release. There is a messy water reservoir up front. I used one in a shipping department in 1974. Buddha Bear!Puts in his once a year appearance. Merry Christmas to Dave & Ken & tterrace and all the naughty boys & girls at Shorpy! Nice $-value todayThat horse that guy in front of Christmas tree is holding. All with bit of wear and patina collected in 95 years. Another yearWe all get another year older and they stay the same. Five groupsPart of the endless fun with this photo is deciding which part of it to center as the embiggened image on my screen. I fluctuate between the five main Ion Dept. groups: on the left, the ladies on the floor, the ladies standing, and the men standing above them, and on the right, the lower men and the upper men. (If I had to distinguish a special sub-group, it would be solo guy behind the tree and the fellow on the very far right who hovers between the upper and lower groups.) Once I have the group du jour embiggened, I focus on the individual characters. As we who have been doing this for years well know, that’s when the fun begins. Might I take this opportunity to offer the best of the season to Dave and Ken and tterrace and all my fellow Shorpsters. In this extraordinary year of greater screen time than ever before, I find that my Shorpy screen time is even more intense and valuable, if such a thing is actually possible. Bless Shorpy, and bless you all. Elbow to elbowEvery year I have a different response to this photograph, depending on general mood and the state of the world. This year, I truly envy those people. They get to stand together in a bunch, breathing one another’s air, touching each other casually, sharing food and drink, simply going in to work at an office. They all lived through a plague of their own six years earlier, and they look fine now, so there’s hope. Happy holidays to all the people who create and enjoy this wonderful website that gives me joy and perspective on a daily basis. Re: Elbow to elbowI must concur. Having spent nine months wearing a mask, practically bathing in hand sanitizer every time I touch anything, and staying as far removed from people I don't live with as humanly possible, I'm jealous of these long-dead coworkers for being able to crowd together, enjoying one another's company in person, rather than over Zoom or FaceTime. It's been a bad, bad year, there's no denying that, but Shorpy has been a bright spot in my day since January, much as I'm sure it's been for the rest of you. Happy Holidays to all the Shorpyites out there — may you find some contentment and peace in the face of all this tragedy and come out the other side hale and hearty. That Time of Year AgainThrough the miracle of photography and our friends at Shorpy, we are able to visit this party again. A Vintage CrumpleAfter all these annual viewings I finally noticed what looks like a lone crumpled piece of paper at lower right. We'll never know what was on it. Maybe a dig at one of these people? Or love note? Ah, the mysteries! Christmas Past, Present, and Future all at once!Every year I wonder about the dark-haired smiling young woman third from the front, beside the desk. With her modern-looking bob, she looks like a Time Traveler, so that's what I've named her. (Not far away are The Maniac, Da Boss, and The Very Secret Lovers.) This photo, along with its subjects, never gets old, and I hope the Holiday Spirit that originally inspired it never does either. Happiest of Holidays to everybody who produces and sees Shorpy, and a New Year of peace, love, courage, and good health to all. 12 Years of ChristmasMerry Christmas Shorpy. Thanks for the memories. [This is Shorpy's 14th Christmas! - Dave] PerspectiveThey all lived through a plague of their own six years earlier, and they look fine now, so there’s hope. Thanks, jdtaylor--I'm sure I'm not the only one who needed that perspective today. Happy holidays to Dave and all the Shorpyites. This site has been a great distraction lately! Time to Move OnI vote that next year you post the 1926 photo. Some of the lingering issues must have been resolved by then. The X-mas Party Presents!And here you may have a look on how Christmas looked 100 years ago in the U.K. (including a display of toys made by Meccano in the toy department of Whiteleys store in Bayswater). Mysterious machineNow that the gummed tape dispenser has been identified, I hope someone will be able to reveal the secret of the machine on the desk behind the in-box. A perforator or a mimeograph machine perhaps? [It's called a typewriter. - Dave] Dead ringer, etc.At the very back and far left - the attractive woman 3 in - I have a friend who looks exactly like her but with a more modern hair style, but identical facial features. How eerie! Something tells me that Oil Can Mary's wicked smile indicates that she is already planning what flapper attire she will wear at the local speakeasy that night. Her future toast might be: "My candle burns at both ends; It will not last the night; But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends— It gives a lovely light!" Published in 1920. Edna St. Vincent Millay. I often wonder what became of all these people. It is my hope that they all lived long, happy, prosperous lives but alas, as we know, life can be more complicated than that. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year you ghosts of Christmas past! The only Christmas party I'll go to.Merry Christmas to Dave and the Shorpy Crew, as well as my fellow Shorpy followers. It appears that I've been around for 12.5 of the 14 years of Shorpy.com, though it seems like yesterday and DoninVa no longer lives in Va. There's always something to be found in a Shorpy photo: the young woman framed in the glass of the door is the doppelganger for someone I once worked with. Cheers! Newcomer To The PartyAfter viewing Shorpy for some years now, I finally decided to join this party; I'm in awe of the many observations, and for now, am unable to come up with any new angles on this fascinating photo. I do want to say that the comments of jd taylor and BethF most definitely struck a chord with me; I, too, envy those in the photo, survivors of even greater trouble, coming as it did following The Great War. Hope to see you all back at the party next year, and a few other places along the way. May you all find peace and hopefully some joy this Christmas. A Merry Christmas to You All!It's been a rough few years for me (family deaths, health issues), and my Internet usage dropped off considerably. I may have stopped commenting, but I never stopped reading, and I've looked forward to this photo every year for a long, long time. I'm glad that for all the things in flux in this world, the Shorpy Office Xmas Party remains the same. I wish you and yours the very merriest and happiest of holiday seasons. May your days be merry and bright, and may all your Christmases be white. :-D EerieWhy the rush? [??? - Dave] MassafornianWhat a great comment, thank you. I’ve never colorized, and I use Photoshop for barely 10% of what it can do, but I truly appreciated your insight into the process. More amazing is that you’ve named them all. Gosh, I’d love to know who the others are, in addition to Mary, Bobbie, Lulu, and Lila. And how honest to share with us your faves, Mary and Bobbie, made legit by your wife asking. I agree about Lila: trouble. Also the lady with the marcel wave in the purple dress and blue coat with fur fringe behind the bear and oilcan and house: you might think of her in off moments but you could never make it work. (What’s her name?) Thanks for explaining about Remini because I wondered how their teeth and various other features were so brilliant and precise. And don’t worry about the rouging: it raised the temperature on the whole event (and not just on the ladies – it’s perfect for that guy third from the left in the upper right, the older fellow with the red tie, who’s had too much to drink or is about to have a stroke or both). One more thing: I’d never really noticed that unsightly blotch on the forehead of the boss with the cigar – you did it full, gross justice. Again, great job, and thanks, man! I'd like to be the first this yearSurely, it's not too soon for this Yuletide Jewel ... The Oilcan Need an explanation for the purpose of the oil can at the party. [It's not a party unless everyone is well-lubricated. - Dave] Now the season is complete!I look forward to revisiting this every year. Thank you! - Ken Colorized versionI've been working off and on to colorize this wonderful image throughout the year. Here's the result. You can also find it here in high resolution: http://www.hearthworks.net/1925/1925_office_xmas_party_12.12.jpg Merry Christmas! [Bravo! - Dave] Amazing colorization!@ Massafornian -- thanks so much for that epic job. It adds so much to an already incredible image. (Judging by your username, I suspect we are compatriots -- I was born in Massachusetts and live in California.) Merry and BrightWith retirement, our lives have been simpler here so the Christmas decorations go up earlier and earlier. But it isn't *really* the season until the annual Shorpy office party. Happy Holidays to Dave and the regular contributors that make this place special. BTW...it's kind of odd that I get older but none of the partygoers ever seem to. Must be something in the eggnog. As We Seek Normalcy, This Pic Provides it!The last two pandemic driven years, makes most of us seek glimpses of normalcy. Having this Christmas tradition each year, having a peek into the office Christmas party, gives a moment of that peace. Knowing these, and their children, and their grandchildren...made it through the Great Depression, WWll, the Cold War, etc., etc., still, a moment frozen in time, gives a certain reassurance, that everything is going to be ok! Merry Christmas, office party, as well as all the Shorpy members that crash the party each year! Bravo, indeedWell done on the colorization, Massafornian. It adds a level of vibrancy to an already-lively photo of an intriguing bunch of people. I’m also surprised at some of the effects, for example the oft-commented-upon woman in the lower left, sitting against the desk, craning her neck for a beady glare offstage – the rouge on her cheeks and the lipstick blunt the ultra-crazy impression and make her look, dare I say, somewhat fetching. Thank you for your addition to this seasonal favourite. And best of the season to my fellow Shorpsters and to the toilers in the digital mines who bring us this much-loved website. Everybody's back in the officeNobody's working from home and the party is ON! Happy holidays! WFHAs we head into Covid Christmas #2, it again strikes me that these folks would have no idea what working from home would even mean. (Taking in sewing?) Here they are, in joyous proximity one to the other, while we are still asked to distance, mask up, etc. Their mingled exhalations, their casual touches, the humid density of their gathering – how I envy them. Well, we come here to dream and fantasize, don’t we? Happy holidays to my fellow dreamers and observers and to the hard-working trio who bring us the stuff that dreams are made of. Up to good or no goodI am incredulous that I have never really noticed the girl at the far left of the photo, just in front of the door -- the last of the women. She is concealing something. Knowledge or intent, benevolent or nefarious ... no matter. Keep a weather eye on that one. Egad! New versions!Shorpy Patreon members have been treated to a short, elegant--well, creepy--music video in Ken-Burns-goes-Edward Gorey style. And now a colorized photo with costumes straight out of Technicolor heaven. And in 2021 they all sneaked in to party on Saturday! Old FriendsI've seen this picture so many times over the years at Christmas time on Shorpy that the faces have become like familiar old friends. I'm of the opinion that Christmas will never be the same for me unless I get to see this photo at least once during the Christmas season. Girl At The Far LeftNo one tried to say a thing When they took him out in jest Except, of course, the little neighbor boy Who carried him to rest And he just walked along, alone With his guilt so well concealed And muttered underneath his breath “Nothing is revealed” Time For A Rhyme...or TwoIt's Christmas Party time again, so back to yesteryear, To faces from so long ago, we now hold somewhat dear They lived through their pandemic, and now we've had our own For some, it was an ordeal; of much more time alone, Yet, gazing at these faces here shows us things will improve, And then to next year's gala even more will gladly move! A Merry Christmas to you all, here at this special time I thank you all so very much for bearing with my rhymes, May next year's party be the one our current trial's behind us But our friends from 1925 will be there to remind us ... A very special thanks to Massafornian for the superb colorization! A bit more on the colorizationThe colorization was done by hand, for about an hour most every morning, when I had the spare time while listening to podcasts. I started in early January and completed it around April. I am sure that most Shorpians know that colorization is tedious, mostly due to the need to mask objects and details as much as possible, to distinguish them from other objects. (The Christmas tree with its fir needles and tinsel was a bit of a job). Automated colorization just doesn’t compare in quality to doing it by hand. Each person is a smart layer in Photoshop that in turn contains many layers of isolated bits to colorize. The fun part was choosing the colors of people’s attire. Hopefully what I chose is close enough to what this cast of characters might’ve actually worn in 1925, but I won’t claim any historical research was performed for color accuracy. I could easily spend the same amount of time on this image again, by further masking textures and smaller objects, and separating their colors. If anyone wants the original layered PSD to do more magic, you can have it here: http://www.hearthworks.net/1925/1925_office_xmas_party_12.12.2021.psd.zi... You have exactly one year to post the next refinement! You might notice in the high resolution version that the faces are oddly higher resolution than the surrounding parts of the image. This is a bit of AI deployed on the faces, called Remini. Google it to learn more, but in a nutshell, Remini analyzes a face that is low resolution or blurry and magically reconstructs it in high resolution by drawing from a huge library of face components. Remini reassembles face components onto a map based on the original image. The process is hit-or-miss as far as how it can interpret low-quality image data. It was fun to apply it to this image one face at a time and integrate the rendered AI faces back into the master image. I feel that I know all these characters in the photo intimately, having spent a lot of time on each one of them. I’ve given them all first names to distinguish the Photoshop layer names. My wife asks me which lady I might’ve fancied back in the day, and I think it’s a tie between ‘Mary’ (the blonde in front of the ‘504’ door wearing purple) and ‘Bobbie’ (third-to-the-right of ‘Lulu’, (the pixie by the desk), with brown hair, a green coat and blue dress, looking directly into the camera). Those two have nice, approachable personalities. I’m intrigued by ‘Lila’ (the mysterious lady on the floor in front of the desk), but she’s perhaps too brooding for 1925 Me to take on; and ‘Lulu’ is far too racy and trendy for my sensibilities. I was born in 1963, so I imagined a lot of these people from 1925 as being my many older relatives who were a huge part of my childhood in the 60’s and 70’s. My grandmother was born in 1890 and her gaggle of five sisters had birth years that ranged between 1885 and 1902. Though elderly, they were all alive and vibrant for most of my childhood, and greatly influenced me. I’ve been patiently waiting for this time of year when Dave publishes this wonderful photo, to submit my contribution. I think this version turned out pretty nice. @ Born Too Late - my geographical fate is the opposite of yours: I started out in the Alameda, California and moved to Massachusetts some 20 years ago. Massachusetts is really a great place to live—weather be damned! @ DavidK - Yes, ‘Lila’ did indeed turn out to be beautified by the AI software, Remini. In retrospect I think I got carried away with rouging people’s cheeks, but without it, the skin tones just seemed too flat. Cheers, —Massafornian HUAAgreed, davidk ... most likely she's a downright dollbaby but there is a definite glint in her eye and you must admit she has a secret or two or ten. Maybe she's even got something on some of the other girls. Not nefariousI’ve had my eye on that woman on the far left in front of the ION window for years, JennyPennifer. She has a touch of high color, and I really like that ringlet that has broken loose by her right eye. She seems mild yet ready for fun. Not naughty. At this rateI'm thinking that by the 2025 centenary we should be ready for an animatronic enlivening of this ongoing party. Cast of charactersAbsolutely outstanding job of colorization, Massafornian! It really brings out details that were easy to overlook. I see the Serbian Anarchist, peering out just to the right of the Big Boss with the cigar, and wonder what he's planning. And the guy hiding just below the life of the party, with the STOP/GO headgear - he looks like he's hiding something, for sure. But is the Big Boss truly the Man? My money is on the distinguished looking silver haired gent at the top right, overlooking the affair with a cautious gaze ... And, who really *is* the mustachioed guy to his left, glaring at the photographer? Is he worried about this photo getting out? Does he appear on a Wanted poster?? Merry Thank YouBecause it's never Christmas until the Office Party and new Office Party Comments. Office Stories@ DavidK - If you have Photoshop, try downloading the PSD and you’ll see their names in the layers palette. The oilcan lady I named ‘Janelle’ because she looks like my cousin who has that name. I believe ‘Janelle’ to be the well-regarded office trickster. The aging lush in the top-right standing group of men is named ‘Redd’. Me thinks he’s barely evading his mortality this fine evening, and perhaps is about to fall off of whatever he’s perched upon, to be carried out to a waiting cab, muttering something about his childhood pet dog, Wilberforce. After his early departure his hip flask was found on the floor, where he fell. No one knows what happened to it, or its contents. The leader of the pack is named ‘Boss’, for obvious reasons. My wife thinks that perhaps he has a familial connection to ‘Bertha’, the large lady in the red dress. Boss’s blotch is an expanding skin growth. By 1945, it will have grown over his face, poor fellow. Unfortunately, the portly Boss died of a heart attack in 1946 while un-crating his new supply of Consuegra cigars and munching on a donut. I note in this photo that there is no evidence of food or drink, save the candy canes. So while we have conjectured on this post about the state of inebriation these people might be in, strong drink seems unlikely at this event, particularly in the age of prohibition these people find themselves in. (Redd is the exception, having brought his own supply of spirits.) The food might be in another part of the room, but the lack of it has me thinking that this event was a relatively brief gathering after work. ‘Lulu’, the office pixie, is only 19 years old. She is Boss’s niece. This makes her somewhat problematic for all concerned in the office, and something of a political figure. She’s not exactly incompetent at her job, but the office matriarch, ‘Ursula’ (sitting on the floor in the green dress) was grudgingly forced to hire her. Lulu got married to a Studebaker salesman in 1928, moved to Pasadena in 1930, and had 4 children. She died in 1988 in a car accident. The thing about the brooding ‘Lila’ that no one knew was that she had a very wealthy aunt in New York City. In 1934 her aunt passed away, and Lila inherited nearly $3 million dollars in property and bonds. She moved to the Upper East Side in 1936, but never married. She lived to the age of 103, dying in 1998. Here's a closeup of Lila: Go-GoIs that something hanging from the wall or sitting on the man's head as a prank? Has it ever been commented on before? Though not shown, there has to be a portable Victrola and stack of jazz records somewhere for when the party gets hot! This was the height of the Charleston era and there are plenty of flappers present! A White Elephant In The RoomMay explain the oil can, the Honey Bear, and all the other strange gifts. I don't know how long the White Elephant Gift party has been around, but my wife and I just had one at our house. That is one thing that I have been looking at all these years on Shorpy (the crazy gifts), and now realize the crazy gifts could be from the White Elephant in the room. Merry Christmas and a Happy new Year to all my Shorpyite brothers and sisters. (Thanks archfan. Good to know that it is still around after all these years) Colors!Kudos, Massafornian! At first I thought, hm, some of those dresses are awfully bright, but then I realized of course that for the office party some people always wear a “special” outfit. I doubt that woman in the red satin dress would have worn it any other day but it’s so Christmasy how could she resist! Colors!Kudos, Massafornian! At first I thought, hm, some of those dresses are awfully bright, but then I realized of course that for the office party some people always wear a “special” outfit. I doubt that woman in the red satin dress would have worn it any other day but it’s so Christmasy how could she resist! Re: Go-GoVictrolaJazz asks if the mini traffic signal on the head of the man at the back, to the right of the tree, has been commented on before. Yes! Many times over the years, in fact. This would provide a fine opportunity to review the long and enjoyable string of comments where you will find the following: Going to a Go-Go (12/12/2020), Still GOGO after all these years (12/20/2019), Festive Dress (12/19/2015), Must have been a heck of a party (12/23/2014), No one seems to have noticed (12/14/2012), Office A-Go-Go (12/25/2010), Slow on the uptake (12/24/2010), Kimono-wearing parrot? (12/23/2010), I can’t find Don Draper (12/23/2010), Naughty Naughty (04/21/2009), Getting Oiled at the Office Xmas Party (12/15/2008), Dramatis Personae (12/15/2008), and, finally, A Story in every face (12/15/2008) which includes a Dave link to a Shorpy post with a real GO-GO traffic signal in it. Time travel?Either Johnny Depp was the original Doctor Who time travelling as a woman or his mother was working Working for Western Electric that Christmas A white elephant party?I hadn't thought of that and now I'm disappointed. For years I have been daydreaming about the oil can lady, the one with the unnervingly lascivious direct look. Then I remember she'd be old enough to be my grandmother. Jeepers. Grateful Holiday pome These people, alas, are all now dust. But we on Shorpy surely must visit them once more. Cheer to all on Shorpy! Sad or Stimulating, or a bit of both?Having been recently retired, with no more company Christmas parties to attend, I am faced with a conundrum. Is it sad that the 1925 Christmas Party on Shorpy is now the Office Party I look forward to the most, or is it tantalizing that the faces and actions of these folks, now long gone, give all of us smiles nearly a century later? Let this serve as a reminder to treat every moment as if that moment is also "frozen in time"! Merry Christmas, Dave, and the entire Shorpy family! MomObviously, this is another photo in the Shorpy Hall of Fame inaugural class, but the best thing about it for me is that it was likely taken when my mom was just a newborn, having come into this world on December 17, 1925. Merry Christmas to all and a Happy Heavenly 97th Birthday to my mom! My how time fliesSeems like it was just a month or two ago when last Christmas flew by with this pic. NobodyHas changed much from last year. Remarkable. Gag Gifts?I look forward to this party every year, and I notice something new each December. It's occurred to me that everyone in the photo is holding some kind of small gift, and all of them look like "white elephants": a toy horse, an oil can, a little bear, a toy policeman's hat—perhaps it was a "Secret Santa" kind of gag gift swap, and each gift was appropriately unique to the receiver. The photograph makes every one of these people forever young, and I always wonder what happened to each one of them: all those life stories that we'll never know. (I hope they all got a Christmas bonus!) Happiest of Holidays—and a Happy, Healthy New Year—to every Shorpyite. The finer detailsI’ve chosen to focus on some of the smaller, obscure points this year in my investigation of this beloved photo. The woman in the bobby hat towards the left? Go south to the hand of the woman in front of her, the hand on the shoulder of the woman in the light-colored dress: that hand looks disembodied and is therefore creepy. Person who looks most Photoshopped in? The woman to the immediate left of that hand, staring right into your soul. Stuff like that. The picture is positively filthy with wacky, kooky, scary little things. Sober thoughtFourteen years of beautiful fascination. Wonder if some folks who commented earlier, by now "are with the people on the photo" too? Go-Go indeedI just wanted to second the man at the back, being bald myself. Go Go, folks. Christmas TreesIf nothing else, we have made great advances in Christmas tree technology. Every year they look a bit youngerMeanwhile, every year I look less like my father and more like my grandfather. Love the ones you're withThanks for the labor of love and commerce Shorpy is. Years ago this photo evoked for me speculations about what may have divided these office mates. Now what comes out of this photo is the love that is possible if only ... with enough time and enough patience and enough "having lived through" being absent from one another we arrive at a finality of cherishing "in spite of" or even "because of" the uniqueness we bring. The big read 1925I wonder how many of them were concealing new books in their purses, briefcases, or desk drawers. It was an era of readers, and 1925 was a banner year. Here are some of the newly-printed titles waiting for them in bookstores: Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby Hemingway, In Our Time Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway Dreiser, An American Tragedy Christie, The Secret of Chimneys Dos Passos, Manhattan Transfer Cather, The Professor’s House Loos, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Milne, a Winnie the Pooh story at Christmas Kafka, The Trial (if you read German) Proust, Albertine Disparue (if you read French—though some of them may still be working through the 1922 translation of Swann’s Way). By December, early subscribers could have accumulated ten months of the new “New Yorker.” But let’s hope that they still had a few years to be blissfully unaware of Mein Kampf, published in Germany in July. There's one in every office. Frank is holding up an equipment assignment sheet while calling (vainly) for the frivolity to end and a return to work. He will not succeed. Group AnalysisObviously far too long a comment, but Shorpy is so inspirational. Still had fun thinking and writing, as well as viewing picture again. I was wondering about the woman at the far left. She is showing a sideways glance, and nobody else in the picture has a sideways glance. A sideways glance can be a powerful indication of attention to a subject, like romantic attention or professional attention or just surprise, but in any case something out of the ordinary. Like here, it seems different, just that one woman. Trying to analyze a sideways glance, there is the face angle (determined by the nose angle) and the eyes angle. For a sideways glance like this, the eyes are directly pointed at the subject, but the face is pointed elsewhere. Using a reasonably limited choice of angles (0, 15, 30, 45) and expressing angles as "eyes angle / face angle" (eyes come first, most expressive), then this mystery woman with the sideways glance could be a 0/30. Directly below her on the floor is a 45/0 woman, and her eyes angle is the extreme opposite. Seems absolute difference between the two angles can show degree of interest or attention, not the amount of either angle. With any 45/0 difference then attention seems to be very much elsewhere. The 30/45 woman to her right apparently has her attention directed to the same subject, but not to the same degree, more a casual interest, just a difference of 15 between her angles. And the next woman above is a 30/30, also looking in that direction, but no difference between her angles, no indication of interest or attention, just looking. Also just looking, but now at the camera, are all the 0/0 men and women, no differences, the largest group. They seem to be posing conventionally for the picture, and there is no apparent sign of interest or attention (other than to the camera). The exact pose varies by individual, some are smiling more than others, but they are all 0/0's. Some 0/0's may be simple conformists, and others may be nonconformists bored stiff (they can still smile, for the camera), but you can't probably tell which is which from the picture. The big boss on the right is a 0/0, and the men in line with him are mostly 0/0's too, diligently following his traditional example. Above him are three 45/45's, you may not be able to tell about attention or interest from a 45/45, no difference there, in that way like a 0/0. However they are definitely not posing for the camera in any conventional way, not following the big boss example, and probably not in line to succeed him. His successor would probably be a 0/0 closest to him. We could also consider tilt angle of the head as a variable, but that's more difficult to determine, because it varies with perspective, further away or closer to the camera. Also could consider extent of smiles, but that also difficult to determine. Eyes angle and face angle (nose angle) should be easier. These angle measurements are probably useful only in a posed office photo, like this one. In a family photo 0/0's can be visibly full of emotion. And in real life anyone can look at you straight on, a 0/0, with amazement or fury or love or anything else. So angles won't help much in real life, although a sideways glance can still show interest and then create reciprocal interest, even mutual interest. Mistletoe and High Voltage for all the women!I love how the ladies' hair has that "Bride of Frankenstein" look ... creepy yet sexy. It reminds me to get the yule log out. ZoomThat was a quick year. Another Year Gone ByBeen seeing this annually for a long time now, am I the first to comment ?? Anyways all these souls, their troubles and happy days are behind them and now are just dust in the wind … enjoy yourselves as we will be dust too! Merry Christmas My Newest Favorite Christmas Tradition!I have gotten to the point of looking so forward to this party each year, it has indeed become one of my favorite Christmas traditions! LOL For most of those attending the party, they are indeed, "living life!" That is so valuable, the ability to live life. On a personal note, I am learning that this year, having lost my precious wife in March, to Dementia. As iamjanicemarie well noted, all of these, are now just "dust in the wind." Which makes me wonder, in what order did they pass? Did some in the picture in 1925 not survive till the party in 1926? Who was the last to go, and in what year? In the hundreds of comments, some pointing out actual things, others just speculating ... we can learn one lesson. Live Life Fully Every Day. Who knows, a hundred years from now, you may still be having an effect on someone who you never even met! Merry Christmas, Shorpy family! What's up with the gals?Are they wearing kryptonite jewelry? Old friendsI never get tired of this party and these coworkers. The job, yeah, I'm sick of it, but the people make it all worthwhile. I feel like I've known them forever. Welcome Back, Dear 1925 Office Party Friends. . . and all Shorpy friends, too! I look forward to seeing this wonderful photo every year. These folks never age, unlike the rest of us. I find this reassuring: life goes on, as it did for the office partiers whose lives continued through the Depression, WWII, and possibly even on to the 1990s. I always wonder who they were and what happened to them. Here's to a Happy Holiday season and a peaceful 2024. Seems Like Old TimesNice to see familiar faces, even though I never met them. However much they aged after this photograph, we'll never know, so just once each year, it's 1925 again. StableThis firm has a very stable workforce. Every year, it's the same folks in the Christmas photo. Macabre variationAlthough certainly macabre, I do like the door that iamjanicemarie tentatively opened and that HarahanTim swung fully open. In what order did these people pass? The annual response to this photo has definitely taken a curious turn, but I’m glad to chime in. First to go, I believe, was Boss Man with the cigar, the very next morning, in the wee hours. He’s clearly in bad physical shape, a massive coronary waiting to happen. And it wasn’t the fault of one of those young ladies sitting on the floor that it happened in her bed. It was a different time when office and sexual politics were vile, and everyone was drunk. Last to go was Heather on the far left in back, framed by the glass of the door. She’s only 23 in the photo, and she lived right into the next century, dying at 102 in 2004. She had moved back to Ohio, and on her last day was surrounded by her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and even one of her great-great-grandchildren. They all loved her very much. It's finally Christmas ...... when this bunch show up. I checked; they're all there. Proceed to celebrate. Merry Christmas, everyone xoxo In the officeIt's hard to imagine this bunch "working from home". The dynamic would be lost with a "Zoom" holiday party. Fire ExtinguisherJust behind the gentleman with the "GO" signal on his head it looks like there is a classic soda/acid fire extinguisher that I noticed for the first time today. Conveniently located next to what appears to be a rather combustible tree. Season's Greetings to Dave, tterrace and the whole Shorpy gang. Well, having had time to ponderabout these folk for a good decade since discovering Shorpy, I have come to a tentative yet preliminary assessment. The only woman with no apparent makeup and yet the most beautiful features is the lady sitting on the floor at bottom left. Really in a class of her own in this crowd with those almond eyes and high cheekbones, yet with hair and dressed a bit out of date, but still sporting brand new shoes judging by their soles. How they got her to sit on the dirty floor for the pic is beyond me. In any case, the photographer has just given her a huge suggestive wink, and she's snapped her head to the right in response, looking faintly amused / bemused, no doubt used to the unwanted male gaze. The woman second to her left is staring at her, annoyed that Gloria (for that is her name) has caught the roving eye of the photographer instead of her -- the body language is obvious. The flapper two to the left of Ms Envious is giving the photographer a bit of a come-on with her lopsided grin -- she has sussed out his game. Mr Fatlips the boss is terminally near-sighted but for photos and thus posterity takes his glasses off when posing, as one can see. What he looks like with them on is a subject for a horror movie. The rest of the crowd barring a few are to a greater or lesser degree tipsy on smuggled-in booze, it being Temperance Time, er, prohibited drinkees time in America I'll have an update in future when other things become more clear to me from my favorite Shorpy image. Merry Xmas to all! Finger WavesThe blond and brunette whose backs are against the door and doorjamb, respectively, look modern. The other modern looking girl is two rows in front of them, also a brunette. These three look timeless. The other women either still have long hair wrapped up some way or they have those awful finger waves that look like ridges in their hair. None of the girls that have finger waves have benefitted from that style. It does not flatter any face shape, it just looks weird and kind of Bride of Frankensteinish. The blond miss sitting on the floor is looking daggers at the moody looking woman sitting against the desk. I will always wonder why. Holiday Party Fun (2023)Dear Shorpy folks and friends of the site. This year I used this very photo to make a SPOT THE DIFFERENCE game at our work Christmas party. Each of the participants had 20 minutes to spot all 19 differences. I used Photoshop and AI to make the changes to the photo and we all had so much fun with it. If you would like me to post that image here, you may have fun too! Let me know Dave! Also, we have some new friends that might be joining us on this site as they were fascinated by all the expressions of this 1925 party. I did inform them of the site and URL. Merry Christmas everyone Guess who's coming to the Xmas party?I finally gave this picture a very close inspection and have noticed a few things: The Wizard of Oz tin man seems to be absent, although is oil can is sitting on the floor, bold as brass. Perhaps Al Capone knows of the tin man's whereabouts, although he and his cigar are apparently saying nothing? Maybe Al hired "Mr. Bowtie" from the top row. He has the look of someone ready to rub someone out with his own personal brand of ink blotter. One other notable "character" is to the left of Al Capone. I think it's possibly New York's former governor, a spritely, young Andrew Cuomo. What is on the hand of the number 2 guy next to the boss?There is something on his pointer finger and thumb. Could these be some type of grippers for leaving through papers? Could it be he was working until they forced him to come get his picture taken? He is clearly annoyed to be there. Maybe he is plotting to have the boss removed so he can be in charge? Half a MillionI expect that the number of reads for Office Xmas Party will pass 500,000 shortly. Is this a record number of reads for a Shorpy photo? [Office Xmas Party holds the No. 2 spot. Shorpy's most popular post is ... Lady in the Water, with over 640,000 reads. And at No. 3 is The Beaver Letter. - Dave] Merry Christmas to all Shorpians!May your holidays be merry and bright. A special Merry Christmas to Dave and tterrace who keep this very special website going. And to all pictured from that office party held nearly 100 years ago, a Merry Heavenly Christmas to all! ONE MORE TIMEAfter passing this photo around for everyone to look and laugh at, it was probably hung on the wall for a time, then taken to someone's home and put away in a chest and forgotten ... perhaps copies were made. But how would these people feel if they knew that almost a half million people have studied it? Also those desks have been in their current positions for a very long time, the floor below them new and pristine. [This was not a casual snapshot -- the National Photo Company was primarily a news service. Its photographs appeared in newspapers, advertisements and publicity material. This particular image might have been used for Western Electric's in-house newsletter or a company Christmas card. - Dave] Thank ya Dave for clearing that up. Meet some of the boys ...Introducing ... Charles S. Barker, District Superintendent: "With the right personnel and a good organization, you can do anything in telephony" E.N. Searles, Division Superintendent J.E. Grant, R.D. Dick, and... Walter W. Lodding, Division Accountant ... with an invitation to Christmas at the Loddings': This image was featured in the December 1926 issue of the Western Electric News with the title: "YOUTH AND THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT" and caption: "Santa Claus did right by this little lad the son of W.W. Lodding of the Installation Division 11 Headquarters" Looking daggers?Susanhumeston wondered, "The blond miss sitting on the floor is looking daggers at the moody looking woman sitting against the desk. I will always wonder why." I have always been intrigued by that interaction. Pretty much come to the conclusion that three of the ladies were diverted by something off set to the left. One (Charlotte) clearly annoyed, one (Lila) merely taking it in, and one (Gwen) mildly amused. NamesMarkJo - nice job finding the real names! I'm fascinated by the different names and nicknames in all the posts. Then I scroll to 12/23/21; alex_shorpy did a great job labeling everyone. Or go further back to 12/22/19 and see davidk's comment. I also don't look at these folks as having turned into dust. Every year they come alive in the imaginations of many readers. Maligayang Pasko to all. Well, what else?Say, we don't view the full size for a micro-study. What we see is the "pyramid" of working stiffs that retracted into one side of the office against the forceful advance of upper management group. Sharp diagonal dividing line was disturbed somewhat at the bottom, by the lady and gent behind her. There he is!Every year I look forward to seeing dear old Mr. Hilter at the top of the picture looking so skeptical! "Mildred, what did you do with my flask"?This party was during the TEETH of prohibition too! The REAL fun will come later. Lucky 13I first started following Shorpy in the fall of 2011 (didn’t make my first comment till May 2012), so that’s 13 years, making this my 14th "ion" Department Christmas. Over that time, the place where I celebrated Christmas with my wife for 45 years disappeared (burned down) and her parents have died and we were forced to adopt new Christmas customs, but this group in the Office Xmas Party in 1925 has persisted throughout. May they last another century. Merry Christmas and happy holidays to all my fellow Shorpy followers, with a special thanks to Dave for bringing it all to us. The Real Visions, Dancing in Their Heads!It’s not on Christmas Eve that visions dance through the heads of the Shorpy family, it is the high anticipation of the night before Friday before Christmas! Merry Christmas, 1925 Party, and Merry Christmas Shorpy family! Its officially the season!Wishing all of the Shorpy community a very Merry Christmas!! 100 Laps Around the SunWill they be more cheery for next year's 100th Anniversary Party group picture? Shorpy minds want to know! Number nine, number nine ..."99/9 is about completing one's life lessons, goals, dreams, and actions, whatever the price. Sometimes competition becomes the goal in itself. 99 is the end of a cycle and represents the completion of the ultimate goal. 99 resonates with "doomsday." If NumerologyPRO is right, we can look forward to some changes come next December 19: Clarence and Hermione may be happily married. The fierce competition of District Superintendents Searles and Baker for promotion to the home office may have led to both being fired. Prohibition may have ended and booze will be on the desks instead of in the oilcan. The bear may have opened a restaurant. The party may have moved to the W. W. Loddings' home, with young Bobby running happily about. Or perhaps the Loddings will have joined forces with Ray and Rose Dickey to host a bash at the Chevy Chase Club. Or the jury-rigged electrical cord may have caught fire and burned down the building. Or the world may have come to an end. Boss Bill Lodding - Baseball Team ManagerThe “Boss” was Walter William “Bill”, Lodding who managed and played on the company baseball team in 1924. Several last names were included in a May 6, 1924 “Evening Star” article about the company-ball league in which they played many games. Soon after this party (maybe due to it?) he found himself transferred to Atlanta. He was born July 1, 1897, and died on March 1, 1940, in Chicago. He left behind wife Agnes and two sons. Enjoy This Every YearWas looking forward to these folks again. Aways a pleasure after so many years, thanks! One & AllMerry Christmas to my Shorpy family. At 17 plus years with Shorpy, it is a daily indulgence that is addicting, but neither fattening or harmful. Christmas overloadEven more obviously two years later, far too long a comment, and analysis too, probably not in the Christmas spirit, analysis (dated 12.20.2022, 5:20 pm). But I'll submit it again, and suggest this time you gather some of the comments over the years that strike you one way or another, and put them together in a separate folder. So many comments, would help if you gathered some together. Perhaps this comment or perhaps not, but a selected bunch of comments. Enough to capture the spirit, but not too much, please. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Obviously far too long a comment, but Shorpy is so inspirational. Still had fun thinking and writing, as well as viewing picture again. I was wondering about the woman at the far left. She is showing a sideways glance, and nobody else in the picture has a sideways glance. A sideways glance can be a powerful indication of attention to a subject, like romantic attention or professional attention or just surprise, but in any case something out of the ordinary. Like here, it seems different, just that one woman. Trying to analyze a sideways glance, there is the face angle (determined by the nose angle) and the eyes angle. For a sideways glance like this, the eyes are directly pointed at the subject, but the face is pointed elsewhere. Using a reasonably limited choice of angles (0, 15, 30, 45) and expressing angles as "eyes angle / face angle" (eyes come first, most expressive), then this mystery woman with the sideways glance could be a 0/30. Directly below her on the floor is a 45/0 woman, and her eyes angle is the extreme opposite. Seems absolute difference between the two angles can show degree of interest or attention, not the amount of either angle. With any 45/0 difference then attention seems to be very much elsewhere. The 30/45 woman to her right apparently has her attention directed to the same subject, but not to the same degree, more a casual interest, just a difference of 15 between her angles. And the next woman above is a 30/30, also looking in that direction, but no difference between her angles, no indication of interest or attention, just looking. Also just looking, but now at the camera, are all the 0/0 men and women, no differences, the largest group. They seem to be posing conventionally for the picture, and there is no apparent sign of interest or attention (other than to the camera). The exact pose varies by individual, some are smiling more than others, but they are all 0/0's. Some 0/0's may be simple conformists, and others may be nonconformists bored stiff (they can still smile, for the camera), but you can't probably tell which is which from the picture. The big boss on the right is a 0/0, and the men in line with him are mostly 0/0's too, diligently following his traditional example. Above him are three 45/45's, you may not be able to tell about attention or interest from a 45/45, no difference there, in that way like a 0/0. However they are definitely not posing for the camera in any conventional way, not following the big boss example, and probably not in line to succeed him. His successor would probably be a 0/0 closest to him. We could also consider tilt angle of the head as a variable, but that's more difficult to determine, because it varies with perspective, further away or closer to the camera. Also could consider extent of smiles, but that also difficult to determine. Eyes angle and face angle (nose angle) should be easier. These angle measurements are probably useful only in a posed office photo, like this one. In a family photo 0/0's can be visibly full of emotion. And in real life anyone can look at you straight on, a 0/0, with amazement or fury or love or anything else. So angles won't help much in real life, although a sideways glance can still show interest and then create reciprocal interest, even mutual interest. WE_xmas_width_750.jpg Facial anglesMy response to this photo every year is along the lines of Flash's, but I come to a different conclusion. My belief is that there may have been more than one camera trained on this group on that evening 99 years ago, or at least, there were other things going on attracting people's attention. Conspicuously, the elegant woman seated at the far left is looking off at someone or something on the right of the camera that took this photo. She is not at all the only one. There are two woman seated on the floor who are pointed in the same direction. To them I would probably add the woman wearing the bobby helmet. There are two somewhat goofy looking men standing on the desk at the back who also seem to be smiling to whatever lens the women are looking at. There's a fellow standing right below and to the right of them -- partially obscured -- who is also looking that way. As a counterpoint, a woman in the center and a man over her shoulder appear to be looking at something to the photographer's right. If this picture had been taken a half century earlier, in 1875, I would understand the people staring sidewise at a faraway point as a standard photographic custom. I think it had died out well before this party, but I suppose it's possible some folks hadn't gotten the memo. Sideways GlancesThese people, on what might be the photographer's third or fourth exposure, are averting their gaze from the mini-explosion of his magnesium flash. ThanksThanks Dave and the Shorpy crew, this photo has become one of my comfort constants throughout the year. When I opened the website tonight and saw this photo it feels like seeing my cousins I only see usually once a year. When I listen to music, I have this thought about having a time machine and going back to when a certain vocal or guitar riff is performed for the first time, say any Doors song or Eddie Van Halen playing the lead into You Really Got Me (Eruption). I'd use my machine to go back to when this photo was taken. But then I think, do I want to take the mystery out of it? Nah. Merry Christmas! WW = Walter WilliamWalter William Bill Lodding: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/217917725/walter-w-lodding https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/GWNW-7QB A Merry Christmas to AllI don't post much here anymore, but I read the site every day. I look forward to this post every year because I enjoy the comments so much. There's always something new or funny to be read. I hope all your Shorpyites out there have a wonderful holiday season no matter what you do or don't celebrate. :-) Western Electric Installers BaseballersThe Western Electric Installers' "clever" ballplayers listed in this 1924 article all transferred to D.C. from New York. Each named is likely shown in this pic, probably the ones surrounding their manager, Boss Bill. I remain completely fascinated by the woman on the floor sitting against the desk, and see from so many past comments that I’m far from alone. If she was a baseball fan a coworker could both pitch and woo with equal fervor. Oh dearI just noticed that the smiling lady seated on the far right in front (bear and oil can at her knees) has undone (or lost) the top button on her shoe. I hope that if it was the former, she went home and put her feet up to bring the swelling down, and if it was the latter, she got a new pair for Christmas. However I'm sure a good cobbler could have fixed them right up in the event there were not a new pair of kicks beneath her tree. The good news is that it looks like her permanent wave will last until at least Valentine's Day. (The Gallery, Bizarre, Christmas, Natl Photo, The Office)
Chicago Club: 1906
Circa 1906. "The Chicago Club, Chicago."A number of spectral pedestrians here. 8x10 inch dry plate glass ... View full size. Built as the Art Institute of Chicago This handsome Richardsonian Romanesque building at the southwest ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/07/2012 - 12:26pm -

Circa 1906. "The Chicago Club, Chicago."A number of spectral pedestrians here. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Built as the Art Institute of ChicagoThis handsome Richardsonian Romanesque building at the southwest corner of Michigan Ave. and Van Buren St. was designed by Burnham and Root and built in 1885-1887 for the Art Institute of Chicago. After the Art Institute moved into its present headquarters two blocks up and across Michigan Avenue in 1893, the building was sold to the Chicago Club. As the story goes, the building collapsed during renovations in 1928 (no reasons given), and the present Chicago Club structure was built to replace it in 1929. This photograph shows some interesting details near the top of the gable that I never noticed before: the portraits of three old time Renaissance artists (Leonardo? Michelangelo?) and the headless, armless, and legless torso atop a pile of artistic objects at the apex of the gable. Head CountCounting spectral pedestrians, standees, carved faces and drivers I see 25 people and a torso, or so. Hey, it's Chicago! Intentional?Has the statue at the very top been drawn and quartered? Two doors downAppears to still be there, the building that replaced the original Chicago Club is pretty nice, but not nearly as ornate: View Larger Map Chicago Kindergarten CollegeTo the right of this building on Van Buren Street is a building with a sign that appears to read "Chicago Kindergarten College". That sounded strange, but it turns out to have been a predecessor to today's National Louis University: https://www.nl.edu/t4/about/history/ White WingLooks like we have a ghost pic of a White Wing (street cleaner) with his broom in the foreground Michigan Avenue or Boulevard?We see here, from left to right, at #: 203 The Fine Arts Building, also known as the Studebaker Building 202 Chicago Musical College 200 Chicago Club (I wonder if someone can find the 201 entrance?). Everywhere is mentioned they are located at Michigan Avenue, but under the entry for Historic Michigan Boulevard District, you may find that prior to the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, the street was officially known as Michigan Boulevard and often referred to as "Boul Mich". But in the 1900s Ads of the Chicago Musical College, Michigan Boulevard is still mentioned as the address. Another puzzle for me is that the College was founded in 1867, but the season numbering in all Ads of the College seem to point at 1865 as the year of establishment (and I have seen them in Ads from 1900 till 1925, the 60th year!). Can anyone explain that? TimeAndAgainPhoto in ChicagoWhat a great run of update-photographs these past few days by TimeAndAgainPhoto (I count 7). Not only do we get to see his trademark current versions of pictures originally taken a century ago, but we also get to revisit a classic assortment of Chicago posts from the past few years, including the informative comments. Wonder where he's off to next? +111Below is the same view from June of 2017. (The Gallery, Chicago, DPC)
Chicago: 1956
"Chicago, November 1956." 35mm Kodachrome from the Kermy & Janet archive, ... a set of standard viewing locations for photographing Chicago railroading. This isn't one of them, and is thus valuable. It was probably shot from the train. Chicago experts should be able to fill in the details, and the exact location, ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/19/2013 - 9:20pm -

"Chicago, November 1956." 35mm Kodachrome from the Kermy & Janet archive, and possibly a train trip from Baltimore to the Windy City. View full size. Grainy but greatThere were/are a set of standard viewing locations for photographing Chicago railroading. This isn't one of them, and is thus valuable. It was probably shot from the train. Chicago experts should be able to fill in the details, and the exact location, but 2 small ones pop up. All of the switches in the foreground have self guarded frogs, a once-common cost saving feature for yards. These are the wings sticking up above rail level on the sides of the frogs, allowing omission of the usual guard rails on the outer "stock" rails, to keep wheels from steering down the wrong side of the frog. They are not suitable for high speed main line operations. Also, the hood profile of the semi tractor facing us looks like an International (IH), which was based in the general Chicago area. The one facing away lacks mud flaps, was that common for the era? Indeed the B&OYou can see the tower of Chicago Grand Central on the far left of the picture. This curve is just east of the lift bridge over the Chicago River. Southside ChicagoThe large building with the pyramidal top is the Board of Trade, and the bright metal, blocky building with the tall antenna is the Prudential Life building. These were the tallest things in the city from about 1955-1965. So this puts us on the south side, and I'm pretty sure the low bridge visible in the middle distance is the Roosevelt Road bridge over the river. I'm guessing we are near what's now the 18th street bridge where it crosses the south end of today's Metra (commuter) trainyard. Prudential BuildingOf the two tallest at the time, Prudential was the tallest, hence it being the location of the TV transmission tower. I recall my dad taking my brother and me up to the observation deck on a Sunday morning around this time. I was 6 years old then. Mud FlapsThat tractor without mudflaps is likely a yard tractor and not used on streets and roads. Chicago: 2013The Chicago Board of Trade dominates the 1956 skyline. Today it's barely visible from the same vantage (16th Street). Dearborn Station The clock tower of the Dearborn Station can be seen to the right of the building with the yellow Lee sign painted on the side. If you were traveling by rail to or from Los Angeles, you probably transferred at that station in Chicago. It's where the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe began and ended its passenger trips to and from a number of Western cities. The tower is still standing and what is left of the station has been converted to office and retail space. The train shed and tracks were demolished in 1976. The office, printing and manufacturing businesses around it left and the buildings are now mostly apartments and lofts. (ShorpyBlog, The Gallery, Chicago, Kermy Kodachromes, Railroads)
Chicago: 1905
Chicago circa 1905. "12th Street Bascule Bridge." Dinosaurs of the ... for this steamer. The permit for its travels between Chicago and Lockport was revoked for the drunken rowdiness of its passengers. From Proceedings of the Chicago Sanitary District Board of Trustees. June 4, 1902 PRESIDENT ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/05/2018 - 1:47pm -

Chicago circa 1905. "12th Street Bascule Bridge." Dinosaurs of the Carboniferous Period. Detroit Publishing Company glass negative. View full size. Bascule BridgesMore on the bascule ("seesaw") design here. These bridges used a system of counterweights to balance the span. Today's viewIt looks like this bridge is down, but the 2 in the background are still standing. View Larger Map Drainage CanalSomehow, a tour of a drainage canal sounds rather disturbing. Now that's marketing!Daily Excursions to the Drainage Canal! How could anyone resist that? Floaters.Daily Excursions. Step right up, buy your ticket to see the effluence. I.M. WestonDespite being in a canal, there was no smooth sailing for this steamer. The permit for its travels between Chicago and Lockport was revoked for the drunken rowdiness of its passengers. From Proceedings of the Chicago Sanitary District Board of Trustees. June 4, 1902 PRESIDENT DIRECTED TO REVOKE PERMIT ISSUED TO STEAMER I.M. WESTON FOR NAVIGATING THE DRAINAGE CHANNEL Under the head of new business Mr. Braden stated he had been informed that the steamer I.M. Weston plying between this city and Lockport is selling liquors and carrying boisterous crowds on its trips down the Drainage Channel and moved seconded by Mr Jones that the President of the Board be requested to revoke the permit granted said steamer until such time as the proprietors have given assurances that the boat will be properly conducted. The motion prevailed unanimously and it was so ordered. Steamer Weston: R.I.P. 1902 Port Huron Daily Times, September 6, 1902 The little passenger steamer I.M. WESTON which has been engaged in carrying excursionists down the Chicago Drainage Canal to Lockport for several years caught fire in the canal near Summit on Friday and burned to the water's edge. No one was lost. The I.M. Weston was built in 1883 as a passenger steamer, she later saw use carrying fruit before reverting back to passenger trade. 95 tons gross; 57 tons net. Zug IslandIs one of those bridges on Zug Island? Any kid growing up in Detroit was easily made to study harder by the threat of working on Zug Island. Cruising by it on the Bob-Lo boat was enough to scare a C-student into a B+ student by the end of the cruise. Bascule BridgeWe have two of those bridges here in Detroit! [Chicago wants them back right away. Or else. - Dave] Re: Today's view12th Street is today's Roosevelt Road (named for Teddy). I'm not sure if either bridge in the Google view is what you see in background of the photo. The top (north) bridge is no longer in use - it served the old Grand Central Station (B&O and others) at Wells and Harrison until the late 60's/early 70's. Follow the old right-of-way going north and you can still see traces of the platforms. The south(bottom) bridge connects Union Station and the BNSF with the Illinois Central mainline. Bascule Bridges - Zug IslandActually, one is at Fort Street and the other one is on Jefferson. I think there is one on Dix at the Ford-Rouge Plant, also. There might even be one on Zug Island. Uh, Dave, Chicago is out of luck -- we're not giving them back! Carboniferous DinosaursCouldn't be a more appropriate caption. Not only do we have the steamboat and steam switcher locomotive, but a steam-powered dredge in the background. Impressive! Dancing About ArchitectureMy wife and I took a two-hour river cruise sponsored by the Chicago Architecture Foundation a couple of weeks ago while visiting the Windy City. The tour was informative and relaxing and the expert commentary was provided by a docent from the CAF. We passed under several of these bascule bridges. We happened to be there during the Chicago Air Show, so we had the added fun of watching fighter jets and vintage aircraft screaming above the city. I highly reccommend the experience. More on the CAF's tours and activities: www.architecture.org Goober Pea Roosevelt Rd. BridgeThis is the "modern" bridge as it appeared in April 2008, view looking north from the river (click to enlarge): Hey...I used to live thereSo, as far as Chicago's development goes, I would say that this is an area that remains quite similar today. Until a few months ago I lived nearby in East Pilsen and I loved taking pics in the area. Here is a night shot of these same bridges from last winter. Over the RiverThe bridges in this area were all taken down and rebuilt between 1919 and 1921 for the straightening of the river. Chicago Drainage CanalAt the time of this picture, Chicago had recently reversed the flow of the Chicago River. Previously, the river and all of Chicago's sewage flowed into Lake Michigan, which is also where Chicago got its drinking water. A drainage canal was dug (some claim that more material was moved in the excavation of this canal than during construction of the Panama Canal). The drainage canal, along with a system of locks, caused the Chicago River to flow downward through the Des Plaines and Illinois River systems to the Mississippi. It was an incredible achievement, but maybe not so good for the people and fisheries downstream. Those bridgesThe two bridges shown prominently are long gone. They did provide access to Grand Central Station but were removed when the South Branch of the Chicago River was straightened in the 1920s. The railroad built a single leaf bascule bridge to replace the double bridge a few blocks to the south. That bridge is seen in the "today's view" and "I used to live there" photos. It is the one that is up. (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, Chicago, DPC)
Pabst Over Chicago: 1943
... Street freight depot of the Illinois Central Railroad, Chicago." 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano. View full size. ... behind the Pabst sign at the right edge of the sign is the Chicago Tribune building, and across from it (underneath the main part of the ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/07/2017 - 2:11pm -

May 1, 1943. "South Water Street freight depot of the Illinois Central Railroad, Chicago." 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano. View full size. DirectionalityI believe this photo is facing north. Quite a few of the skyscrapers are still there. All the way to the left, the black & gold building is the Carbide & Carbon (or is it Carbon & Carbide?) building on Michigan Ave. I seem to remember something about it being the "first" skyscraper. Just to the right, with the little cupola on top, is the original Stone Container Building at Wacker & Michigan Avenues. Off in the furthest distance in the center of the photo you can see what was originally called the Pamolive building (it became Playboy Towers, and is now a condo building). I think the building behind the Pabst sign at the right edge of the sign is the Chicago Tribune building, and across from it (underneath the main part of the sign) you can see the white building that is the Wrigley building. They flank Michigan Ave. just north of the Chicago river. Fellow (ex-)ChicagoanDefinitely facing North, definitely the Carbon & Carbide building - my dad used to have an office there. Not sure about the Playboy Towers.... might that be the Drake Hotel? 33 to 1?Blended 33 to 1? That sounds like a strange formula to me...but of course I'm not informed on the whole beer and beer history thing. 33 to 1Here's a 1940 Pabst ad that explains it. NorthThere is no question about it, this photo is facing north. Good Railroad ShotThe blue flags placed on the cars would be a violation of federal regulations today as they now have to be located at the switch providing access to the track. Also, note that several of the cars are on "yard air" in order to test the brakes on each car prior to movement. Finally you can see that this photo provides good images of several different types of car ends all together in one place. As I am from Milwaukee, I have no clue as to which buildings are which! I do know that the photo is definitely facing north as I now work for the South Shore commuter railroad and am familiar with the lakefront. I also know that the original Santa Fe railroad corporate headquarters was almost directly to the west of this photo and is still there today with the Santa Fe sign on top. It is now an historic landmark. Bootcamp BeerI went to Navy bootcamp in Great Lakes Il. in 1983 and after spending 10 wks. without beer our first chance to have a brew came. Unfortunatly for me the ONLY beer avaliable to us at the time was Pabst Blue Ribbon. Now, not being a Pabst fan I was very unhappy about that but after 10 tough weeks I said "what the heck" and ordered a couple of beers. I'll tell you what, that was the best beer I've ever had. I got so drunk the rest of the day was blur. I'd like to say "Thanks you Pabst" for the best beer ever and day I don't remember. Water Street DepotIt appears we are looking north from either Monroe or Randolph. I want to say we're looking from Monroe and that bridge spanning the width of the pic under the sign is Randolph. The row of low-rise buildings on the left side of the pic that are ~6 stories tall and have the water towers on top of them would then be on the east side of Michigan Ave and sitting directly on the north side of Randolph. I believe these trains are in the area east of Michigan Ave and north of Monroe, but south of Randolph as it used to be a railyard (now Millennium Park, north of the Art Institute). Furthermore there were never any buildings previously on this spot, as it would have either been a rail yard or part of Grant Park (where no buildings were allowed to be built, except for the Art Institute). This leads me to believe that we are looking north from Monroe towards Randolph and beyond. The vast empty space behind the Pabst sign spanning the whole width of the image would now be occupied by Illinois Center, the Prudential Building and of course the tall white AON Building (3rd largest in Chciago at the moment), or whatever they call it these days. Pabst SignCan anybody tell me if this sign was was animated and are there any night time shots of it? [The nighttime shot of this neon sign is here. - Dave] AnimationThanks Dave, do you know if the sign was animated in any way? [The hands on the clock moved! If you mean did various parts of the sign blink on and off, I don't know. - Dave] ChicagoI see the tallest building to the far left when I'm going to and from school. It's surrounded by a bunch of other buildings now. Chevrolet SignThis is a film clip of another Chicago sign. It shows how animated signs were operated. I can't find any date, but the technology looks like 1940 or so. http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/410104.html Chevrolet SignAfter viewing this clip of the Chevy sign, I'm fairly convinced that it and the 'Pabst' sign are one and the same. Shown in the clip of the Chevy sign is the same tall building that is located to the left of the Pabst sign in the photo. There are other similarities as well, like the circular design of the sign, the clock at the lower right, etc. It's my guess that Pabst took over the sign after Chevy and made the slight changes to suit their logo. South Water Street TodayThis photo is facing North on South Water Street and intersecting roughly what is now Columbus Drive. The ground level of this photograph is now covered by an elevated roadway in this area. If you went to this spot today, the Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park designed by Frank Gehry would be just behind you. The Playboy Building is visible in the background, now once again called the Palmolive Building and converted to condominiums. It sits between the Drake Hotel and John Hancock Tower at the end of the Magnificent Mile. The Drake is not tall enough to be in view here. The Allerton Hotel and Northwest University Law School in Streeterville are also visible here, which they wouldn't be today from the site, although they are still standing. Several of the mid-rise buildings in this photograph are no longer standing, in particular the large red-brick warehouse at the center mid-ground, to the right of the Playboy/Palmolive. This is where the NBC Tower now stands, just north of the river. Driving and DrinkingThis was indeed the Chevy sign. Pabst took it over. You can still make out the Chevy logo in the superstructure of the sign. The lower left hand corner of the "B" in Blue and the upper right hand corner of the N in "Ribbon" served as the edges of the classic Chevy "bowtie" logo. Going to ChicagoIt's interesting to think that Muddy Waters would have just arrived in Chicago when this photo was taken. Pabst signThe Pabst sign was next to Randolph Street Bridge; refer to the 1922 Zoning map that is available at the University of Chicago library site - the Illinois Central may very well have called the yard the 'Water Street Yard,' but Water Street moved to the South Side when Wacker Drive was created after 1924; the Pabst sign was located nearest the Randolph Street bridge and is the current location of the Prudential Building, not the Pritzker Pavillion. Warehouse full of booksI believe the red brick warehouse-like building on the right (east) of the photo survived into at least the 1980s, serving as the temporary home of the Chicago Public Library's main branch after it moved from what is now the Cultural Center (location of many shots in DePalma's "The Untouchables" and just out of camera range to the left) and before the opening of the Harold Washington Library Center. I used their manual typewriters and xerox machines to peck out and photocopy my resume. Why Boxcars are blue-flaggedThese boxcars are blue-flagged because they have both their doors open and gangplanks spanning the openings between cars on adjacent tracks. This is also why they are all 40-foot cars and are all lined up with each other. Less-than-Carload (LCL) freight is being handled here! This something that US railroads have discontinued; for decades, they haven't accepted any shipment less than one car load. As effective highway trucks were developed, they took this trade away from the RR's for obvious reasons. But, back in the 1940's, RR's would handle a single crate! This required sorting en route, which is what is being done here. There's a large shift of workers shuffling LCL from one car to another by way of the side platforms and the above-mentioned gangplanks. The LCL required local freight crews to handle this stuff into and out of the freight stations, and required station agents to get the cargo to and from customers, collect charges, etc. Very labor-intensive, yet somehow the trucking companies do it at a profit. From Pabst To Rolling Rock Beer "33"This photograph has also added another “answer” to the question: “What does the “33” on the label of a bottle of Rolling Rock Beer mean?” http://www.snopes.com/business/hidden/rolling.asp One person seeing this photograph concluded on a Rolling Rock Beer forum that the Rolling Rock "33" may have referenced the smoothness of blending “33 to 1.” http://toms.homeunix.net/toms/locFSA-OWIkodachromes/slides/blended33to1.... Makes you feel like a heroEven now, when I get a color transparency (2 1/4x2 1/4 or 4x5) and look at if for the first time, it is stunning. I can't imagine what it must have looked like to someone seeing it color for the first time ever! Sign BackgroundIf you look closely at the superstructure of the sign you can see the slogan "Blended 33 to 1" in the framework, which is seen far better in the nighttime shot Dave linked to. As to whether this would be considered animation I don't know, but a typical setup would be to light the Pabst Blue Ribbon sign, then switch to the "Blended" slogan, then light both. Don't know if that was done here. Those catwalksThe "down-the-throat" shot of those catwalks atop of the freight cars gives the viewer a good idea of what the brakeman had to deal with while setting the brakes. The uneveness of those platforms, even at a standstill, is enough to make the average person think twice about climbing up and traversing these planks. Before airbrakes became the norm, this had to be one of the most harrowing jobs a railroad worker had to face. And this would be on a nice calm day. With rain, wind or snow, even the most seasoned brakeman must've had second thoughts. Blue Flags?Mr. Leaman pointed out the blue flags were being displayed incorrectly by todays rules. But not being a train enthusiast, what did they indicate in the first place? Blue-FlaggedAny rolling stock or engine that is "blue-flagged" cannot be moved unless the person who placed the flag removes it. It's a safety rule, and for the protection of the workers, many of whom are between or under the cars. The iconic "Santa Fe" sign referred to in earlier posts is now on display at the Illinois Railway Museum in Union, IL - not too far from Chicago and well worth the trip! http://www.irm.org The early brakeman's plightJKoehler, I read somewhere that a conductor remarked about brakemen in the days when cars used link-and-pin couplers, "If they still have their thumbs after three months, they must be really lazy!" Phantom Memory of a huge Chicago Phillips 66 Sign?For decades I’ve had a childhood memory of seeing a huge Phillips 66 sign atop the Chicago skyline, while driving with my family in the “wayback” of the family station wagon on the way to visit our grandparents in Iowa. We were coming from Michigan, and driving on Chicago streets because the still-under-construction Interstate Highway System still had gaps. (We were probably driving on/towards westbound US-30.) I remember being in awe of a big neon Phillips 66 sign receding in the distance as my dad drove west. It was a wide straight street, very busy. The sign had lots of neon motion, even in the daylight. This memory (if real), would have been somewhere between about 1963 - 1968. But am I mistaken? Did the Phillips 66 sign never exist, and could this Papst sign be the one I saw? (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Chicago, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Noel, Iola: 1944
... PREPAREDNESS         CHICAGO (Dec. 23, 1944) -- Mrs. Iola Swinnerton Warren, who suffered the ... - I found the announcement from the Suburbanite Economist (Chicago) of December 23, 1942. It sounds like she had a terrible time with this ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/24/2024 - 4:00pm -

On this Christmas Eve, we travel back 80 years for a visit with the First Lady of Shorpy, Iola Swinnerton. Some two decades after her bathing-pageant days, she is still radiating beauty and cheer. Scroll down to the comments for more of Iola's life story. View full size. "STONE WOMAN" ENJOYS CHRISTMAS PREPAREDNESS         CHICAGO (Dec. 23, 1944) -- Mrs. Iola Swinnerton Warren, who suffered the illness known as myositis ossificans after inoculation for typhoid following a Florida hurricane, watches her husband Theron V. Warren and little nephew Herbert Taylor trim Christmas tree. (Acme Newspictures photo) Licensed to Marry.From the Washington Post of August 4, 1918: "Gerald Swinnerton, 31, of Williamston, Michigan, and Iola Taylor, 18, of Rockford, Illinois." Iola in 1947Here is part of article from the Waterloo Sunday Courier (Waterloo, Iowa) of March 9, 1947. The Warrens adopted Herbert Taylor (Iola's nephew). Herbert was 13 in 1947. Forever YoungIt would seem, from an earlier comment, that she was born in 1902, so she would have been 19 or 20 in those earlier photos from 1921 and 1922, and 42 here. She has lovely, youthful skin and a radiant smile. [If she was 18 when married in 1918, she'd have been born in 1899 or 1900. - Dave] Not just Christmas celebrationsThis is also the occasion of their second wedding anniversary - I found the announcement from the Suburbanite Economist (Chicago) of December 23, 1942. It sounds like she had a terrible time with this illness -- it started in 1926 and she spent nine years in the hospital! I'm glad she seems to have found happiness with Theron. Based on what I read about myositis ossificans, it seems unlikely that this is what she had. It is normally caused by an injury to a muscle, and from what I can tell, stays within that muscle -- it doesn't spread to other areas of the body. It's probably more likely that she had heterotopic ossification, possibly caused by central nervous system injury or an underlying genetic disorder. *Cringe*I am sure that Herbie really enjoyed being characterized in the newspaper as her "little" nephew. Hope his friends didn't see the story! [He looks like Larry Mondello. - Dave] Carpentry and TweedNotice the nicely done rest for her feet that does not appear to be part of the original wheelchair--not the easiest thing to put together if you're doing it with nails instead of wood screws, which may be the case here. Also, I love the nephew's tweed slacks--sadly, winter weight slacks seem to be a thing of the past, even up north here in Minnesota. They're keeping him so warm, he doesn't need to keep his shirt tucked in. The story that keeps on givingAnother amazing feature of this website. Over the course of eleven and a half years (dating back to April of 2007) we are treated to a series of photos of Iola Swinnerton from a very specific two-year period (1921-1922) in a very specific context (bathing suit beauty contest). No sense of limitation or lack of variety, and every new photo was a delight. Flash forward suddenly 22 years to 1944 and to a whole new context. We find Iola in a wheelchair with a strange and rare disease, and yet she is happy, recently married to a benevolent-looking church organist, and she and her husband have adopted her nephew. The husband "wasn’t discouraged because the pretty invalid was confined to a wheelchair," and she is able to report that her "condition has steadily improved" since they got married. The crowning glory of her positivity: "My dreams during so many years in hospitals have come true." (She writes songs which are published!) "I only hope someone else can take hope from my happiness." This is one of the most truly marvelous stories I've ever come across. Stiff Man’s SyndromeIola may have had what is now called Stiff Person’s Syndrome. It was first diagnosed in 1956. A friend had it. IolatryHere's a few more details regarding Iola. The New York Times, while reporting her wedding, stated that she was earning her living as a seamstress. The paper also said, "She was stricken by the baffling disease after the Florida Hurricane of 1926. At that time she lived in a Miami Beach cottage, the wife of Gerald Swinnerton, whom she divorced in April, charging desertion." In the 1940 U.S. Census Gerald Swinnerton is claiming to have been widowed. He was a camera designer and repairman, as well as a World War I veteran, and he was also known as George Simons. He died in 1961. Regarding her wedding, the Chicago Tribune of December 24, 1942 published the following story. "Smiling from her wheelchair, in a moire taffeta wedding dress and a shoulder length tulle veil, Iona Swinnerton, 40 years old, was married last night to Theron Victor Warren, 42, a shipyard worker and organist in the Wentworth Baptist church. The bride is suffering from a rare disease characterized by hardening of the muscles. "About 100 relatives and friends were present as the Rev. Eugene H. Daniels read the marriage ceremony. L. Duke Taylor, 1918 Cleveland avenue, her brother, gave the bride away. Donald McGowan, 1954 Henderson street, was the best man. "Miss Swinnerton, who lives at 4044 Wentworth avenue, has been suffering from the malady since 1926. She teaches a Bible class at the church, and met Warren while attending the services there." An article in the Cedar Rapids Gazette in December 1945 indicated that she had spent six years at the Cook County Hospital for treatment of her condition. She was refinishing furniture and canning fruit in addition to writing songs. "Theron proposed not very long after I cooked him a duck dinner," she confided. In 1949 Iola won fourth place in a nationwide Army songwriting contest, which earned her a $50 savings bond. The title of the tune was "Three Cheers For the Army." She died five years later, in 1954. Her obituary from the Chicago Tribune is below. "Iola N. Warren, 2642 Barry avenue, June 13, 1954, beloved wife of Theron V. Warren, dear sister of Louis Duke Taylor, dear aunt to Herbert Taylor. At chapel, 316 W. 63d street, at Harvard avenue, where services will be held Thursday, June 17, at 1 p.m. Cremation Oak Woods." Theron Warren died on May 3, 1976. The image below is from the January 4, 1937 issue of the Wilson (N.C.) Daily Times. FOPI presume Iola had fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva. Story of Two FamiliesLuckily, I accepted an invitation to the Swinnertons' Christmas party before the invitation to the Dickeys' Christmas party arrived. Three cheers for King CottonThe pants of the kid look as if they are scratchy. Ask me how I know. It’s a small worldI’ve been a long-time Shorpy lurker, and have many of the wonderful images saved as desktop wallpaper. I had to comment on this picture -- the Eugene H. Daniels mentioned as the officiant in the newspaper article was my great-grandfather! By the time I knew him, he was just “Grandpa Dan”; it’s neat to be able to read about Iola and Theron some 78 years later. Merry Christmas to all! Eeugh!Theron is a ringer for an ex of mine. I hope Iola had better luck--she certainly endured enough as it was. (The Gallery, Chicago, Christmas, Iola S., Kids, News Photo Archive)
Chicago: 1915
Chicago circa 1915. "Van Buren Street Station. View north along Michigan ... Jackson Drive would become the very start of Route 66 from Chicago to Los Angeles! The next two buildings are today known as the Sante Fe Building and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. And of course the Art Institute overlooks the ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/30/2012 - 10:07pm -

Chicago circa 1915. "Van Buren Street Station. View north along Michigan Avenue." 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Route 66!On our left, the first two large buildings and that interesting tiny one have been replaced. Next, the intersection of Michigan and Jackson Drive. In the summer of 1926 Jackson Drive would become the very start of Route 66 from Chicago to Los Angeles! The next two buildings are today known as the Sante Fe Building and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. And of course the Art Institute overlooks the train station. The Art Institute of ChicagoI was just thinking of this place the other day. The building in the foreground background is the Art Institute of Chicago. Every year after Thanksgiving, they put the wreaths around the necks of the lions that stand in front of the building. The area still looks fairly similar to what it looked like back in 1915. The train tracks are still there, and most of the buildings along Michigan Avenue are still there. The Spirit of ProgressThe statue atop the Montgomery Ward building was later moved a couple of miles to Ward's Chicago Avenue building, where she still resides. She is depicted on many Ward's stores around the country. Daniel Burnham's Big BuildingsThe two largest buildings in this photo are both works of the office of D. H. Burnham & Co.: the Railway Exchange (now the Santa Fe Center) at left, built 1903-1904, and the People's Gas Building at right, built 1910-1911. The two-bay "penthouse" perched atop the cornice of the Railway Exchange was originally occupied by part of the Burnham architectural office; it was cut back during the building's restoration in the 1980s so that it is no longer visible from the street. This small change made a distinct improvement in the building's appearance. Van Buren Street StationThis is the Illinois Central disgorging passengers at Van Buren Street station. The rail yards on the far right have now been covered over by Grant Park. The building at the northwest corner of Jackson and Michigan is the Railway Exchange (later the Santa Fe building). My father-in-law's office, 40 years later, was on the 15th floor, northeast corner, visible in this pic. The Glass Gas CeilingThe big white building in front of the Art Institute is the Peoples Gas Co. building, completed in 1910. Here are two shots (date unknown) of the interior showing the gorgeous glass ceiling. I wish I could find more photos of the interior of the building. A similar view in 2018. Taken from the East Congressional Parkway, Van Buren Metra station in the foreground. The building with the circular windows on top now has a Motorola sign. (The Gallery, Chicago, DPC, Railroads)
South Dakota Division: 1899
... "Tracy, Minnesota -- engine of the South Dakota division, Chicago & North-Western R.R." 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/29/2024 - 8:35pm -

Circa 1899. "Tracy, Minnesota -- engine of the South Dakota division, Chicago & North-Western R.R." 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Photographic Company. View full size. Number 605Looks so new it must still have the price sticker on the window. Magnificient detail. Pressed Paper?Solidly in the link and pin era, the front shank coupler announces this is pre-1900 when such couplers were finally banned.Note the "door" hinged to the side of the headlight. When waiting in a siding, the fireboy went out on the pilot to close the door on the lit headlight so as not to blind the approaching train. This was actually easier than turning out the oil or acetylene lamp. I've seen roller shades used here most often; I can't recall seeing a hinged door before...eh, but those CNW guys could be funny. Note the headlight mounts are left over from the short smokebox of the engine's original arrangement.Directly below the headlight on the boiler front are two brackets; these were most likely used to brace a pilot-mounted snowplow, necessary equipment in the Plains. You can almost read the builder's plate date and shop number, but she was built by Schenectady Locomotive Works. Lastly, the front wheels are made of...get this...pressed paper.Look it up, I ain't fibbing![pressed paper railroad wheel] Schenectady Locomotive Worksthat manufactured C&NW engine #605 operated from 1848 until it merged into American Locomotive Company in 1901. One of the engines it manufactured for C&NW (#1015 in 1900) is still in existence at the Museum of Transportion in Kirkwood, MO. Actually, locos were kept this clean 'back in the day'>Looks so new it must still have the price sticker on the window. Although it's possible this was recently out-shopped, it's much more likely it came fresh from the roundhouse. Back in the 19th century, locomotives were kept in pristine condition; railroads hired people to wipe them down and engineers took particular pride in the appearance of their engines. Olde Buck points out this was most likely converted from wood to coal, I'd guess this loco was constructed in the early 1880s and converted in the late 1880s/1890s. Note the fixture for a steam line on the roof of the baggage/mail car and the corresponding rig on the back of the tender. There's a steam feed from the steam dome (alongside the whistle). I think this was probably added to the original locomotive. There's a 'mail bag catcher' on the door for mailbags. I think we've had previous Shorpy photos showing the mail bag hangers alongside a passenger depot. Magnificent Locomotive!And it's obviously being maintained by a crew that really cares about it. As Olde Buck implies, it is probably not new -- in 1899, the 4-4-0 layout was already considered classic if not obsolescent, and the pin connectors, notoriously dangerous, were being replaced by the "modern" type of couplers. Note the brightly polished bell, the shining surface of the boiler, and other authentic details -- you can see the whistle on top of the steam dome and the lever that triggers it with a lanyard leading back to the cab. The sand dome shows the plumbing that deposits sand on the fore driver wheel as needed for traction. I don't know how to recognize it in railroad wheels, but it is certainly true pressed paper was used in some, with an iron "tire" on the rim. In the 1880's, pressed paper was even used for the skins of racing shells, as it was lighter than wood. I don't think it is used today for any structural purposes. In case of fireCheck out the fire escape on the side of the hotel in the background.It doesn't look too fireproof itself! Not PaperThe pressed paper hubs were strictly used on Pullman Sleepers after the inventor showed George that they really did reduce vibration transmission. I could be wrong butI bet it has that new locomotive smell. During World War Two plastic-reinforced jettisonable paper fuel tanks were used to extend the range of fighter aircraft including the P-47, P-51 and P-38. The largest held 200 gallons, which gave (for example) the P-47 close to a couple more hours of flying time, enough to escort our bombers over Germany. This ability was a very significant contributor to winning the air war because enemy fighters no longer could easily attack the big and unprotected B-17s and B-24s, unprotected except for their many .50 caliber machine guns (some B-17s packed 11 or more), which made many enemy pilots moribund. Pressed paper wheels> I don't know how to recognize it in railroad wheels, but it is certainly true pressed paper was used in some, with an iron "tire" on the rim. The give-away is the bolts/rivets on the leading truck wheels. These are typical of composite wheels. A cast wheel would not need these bolts/rivets to hold it together. Builder's engine DataC&NW 605 was built by Schenectady Locomotive Works in 1885. C&NW labelled it C-2 class. Boiler pressure was 150 lbs. Driving wheels were 63 inches diameter. 605 was scrapped March 5, 1917. 605 weighed 88,500 pounds. Tractive effort was 16,900 lbs. Looks from my source that the railroad had only a dozen C-2 class engines. A Work In ProgressWhoever was doing the sprucing up must not have had time to finish the tender before the engine was needed for service, because the old, dull finish is visible around and inside its numbers, and on the curved gangway area where the crew climbs up to board. JugI wonder what beverage was contained in the earthenware jug aft of the engineer. Second career for a C&NW C-2 4-4-0 - can you help?At least one of these C&NW C-2 class locomotives was sold secondhand. I have a large B&W print of Sheffield & Tionesta #4 at Kelletville, PA in 1904, with no visible builders plate, but "C&NW" cast in the smokebox door just as in 605. S&T #4 was used between 1904 and 1914 as the primary passenger engine on the little S&T, and was replaced by a new Baldwin 4-4-0. The entire railroad was abandoned and sold for scrap in 1941. Judging by the matching set of dents on the air compressor on the photo I have taken from the same angle, I seriously thought S&T 4 was C&NW 605. If there's any information anyone can find on which one it was, contact me. Sheffield & Tionesta is convered in the book "Teddy Collins Empire" (Casler, 1974) of the "Logging Railroads of Pennsylvania" series. His book is out of print but the railroad museum of PA has the negatives and original manuscript. Finding this particular image on Shorpy was wonderful and made me a member. Area CodeHaving lived in SD for my entire life, I find it interesting that the engine number (605) just happens to be the area code for South Dakota. RPOInteresting to see that the railroad is using an ex-RPO car. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads)
CRIP 908: 1896
Circa 1896. Horton, Kansas. "Chicago Rock Island & Pacific Railroad -- Locomotive CRIP 908." 4x5 inch ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/12/2025 - 12:36pm -

Circa 1896. Horton, Kansas. "Chicago Rock Island & Pacific Railroad -- Locomotive CRIP 908." 4x5 inch glass negative by the Swiss-born optometrist/railfan Jules Bourquin. Louis A. Marre Rail Transportation Photograph Collection. View full size. Rock Island Line This song is deep in my memory's blood. Leadbelly! Dark swooshWhat is the strange darkness which appears in the upper left of the photograph like a murmuration of starlings? [A stain on the emulsion. - Dave] Some things that caught my eyeThe maker's name is on the cylinder casting. I can't quite make it out. But it might be "C R I & P RR", which would imply this loco was constructed by the railroad. Some railroads had substantial engine shops capable of building entire locos. The boiler size and shape implies an earlier engine, maybe built in the 1880s. But there's a generator between the smokestack and headlight, so that was a new addition. The tender trucks are old-fashioned (for the 1890s) swing-motion trucks. Later tenders would probably have more heavy duty trucks, maybe with leaf springs. In front of the rear driver underneath the cab, there's an interesting short rail. That's something more commonly seen on model railroads. There's no tie plates, and only 1 spike per tie. The ballast is pretty muddy. Overall that's a typical look for yard tracks. Behind the loco, I presume that's a tall water tank that looks quite new. I say "water" because it's unlikely to be fuel oil on this railroad at this time. The two brick buildings (left and right) look architecturally similar, so I'd guess they were both built around the same time-frame. The building on the left has a bunch of chimneys, probably a machine shop or similar. Those chimneys could be for forges. Behind the tender, there's a side dump gondola, probably used for ballasting the track. No air brake on that car. The steam locomotive "locobase" didn't yield any info on steamer 908. The number "908" was later reused on a diesel switcher. Stack 'Em UpLike the Titanic, 908's fourth funnel was just for show. Bigly. No hurryin', but maybe Russian?The boiler seems to be sheathed in Russia(n) Iron, one of those things I've seen mentioned many a time but don't recall having ever actually seen a picture of. (The link claims it was "glossy black ... sometimes greenish-tinged" but I've mostly heard it described as silver-grey, which seems to match the photo). (The Gallery, Railroads)
At the Mall: 1959
... in that time frame and another in a household show in Chicago IIRC), but I didn't know about this particular one. Thanks! I do ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/16/2024 - 4:01pm -

May 29, 1959. "Prince George's Plaza, Hyattsville, Maryland. Night view." An actual mall (a long, open plaza) when it opened in 1959, the shopping center was enclosed in the 1970s and renamed the Mall at Prince George's. Large-format safety negative by Gottscho-Schleisner. View full size. The PlazaI grew up a couple of miles away and went here often. When I was a kid in the early 1990s, the mall still featured several iconic brands, many of them local, that would soon die or be swallowed by national chains: Hot Shoppes, Woodward & Lothrop, Hecht's, Waxie Maxie's, GC Murphy, People's Drug. Dress-up TimeInteresting how all the women are in dresses. No slacks here. Demo Bomb ShelterJust to the right of where the photographer is standing was a retail space that was set up as a fishbowl atomic bomb shelter with an actual volunteer family living inside for a period. There were several apertures through the plate glass windows to view the family, and there was a primitive closed-circuit TV monitor as well. This must have been 1961 or 1962. I was still taking a thermos of powdered milk to school then to avoid the Strontium 90 in fresh milk due to the atmospheric nuclear testing. We moved into the Americana Plaza apartments just down the road, in 1960. An air raid siren in the parking lot of the shopping center went off every Saturday at noon for testing, and was also tested at random intervals. Us kids would be playing outside and the siren would go off, and we would all be looking at the sweep second hands on our Timex's, because the tests were only supposed to last 60 seconds. Open, closed, open ...And on the opposite end of the Beltway, Springfield Mall, which was built enclosed in 1973 (and which had a poor reputation safety-wise already when I was a kid in the 80s and has seemingly only gone downhill from there), is now in the process of being converted to an open-air "town center" style shopping center. Still OperatingHad family in the area and remember it looking like this. PG Plaza is still there despite going downhill for a number of years and changing demographics of the surrounding neighborhoods. What a shame it lost this much nicer mid-century modern look to its current nondescript mallishness. Hecht's was swallowed by Macy's. PG PlazaHah! I live about a mile from there now. PG Plaza has been upgraded significantly in the last few years. There is an effort to turn the older section of Hyattsville into an arts district and it's been fun to watch the changes. The section of Route One has been turned from used-car dealerships to upscale row housing. Those who remember the old Lustine Chevy dealership would be surprised to see it's now a community center; they kept the rounded-glass-front dealer building and even the Lustine signage. Pretty nifty. Great photo! Thanks, Dave!!! Hot ShoppesI lived in College Park and this mall seemed like something out of Disney to me. The mall was a very cool place with Hot Shoppes cafeteria that served a steamship round of beef, no pizza, no tacos, Oh to go shopping there and then.But I was only a half-baked Bun in May of '59. 5 years old that dayI was celebrating my 5th birthday that day, but on the opposite coast and with a chocolate cake. But I can easily imagine myself at the PG mall, staring wide-eyed at the open expanse of tile and plate glass. Mom's, Milk, and Where Power Is in a DemocracyPdxrailtransit, Interesting and useful comment about the on-display fallout shelter at this mall. I'm aware of a couple of other instances of this (there was one in Florida with a [newlywed?] couple that appeared in Life magazine in that time frame and another in a household show in Chicago IIRC), but I didn't know about this particular one. Thanks! I do research on the history of human interaction with fallout, so also found your comments about drinking stored, powdered milk fascinating. "Bad milk" that moms didn't trust helped end fallout. We remember consumer palaces like this fairly easily through pics like this, as well as in the popularity of "atomic age" fashions of various kinds that Shorpy so brilliantly illustrates for us. But pics like this also stir other, more problematic memories of that consumer paradise. Thus it's worthwhile to remember all those moms who suddenly stopped buying fresh milk. It got JFK's attention pronto -- he basically pulled the plug on open-air testing in Nevada at that point -- and demonstrated the power of the consumer to affect foreign policy in the midst of a time when fallout -- and the bombs that made it -- created a real sense of powerlessness among many. Sounds like your mom was among the many who took things into her own hands. Brentano'sOur family lived in nearby College Park between 1968 and 1974. PG Mall was like a one-stop center including the large, pre-Home Depot hardware store, Hechinger's, and Brentano's book store (my favorite spot besides the music store). FamiliarVirtually identical to the mall at Menlo Park, NJ during the same period. In season, it was a pleasant stroll from the retail "anchor" at one end (Sears, Roebuck and Company) to the other (the regional Macy's affiliate, "Bamberger's"). Visited recently; it's now a Simon property, with trademark wall-to-wall marble and anodized gold trim. Progress! New Name, Same JunkNow we build these outdoor malls, but call them "Lifestyle Centers" Similar Mall, Similar EraI'm struck by how similar this mall looks to the plaza I grew up near in Vestal, NY during the 1960's. Ours was much smaller but the architecture was almost identical to the one in this photo. MuzakI love the proprietary Muzak speakers with the diffuser in the roof. Haven't seen those in decades. I remember it wellIn the early 1960's My bff and I would take 2 buses almost every Saturday to get to PG plaza. We shopped and ate lunch at Bob's Big Boy. Once we could drive, we worked at the plaza. My first job was at Hahn's and later we both worked at the gourmet counter at Hechts for the Christmas rush. Many family went to the Hot Shoppes Cafeteria most Sundays after church. Many good memories. And we never wore slacks. We could wear pants to schools and going shopping was more dressy than school. If we rode the bus all the way into DC, we got very dressed up. Silver Spring was also a big shopping destination, with a huge Hecht store. One day beforemy first birthday. But in Hugo OK there were no malls or plaza's. Just Eastman's Department Store. I finally saw a mall when we moved to OKC in 68. We went Christmas shopping at the mall. Wow! so many people. And an Asian lady! Who would've thought? In my mind she was Japanese, but really, who knows... She was the first Asian I had ever seen. She could have been born in OK for all I know, but in my 9 y.o. mind she was exotic and strange and beautiful. I tailed her around the store for a few minutes just to look, until brother and cousins dragged me away to find the moms and see if we could spy what we might be getting for Christmas. (The Gallery, Gottscho-Schleisner, Stores & Markets)
Beached: 1937
... for change arrived in 1932, when Inland Steel of East Chicago, Indiana, installed its first 76-inch wide rolling mill. Finally, sheet ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/06/2025 - 4:41pm -

February 1937. "Posey County, Indiana. Havoc wrought on farmland, highways, roads, farm buildings, equipment, homes by 1937 flood. Automobile after the flood on Mackey Ferry Road near Mount Vernon." Photo by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Where's Nitti?He's in the car. The tires still look pretty good.In 1943 or so, they'll be digging the old Nash out, just to salvage those tires. 1935 — GM Introduces the Turret TopThe auto industry took a big step forward in 1935 when General Motors and Fisher Body introduced the one-piece steel roof panel. Well into the 1930s, American car bodies featured a strange anachronism that dated back to the horse-and-buggy era. Partly due to tradition, partly due to the limits of steelmaking at the time, cars did not have metal roof panels. Instead, the major portion of the roof was filled with a piece known as a top insert, a rickety assembly of hardwood, wire mesh, fabric, seals, and paint that leaked, squeaked, was time-consuming to manufacture, and added little to the structural integrity of the body shell. As car bodies became more sleek and modern every year, the old wood-and-fabric top insert was a curious throwback. The opportunity for change arrived in 1932, when Inland Steel of East Chicago, Indiana, installed its first 76-inch wide rolling mill. Finally, sheet metal was available in sufficient width and quantity to produce roof stampings in one piece. But first the entire body industry would require readjustment, too: larger, more powerful stamping presses, bigger trucks and railcars to handle the materials. For the 1935 model year, General Motors and its Fisher Body division were able to offer the innovation on Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Chevrolet Master models. Aggressively marketed as the Turret Top, GM’s all-steel roof was quieter, tighter, far stronger — and ultimately, faster and cheaper to make than the old wood-composite construction. Naturally, the rest of the automakers followed along as soon as they could. https://www.macsmotorcitygarage.com/1935-gm-introduces-the-all-steel-top... The CarCirca 1925 Nash. (The Gallery, Agriculture, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Fires, Floods etc., Russell Lee)
Chicago Bound: 1960
... sunny Saturday afternoon at the Lake Bluff stop of the Chicago, North Shore and Milwaukee interurban railroad. The North Shore was one ... train for a weekend of fun and relaxation in downtown Chicago. The attentive motorman is keeping an eye on the conductor for the ... 
 
Posted by prrvet - 03/28/2018 - 8:33pm -

January 16, 1960. It was about 1 o'clock on a cool, crisp, sunny Saturday afternoon at the Lake Bluff stop of the Chicago, North Shore and Milwaukee interurban railroad. The North Shore was one of America's very last operating interurbans when I photographed a group of cadets from the nearby Great Lakes Naval Training Center climbing aboard a southbound train for a weekend of fun and relaxation in downtown Chicago. The attentive motorman is keeping an eye on the conductor for the two-bell start signal while at the same time observing what I was doing with my camera. The once busy line was abandoned three years later, almost to the day. 35mm Kodachrome by William D. Volkmer. View full size. Still Chicago bound from elsewhereThe other interurban that ran into Chicago, The South Shore, is still doing service between Chicago, Illinois and South Bend, Indiana. New rolling stock, to replace the ancient, cobbled together, relics of earlier service , was introduced on the line in 1985/86. Liberty CallThe sailors seem to be enlisted men not cadets. White hat and peacoat the uniform of the day. South ShoreSince a lot of the neighborhoods it goes through haven't been significantly updated in the past 80 years (no kidding), a ride on the South Shore resembles a moving, full color version of Shorpy's. Just sayin'. One of the big things missing is the old Pullman works in Michigan City, which was torn down to make Lighthouse Place. Old rolling stock was from 1926, I believe--you can still see a few of the cars in downtown Chesterton/Porter--and quite frankly the "new" rolling stock has an old time feel now as well. They try, but it's hard. Big scandal was that the new cars were made in Japan, which was bad considering that the line goes by several steel mills and what had been the Pullman works. Lots of people would have liked a chance to make them here, but it didn't work out. The Roarin' ElginI rode the North Shore in my youth; and rode the South Shore, too. Only occasionally on both. But don't forget the Chicago, Aurora and Elgin, which ran from Chicago's Loop west to (wait for it...) Elgin and Aurora. It closed in the '50's, but a number of cars have been preserved, and a few still operate at museums. Incidentally, both the North Shore and the Roarin' Elgin used the Chicago Rapid Transit (now the CTA) to get into the city. The tight curves and third rail affected the design of the cars. Wheels But No RailsThat portion of the North Shore still exists, in a different way. The curving turn into the station is now part of the North Shore Bike Path through Lake Bluff, and heavily treed. Still helping people get from one spot to another, only this time under their own power. The day I left ChicagoQuite a coincidence - this was taken the day I (and my family) left Chicago for California. My brother celebrated his 6th birthday on the train on the way west. Interesting (but not surprising) to see snow on the ground; I have no memory of that from my time living there, just pictures I'm in. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery)
Four Loco: 1900
Circa 1900. "Chicago & North-Western Railway locomotive CNW 605 on turntable." 4x5 glass ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/29/2024 - 8:31pm -

Circa 1900. "Chicago & North-Western Railway locomotive CNW 605 on turntable." 4x5 glass negative from the Louis A. Marre Rail Transportation Photograph Collection. View full size. Progress!So, in the image linked in the comment below, the date is one year earlier, 1899. The pilot has a link coupler. In this photo, c. 1900, the engine has an automatic coupler on the pilot. Real progress along the lines of safety! [It also has different front truck and driver wheels. - Dave] All poised on an "Armstrong" turntableThe heavy timber handle, jutting up on the far right at an angle, was all that powered this turntable, pushed by one or two men, hence the nickname. Shorpy 1/2/2013https://www.shorpy.com/node/14355 Firmware UpdateThe 1899 photo shows a Schenectady builders plate and a front truck with paper wheels. (Those were made of compressed paper, which were supposed to ride better and wear better. The spotting sign is the set of rivets in the wheel.) But this time, the loco is missing its builders plate, and the front truck has a spoked wheel in the front and a conventional cast wheel in the back. The pilot (cow catcher) framing looks a bit different, too. That to me says it must have been in accident with damage to the front of the loco. Powered by coalThe engine also shows signs of having been built as a wood burner, later converted to coal. The extension riveted to the front end of the boiler below the headlight bracket (still attached to the original "smokebox") and "shotgun" stack are draft appliances added to better burn coal than wood. Marre Collection?Is the Marre collection fully digitized through LoC? Can anyone provide a link? [Did you try Googling it? - Dave] (The Gallery, Railroads)
Tower B: 1943
May 1943. Melrose Park, Ill. Chicago & North Western towerman R.W. Mayberry of Elmhurst at the Proviso ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/30/2012 - 2:00pm -

May 1943. Melrose Park, Ill. Chicago & North Western towerman R.W. Mayberry of Elmhurst at the Proviso Yard. He operates a set of retarders and switches at the hump. View full size. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano. Cleanest hands in the railyardLove that sweater/jacket! Proviso YardThe Proviso Freight Yard, located 12 miles (19 km) west of the city centre in suburban Cook County, was constructed between 1926 and 1929 and had 224 miles of trackage and a capacity of more than 20,000 cars. The 'Hump' was decommissioned in 2019. (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Dr. and Mrs. Lurie: 1953
... start a better life. He became a dentist and practiced in Chicago in the Humboldt Park neighborhood. Later the family moved to Albany ... 
 
Posted by here in van nuys - 01/22/2016 - 7:24pm -

Dr. Benjamin Lurie (1894-1954) and his wife Bertha (1898-1984) were born in Russia and escaped to America to start a better life. He became a dentist and practiced in Chicago in the Humboldt Park neighborhood. Later the family moved to Albany Park and lived at 4837 N. Albany Ave with their two daughters Mildred (b. 1924) and Louise (1933-2014). This photograph of Dr. Lurie and his wife with their first grandson Steven (b. 1952) was taken about 1953. Tragically, Dr. Lurie died on June 20, 1954. These fine people were my maternal grandparents. View full size. My momhad that same sweater in 1951. It was green, BTW. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery)
Boston Market: 1909
... negative by Lewis Wickes Hine. View full size. CHICAGO DRESSED? what is CHICAGO DRESSED? building on right. Re: CHICAGO DRESSED Read the rest of ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/06/2016 - 4:51pm -

October 1909. "Late at night. Boston market. Many young venders." 5x7 glass negative by Lewis Wickes Hine. View full size. CHICAGO DRESSED?what is CHICAGO DRESSED? building on right. Re: CHICAGO DRESSEDRead the rest of the sign: "Chicago Dressed Beef and Lamb." Chicago Dressed Beef & LambChicago Dressed Beef (or Lamb) was a type (method) of preparation for meat that was popular at the turn of the century in the East. At that time, the best meat in the country was from the midwest and didn't travel by rail very well to the east coast. The preservative dressing mixture of pepper, salt & whatever else applied in the midwestern meat packing plants kept the quality meat in good contition for the trip east. Over time, the preservative mixture became synonymous with quality meats in the east. (Think about how every 3rd thing has either "kobe" or "angus" stamped on it today. Believe that?) As a result, The Chicago Dressed Beef Co. was one of several Central Massachusetts companies that had been controlled by members of the Jacobson family of Worcester since the early 1900s. The meat-packing complex in the Franklin Street area of Worcester MA. ceased operations in 1983. The family also owned the L.B. Darling meat-packing company in Southboro. So, assuming that Worcester was the largest producer of Chicago Dressed Beef & Boston was the largest local market for the same, I would place this image on Bromfield Street between Washington & Tremont Streets on Boston. The architectural nuances in the ironwork storefront on the far left, the alley, and the stonework of the arched granite framed upper windows on the far upper right not only match on the present structures, but the addresses on the buildings in the photo correlate to that block. (Yes, you still find streets in boston where both even & odd numbers are on the same side of the street.) (The Gallery, Boston, Kids, Lewis Hine, Stores & Markets)
CB&Q: 1910
Omaha, Nebraska, 1910. "Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Locomotive CBQ 2867." 4x5 inch glass ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/17/2024 - 1:56pm -

Omaha, Nebraska, 1910. "Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Locomotive CBQ 2867." 4x5 inch glass negative, Louis A. Marre Rail Transportation Photograph Collection. View full size. Steam Locomotive DynamoHow is a steam engine headlight lit? By a steam-powered generator, or dynamo. A history of the locomotive headlamp. Speaking of trainsA friend recently shared this video with me. Enjoy. While still a pup The engine was but a year old at the time of the photo, but it was still around until after WW2, being sold for scrap in 1952. The ''Q'' got their money's worth out of this beauty. The iron horseAnd the real horses on the bridge. Doug: that’s amazing. Love all the little helpers. 3rd Eye!This is a beautiful photograph of a very elegant steam locomotive! Might any of the railfans know what the lantern hanging below the headlight is for? I have not observed that before! Well done! Not LanternI think that's a light fixture below the headlight, to show a red light when the engine is backing up. (The Gallery, Omaha, Railroads)
Chicago: 1901
Chicago circa 1901. "The lakefront from Illinois Central Station." Panorama of ... Lakeshore Delta If you Google-Maps "901 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, Illinois 60605" you can see that all the Lake Michigan waterfront ... but its steep sloping roof was lopped off long ago. Chicago: 1901 That statue of the soldier is General Logan, the Civil War ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/20/2012 - 3:36pm -

Chicago circa 1901. "The lakefront from Illinois Central Station." Panorama of two 8x10 glass negatives. Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Would you really want to drinkthe "Best Kidney Water on Earth"? StatueThat is one seriously gorgeous statue in the middle of the park. Anyone have any info on that? Perhaps another photo? [It's the Logan Monument.] Thanks, Dave. Love the photos up close! KodaksInteresting that one of the signs says "Kodaks Cameras and Supplies" and not "Kodak Cameras and Supplies." [Shorpy abounds with signs advertising "Kodaks," meaning Kodak cameras. - Dave] Illinois Central Station Are there any pictures of the Illinois Central Station available? I assume that this picture was taken from near the top of the clock tower looking north towards the lakefront. [Also from the DPC:] GrassDoes anyone know how they kept large expanses of grass like this mowed back in 1901? [See this earlier comment.] ObsolesenceIronic that CP Kimball's carriages and harness products would soon be obsolete with the advent of the automobile. Fast forward 110 years, and Kodak just announced they will file Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to digital photography making their own products obsolete. Three agentsFrom the Ministry of Silly Walks, on the west side of the Michigan Avenue, lower left. [Their apparent stance is an optical artifact.] Holy landscaping!That area is filled with trees and concrete walks now! Pollution?It's photos like this that leave me scratching my head whenever people start griping that our air isn't clean enough today. KimballAn interesting piece on the Kimball family if you are so inclined. http://www.coachbuilt.com/bui/k/kimball/kimball.htm Kimball TimeOh my! It's K minutes to B o'clock! I better hurry or I'll miss my train. Lakeshore DeltaIf you Google-Maps "901 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, Illinois 60605" you can see that all the Lake Michigan waterfront visible in this photograph was filled-in and is now occupied by the Buckingham Fountain, 6 tennis courts, 16 baseball diamonds, South Columbus Drive, and even South Lakeshore Drive. Henry GeorgeFascinating to find a 5-cent cigar named after Henry George (1839-97), founder of "Georgism" and author of "Progress and Poverty." He proposed the "single tax"--based on the theory that land, and thus rents, should be common property. Given that, shouldn't tobacco products be free? All Gone, Up to a PointEvery building shown here lining the west side of South Michigan Avenue has been demolished and replaced with bigger and usually better buildings - up to the point just beyond the "Studebaker Bros." sign. Then we see three great buildings in a row, all still standing: 1) the first portion of the Congress Hotel (originally the Auditorium Annex, Clinton J. Warren, 1892-1893), 2) the Auditorium Building (Adler & Sullivan, 1887-1889), and 3) the Fine Arts Building (formerly the Studebaker Building, Solon S. Beman, 1884-1885). The slender tower in the distance belongs to the Montgomery Ward Building (Schmidt, Garden & Martin, 1897-1899); it, too, is still standing, but its steep sloping roof was lopped off long ago. Chicago: 1901That statue of the soldier is General Logan, the Civil War Officer who worked to have the 30th Day of May honor Military Dead as "Decoration Day" / "Memorial Day". General LoganWas a focal point of the 1968 demonstrations during the Democratic Convention. Montgomery Ward BuildingAs Michael R says regarding the Montgomery Ward building, "the steep sloping roof was lopped off long ago." Here is a photo showing what is the top of the building today. Current ViewI was fortunate to live in building on site of old Illinois Central Station and have this view of same locale looking north during my two years in Chicago. (Panoramas, Chicago, DPC, Railroads)
Southside Easter: 1941
        Happy Easter from Chicago, and from Shorpy. April 1941. "Negro boys on Easter morning, Southside Chicago." Medium format acetate negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/17/2022 - 8:16am -

        Happy Easter from Chicago, and from Shorpy. April 1941. "Negro boys on Easter morning, Southside Chicago." Medium format acetate negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. That is a great picWonderful ... the clothes, the car. Brilliant. [I agree. There is definitely something to be said for dressing up. - Dave] It's my favoriteIt's my favorite (Blue Thunder -Chicago) Have these boys ever been recognized?Does anyone know who these boys are and whatever happened to them? On my wallThis great picture is one of the most prominent on my wall right now! Love thisThis is definitely a classic picture. Love it :-) I love it tooOne year ago I was wisiting in Stockholm and I see this picture in Old Picture store in very big print and I was amazing! At last weekend I go to the same store again, just to see this photo again...I looked it very long time, thinking about these boys, the time...wau! It tells more than thousand words! Peik Salonen/Finland love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Got this picture for a steal framed (huge size, not sure of dimensions) for $30.00 in downtown Detroit at our farmer's market. I had walked by it monthes before and was sorry I didn't get it then. Now it is in my home...I call them "my boys". MasterpieceThe boy in the center is a rebel and a leader. His coat is unbuttoned, the small boys know how to behave. What a style. I have a copy of this picture in my wall. Hats?!?Great! You don't even see grown men these days with classic hats and these kids have snappy fedoras... love this shot. Southside Boys, Chicago 1941The boy in the center in Congressman Bobby Rush of Chicago. [I don't think so. Bobby Rush was born in 1946, five years after this photo was taken. - Dave] Chicago EasterI have this picture on my wall - and it tells a story of a million words, every time I look at this picture, I always have something different to say. It melts my heart, this picture is truly a classic, I love it ... my whole living room is focused around this pic. I wish I knew what happened to these boys. CarnationThe boy on the left, with the glasses: what is the wire that seems to be coming from his hat to his lapel, and what is that thing on his lapel? Hat PreserverI believe it was called a hat preserver. I've seen pictures of Edwardian gents wearing roughly the same thing. It's a lanyard to catch your hat if it's blown off, thus keeping it from getting filthy in the street. South Side BoysI fell in love with this picture as soon as I saw it. I have it on my wall centered with a black and white of Miles Davis on one side and John Coltrane on the other (both back in the day) I would love nothing more than to find out who these boys are. Everytime someone comes into my home that is the first thing I am asked. If anyone has information relating to the identity of these boys who are now MEN, please forward to thattallnsexy1@yahoo.com! Thanks! Southside EasterI saw this in a photo gallery this past weekend. It was with an article called "WVON Bronzeville Mystery Photo," referencing a contest by a radio station to identify the boys. I don't remember everything it said, but seems like it mentioned there is only one of them still alive. Buttoning customI noticed the two boys with the patterned suits (No. 2 & 4 from the left) have buttoned their jackets right to left. Did it simply matter less then as it should now but doesn't? [There is no choice when it comes to suit-buttoning. It depends on how the suit is made -- whether the buttons are on the left or the right. - Dave] Who are they?I loved this picture for years. My grandmother has hung this pic on her wall till her death and she used to always preach to her grandsons, make this pic an inspiration in your life and she used to tell her granddaughters to find men of this example. I just want to know who these men are and what are they doing. Love at first sightI actually saw this picture at the Magic City Classic in Birmingham, Alabama in 2007. One of the vendors had it, but it was overpriced so I left it there. My husband bought it for me for Christmas that same year. I fell in love with "my boys" (as I call them) as soon as I laid eyes on them. I would love to know their background. That lanyard thingIt's called a "wind trolley" -- keeps your hat from flying down the street if the wind knocks it off your head. Attaches to your lapel somehow. The other thing looks like a flower. Re. Buttoning customThe younger boy's button configuration is the same as women's buttoning, because young kids didn't dress themselves. They had help. Just like women of high status were dressed by a servant back in the day. Anyway, I love the hip style of the kids in this great photo. MasterpieceI have the picture on my wall too. Second is Ansel Adams moonrise in San Hernandez. Which one is better. Both are brilliant. Pekka Finland. Bronzeville Mystery PhotoGo here for video https://news.wttw.com/2015/11/25/ask-geoffrey-story-behind-iconic-1940s-... The times, they are a-changing.Today, those boys would be told to keep six feet apart. Of course, they wouldn't be so nattily attired, but still. Easter 1941 was kind of the last hurrah for a whole generation of kids; depending on when Easter fell that year, the US would be at war in 8 or 9 months. They were too young to have served, but they might have had older brothers who did. They more than likely served in Korea a decade later. Happy Easter, Shorpyites! I hope you had lots of chocolate, lots of ham, and most of all, I hope you remembered to keep them separate on the table. Grow-in' clothingFor most of those guys the loose jackets and the cuffs on the trousers make their Sunday's best look to be set up for growth. I would also bet that most of those trousers had some spare cloth in the rear seam. Let-out-as-you-grow style. I had those when I was that age, and I'm not that old. But then, my parents were kind of conservative, too. Can't do that with jeans, though. And, dress maketh the man. Button anomalyTake a look at the gent in the middle. On the right side of his jacket (his right), there seems to be both a button and a buttonhole. I can't see the other side, so I don't know if the buttoning is actually reversible. 1938 PontiacThose handsome young men are seated and standing on! Alfred P. Sloan's identification cues are in full swing, just like the music, with the chrome stripes identifying the Pontiac brand -- they would last through 1956 in one version or another. When there were two stripes, they were called suspenders. It's further indicated to be a six cylinder at the bottom of the grille. Cool guysFor straight-ahead, steely-eyed cool, the guy in the middle wins hands down (beautiful new brogues, too), but for pure styling, the lad on the left takes the cake. He’s the only one with a pocket handkerchief, too. Re: Button AnomalyDouble breasted jackets normally had a button on the inside (The young man's left) that buttoned into the buttonhole that you see, thus securing it in place. I can't tie a tie eitherMaybe it's the angle but it seems like the guy in the middle ties his ties like me -- the fat part shorter than the narrow part. Great photo. Previously on Shorpy…The location is 47th Street and Grand Boulevard (later renamed South Parkway and now Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard). We are looking south. On the left, with the folded awning, is the Savoy Ballroom. Saturday Night: 1941 The Coasters: 1941 If we could pan farther left, we would see the Regal Theater directly across from the boys. Showtime in Chicago: 1941 Philadelphia Story: 1941 (The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Chicago, Easter, Kids, Russell Lee)
Whiskey Wine Brandy Gin: 1939
... like it. Merely decorative? Whatever, I love it. "Chicago Service" What is it? Blimey! Whiskey, wine, brandy, ... was in business for a while after that job! Chicago Service Does the cafe feature surly waiters? Or is that called "New ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/14/2011 - 6:13pm -

September 1939. "Liquor store in Gateway District, Minneapolis." 35mm negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. MotorolaThe antenna: re: MotorolaThank you! I posted the photos on a classic car forum and someone speculated that it might be a Motorola, but I wasn't able to find anything on it myself. 32 Washington AvenueThe Minnesota Historical Society has Hughes Drugs at 32 Washington Avenue South. It was housed in a block of buildings which contained several addresses on the east side of Washington. [The address here is, as we can see, 38. Stores move, or can have more than one location. - Dave] MercBrand spankin' new '39 Mercury sitting front and center. First year for the new marque. 1939-2011 RIP September 1939It was the worst month in modern history of my country (Poland). However, nice to see such a pretty place, at the same time, but other side of the ocean. And this car, I always thaught, that body is postwar style. Not just a while before the WW II. Merc gizmoSo what is this? I speculated that it was a flashy antenna, but a cursory Google search didn't come up with anything like it. Merely decorative? Whatever, I love it. "Chicago Service"What is it? Blimey!Whiskey, wine, brandy, trusses, rubber goods AND cut-price drugs? Drugs, Booze ...What! No gambling? At least you can buy a truss. Today this enterprise would be run by the Government. HandsomeI can see where my PV 544 got his good looks. This could be the Toad's grandfather. HmmI wonder what they sell at this store? I'm kidding! Great photo -- I especially like seeing the film perforations. Drugs, trusses, rubber goodsOne-stop shopping! LettersSome signpainter was in business for a while after that job! Chicago ServiceDoes the cafe feature surly waiters? Or is that called "New York service"? Chicago ServiceThe regular daily train between Minneapolis and Chicago ran to a station just along here, which may be the origin of the cafeteria's name. Merc gizmo foundI finally found a match for the "gizmo" on the Mercury's roof. It is indeed a radio antenna, and here's another one on a 1939 Lincoln Zephyr. Maybe it was a Ford product. What an incredibly cool thing. [I just knew TT would find this. Several commenters opined the gizmo was a "scratch on the negative" (which would have been black lines, not white) or part of the sign behind the car. - Dave] Positively Second StreetAs best as I can tell, these addresses were on the northeast side of South Second Street (a block south of the Great Northern Railway station, which was at the foot of Hennepin Avenue). Vachon, a St. Paul native, would have known the area well. In the 1950s, as scorched-earth urban renewal was on its way for the Gateway, young University of Minnesota sociology students, led by Theodore Caplow, conducted groundbreaking field research in this area on the thousands who called the Gateway's cage hotels, missions and alleys their home. This spot is now on Gateway Greenway, a one-block auto-free path. Motorola AntennaHere's another, more elaborate version of the antenna on a '38 Plymouth in a photo taken in summer 2010. IgnoredThe antennaless car behind the Mercury is a 1939 Chevrolet that has an accessory hood ornament. This was the last year that you could obtain a rear mounted spare tire on a Chevy until the availability of "continental kits" in the 1950s. Chevrolet discontinued these last car models without modern trunks early in the model year. (The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, John Vachon, Minneapolis-St. Paul)
Passenger Portal: 1911
Chicago circa 1911. "Passenger terminal, Madison Street entrance, Chicago & North Western Railway." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, ... when this 1911 photo was taken. It was designed by the Chicago firm of Frost and Granger , both talented architects who designed ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/03/2024 - 4:13pm -

Chicago circa 1911. "Passenger terminal, Madison Street entrance, Chicago & North Western Railway." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. 500 West Madison StreetThis terminal occupied the north side of West Madison, between Canal and Clinton, until 1984, when it was razed and replaced by the 42-story Citicorp Center (now Accenture Tower). But the station survives as the Ogilvie Transportation Center. The terminal was new when this 1911 photo was taken. It was designed by the Chicago firm of Frost and Granger, both talented architects who designed multiple stations for their mutual father-in-law, the president of the very successful Chicago & North Western Railway. Knowing TimeMy grandfather always said that the only person that can tell the correct time is the person with only one timepiece. Railroad Time(s)Is it 1:50 or 1:51? Combine Norma Desmond with Ingrid Bergmanand you'll get a gaslight that's ready for its closeup. Tho by no means a novelty in this time period - the last gas street lamps in Chicago weren't extinguished until 1954 (!!) - they were nonetheless becoming unusual. But how many looked like this? With an elaborate - and seemingly unnecessary - hood. Or maybe it's something else entirely: can anyone ... uhm ... shed a little light on the matter? [That's a carbon arc (electric) streetlight, not gas. - Dave] I'll buy that - joke ruining as it may be - but what a weird and fussy design! The last one to be outed here on Shorpy looked quite different. (The Gallery, Chicago, DPC, Railroads)
PCC Trolley: 1943
... Some were sold (or built by license) overseas and, in Chicago, parts of some PCC cars were reused in the manufacturing of El cars. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/22/2024 - 11:55pm -

April 1943. "Baltimore, Maryland. Repairing the motor of a PCC (Presidents' Conference Committee) trolley -- the most recent streetcar model, designed in 1936 by a group of manufacturers and transit companies in an effort to standardize, simplify, and bring down the price; at the damage shop, maintenance terminal of the Baltimore Transit Company." Acetate negative by Marjory Collins for the Office of War Information. View full size. UndercarriageI never saw the inner workings of a streetcar before! I'd love to know more about how they worked. Mack Trackless Trolley On the far left there is an electric trolley bus, number 2011. This is a 1938 Mack and is likely in the same shop for electrical work. There is a website with more photos of Baltimore's trolley buses and PCC streetcars. When the trolleybus system closed in 1959, some of the vehicles were sold to Calgary, Alberta and Bogota, Colombia. The streetcar system soldiered on until November 1963. Anatomy classCaution should be exercised and warning placed as: "Some may find this image disturbing" [??? - Dave] Philly still uses themThe PCCs are still in use in Philadelphia, and they were recently renovated (Septa PCC III). A Valiant EffortThe Streetcar President's Conference Commission recognized their rail members were being increasingly challenged by automobiles and commissioned a study of the best available designs. The many novel features of the PCC car included: Hypoid Drive Gears -- as used by automobiles. These are far quieter than the standard spur gears common in streetcars. You can see the gearcase on the axle closest to the camera to the right of center with its traction motor to the rear being touched by the man in the center. The traction motor for that axle is located to the left of the gearcase in the foreground. Not seen in this image are the resilient wheels that included a rubber center to cut noise and vibration, a sophisticated control system, coupled with magnetic track brakes that allowed the car to smoothly accelerate and brake and keep up with traffic. The cars received wide acceptance and were designed so the carbody would be adjusted (longer / shorter, wider / narrower, single or double-ended) to accommodate the needs of different operations. Some were sold (or built by license) overseas and, in Chicago, parts of some PCC cars were reused in the manufacturing of El cars. Compared to today's practice, where individual transit agencies purchase specific custom designs, the PCC seemed to have made a lot of sense. For those interested in these issues, I recommend the book "PCC: The Car That Fought Back." A quick search from the internet shows them selling from the mid $20's and up. (The Gallery, Baltimore, Marjory Collins, Streetcars, WW2)
Kitchen Patrol: 1957
Chicago circa 1957, and it looks like somebody's getting written up for Kitchen ... or cost savings. Use of Milnot is not allowed in Chicago - Here's your ticket! You must use standard evaporated milk. No ... I see an empty jar of Ann Page Damson Plum preserves. Chicago blue(s) This lady was not a criminal, but a mere victim. She called ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/19/2015 - 2:22pm -

Chicago circa 1957, and it looks like somebody's getting written up for Kitchen Clutter. 4x5 acetate negative from the News Archive. View full size. What's going on?I'm looking forward to talk on the gun, the products on the ledge behind her head, the contents of the white basin, the Philco fridge (identical to the one in the shed of a family cottage, working brilliantly for at least as long as hers - it predates me, born in the same circa year as this photo), the scary electrical switch dangling from the ceiling, the simple and elegant B&W tile, the strange notation on the label (Mr 41?), but what I most want to know is what is going on with this cop and this dear old lady who has weathered much and is in the midst of yet another strain / challenge / bit of a mess / pickle / what now? Later ...After the lady's stressful episode is over, and her routine returns to normal, including fixing supper, she can be counted on to hit that dinner bell when the meal is ready. The GunThe diamond grips identify the service weapon as a product of Smith & Wesson. They were very common on their J and K Framed revolvers issued as duty weapons for law enforcement during this period. In this case the weapon is obviously not a J Frame (snub nosed) weapon that would have been carried by detectives, but rather a full sized revolver with the standard 4" barrel. All of which indicates that it is almost certainly a Model 10 Military and Police Special chambered for six rounds of .38 special. This was one of the most common issue weapons in American law enforcement as late as the 1980's when police departments began switching to high capacity semi-automatic pistols. Alas the diamond grips were discontinued in the late 1960's for reasons that are not entirely clear, though I suspect it was either aesthetics or cost savings. Use of Milnot is not allowed in Chicago - Here's your ticket!You must use standard evaporated milk. No Milnot. Milnot is a form of evaporated milk that replaces the milk fat with vegetable oil. Stuff is nasty! Can is on the far left. Dinner bell?ManyBuicks, I looked for a dinner bell and am missing it. You aren't referring to the metal sink strainer, are you? We have one just like it on the same place on our kitchen sink. Those are some unusual grips on the policeman's revolver. Cooking LightI see at least three light bulbs on the window sill. I wonder if she has to unscrew them in order to plug in the toaster which seems to be dangerously close to the faucet — a recipe for disaster in this pre-grounded, pre-GFI wiring era. The switch hanging by the frail looking cord? Anybody's guess. The lady of the house still has her coat on. I wonder if, perhaps, her heat has been turned off? What bell?That's a sink stopper. From the neighborhood A&POn the windowsill next to the carrot can, I see an empty jar of Ann Page Damson Plum preserves. Chicago blue(s)This lady was not a criminal, but a mere victim. She called the local precinct after two very young toughs in the neighborhood (grammar-student dropouts Jacob and Elwood) stole a six-pack of Meister Brau from her pantry when she wasn't looking. In response, the boys would be sent to a Catholic orphanage in Rock Island, the first of a few efforts to reform them. The rest is history. Just Getting ByThis lady would be a candidate for Medicare, but a pity it was not available in 1957. Her hands appear to be red and swollen, suggesting she is unhealthy, and would the cord from her chest to her head area be a hearing aid? Bad callSink strainer it is. Shorpy rule number one: View full size! Clues?1) There is some type of wire or cord going from her chest up to her head, maybe to her ear. [Hearing aid. - Dave] 2) On the table are a lot of papers and envelopes, with more in the pan on the drainboard. Bills, leading to eviction? Hope not! The list"Ok, Mom. you need a loaf of bread, some lard and clothespins. Anything else?" The Golden YearsDinner for one -- usually out of a can. Empty pantry shelves. Endless clutter that doesn't make a difference anymore. Unable to keep warm, when everyone around you is in short sleeves. Social calendar empty except for "wellness" checks by the local police. Maybe life on the farm, with an extended family was not so bad after all. Holster?Was not aware that adjustable safety holsters were available back then. At least it looks like one, with the adjustment screw at the base, used to tighten/loosen the holster tension. A Modern, Modular Kitchen SinkBy Youngstown Kitchens, as illustrated in their sales brochure, featuring "boomerang" handles. A group of company salesmen sing the praises of their new product line in a rousing promotional ditty, here: https://youtu.be/g8Ebn7nHBv0 The poor old dear-The lower shelf was cluttered because she could no longer reach the things on the upper ones, and had to have her necessities within grasp. I'm a bit younger that she probably was then and still cringe whenever I have to climb up on my wobbly kitchen stool. Grips on the gunI agree that the gun is a Smith & Wesson M&P .38 Special with a 4" barrel, but the grips are aftermarket and nothing that S&W put on their guns from the factory. S&W did put diamond shapes around the grip screws on their guns of that period, but those grips are custom. Chicago Housing AuthorityI don't think the Officer is a Chicago Policeman. The hat looks wrong. I think the lady is being written up for some violation by the Chicago Housing Authority. She has a helpless scared look on her face. A very sad picture, indeed! CheckersIs this a regular Chicago policeman? If so, it makes me wonder when they started wearing the caps with the checkered band. Chicago checkered Police hatsCheckered hat bands and the demise of the eight pointed cap appeared in 1966 after the then Supt.of police O.W.Wilson returned from a visit to England. The white stripe on the trousers was phased out around the same time. (The Gallery, Chicago, Kitchens etc., News Photo Archive)
Prairie Style: 1955
Chicago circa 1955. "Frederick C. Robie house, Hyde Park. Exterior." Acetate ... (maybe) Years ago, I visited a friend who lived near Chicago, and he took me to see a Frank Lloyd Wright house. I'm thinking it was ... a picture of the house. (The Gallery, Balthazar Korab, Chicago) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/26/2024 - 1:07pm -

Chicago circa 1955. "Frederick C. Robie house, Hyde Park. Exterior." Acetate negative by the architectural photographer Balthazar Korab (1926-2013). View full size.         Completed in 1910, the Robie House is the consummate expression of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie style. Robie House sparked a revolution in residential architecture that still reverberates today and is considered one of the most important buildings in architectural history. The house is a masterpiece of the Prairie style and a forerunner of modernism in architecture. -- Frank Lloyd Wright Trust Amazing house!Quite a remarkable structure. Wright was far ahead of his time. For more info and a great story, see https://www.rostarchitects.com/articles/2023/1/23/the-robie-house-by-fra... Unfortunately,many of his designs suffered from poor construction, such as the Marin County Civic Center, a much later design: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marin_County_Civic_Center Which has been known for many leaks and poor maintenance over the years. But we love it here! MehAt the risk of being burned at the stake, I've never been a big Frank Lloyd Wright fan. Robie House Roof(s)During WWII there were prefab buildings used for (I think) military personnel built on the lot south of the Robie House. After the war they were converted to Married Student Housing, and I grew up (from 6 to 10) in "the barracks." The Robie House was empty then and a bit derelict -- I used to climb up on to one roof and then shinny up the drainpipe to the top roof and feel like King of the Castle. I'm glad it was restored and not torn down for dorms, as the barracks were (no great loss there). Beautiful compositionJust an excellent photograph. The light's directionality shows the 3D arrangement of the horizontal slabs and brick fields, cascading toward us. It's a classical composition, reminiscent of a Japanese garden. As for the house, I personally would cut back that rather exaggerated roof overhang. Cheep lookingI understand the upper stone edge of the birdbath, but the shape of the bath itself is so out of sync with everything else about this house that I wish it weren’t there, which I’m sure is part of the intention. Ever so manipulative. But it offendeth mine eye. So I wish it gone. [That's a planter, and it weighs a ton. - Dave] I've Seen This (maybe)Years ago, I visited a friend who lived near Chicago, and he took me to see a Frank Lloyd Wright house. I'm thinking it was this one; he said it was quite famous. If I took a picture of the house I don't have it anymore. Alas, I remember on that trip I took a whole bunch of pictures from the top of the Sears Tower that were all on one frame -- I didn't load the film properly and it wasn't advancing with each wind. That may explain the lack of a picture of the house. (The Gallery, Balthazar Korab, Chicago)
Chicago: 1943
Chicago, April 1943. "New York Central diesel switch engine moving freight cars ... be too many railroad or automobile pictures on Shorpy! Chicago north of the river That little brown building to the left is still ... be done. Just no train. (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Chicago, Jack Delano, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/10/2012 - 8:36pm -

Chicago, April 1943. "New York Central diesel switch engine moving freight cars at the South Water Street terminal of the Illinois Central R.R." View full size. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. Model Locomotivehttp://www.postwarlionel.com/cgi-bin/postwar?ITEM=622 It's not exactly the same railroad but the type, color and numbers match. The Coal EraYou can tell that coal was in heavy use. Look how grimy the cars and buildings are. SW-1This locomotive is an EMD SW-1, built in the spring of 1941. The can never be too many railroad or automobile pictures on Shorpy! Chicago north of the riverThat little brown building to the left is still there. Upper Michigan Avenue towers behind now (lower Michigan is on the surface behind it, and the Billy Goat Tavern (Cheezborger, Cheezborger, Petsi no Coke) is about a block to the left (south). I worked in it as a shipping clerk in the late 1970's. It was a nice grimy little building with a clanky elevator. You would have to stand in the parking area underneath the elevated plaza at NBC Towers to take the same picture today, but it could be done. Just no train. (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Chicago, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Churches of Chicago: 1942
April 1942. "Chicago, Illinois" is all they wrote for this one; it seems to be a Sunday. ... to provide the punchline. The Sainte-Chapelle of Chicago Over near the far left margin of this photograph, in the shadows ... a school belonging to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. Completed in 1919, this building is clearly modeled on the Gothic ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/27/2023 - 1:49pm -

April 1942. "Chicago, Illinois" is all they wrote for this one; it seems to be a Sunday. Acetate negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. The Methodist Book ConcernMy favorite titles amongst the “most widely held works” by the Methodist Book Concern are: The solemn warnings of the dead, or, An admonition to unconverted sinners (1802); Modern Pagans (1917); and Number Thirty: Being some relation of what happened to Chivvy (1920). You can’t make this stuff up. Huron & DearbornWe're looking east towards Holy Name Cathedral. The hotel and building just east of it are still standing at 62 W. Huron Street. Holy Name CathedralThe large church in the distance is Holy Name Cathedral at 730 N Wabash Avenue. I grew up in the suburbs, moved away over 50 years ago, but I'm sure that other than Holy Name, very few of the buildings making up the bulk of this photo still exist. Steps, Left to RightStepping up the block, from lower left corner of the image: 1st building: missing steps ("Quite a drop, Batman") 2nd building: wide steps 3rd building: ultra wide steps 4th building: no steps (ground floor entrance; Stairway to Heaven inside) Hard Hat AreaI'd give the Hotel with the turrets a wide berth! The one farthest from the camera looks like it's damaged. Here's the Church in the MiddleAt the corner of State and Superior. Get ready: Huron next !Sometimes you're all ready with your comment, and life throws you a surprise I'll leaf it to others to provide the punchline. The Sainte-Chapelle of ChicagoOver near the far left margin of this photograph, in the shadows between two taller buildings, stands the St. James Chapel of the Quigley Preparatory Seminary, a school belonging to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago. Completed in 1919, this building is clearly modeled on the Gothic Sainte-Chapelle in Paris (built 1242-1248). It is an unusually accurate example of French Gothic architecture revived in the eclectic period of the early 20th century. The building still stands at 835 N. Rush Street, but the school it was built for closed in 2007. Holy Name Cathedral is a mob tour mainstayHoly Name witnessed two notorious murders during the 1920s bootlegging gang wars. Across the street was Schofield's Flower shop, owned by North Side gang boss Dean O'Banion, the most powerful rival of the South Side's Johnny Torrio and his second-in-command Al Capone. The shop was O'Banion's headquarters and front for his illicit businesses. The shop was also the preferred flower vendor for big mob funerals. On November 10, 1924, Frankie Yale (a New York associate of Torrio and Capone) and two local mobsters arrived ostensibly for a floral funerary arrangement. They left O'Banion dead on the floor with bullets in his chest, neck and head. Hymie Weiss was O'Banion's successor as head of the North Siders. Schofield's was still the gang's lair on October 11, 1926 when Weiss was ambushed in front of Holy Name as he walked towards the flower shop. Tour guides will show you holes in the cathedral stones from the mob machine guns. Now a house of luxury residenceMost of what you see in 1942 between the hotel at 62 W. Huron Street and the Holy Name Cathedral at 730 N Wabash Ave has been replaced by One Superior Place Apartments, which, with their parking garage, engulf an entire city block. The small church at 56 W. Huron Street, where church was just letting out in 1942, is now the site of recently built luxury residences. Click to embiggen Almost survivedThe church is on the September, 2017 Street View. By 2018, it was replaced by an apartment building. The building was converted to a beauty parlor at least ten years before. The Small Church ReplacementI'll leave it to loyal Shorpy readers to opine if better or worse. (The Gallery, Chicago, Jack Delano)
Chicago: 1920s
... North Clark in the Rogers Park neighborhood of northeast Chicago (Thanks TD for figuring that out). View full size. Gasoline ... and then later in the country, this is the type of Chicago neighborhood that inspired Frank O. King when he created the ... View Larger Map Union Pacific (ex- Chicago & North Western) For true-blue Chicagoans, the three Union ... 
 
Posted by globalpillage - 09/14/2011 - 6:23pm -

Taken from the old elevated Union Pacific/North Line track looking due east up West Arthur Avenue toward North Clark in the Rogers Park neighborhood of northeast Chicago (Thanks TD for figuring that out). View full size. Gasoline AlleyAlthough he lived in an apartment on the Southside and then later in the country, this is the type of Chicago neighborhood that inspired Frank O. King when he created the long-running (1918 to date) "Gasoline Alley" comic strip. The homes he depicted were built before the automobile was prevalent and so did not have garages. If you owned your own home you could have added a garage with an alley entrance at the back of the property just as Noelani suggested. If you rented rather than owned, you could rent a garage from entrepreneurs who built them in the alleys behind their commercial property. These rows of garages were called Gasoline Alleys. Sometimes these rented garages were blocks away from where the car owner lived. Often, if you took public transportation to work, you would visit your car in its rented garage only on the weekends. Since there were many others renting in your alley that were not from your neighborhood, the garage communities were like a second home neighborhood for the weekend and days off, creating another whole set of friends. The still running Gasoline Alley strip had the distinction of being the first comic in which the characters aged in real time, with babies being born and growing up and old folks dying. The panel below, which shows the main character Walt coming home to a house much like those in the picture above, is from the May 25, 1921 comic strip. About the AuthorThis is our first post from Pete Mauney, proprietor of Global Pillage. More about his collection here. Still there, bigger treesView Larger Map A bit olderLooking at the cars and the ad for Schaeffer beer, I would say this is the 1910's. Just my 2 cents. [Schaeffer is a storage warehouse, not a beer. Also consider the format. This was imaged from a film negative, not a glass plate. - Dave] My Old HoodLived near here while going to graduate school at NU. I loved Rogers Park. Less expensive than most neighborhoods, but still pretty nice overall. Most diverse hood in the city for many years, may still be. After 91 YearsSame house, one way, new street lights and (probably) newer trees. Nice to see that, for the most part, the character of this quiet street has remained the same. Rogers ParkThe steeple in the distance of the upper left (visible if the photo is enlarged) is that of St. Ignatius Catholic Church. Welcome... to suburbia? At least they put in decent sidewalks. In spite of the 1927 15 millionth Model T, carmania was still in check, or so it seems. LOVE THIS SITEFeels like the best kind of time travel. Siebold and Schaeffer StorageThe 1923 City Directory gives the location, 6542 N Clark St. The building is now the home of Burrows Moving and Storage. View Larger Map Union Pacific (ex- Chicago & North Western)For true-blue Chicagoans, the three Union Pacific commuter rail lines will always belong to the Chicago & North Western Railway, which was "absorbed" by the UPRR on October 1, 1995. Just as the elevated lines of the Chicago Transit Authority will always be known by their old route names, and not by their newer "color" names (Red Line, Blue Line, etc.) ... Frozen in timeSeeing that little girl running enthusiastically toward the man sitting casually on the fence rail in the lower right of the photo highlights for me that it is truly like a frozen moment in time. Is that her mother walking fifty paces behind her with groceries? NowadaysNot only have the trees gotten bigger, the Model Ts have morphed into Hondas and SUVs! So few carsIs it a weekday and most of the cars are someone else, or did most people not yet have cars? Or, maybe there are alleys in the back of the houses where more of the cars are parked. The treesUndoubtedly the best part for me is seeing how young the trees were. You were alble to see the entire block without much difficulty. Now, the old trees block much of the view. William Wallen addition to Rogers ParkI live in Rogers Park, and have always loved this section of Arthur Avenue, as it's the closest thing Chicago has to a "bungalow court". The land these houses were built on (as well as that on which my own house was built) is called the William Wallen addition. The Chicago & Northwestern Railway purchased this land, which runs parallel to the tracks (now Metra), to build housing for railway employees. The first owner of my house was a CNW rail conductor! Wallen was an early settler of what later became Rogers Park, and he's honored by the naming of Wallen Avenue. It Looks Like 1921I magnified the picture to 400% and looked at the car facing the camera. The logo on the radiator looks like the Chevy bowtie. From there I pulled out my Sixty Years of Chevrolet book and narrowed the car down to 1920 - 1922 based on fenders, radiator, body style, lights and other characteristics. Illinois used a dash or dot separator between the digits (like 22-222 or 111-111) on a five or six digit plate between 1922 and 1937. Since this plate does not have a separator the license plate must be from before 1922. Illinois license plates had black lettering on an orange background in 1920 and white lettering on a black background in 1921. This plate has white lettering. Therefore, this appears to be a photograph from 1921. I Grew Up HereI grew up on this street, in the house at 1773 Arthur. It's rightmost house that's shown in full, the one with three vertical windows on the second floor. My father's family moved into the house shortly after this photo was taken - my dad was 11 at the time - and my grandfather added dormers on the second floor, to make a separate apartment in the house. Just south of this street were the barns for the city street cars. One of my earliest memories is of watching the streetcars rattle down Ravenwood Avenue and pull into the barns. After the streetcars were replaced with buses in the late 1950s, the city parked garbage trucks and snowplows on the site; now, it's a large police station. The street is largely unchanged from when this photo was taken. The houses were built around the time of WWI, and all at the same time: if you walk up the street, you'll see the same three designs repeated in sequence. The houses also had the usual flourishes of homes built back then, including stained glass windows and oak floors. The houses were unusual for Chicago, though, in that they were built of firebrick covered with stucco, instead of being faced with brick or limestone. The saplings in the picture were elms. Over the years, they grew into lovely shade trees, forming a cathedral arch over the street. However, the Dutch elm disease killed them all, and they were cut down in the late 1960s. The trees now on the street are maples and locusts that were planted in the 1970s. The area just west of where the photo was taken was all truck farms in the 1920s. Later, it was developed and became a flourishing Jewish neighborhood. Nowadays, the Jewish people have moved on and their place has been taken by Indian and Pakistani immigrants. If you like Indian food, the intersection of Devon and Western, a short walk from where this photo was taken, is *the* place to go in Chicago - it also has the only halal KFC I've seen anywhere. Many thanks to the poster, for bringing back so many memories. The Old NeighborhoodMy grandparents purchased a building two blocks east of the position of this photo back in the late 1930s at the intersection of Wallen Ave and Clark. Our entire family resided in a bungalow home much like those in the pic in the adjacent neighborhood a mile to the west (West Rogers Park/ Westridge)from the early 50s through the late 70s. This community was an extremely prosperous area during that time period anchored by the Devon Ave business corridor. Great picture, great comments.I enjoyed taking long looks at this picture, and the great comments too. I grew up, in the seventies, on Sheridan and Glenlake. I was always jealous of kids who grew up in houses like these. I grew up in a highrise. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, GlobalPillage)
The Train Shed: 1911
Chicago circa 1911. "Train sheds, Chicago & North Western Railway station." 8x10 inch dry plate glass ... Where was this? I would love to know where in Chicago this was and what became of it. Do tell, Shorpy Nation. [The ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/20/2012 - 3:42pm -

Chicago circa 1911. "Train sheds, Chicago & North Western Railway station." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Twins reunited, and a challenge!I took the liberty of joining the two views we have of this exquisite train shed. Alas, the geometry suffers in my feeble attempt. However, a great deal of information about the soul of the space is nicely recovered, if I do say so myself. I know there are better panorama stitchers than I on this forum, and I challenge you to attempt a stitch worthy of a full sized post! Warning...this is a very tough stitch! The scales of the 2 photographs are different, and there is precious little overlap from which to establish the lens parameters. I suspect the original lens was 210mm on an 8x10 camera. The above is Photomerge's best shot, which required resizing the right side to 3080 pixels high. It simply defaults on correcting the geometry at the top, but in so doing does retain more details there than a normally stitched panorama. Here's the righthand photo, which is a little smaller than the left, above. So nice and cleanThe station is amazingly clean in appearance, but it looks like they have some peeling paint problems or corroding iron. Absolutely,Stunningly gorgeous photograph. That is all. Train Now LeavingTrain now leaving on Track 5 for Anaheim ... Azusa ... and CUC-amonga! Next stop, EternityNow departing on Track 1, The Train to Forever! Somebody cue the Twilight Zone music, thanks. Just follow the light at the end of the tunnel. What a gorgeous image! Where was this?I would love to know where in Chicago this was and what became of it. Do tell, Shorpy Nation. [The former North Western Terminal, renamed Ogilvie Transportation Center, is at 500 West Madison Street. - Dave] No Smoking!Centered above each track is an opening in the shed roof running the lenghth of the building. From here, exhaust smoke from the locomotive passes directly outdoors, making the platform area livable. Idea applies to today's diesels too. ExpectingThe Silver Streak on Track 2 in 5 minutes. RUN! Still aroundUnion Pacific trains now depart from here to Chicago's west, northwest and northern suburbs. Minus the trains, it looks pretty much the same, right down to the trainmen's uniforms. Not Gone NowGone Now's information is erroneous. That train shed has not been demolished. I exited a Union Pacific train into this exact shed this morning, as did 10's of thousands of others. C&NW RyWow. If I were to see this scene in a movie, I would be complaining that it looked like the typical backlot street scene - pretty, but too clean to be believable, not 'lived-in' enough. And in Chicago, no less! North-Western TerminalThe tracks and sheds may still be there, but the beautiful waiting room ("Head House" building) was demolished in the late 1970s/early 80s to make way for something new. It had a beautiful green/yellow marble interior. There was a valiant effort to preserve it, a la Grand Central, but alas, to no avail. Gone nowOther than the equipment, the CNW shed looked pretty much the same through the late 1970s when I first began commuting to downtown Chicago. It has since been demolished and replaced, just like the old CNW terminal. The new shed now deposits you into the Citibank Center building. Thank goodness Union Station is still in use! I love the look and feel of an old-timey big city train depot. What are these?I see more down the track so I assume they are above the other tracks as well. [It's electrical power for the train cars after they've been disconnected from the locomotive. See this thread. - Dave] Job SecurityParty scene from the 1911 version of The Graduate: "I want to say one word to you Ben -- rivets!" Yes it is GoneThe train shed has been completely rebuilt, as have the platforms and tracks. The actual "building" of the train shed remains, like the exterior walls and the overall structure below, but all the concrete and steel has been replaced at this level. What's there now is a much more angular canopy structure, without the curving beams. Unfortunately, because the Metra commuter trains that operate into this station back in, there's no need for the smoke shafts to extend very close to the head house, so it's quite a bit darker now. http://www.panoramio.com/photo/41278935 Great detailsThese old photos amaze me with details you can see. Nice shine on that conductors shoes! All GoneNothing in this image exists today. In the early 1980s, the North Western Station head house was demolished, to be replaced with Citicorp Center. In the mid 1980s, the train shed and the trusses supporting the tracks were removed, replaced with completely new structures. Only the outer walls were repaired. Metra wanted to replace them to look like Citicorp Center but balked at the extra expense. Obviously the current train shed looks nothing like the one from the 1911 station. Those concrete lined openings in the roof above the tracks to allow smoke from steam locomotives to exhaust was a unique feature of this shed, but for the last couple of decades of its life, the concrete was badly cracked and deteriorated and chunks fell off regularly. Inside, Outside It was a wonderful time to ride the trainI used to use this terminal every day as a young adult since I rode the train into the C&NW terminal Monday through Friday. It does exist on film since they used it for the last minutes of the movie "Silver Streak." That is that train yard they are "rushing into". I think they used parts of it for the last scenes, too. Anyway, best times I ever had going to work was when I rode that train. Great pictures. Another image stitchingI resized the smaller image so that objects in the overlap were roughly the same size, then stitched the two in PTGui Pro 9.1.2. It did a little better in the area near the ceiling, although the lens parameters created some pincushion distortion near the center of each image. A little bit of Spherize distort in Photoshop cleared most of that up. Really enjoy these panoramas from back in the day. I stitch 360x180 images in the modern day. Still there ...I came in on track #2 this morning. I started riding August 11, 1979. The train shed still looked like the image back then. It was completely rebuilt in the 1980s. I remember during the remodeling process, they had disconnected the electrical from the train shed. The CNW backed a freight engine into the train shed and ran some train shed power off the locomotive for a couple of weeks while they pulled the new wiring. (The Gallery, Chicago, DPC, Railroads)
Chicago: 1943, 11:35
... Street freight depot of the Illinois Central Railroad at Chicago. View full size. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano. ... two blocks away, which would have been the tallest in Chicago if the Great Depression had not resulted in the project's cancellation. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/10/2012 - 4:56pm -

April 1943. South Water Street freight depot of the Illinois Central Railroad at Chicago. View full size. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano. Now......it's a golf course: http://tinyurl.com/2z29tf Amazing that the signage on 203 N. Wabash is so visible nearly a mile away! Mmmmmm, 33 Fine Brews...Blended to Make ONE Great Beer. New Life for Carbon & CarbideThis landmark is now the Hard Rock Hotel! http://www.hardrockhotelchicago.com/accommodations/history Carbon & Carbide BuildingThe black (actually green) building to the left of the Pabst sign is the Carbon & Carbide Building, built in 1929 by Burnham Brothers architects. It is beautiful in the sunlight. A few cool facts: The base is covered in black polished granite, and the tower is a dark green terra cotta accented with gold terra cotta. According to legend the building was designed to resemble a dark green champagne bottle. Because of this building's success, its architects were commissioned to design the Cuneo Building two blocks away, which would have been the tallest in Chicago if the Great Depression had not resulted in the project's cancellation. The color scheme is similar to The Bryant Park Hotel with its dark facade and gold highlights. The ground floor was originally designed to display products of the Union Carbide and Carbon Corporation's subsidiaries whose offices were in the building. Domed BuildingThe domed building behind 203 N. Wabash is 35 E. Wacker Drive, usually referred to as "The Jewelers' Building." For the first fourteen years of the building's life it contained a 22-story car lift inside its core. Delivery vehicles would enter on Lower Wacker Drive and ride up to jewelry merchants to make safe transfers. The building is featured in scenes from 2005's "Batman Begins", with Batman perched on one of the turrets rising at the corner of the dome's base. ChicagoWell, it hasn't been a golf course for nearly a decade. The eastern part is now nearly full of apartment buildings. But the part seen in the photo was developed as office buildings in the early 1970s. An unfamiliar facadeDoes anyone know the name of the gray building with arched upper windows in front of the domed Jewelers' building? Crerar LibraryThe gray building was the John Crerar Library at Michigan & Randolph, just north of the city library. Opened May 1921 with "seven stack floors, two reading rooms and commercial space." Library moved to IIT in 1962, then to U of C in 1984, where it is today. Postcard here, in the third row. (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Chicago, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Super Chief: 1943
... Longest stop on a long ride I rode the Super Chief from Chicago to Los Angeles and back in 1970. I remember that, at least westbound, ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/29/2024 - 9:58pm -

March 1943. "Santa Fe streamliner Super Chief being serviced at the depot in Albuquerque. Servicing these Diesel streamliners takes five minutes." 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano for the OWI. View full size. WowThis is EXACTLY how I want my model railroad to look like! yepI toatally agree execept mine will be built using lego bricks! Super ChiefI rode the El Capitan and the Super Chief back in 1967 it was a wonderful trip and a great way to really see the country. I rode Amtrak's Southwest Chief in 1999 to and from Calif on my honeymoon, my wife enjoyed it too. FuelingThe fact that they're fueling from two tank cars on a siding shows how relatively new this technology was in the area - there wasn't a permanent facility available as there would be for coal fired locomotives. And yet in the Southwest in particular diesels were the perfect engines since they didn't need the scarce water. Wartime TriviaDuring the World War II years, some train headlamp openings were reduced in size to prevent Axis spies from seeing them traveling through the night. The E6 model pictured, built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in May 1941, has the shroud covering the larger headlamp opening. The number board above the cab and on either sides of the nose appear to be dimmed as well. This AT&SF E6 No. 15 was paired with a matching cabless booster unit E6A, and both were retired in June 1968 after several million miles of travel (and no doubt washed many, many times) since this great photograph was taken. Longest stop on a long rideI rode the Super Chief from Chicago to Los Angeles and back in 1970. I remember that, at least westbound, the stop at Albuquerque was long enough that passengers were allowed to get off the train to stretch their legs on the platform, and was the only such stop on the whole trip -- which may explain that large gaggle back by the station. And I remember being impressed, as a youngster, by the Old Spanish architecture of that station, which was like nothing we had in the Midwest. AlbuquerqueGee whiz, I remember getting arrested on the exact spot right below the camera by the AT&SF "Dick" one fine overcast day in July 1970. This was while we were moving out to California when I was 16. "Trespassing" was the charge. Just wanted to see some Warbonnets before returning to the motel and my folks then back out West on to THAT road, Route 66 the next a.m. Somewhat different world these days, huh? The Atchison, Topeka and Santa FeWhat a great photo. Even though I (like most I suspect) have gone all digital, I still believe that the pinnacle of color photography was Kodachrome transparencies. I remember when they doubled the ASA rating to 64, woo-hoo, great color and fast film! Unfortunately, there is little still in existence from this photo. Passenger rail travel is close to extinct, the Santa Fe is now part of a conglomeration that includes at least 3 grand old railroad lines, the Harvey House hotel (upper left behind the station) was torn down, and the beautiful Mission Style station burned in 1993. Ready to JumpPrep the Atavachron, I've decided where I want to go. AlbuquerqueFrom Fritz Lang's "Human Desire" (1954). Oh the Fabulous Memories!When I was 12 years old I got to be the baggage guys' "helper" at the Hutchison, Kansas, stop. The biggest thrill was the night, like every other night, the Santa Fe Chief pulled into the station, and as always I got far enough down the tracks to be where the ABBA units would stop. This one night the engineer, I assume, recognized me as being a "regular" at that spot, opened the cab door, and let me climb up in the EMD F3 engine. He then opened the rear door, and I was looking down the long cabin, at the biggest engines I had ever imagined existed, in the middle, with walkways down both sides. I will never forget the deafening roar the second the engineer opened that door. Every time I see pictures of these EMD F3 setups, I get chills. Beyond a doubt, works of timeless rolling art. Now I am the proud owner of a G scale model RR set, ABA units, that are so realistic, you could almost climb aboard! Texas 1947Look out, here she comes, she's comin', Look out, there she goes, she's gone-- Screamin' straight through Texas like a mad dog cyclone. "Big and red and silver, she don't make no smoke, she's a fast-rollin' streamline come to show the folks. -- Guy Clark, "Texas 1947" Santa Fe / AlbuquerqueYou the Ron Beck I was in the AF with? Don't think so, but it'd sure be wackily weird if you were! My dad worked at a baker at the Harvey House Restaurant in Albuquerque in 1944-45. We lived directly across the street from the Harvey House in some old, cheap hotel. You can get back to me, if you wish, at majskyking@gmail.com Enjoyed your comments. Railroad days were phenomenal!! Let's share some RR stories. LogoThey've chosed the American Flyer over the Lionel paint job for the Santa Fe logo. SquintyNote the wartime shroud on the headlight. Service StopThe four hoses feeding the locomotives are not only providing fuel but also water for the diesel-fired steam heat boilers. See the wisp of steam at the rear of the lead unit. The water fill was located in the side of the carbody forward of the cab ladder. Albuquerque is located on a secondary route mostly used by passenger trains that is no longer owned by Santa Fe successor, BNSF. That railroads still fuels its transcontinental trains in nearby Belen, NM. Harvey HouseYou can still stay at a Harvey House hotel: La Posada, in Winslow, Arizona. My daughter and I did just that, as we drove from LA to Massachusetts a few years back. It was a wonderful stay, we ate at the restaurant and there were complimentary earplugs on our pillows. Necessary, because of the train yard immediately behind the hotel. The hotel was almost torn down, and the story of how it was saved and restored is worth reading. Winslow is an interesting town, and not to be missed if you're out that way. http://www.laposada.org Not the only Harvey House leftThere are still a few of the former Harvey House hotels in operation, one not that far from this photo. The La Fonda in Santa Fe was acquired by the AT&SF in 1925 and promptly leased back to Fred Harvey to run. It operated as a Harvey property until 1968, when changing conditions led to a forced sale, though it remains a locally-owned property to the present day. Where's Shorpy ?Ah, I see what you did there, Dave. Very clever. Keep up the good work ! (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Albuquerque, Jack Delano, Railroads)
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