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Yesterday's News: 1940
... including dishwasher in several roadhouses, cowpuncher in Montana, payroll clerk at a mining camp in Death Valley, and band leader at a ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/28/2018 - 8:56am -

December 1940. Brockton, Massachusetts. "Men and a woman reading headlines posted in window of Brockton Enterprise newspaper office on Christmas Eve." 35mm Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano. View full size.
FedorasYour best bet finding them are in Hasidic neighborhood stores.
Anthony UtoI think the sign reads "Enterprise Barber Shop." I have no doubt tho that the sign was changed to something that did not resemble the imperial battle flag!
Still AroundUnlike the Seattle Post-Intelligencer or the Rocky Mountain News, the Brockton Enterprise will still deliver a physical newspaper to your home. I find that comforting.
You two, yeah you, get out of the wayI really want to know more about problems with the schoolbooks, but those two guys are in the way.
Twitter 1.0Just a few short words on a subject, broadcast for all the world (if the world happens to walk by that window) to read. 
Japanese Barber ShopThis picture was taken in December 1940. I'd be willing to bet that one year later "Anthony Uto's Japanese Barber Shop" was no longer in business. 
["Japanese"? I think you're misreading the sign. - Dave]
It Comes Full CircleI was wetting my pants in 1940 and here we are back in the same mode, its deja vu all over again.
Brockton EnterpriseThe Enterprise of Brockton is still there:  http://www.enterprisenews.com/
And it still resides at 60 Main Street in Brockton.

And W.B. Mason (2nd Floor) is still going strong as well.
R.I.P. Billy HillBilly Hill, Boston native, wrote a number of popular songs including The Last Round-Up, Wagon Wheels, Empty Saddles, In the Chapel in the Moonlight, The Glory of Love.  At the age of seventeen he went out West and spent the next fifteen years working at various jobs including dishwasher in several roadhouses, cowpuncher in Montana, payroll clerk at a mining camp in Death Valley, and band leader at a Chinese restaurant in Salt Lake City.  Sadly, Billy "lost his battle with alcohol" on Dec. 24, 1940.  You can learn more at www.americanmusicpreservation.com 
Staying connected to your world.Wow!  I wish we had a place to go today to read news headlines.
Enterprise Barber Shop?Is that what is says? Although, when I saw the "Empire of the Sun" sign, my first thought was "Japanese" as well.
School Board,not schoolbooks.
The past is prologueInteresting how the formatting of newspaper pages on the window presages the formatting of information on the screen of my iPod Touch.
Quake?There was an earthquake? Indeed, two? In Massachusetts? 
Many years back I read that there is a fault line running under Manhattan. I suppose this may be connected. 
EarthquakeThe USGS website confirms the headlines in the window.  A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck the Lake Ossippee region in New Hampshire on December 20th and 24th of 1940.  It reports that aftershocks were felt throughout the northeast.
News FlashToday this would be replaced with the news "zipper" like in Times Square, New York.
Evergreen street tree?Is that a Doug Fur or Canadian Hemlock in the corner of the picture?  It looks like there is an ornament on it, which would make sense, but it seems like an odd place for a Xmas tree that size in the middle of the sidewalk.
Keeping an eyeWas everybody a private detective in those days?
Hatzoff, Fedora ManAs I grow older (and balder), I find myself coveting those fedoras.  Gonna go find me one, somewhere...
Get Your News HereUnlike today, there were no text messages, no blogs, no CNN, only newspapers and radios. There were no all news stations but there were morning and afternoon papers. Things changed much later on and I believe we are all the better for it.
FedorasGosh, I really like the look of a man with a nice hat on. I remember that growing up in the 50's and 60's, practically all men wore them. I don't know why they stopped, but they sure look elegant.
SantaI like that even back then they were "tracking" Santa and that he might not finish up his route until Christmas morning!
Men Without HatsThe style changed, I believe, with John F. Kennedy, who was the first U.S. President to regularly go hatless. This encouraged a lot of other young men of his generation to follow suit (but not hat).
Then there was the disastrous collapse of the once-mighty Japanese-American barbershop industry, which has yet to be fully documented. Not by me, though. Still, the familiar Kabuki barber in his garish makeup and flowing silk costume used to be a fixture in American cities from coast to coast, like Howard Johnson's restaurants and motels.
For some reason or other, they never made a comeback after 1945. Maybe it was because, as my WWII veteran Grandpa used to say, "I'll never, ever trust one of those little guys with a razor again!"
Since the average customer wasn't getting shaved bald any more (except for the traditional Samauri topknot, on request), the hat was no longer needed.
[Disclaimer: If you don't think that real history is entertaining enough, you can always make up your own].
Marciano and HaglerBrockton is indeed home to boxing great Rocky Marciano.  It is also home to another boxing great, Marvelous Marvin Hagler!
Window vs. Web LogsBrockton, Mass.  Who knew it was the birthplace of blogging? This is also a very early use of Windows Media.  
The Brockton BomberWasn't Rocky Marciano from Brockton?
Eaton CuttersSomething about Eaton sounded familiar. The Eaton Cutters post for the army shoe workers is a reference to the Charles A. Eaton Shoe Company founded 1876 in Brockton, eventually adding their golf shoes to its line. In 1976, the company changed its name to Etonic.
Read all about itAs a newspaper editor, this photo is evocative of a time when people truly treasured their daily or weekly newspaper, read it religiously, wrote letters to the editor, subscribed for generations, and hungered for important news as it was packaged in those days--on paper. Sure, they listened to H.P. Kaltenborn, but they still read all about it. Just a year later, when I was a month old, the Japanese struck Pearl Harbor, leaving our generation to question why anyone in 1940 used a rising sun motif for their outdoor advertising! Nowadays, our industry is on the ropes, but I'm glad to see that the Brockton Enterprise is still going strong, right where it started. For how long, though? Reading is becoming a lost art, alas.
Re: As a newspaper editorRe: As a newspaper editor, this photo is
That's saying this photo is a newspaper editor. I thought it was reporters who fell into the trap of the dangling modifier, and the editors were the ones who pulled them out!
Oops, ya got me!Anonymous Tipster is so right. Those dangling modifiers are pernicious. What is missing are the words "I find" from my original draft, inserted just after "editor," and just before "this." Good catch!
I know who caused the earthquake!My dad, who would have been 14 at the time of this picture, grew up in Manchester, NH, and told me this story several times:
One day he and his younger brother were in their upstairs bedroom doing nothing in particular while their mother was in the kitchen.  Suddenly the dishes rattled and the cupboard doors shook.  Mom marched to the foot of the stairs and shouted, "YOU BOYS CUT THAT OUT!"
They looked at each other, then replied, "We weren't doing anything."  (They were fond of fighting and wrestling, so Mom had every reason to blame them.)
"You rattled the dishes down here!"
"It wasn't us, honest.  It must have been an earthquake," they countered.
Well, that was ridiculous because earthquakes just don't happen in New England.  However, when the next day's paper reported an earthquake, they all had a good laugh, and Mom was reassured that her boys weren't lying.
The EnterpriseThe Enterprise is no longer at 60 Main Street in downtown Brockton. Delano's photo shows where the old Enterprise offices were, where the city of Brockton water/sewer offices currently reside, I believe. 60 Main is to the right, on the other corner. The building has been sold to a developer and the presses were dismantled and removed in 2008. In October 2008, part of the newsroom operation moved to a nondescript office on the city limits.
Flying SantaThe "flying Santa Claus" referred to was Edward Rowe Snow, a local historian who every year, with the help of the Coast Guard, delivered Christmas packages to lighthouse keepers and their families. You can find more about him here.
Grandfather Uto's barbershopThis was not a Japanese barbershop. My grandfather Anthony Uto came to this country from Italy in 1899 and opened his shop under the Enterprise building in the early 1900s. Until his retirement in the late 1960s, that was his shop.
(The Gallery, Brockton, Jack Delano)

The Old Hard Shoe: 1939
... "Ruins of blacksmith shop. Virginia City, Madison County, Montana." Photo by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration. ... [The Ponderosa was big, but it was a far piece from Montana. -tterrace] It's a joke! The town blacksmith was John P ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/07/2017 - 7:07pm -

June 1939. "Ruins of blacksmith shop. Virginia City, Madison County, Montana." Photo by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
FootprintsI could tell from the first glance that there was a small gift hidden in this photograph. A few seconds later, there it was: the line of child's footprints across the board over the window. This vision of delicate absurdity breaks the paralyzing stillness of the old photograph like a cast stone breaks the stillness of a pond.
U.P. Uren?I should hope so!
Child’s footprintsWe used to make those on chalkboards.  Make a fist and press the side with your pinkie on the chalk board and rub very slightly.  The impression looks like a foot sole.  Then take your finger and make the five toes.  Looks just like a baby’s footprint.  Although I think this jokester used paint?
What a Bonanza!I'll bet that Ben Cartwright used to hang around that place.
[The Ponderosa was big, but it was a far piece from Montana. -tterrace]
It's a joke!The town blacksmith was John P Uren, born England about 1850, died Montana 1928. Remove the periods and the two words become "Up Uren". John P. Uren would have made a nice Shorpyite.
The sign seems to have held up well in the 11 years since the owner’s death.
[Yes, it's a joker's hand. There's no doubt about it. -tterrace]
(The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Small Towns)

Last Chance Texaco: 1937
... extending out of North Dakota up into Canada and West into Montana. Extreme shortage of labor. Grounding Nowadays, primary ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/01/2012 - 1:36pm -

October 1937. "Abandoned garage on Highway No. 2. Western North Dakota." Medium format safety negative by Russell Lee for the FSA. View full size.
Who would guessThat just three years later they would start sponsoring the Metropolitan Opera broadcasts!
Really helps me understandMy mother was from North Dakota, a tiny town near the Canadian border. She left around the time this picture was taken, and more than once talked about how isolated and isolating the place was.  Had she seen this picture, she would have cocked her head the way she did and said something like, "That's it.  That's what it was like."
This is iconic, I tell you.This is something that Edward Hopper would have loved.
The turnoffIn sequence, this Highway 2 photo appears between photos taken by Lee in farmhouses near Wheelock and photos taken in a general store in Ray. Three miles north of Wheelock and three miles west of Ray is an intersection between Highway 2 and a gravel road that may be this spot.  Anybody could go broke trying to sell gas there.   
Last ChanceI wonder, at the peak of the station's business, did the owner bring in enough to make it worthwhile?
I'm WaitingWhat, no Google Street View?
You know that Texaco... it's the one at the corner of Nothin' and Nothin'.
Phrases like "you can't miss it" take on a whole new meaning in landscapes like this!
Russell Lee had some kind of eye.He was without question an artist, and this stunning photograph is a fine example. Long after the Great Depression, Lee headed photo department of the University of Texas art school, and that's the source of a regret I've carried for 40 years.  I took a number of classes in that department and was always too much in awe of him to introduce myself.  My loss. 
Almost artThe FSA photographers were very good in composition and light control. Considering the conditions under which they worked the end product is beautiful to the eye. Sometimes the subject was melancholy (considering the times) but nonetheless appears to have transcended from contemporary photography to an evocation of our historical past.
["Almost"? - Dave]
You can trust your car...  to the man who wears the star ...
I'm going to have that jingle in my head for the rest of the night!
Art indeedI would gladly hang this on my wall.  I believe it would give me a different feeling every day that I looked at it.
Art, ActuallyAs soon as I saw the image, I knew I had yet another addition to my screensaver. Thanks, Dave and Ken. It appeals from both the technical or artsy side; it's art in my book. That the Texaco sign is leaning just so is a plus.
Pricey gasLast week I saw a twin gas pump similar to these for sale in a collectibles store in Sausalito. Could have been mine for a measly $7,500.
Russell Lee was a geniusNo "almost" about it!
And todayIt's been replaced with some glass-and-steel monstrosity, no doubt. It was a crime to tear this place down.
Gas Stations Rock!I love all gasoline related photos, and this may be the best one yet.  Just beautiful.
This is ItThis is the one. My favorite Shorpy pic of all. I've been in the garage business for 45 years. My building is built around a 1952 Gulf station. I collect old service station and garage photos that I display on my office walls.This is my favorite.I just bought a print.Thanks Dave
Stanley? Williston? Cuthbertson?The 1937 Texaco Drivers' Map of North Dakota noted Texaco stations with a red star, so this might have been located in Stanley, Williston, or Cuthbertson. Minot and Rugby (the exact geographic center of the continental United States) were probably too large at the time.
Amazing to a person living on the East Coast to realize that North Dakota has had the same population -- 645,000 approximately -- since its heyday of immigration, between 1880 and 1910. Eric Sevareid grew up in a very small town north of Minot, and here is how he described it:
"It was a trial of the human spirit just to live there, and a triumph of faith and fortitude for those who stayed on through the terrible blasting of the summer winds, the merciless suns, through the frozen darkness of the winters when the deathly mourn of the coyote seemed at times the only signal of life."
HitchcockianLooks like North by Northwest.
Great Photo! The FSA photos were one fo the best things to come out of this time.  Just documenting life at the time and is absolutely art!
ElectricalI'm a youngster, only 43, so I haven't been around that long. But looking at the power line it looks like a 3-phase transmission line but no ground. How did they run the ground leg back in the day? Any electricians out there?
Thank the REAThis art most likely brought to you by the Rural Electrification Administration, born just two years earlier.  The sign may be leaning, but the power poles are straight and new.  
Strong feelingsMost of us in our lifetime have witnessed scenes like this somewhere, sometime. We, as a species, are different from each other yet so much the same. Many thoughts from my past went through my mind as I looked at this image. Most were not even related to the building, the gas pumps or the signage, just the whole scene. So simple in itself but such a strong feeling that came from within me. (apparently a lot of other folks too looking at the number of comments). Thanks for posting this Dave. 
Isolated no moreRead yesterday that there has been a huge oil discovery extending out of North Dakota up into Canada and West into Montana. Extreme shortage of labor.
GroundingNowadays, primary distribution is nearly always a "wye" system as you have observed. In the early days, the "delta" system was more common, and there was no neutral.
In some cases, even today, a delta has one phase grounded. However, the practice of grounding has evolved over the years. I've read that at one time, ungrounded delta distribution was the norm. I don't know exactly when this began to change. It was certainly beginning to by the late 30s, judging by some old catalogs I have.
But you're right. I don't see a neutral here, either.
No "there" thereView Larger Map
To the electrical commentsUngrounded delta distribution is still around.  It's simply 3 phases with no connection to ground.  Each transformer is connected phase to phase and the center tap on the secondary side is grounded to create a neutral for the customer.  Usually ungrounded deltas for distribution run at 4800 volts.  These systems are rare.  Most areas with older distribution systems are running 2400/4160 wye.  Most power companies upgrade these systems to 7200/12470 or 7620/13200 wye systems.
Great photographer!Russel Lee was really great photographer, almost all his pictures show us real life at those years.
Where it wasThe alignment of US 2 from Minot to US 85 has been straightened out considerably. Given the comment regarding the sequencing of the pictures, and using a 1933 ND / SD map, and a 1946 map I have showing the electric system as it was in ND then, I offer the northeast corner of 119th Ave NW / 60th St. NW (about 3/4 mile south of Wheelock) as the location of the gas station.
Vintage memorabilia motherlodeHow would you like to have been the person that said, I'm gonna go out and get those pumps and that sign before somebody else does. And as noted above, $7500 for one of the pumps. The sign is worth more than gold. And almost worth as much as shorpy.com.
The price of nostalgia I'm always saddened and a little depressed to see these once thriving, or marginally surviving, edifices brought to desolation and ruin. The abandoned farmhouse, shop or service station only reminds us of our fleeting nature. Someone once sat in those freshly erected buildings and dreamed the American dream, maybe now gone to dust or glory. Godspeed, you stalwart forebears, I hope you found some joy in your life!
Last Chance, colorized.I had a go at a colorized version. 
(The Gallery, Gas Stations, Russell Lee)

Butte Parade: 1939
Summer 1939. Butte, Montana. "High school band parading up Montana street." View full size. 35mm nitrate negative by Arthur Rothstein ... This photograph was taken on Main Street in Butte--not Montana Street. The Rialto, Chequamegon Cafe, Ley's Jewelers and the M&M ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/14/2008 - 3:29am -

Summer 1939. Butte, Montana. "High school band parading up Montana street." View full size. 35mm nitrate negative by Arthur Rothstein for the FSA.
Butte PuzzlerI give up.  What does the sign at the far right say?  Looks like CHEQUAMEGON?
[You are correct! - Dave]
You, too, can get……your own Chequamegon Cafe medallion on eBay.
The chew and be gone again cafeA quick Google reveals:
http://www.mainstreetbutte.org/food.htm
"From its earliest days as a gold camp to its heyday as a cosmopolitan city to the present, Butte has enjoyed a far-reaching reputation as a place where a fine meal can be found. The Chequamegon Café on North Main was renowned for serving great food and earned the local nickname of the “Chew and Be Gone Again.” The Creamery Café advertised “Booths for Ladies” which was a discreet way of telling women that they could eat there without having their reputation impugned.
"The Success Café was popular for its soups and it’s tiny size which allowed for only four customers at a time. In a heavily Democratic town, the joke was that here was the Republicans held their banquets, they advertised over their door that 'If You Don’t Eat Here I Will Vote for Hoover.'"
Chequamegon Cafe1901 menu from the Chequamegon Cafe in Butte.
RialtoHere's a photo of the Rialto Theater, visible in the background:
http://www.pstos.org/instruments/mt/butte/rialto_exterior-l.jpg
What time is it?The clock above Ley's Jeweler says it's 8:18.  Whether it's AM or PM, it's an odd time for a parade.
[The shadows say it's time to fix the clock. - Dave]
All girls!I'm surprised nobody has picked up on the fact that this an ALL GIRL MARCHING BAND!
[You can see the boys in back. - Dave]
D&BActually, it looks like a drum and bugle corps.
Butte ClockLooks like about 3:40 to me.
[It says 8:18. - Dave]

Butte ParadeThis photograph was taken on Main Street in Butte--not Montana Street.  The Rialto, Chequamegon Cafe, Ley's Jewelers and the M&M were located on Main Street.  The M&M has recently reopened in its original location, still Main Street in Butte, Montana.
Yellow filteron the camera.  You don't get clouds looking like that without one. Hard to remember that in the "good old days" of B&W you needed filters for sundry effects.
(The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Small Towns)

Collectibles: 1942
October 1942. "Scrap and salvage depot. Butte, Montana." Where this kind of stuff ended up in the olden days, back before they ... witch of the east melting under the old mattress. The Montana license plate from 1938 is possibly quite rare since how many vehicles ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/13/2012 - 4:36pm -

October 1942. "Scrap and salvage depot. Butte, Montana." Where this kind of stuff ended up in the olden days, back before they invented eBay. View full size. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Russell Lee for the Office of War Information.
Kelvinator HotfootMy grandmother in Omaha had one of those electric shoe warmers.
Scrap heap alternativeAnother thing you did with old junk was to furnish your summer place with it. Like that iron bedstead at the lower right. I slept in a bed with one exactly like that whenever we went Up the River (official term for trips to the Russian River resort area). Obsessive little chap that I was, I memorized every pattern on it as I lay in bed, between reaching up and twirling the loose knobs at the tops of the posts.
Hot Plate>> My grandmother in Omaha had one of those electric shoe warmers.
The electric shoe warmer is just an ordinary hot plate which happens to be sitting on a shoe.
[The powers of perception in evidence on these pages never cease to amaze! - Dave]
A small fortune on Ebay today...I was in an antique store this weekend and saw an Iiron bed frame similar to the one in the picture, except with 60 years more pitted and rusty.  It was selling for several hundred dollars as "Shabby Chic"
Hey, get out of my garage!Strangely enough, I found this photo alarmingly similar to the "collectibles" I have, except I do not have the apparent shoe of the bad witch of the east melting under the old mattress.   The Montana license plate from 1938 is possibly quite rare since how many vehicles could there have been in Montana that year?  Some people still do not believe there actually is a Montana since few people have actually been there and even fewer know exactly where it is.  Another rarity might be that old deflated football with Knute Rockne's autograph on it.  How much would a car restoration expert pay for that old car door?   One never knows where one is going to find a gem.   One man's trash is another man's ...(well you know).  
What's in the box?How many people wonder what's in the box? I was also wondering the history behind the burlap sack. There was a National Geographic article a looong time ago where they dug down deep in a defunked trash dump and found petrified hotdogs, etc.
Kodachrome era fading to black?This article details the sad, upcoming demise and past history of this marvelous film. A film that makes even a junkyard look gorgeous!
(The Gallery, Kodachromes, Russell Lee, WW2)

Adrianne: 1939
... days with Mr. and Mrs. Torrey Johnson on their ranch in Montana. Mrs. Johnson was formerly Miss Adrienne Henderson, daughter of Dr. ... arrived at "New Chicago" south of present day Drummond, Montana circa 1871-1873...moved to present day Big Horn , Wyoming in ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/25/2009 - 2:49am -

"Miss Adrianne Henderson, 1939." Harris & Ewing glass negative. View full size.
Gilding the lily -- notSometimes nice threads and good grooming just aren't enough. 
Women are not cars or buildingsso whether or not it's a compliment or a catcall, the commentary is more antiquated than the images!
[To reiterate this insight: Women are not buildings. Women are not cars*. And a bonus, corollary insight: Cars are not buildings. - Dave]
-------------------------------------------------
*Unless your son is Jerry Van Dyke.
Nice NecklaceClearly not known for her beauty.  Perhaps a trip to Scotland for a makeover is in order.
SequinsDo they still make dresses with sequins?
I recall in the 1950's that sequins adorned fancy dresses, hats, and purses.
What can you say..She was an attractive lady who I'm sure became a wonderful wife and mother who was (maybe is) much loved by her family. Portrait pics are hard to comment on.
Mea CulpaI am the AT who suggested this lady might benefit from going to Scotland for a makeover.  At about her age I was also plain but not by the standards of the time so I am the last one who should be making remarks like that.  Guess we all have gotten used to seeing only the most beautiful, most famous, most interesting or whatever on our screens.  I was out of line and I promise not to do it again.  Well, at least not any time soon. 
I'll add my voteI actually think Miss Adrianne looks quite cheeky. She's got a bit of a mischievous look about her.
No subjectShe seems a sensible young woman, devoid of much personality.
A sign of the times.Miss Henderson looks to me to have been a very pleasant looking young lady with a bright future in front of her.
I don't understand the "beauty/grooming" comments below but they seem out of place.  And, I'd think by now we'd have all learned to enjoy Susan Boyle's voice (check out her version of "Cry Me a River" on YouTube) and not worry about her eyebrows and whether they were plucked or not.
I Love You, AdrianneNevermind the catty comments from folks who lack the stones to put their names on their opinions, Adrianne. I find you charmingly attractive. Spare me from the collagen-injected nip-tuck plasticized and silicone-padded freaks that pass for beauties these days.
And even if she were...."She really isn't unattractive."
And even if she were, by whoever and whenever's standards, there's still no need to be nasty. 
I adore Shorpy, and I'm here nearly every day, but the comments about women here are about as consistently unpleasant as you are likely to find on any respectable mainstream website. 
Evidently the mods don't have a problem with it, and it's their show and thus their call. I often just don't look at the comments on pics featuring women -- among other considerations, I can pretty much predict everything the nasty folks are going to say at this point. And there is so much else here to enjoy.
[We make subjective judgments regarding appearance all the time -- about cars, people, buildings. Some people are judged to be beautiful, others less so. It's a part of life. I'd say there are probably more compliments than catcalls when it comes to the ladies on Shorpy. But it's those negative judgments that do tend to get people worked up. - Dave]
Different pixelsInteresting that at home she looks pretty but at work with a different set of pixels on the monitor, she has a longer and less attractive face.
The majority of women are not beauty queensI think this woman represents the average woman, meaning that most women are not astoundingly beautiful (by whatever standards you use to measure that). I am amazed that people think they can judge her character merely by looking at a single snapshot. She probably felt very attractive in that portrait, which is what matters. Feeling attractive is more important than actually being attractive. She looks very confident with herself, and she should be. Just having someone take a picture of you can be a compliment.
What if this woman were around today; how do you think she would feel if she were to read some of the comments on here? 
I think some people on this site are using "big words" to make themselves look intelligent, but they're just coming off as snooty. The arrogance of leaving nasty comments about this young woman is telling of the character of some visitors to this site. 
Catcalls from the AudienceI'm always startled by the mercilessness shown many of the women in these photos, young or old, especially if their makeup or costumes don't match current notions of beauty. This is a studio portrait of a relaxed, confident and reasonably pretty young woman wearing the mainstream hair and makeup choices of the late 1930s. In a very pleasant way, she knows she looks good, and that's attractive in any year. But even if she had been a Vogue cover model of 1939, the fashion police around here would be ready to bang the big gong and hoot her off the stage for her comical frumpishness.
Beauty is Skin DeepAnd who can judge her?
She might have been a great wife, mother and friend.
She might have been a bitter old cat lady.
You just never know. I do know that we almost share a first name and that I wore a sequined dress to my junior prom (1995). Also that she would look like a whole new woman with a better suited hairstyle.
Yankee SisterHmmm.  I never knew Yogi Berra had a twin.
Anonymous TipsterMy, this place gets catty doesn't it? I'm sure Miss Henderson turned more than a few heads in admiration. She looks to have a good shape, unlike the many anorexics or porkers out there today. 
No Need to be NastyShe really isn't unattractive.
OpinionationThere are two things I really like about Shorpy. One is the photos. The other is these really great dustups. In fact, I don't know which I like best. And yes, Adrianne may have been one of the most intelligent, kind and spiritually evolved females to ever walk the planet, but aside from being dead, she is just plain well, plain. 
Sequins...Doug - they sure do make dresses with sequins, still.  I've owned several beautiful ones in my time and I still see them. 
Well, yes...Indeed, Dave, but there is a difference between "This person is not attractive in my eyes" and "She is a pig/dog/cow/horse/man in drag." And the tone of the negative comments about women on this site is far, far more often the latter. 
These are not opinions, they are conclusions, as though the notion of "Beauty" were all wrapped up, now and forevermore, in a single narrow little box (perhaps labeled "Cameron Diaz.") 
The failure of imagination is -- almost -- as irritating as the presumption that the first obligation of a female, in any context whatever, is to look pretty. Sure, it's "part of life," but so are lots of other things, and one need not be pleased with every one of them, or even find them all acceptable as they stand.
(I obviously don't expect this one to appear on the site, since, as I already said, it's your show, and I don't mean to annoy others with my particular hobby horse. Just the thoughts of someone who is otherwise a great Shorpy fan.)
Mirror imageI have a much younger friend, and former classmate in grad school, who is the absolute mirror image of Miss Henderson.  It was kind of a shock when I first saw this photo.
If you straighten and lengthen Miss Henderson's hair, well, she has a beautiful and impossibly smart counterpart (Jessica) who is living well and happily in 2009.
Dynamite Glass NecklaceVintage glass necklace is hand-strung and a wonderful floral design that goes all the way around. Most likely Czech and about $45 in antique shops.
Re: Well, yesI'd say Dave struck a nerve or two. With the usual perversely entertaining results -- it's kind of like driving by a five-car pileup.
I think Adrianne is pretty, if a little cockeyed. Those incisors need caps. And now I'm going to ... duck!
An experimentI would like to take a modern day beauty, dress in her in the same vintage clothes as this photo, apply the same amount of makeup, or lack thereof, and use the same photography.
I have a feeling this would level the playing field out somewhat, and the results would be surprising.
PersonallyI think she's pretty.  The losers who are calling her ugly attend Star Trek conventions and the only women they talk to are their mothers.
What became of this lady?Normally, someone comes out with a city, date of death. I hope she had a great life!
[She'd be around 90 now. You out there, Adrienne? - Dave]
But there never seem to be women...of Color; I've seen 'shanty town' photos; and the only others i've been able to find i've had to click and click and hunt and hunt...So many black people lived a very luxurious lifestyle; with money, cars, clothes, jewels; but they are never depicted here.  Many of my friends and colleagues have said the same thing to me about this site--that it is prejudiced.  Just a comment  that i know will go unprinted as well as unaddressed and unanswered.  Signed: A woman of color.
[The archives of the Library of Congress, which is where most of our pictures come from, do not contain very many photos of black people living a "luxurious lifestyle" with "money, cars, clothes, jewels." People who think there are not many people of color on Shorpy perhaps have not clicked around that much. Some examples below. - Dave]
Big Joe Turner
The Office
Mailometer
Law and Order
American Beauty
Southside Easter
Easter Sunday
Army Mechanic
Cincinnati Kid
Shulman's Market
The Avenger
Henry Johnson
Won't Hurt a Bit
Band of Brothers
Me: 1957
Army of the James
Harlem Newsboy
Dutch Gap
Washington Pork
John Henry
Big Sale
New York

And many, many more.
Images of Color at the LOCThere were many persons and families of color who lived refined and "luxurious" lifestyles, as many historical photos attest. But those photos are not necessarily available from the Library of Congress online photo archive, and I'd guess that more than 90 percent of the photos on Shorpy come from the LOC collection. Out of curiosity, I just ran an image search on the LOC site using the keyword Harlem. Given the Harlem Renaissance of the teens through the 1930s, I thought that this might yield a quick proportional indication of how many historical images of prosperous persons of color might be available. The search yielded 329 image hits (including folders of news photos from such sources as Look Magazine). I looked at all 329 image links, and no more  than five images could be described as illustrating the lifestyle you're searching for. Moreover, none of those few images were available in larger digitized formats, only as small thumbnails. As a member of a minority group who is not a person of color, I readily agree that such images often seem unnaturally difficult to find, but I would suggest with all respect that Shorpy is not the purveyor of prejudice here, but at most a mirror to a more general issue of online representation of minority images in academic archives all over the United States.
Another angleAfter considering this portrait for a couple days, I'd like to suggest two factors that detract from Miss Henderson's appearance. Someone's already mentioned the first -- the middle part in her hair doesn't suit her face. The second is something the photographer might be blamed for. In turning her head so far to the right, it appears that her neck is very thick. Try holding your thumb over the left side of her neck (your left, gentle viewer). See if that doesn't make a difference in your reaction to her visage!
A tilt of the headwas required to mask a lazy left eye.
Adrianne / AdrienneI think I found her, spelled Adrienne on the records I saw. According to the Social Security Death Index she was born December 28, 1918, and died February 18, 1998. Her husband Torrey Johnson's obituary says that they married in Hyattsville, Maryland, in 1940 and had five children.
More on AdrienneAh, the classic western story: city girl visits her aunt and falls in love with a cowpoke.  The 1936 obit of Adrienne's grandfather, Edgar B. Henderson, lists "Ruth Spear, of Kirby Mont." as a daughter.  Adrienne is the only grandchild mentioned.  Adrienne's uncle, Earl Y. Henderson, served as secretary to the Senate Indian Affairs committee and secretary of the Board of Indian Commissioners, so perhaps that is where the connection with the Mountain West started.  Ruth Henderson married Willis B. Spear of Sheridan Wyo. in February 1914.
Hat-tip to the Anonymous Tipster for discovering the correct spelling of Miss Henderson's name.



Washington Post, Jun 26, 1932 

Chevy Chase Enlivened by Small Parties

Miss Adrienne Henderson, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Robert E. Henderson, has gone to Kirby, Mont., where she is visiting Mrs. W.B. Steer [Spear].  She will be away all summer.


Washington Post, July 14, 1940 


Miss Hunter to Return to Capital after Attending Kappa Convention

...
Following the convention Miss Hunter and Miss Shelton spent several days with Mr. and Mrs. Torrey Johnson on their ranch in Montana.  Mrs. Johnson was formerly Miss Adrienne Henderson, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Robert E. Henderson, of Chevy Chase.


35 comments!So here I am cruising through the photos I haven't seen in a week, when I see that this simple portrait has drawn 35 comments.  I knew, or course, that the comments would include a number of opinions on an alleged AKC background, some counter opinions and one "I'll take these real girls over silicone enhanced hussies of today."  Round it out with data on her subsequent life found by our researchers and you have it.  Didn't foresee the sidebars into people of color but I guess I need to assume with 35 comments there will be some branch discussion.
I loved it all and enjoy these critiques on feminine beauty.  The shallowness of us judging the dead based upon a fleeting youthful appearance makes it all the more fun.
For the record I think she is normal looking and doesn't really merit opinions one way or the other.  
My sister's dress!I found three sequined dresses in our attic when I was 10 and my two cousins and I took turns destroying each one by playing in them almost every day one summer. I'm sure the dresses were from the late 50s or early 60s. They were all strapless and we could put them on and turn completely around without the dress moving. As for the woman in the picture, I like natural and I think this woman looks very pretty. 
Adrienne M. Henderson JohnsonMy Beautiful Mother.  1939 Graduate in History/English at the University of Maryland.  I'm the fourth child of five.
She and my father were ranchers and very successful. Both very active in community affairs.  They truly were soul mates for 58 years!  Torrey was fourth generation of the very Famous Spear Brothers Cattle ranch, a portion of which still operates as the Spear O Ranch Company. Spears arrived at "New Chicago" south of present day Drummond, Montana circa 1871-1873...moved to present day Big Horn , Wyoming in 1883..........cattle company grew to 60,000 head, running from Big Horn,Wyoming to the Yellowstone River on the North and East to Broudus, Montana.
Mother and Dad met at the Spear O, Married in 1940 and the rest is history.
May GOD bless them, they were great parents!
Phillip B. Johnson
Thanks for the storyThanks for sharing, Phillip. I keep hoping that one of these old photos will still be alive and able to respond personally to us.  But a message from a relative who knew is very good.
(The Gallery, Harris + Ewing, Portraits)

Our Town: 1939
Summer 1939. "Entering Butte, Montana." Note the sign advertising the Arcade, the beer joint seen in the ... corporations, such as Anaconda Copper, and "The Montana Power Company of New Jersey". Big city, turn me loose, and set ... Breuning who was born in Minnesota in 1896, moved to Montana in 1918, still lives in Great Falls, and would have been 43 years old ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/20/2010 - 8:57pm -

Summer 1939. "Entering Butte, Montana." Note the sign advertising the Arcade, the beer joint seen in the previous post. 35mm nitrate negative by Arthur Rothstein for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. 
Graffitists welcomeI wonder how many times this sign was altered by pranksters??
Shorpy returns to ButteI remember "discovering" Shorpy a couple years ago, and this 1942 overview of Butte--in large-format Kodachrome, no less (posted 2008)--came immediately to mind today:
https://www.shorpy.com/node/4694
"Entering Butte"Approach slowly, and make sure your vehicle is well lubricated.
Slower! Slower!No, wait. Faster, faster!
Turn me loose, set me free...Butte couldn't have been much different when Alistair Cooke visited in 1942. He was researching the American home front, but he completed his manuscript just as the war was ending, and his publisher lost interest.
Mostly, Cooke described the town's (and the state's) control by out-of-state corporations, such as Anaconda Copper, and "The Montana Power Company of New Jersey". 
Big city, turn me loose, and set me free...
Cooke's manuscript, The American Home Front, was rediscovered and published in 2006.
Exiting ButteWere there just outhouses in Butte at this time? Isn't the city built right on top of the mines? 
World's Oldest ManJust finished reading a news article that today is the 114th birthday of one Mr. Walter Breuning who was born in Minnesota in 1896, moved to Montana in 1918, still lives in Great Falls, and would have been 43 years old when this photo was taken.  Congratulations to him for making the Guinness Book of Records.  Life in Montana must be good.
What's in a name.Doesn't look like a "beaut" to me.
But officer...You can't write me a ticket! The speed limit begins 25 miles from here!
Re: World's Oldest ManLearned tonight that this man still does his exercises every morning. He puts on a coat and tie everyday and still has a good memory. He smoked cigars all of his life until just in recent years. He takes no prescripion medications, but he was fitted with hearing aides in 2007 at the age of 111. His wife died in 1957 and they had no children. He did not marry again.
Not ExactlyWhat Thorton Wilder might have had in mind for his vision of 'Our Town'.
(The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein)

Fender, Roads: 1942
April 1942. Beaverhead County, Montana. "Road into Bannack, Montana's first capital." Acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War ... Looks like a Thomas Hart Benton He painted some Montana landscapes that resemble this photo. A particularly artful caption ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/20/2021 - 3:29pm -

April 1942. Beaverhead County, Montana. "Road into Bannack, Montana's first capital." Acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Geez --At first I thought it was a pencil sketch, incredible photograph. A new favorite.
RepurposedOn Fender Road, I chanced upon a couple of 1966 Jensen C12Ns for my old Tremolux.
Looks like a Thomas Hart BentonHe painted some Montana landscapes that resemble this photo.
A particularly artful captionwill not go unappreciated. 
I don't see the piano Witty headline. I like it. 
A Great Musical ReferenceEspecially for us former musicians who had to lug one of those around!
Piano reference.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhodes_piano
The key question:Did they have a suitcase?
Musically amusingMy son is a keyboardist in a jazz trio.  I don't think he's much for old photos but he will appreciate the play on words when I share this with him.
Following the shipSo, now we see that all the way through the northern Midwest, John Vachon was steering behind a chrome Mayflower. It makes me wonder if that's his 1937 Plymouth photobombing the main street of Hettinger. I dunno, though. The side vent on the hood of the Hettinger car looks more like a '38. But with the snow obscuring the hood ornament, we can't be completely sure it's even a Plymouth.
Fender. Clouds. Road.Outstanding reflections!
Vachon Keeps Amazing MeI think I'd seen John Vachon's name a few times before you started Shorpy, but you've planted him firmly among my favorite American photographers. This one is just stunning, as different as can be from his great Times Square 1943 shot (original AND colorized) but just as memorable.
So, let me see ...Where is the car?
(The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, John Vachon, Landscapes, On the Road)

Dairy Queen: 1977
... of my first trip to the United States to Glasgow, Montana, from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, in the 1950s, long before Dairy Queen ... 
 
Posted by rizzman1953 - 05/12/2012 - 2:33pm -

Late one evening, summer of '77 on Mount Auburn street in Watertown, Massachusetts; it is now long gone. I loved the sign and the car. Taken with a 4x5 view camera. I can still taste the ice cream -- dipped in chocolate of course -- and the sticky fingers. View full size.
Twenty-two-year-old Buick on snows!That 1955 Buick Special two-door sedan appears to be wearing a set of snow tires on the rear.  Wonder why it'd have them on during the summer?  After all, if that car was driven during twenty-two Massachusetts winters it would've rusted completely away.
Rizzman rocksI do hope you publish a book of your photos at some point. They are really strikingly beautiful. Thanks for this latest.
ShenanigansI am positive more than one fellow Shorpian will know what Marvel Mystery Oil is. Back in the late 50s when my ride was the Chevy V8-powered '54 Studebaker you see here, posed next to my friend Roger's chopped '48 (I think) Mercury ragtop, we hung out at Ted's Drive-in Diner in Altoona, Pa. One summer night one of the guys filled his windshield washer bag with Marvel Mystery Oil, ran the hose into the top of the carburetor of his '57 Ford convertible, and while someone held the diner's door open, backed his car as close to it as he could and triggered the windshield washer pump. An hour later the place was still pretty much swimming in Marvel Mystery Oil smoke. Ted was the opposite of well-pleased.   
How to in digital?This is a beautiful shot taken in the days of analog photography.
How would you accomplish this with a digital camera?
[The same way. -Dave]
So dreamyThe lighting is phenomenal!  What a great surreal/hyperreal quality.  I want to go to there.
Stunning! Holy CRAP!!
What an incredibly well-done picture this is!
 I'm reminded of Ansel Adam's "Moonrise Over Hernandez New Mexico" -- he was driving along, saw the shot developing and jumped from his car, set up his camera and took it, then, while reversing the slide for another, the light changed and that was that!
My 'umble opinion is that your image is in this class.
Boy that looks familiarWould you know if this was anywhere near (what was then) Westover Air Force Base? That's where we moved when we left Okinawa, and where I spent the 6th grade (so it would've been 1973, '74). Looking at this shot I can almost FEEL myself walking in that door again. Maybe it was on the route of one of the many sightseeing trips my family took, but this is an incredibly evocative picture (and thank you for it); I'm SURE I've been there.
MemoryI used to love this place. My grandfather would often take me there.
So reminiscentof my first trip to the United States to Glasgow, Montana, from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, in the 1950s, long before Dairy Queen came to Canada. I kept the milkshake container for years.
Another great picture!Love these night shots, like a scene from a movie!
Director yells "Action" two guys with stocking masks come running out of the DQ, they jump into the Buick they backed in for a quick getaway, they burn rubber out on to the street and take off into the night. Cue Rock & Roll Soundtrack.
"Summer air"The snow tires still on in the summer? About 30 years ago an old lady came into the shop wanting us to put summer air in her tires and take out the winter air. Seems another shop had been charging her $5 to do this twice a year to go along with the snow tire removal in the summer.
And the oil spots under the engine were the norm, as was having to feather the gas pedal on a cold winter startup because the choke was finicky. Sometimes you had to put a stick in the choke to get the engine started. 
1955 Buick SpecialIt is rather clean looking to be a 22-year old car in 1977.
Yep, that's summer in balmy New EnglandSnow tires.
EmissionsThe noticeable soot from a tailpipe on the wall of the DQ shows an incredibly rich mixture, probably a choke that was stuck closed. These old behemoths broke down a lot, required annual valve jobs and tuneups and it was just understood this was the way it was. Now you can go over 100K on a set of spark plugs, and I can't rememeber the last time a car came in for a valve job.  
Those were the days, indeedThe snow tires (studded?) in summer suggest a number of possible scenarios. Maybe the 22 year old car was owned by a high school kid working at DQ for the summer, too poor to buy a conventional set. The chrome strip at the base of the car between the rear wheel well and bumper is aftermarket. (JC Whitney?) Maybe someone was trying to cover up a little rust, or perhaps the owner didn’t think Harley Earl had arranged enough chrome on the model. I understand Earl was particularly partial to the 55 Century, which looked almost identical to the Special. (The Century had four portholes.)  The grille of the 55 was, like Earl himself, massive and imposing, if not charming. It may be a bit trite to say it, but it’s an unmitigated fact: those were the days, my friend.  
Big BusinessDairy Queen, those local roadside ice cream stores are now part of the Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate. The now approximately 6000 world wide locations were purchased by Warren Buffett's company in 1998. Berkshire Hathaway's class A stock closed on May 11, 2012 at $122,795 a share.
Update:
Nov 28, 2014 closing price $223,065
Film NoirThank you Rizzman for another beautiful moody nightshot  which brings back memories of my father's solid black '55 4-door Buick Special V-8.  Also, I love that Eskimo sign which reminds me of Dairy Queen's old jingle singing "the cone with the curl on top".  With your obvious talent for photography, I hope it is still a big part of your life.  The purpose of any art is to get an emotional response from the viewer and you have definitely touched the Shorpy audience with each and every one of your shots.
Ice Milk, not Ice CreamI worked in a DQ in the 1970s while attending high school in Vancouver, B.C. The product we served was called "ice milk," lower in fat than ice cream. I have no idea what they call it now in Canada but Google suggests that in the US it is now called low-fat ice cream. Restaurants were either a "Sizzler" (electric flat grill) or a "Brazier" (gas BBQ type grill). Some would get confused and try and order a "brassiere" burger.
The first DQ opened in Canada in 1953 in Estevan, Saskatchewan.
[In its early years, Dairy Queen advertised its product as "freshly frozen dairy food." - Dave]
ZZZZZTTTT!!!!Great shot. You can almost hear the sound of the bug zapper.
Blizzard anyone?Seeing this picture reminds me of my Uncle George who always made it a point to stop at the Dairy Queen on any adventure trip we took.  Usually, it was stop once on the way there, and once on the way back; a double shot of ice cream fun.  I also remember him telling a story from back before I was born.  One of his other traditions was to take my sisters to the Dairy Queen on the last day it was open for the season (usually November 1st in Maine).  He would always tell my sisters they had to wash their hands and faces before they could go.  One year, there was a blizzard on the last day of "ice cream" season, and my uncle had stopped by to visit my father.  He had no intention of going to the Dairy Queen (due to the heavy snow) and figured my sisters wouldn't think of it either.  My sister Sue came running out to the kitchen and began tugging on my uncle's pant leg.  He ignored her for a while and she went away.  A few minutes later, she was tugging at his pant leg again, and when he looked down, she was there with a washcloth, washing her face and smiling up at him.  He felt so guilty he packed them all in the car and took them out for ice cream.  The Dairy Queen attendant said they had actually planned on closing early because they hadn't seen any customers up until them.  Since my uncle's passing in 1992, I have had to assume the role of "Uncle George", and whenever taking my nephews and nieces (or their children) on adventures, we always make plans for a stop at an ice cream location.  Some traditions are just worth hanging on to.
Uncle George: The Next Generation
Great PhotoGreat Photo, wrong location. I grew up in Wtaertown and have many family members and friends there. There was no Dairy Queen on Mt. Auburn St. There was however a similar establishment called Dairy Joy. It also sold soft serve ice cream, burgers, hot dogs, fried fish, etc. I can see how the two places could be mistaken for each other. Keep the great pictures coming, I love ice cream and old cars.
[Perhaps rizzman will chime in to clear this up. He took the photo. - tterrace]
Wish I'd done thisI know from an earlier photograph, that these were done as part of a photography class, but I wish I'd gone around my town and taken night photos like these while the icons of my teenage years were still standing.
I could be wrong about the locationMy memory could be faulty. It could have been any community around Boston including Route 1, but surely within a less than 25 mile radius. Sorry if I misled anyone.
Dennis the MenaceYup, I remember when DQ used him as their mascot in the 70's!
I still love DQ, but they have apparently stopped using the term "parfait"; a few years ago I had asked for a strawberry parfait and the girl at the counter just stared at me like I was crazy!
What's sadder is that I remember them still using the term a recently as a year or two before that incident, but at least the same product is available, it's just simply known as a strawberry sundae.
Best DQ I ever went to was in Jedda, Saudi Arabia - they kept everything spotless and the ice cream perfect in case King Fahd dropped it! :)
(ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery)

Mama and Joey: 1943
... had eight children. She also ran for the state Senate in Montana. - Dave] Madonna and Child Beautiful mother, beautiful baby, ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/09/2011 - 12:03pm -

December 1943. Lynn Massman and her son Joey at the United Nations service center nursery in Washington, D.C. View full size.  Medium-format safety negative by Esther Bubley for the Office of War Information.
WWII MadonnaIf only she knew how unfulfilled she was taking care of her baby, she wouldn't radiate such serene beauty and contentment and love.
I see the poster showing military rank and decorations, wonder if the the other piece is a map of the DC area for visitors?
Motherhood not fulfilling?Why was she "so unfulfilled"? Why do you have to assume that?
[Lynn had eight children. She also ran for the state Senate in Montana. - Dave]
Madonna and ChildBeautiful mother, beautiful baby, beautiful photo.
It doesn't get any better than this.
Respect for homefrontMiguel, I'm sorry the sarcasm was too dry.  My point being just the opposite. I was aiming my barb at those who don't value motherhood as having intrinsic worth unless paired with another vocation. Dave, thank you for filling us in on her life, she had genuine love of family and her community.
Lynn Massman with babyI think that some of the comments made about Lynn Massman, and her role as a mother, are disrespectful and show a lack of understanding about the historical context of this photo. At that time, US victory was far from certain. Many people worked as spotters in coastal cities, watching for enemy bombers. That's how scary it was. Millions of young mothers were constantly preoccupied with the fear of losing their husband/fathers in battle. Many of them worked in strenuous and tedious jobs in defense plants and factories, both for their economic survival and as a way of supporting the war effort. Lynn and my mother had much in common. I interviewed my mother four years before she died in 2004, and she had many stories of struggle and heartbreak in those times. But her devotion, her spirit and her patriotism, is the reason I am living and able to write this today. My mother believed in and stongly supported women's equal rights all her adult life, but she had no problem wrapping her arms around her role as a mother. And still, she found time to be a fine librarian for nearly 20 years, and a strong and assertive person up to the end.    
United NationsDave is correct.  If you listen to recordings of radio news broadcasts and speeches from World War II, the phrase "the United Nations" is used about as often as "the Allies."  And the phrase appears in numerous war posters, such as this one:

United Nations Service CenterAnybody know what this service center was?  The United Nations organization as we know it today was not created until after WW II. Is it possible that the center referred to was a USO (United Service Organization) center?
[We've addressed this question a number of times. "United Nations" refers to the nations allied against the Axis. A common expression at the time. - Dave]

(The Gallery, D.C., Esther Bubley, Kids, Massman, WW2)

The Flying Bruin: 1942
March 1942. "Flathead Valley special area project, Montana. Mrs. Lawrence Thompson, wife of the manager of the Farm Security ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/20/2021 - 8:30pm -

March 1942. "Flathead Valley special area project, Montana. Mrs. Lawrence Thompson, wife of the manager of the Farm Security Administration cooperative sawmill." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Going up the stairs?Bear right.
Danger lurksWhy oh why would you build stairs without a rail?
[Because they're not a bunch of woke sissies? - Dave]
Women's workGuidance from Roy Stryker to John Vachon, March 18, 1942:
"We need more pictures of 'Mrs. America.' Mrs. America is all over and often hard to find. To be specific, let us have more pictures of woman in the home, women in the kitchen, women gardening, women working. I think you have some feeling already for the type of pictures these should be."
No banister or hand railNot very safe for a pregnant lady whose husband I'm sure is serving his country on foreign soil!
[Um, no. He's the manager of the local sawmill. Just like it says in the caption. - Dave]
Safety First? Doesn't appear that way. Those wooden stairs could benefit from a handrail.
Falling BruinDid the bear die falling down the stairs that don't have a handrail?
That last step could be a luluI wonder how much higher that staircase goes.  Without a baluster or handrail it could be a recipe for disaster.  I don't recall ever living in a home without some way to steady oneself or to keep one from falling over the edge, but perhaps it was more common in some places.  
Safety schmafetyI have been in a number of turn of the century houses with stairs like that
From bear to beadspreadFrom apex predator to beadspread in three easy steps:
1. Get shot.
2. Get skinned.
3. Get preserved. 
It's not just the hills"I tell you, Larry, every time I'm in this room, I feel like someone's watching me."
Stockings WWIIA woman's bane - runs in those rayon stockings!
Norman Bates, DecoratorI can't help thinking of cinema's iconic taxidermist and mother's boy. 
Double DutyLooks like that table does double duty as the entertainment center. Radio, papers, nearby rocking chair available for your relaxation pleasure.  One can assume she's listening to a morning's radio show while sewing.
Stocking shortage.When stockings are scarce, you get the most out of your old ones.
No accounting for tasteI find the decorating scheme -- from the bear to the birds (why is there one practically on the ceiling?) and even the frog-with-lily whatever that is -- truly terrifying. I hope Mrs. Thompson's wee bairn has a strong stomach and I hope she gets some new hosiery, and I wish she would sit in the comfortable upholstered rocking chair to do her embroidery.
Partial Safety?There may be a handrail on the side of the stairs closest to the wall (which we can't see in the picture). Hopefully, that's the case. If not, poor Mrs. Thompson may have replaced the bear on the wall in March of 1944. 
Wonder what radio program she could be listening to while doing needlework?
Neat old photograph!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!
Tire AshtrayThe object under the frog/flower on the right side of the table near the ink and flashlight looks like the old BF Goodrich tire ashtray Dad used when I was growing up in the early '50s.  I wonder if it held VanDyck cigar ashes from the two boxes also on the table!
(The Gallery, Animals, Frontier Life, John Vachon)

Holy Roller: 1920
... Car. Gospel Car to Make Long Tour Billings (Montana) Gazette. May 9, 1920. GOSPEL CAR ON TRUCK WILL MAKE LONG TOUR ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/09/2018 - 5:08pm -

1920. "William Downer Auto Home, Gospel Car No. 1." The Reverend hailed from Glassboro, New Jersey. National Photo Company glass negative. View full size.
Commercial GarageWow, what a funky vehicle.  Certainly wouldn't pass crash-test ratings today.  
This photo is in front of the Commercial Garage, 303-305-307 Sixth St N.W.
Incidentally, I have started a Google map with the locations of many of the Washington D.C. photos.  Its located here.  Its currently a work in progress.
Ken B. has done something similar for Shorpy photos in NYC.
Glorious Google!WOW! stanton_square, that google map is so incredible! It's like the new Shorpy 3G! I nominate you to keep this up!
Thank you.
ChOG MobileThe Church Of God East Website mentions Reverend Downer and a 'Gospel Car'.
Among those attending were Mrs. Barclow, Herbert and Florence Huntsinger who became first full time pastor, Ralph Faldon, David Gant, Reverend William Downer, who started a small congregation in Glassboro, New Jersey in 1904,  Parker Faldon, Ethel Faldon, Mrs. Wood and Mrs. Peterson.
Rev. William Downer was very helpful in establishing them in the truth and would baptize members in the Delaware River. He served as spiritual leader in the early days.
In the same year of 1922 a truck chassis was given to Mr. Volbert for use in Gospel work. Through his ingenious ability, a unique Gospel Car was built, resembling a small chapel, from which he would preach and conduct open-air services. This Gospel Car was used for several years on Saturday nights for evangelistic meetings and on weekdays for church talks and illustrated sermons.  On Sundays, it served as a Sunday School bus. Hundreds of tracts and other Gospel literature were given away, and many people were converted by the work of the Gospel Car. 
Gospel Car to Make Long TourBillings (Montana) Gazette. May 9, 1920.
GOSPEL CAR ON TRUCK WILL MAKE LONG TOUR
Preacher Pays Tribute to Republic Truck.
One of the most unique uses to which a motor truck has been put is the gospel car of the Rev. W.A. Downer of Glassboro, N.J. The Rev. Mr. Downer recently purchased a 1½-ton Republic chassis and on it mounted a special body of his own design. The body is 7 feet wide, 22 feet long, and is the largest ever mounted on a 1½-ton Republic.
This truck serves two purposes. It is a traveling church and also the home of the evangelical party of four, the Reverend and Mrs. Downer, their daughter and an organist. Used as a home, there are sleeping accommodations for five persons, a complete cooking outfit, running water, electric lights and many other conveniences. Used in gospel work, there is a pulpit that opens up, organ and plenty of seating space.
The gospel car is the first of a fleet that will be equipped and put into service in cross-country evangelical work. Already this truck has covered considerable territory in the south and southeastern part of the country and is now en route across the continent. The Rev. Mr. Downer was led to buy a Republic truck to start the experiment, he says, because of the well known sturdiness of this make of truck and particularly  because of the great number of Republic service stations scattered throughout the country which insure him against serious delays anywhere along the line.
Speaking of the gospel car, he says: "We are delighted with the Republic truck, the service it gives and the service of all the Republic agencies we have passed by. We are now on our return trip from southern Florida to New Jersey. About Aug. 1 we are planning to leave New Jersey for California for a five-year trip to every state in the union. We are expecting gospel car No. 2 to join us on our next trip, and it will be a Republic truck. The truck we are now using is of 1½-ton size. We are carrying a capacity load and have traveled more than 15,000 miles since Nov. 27, 1919.
"We have not spent any time or money for repairs excepting for a choke wire. We have not even changed a spark plug. We have been unauthorized boosters of Republic trucks."
Reverend DownerI love the sound of that.  Could sermons on the torments of Hell have been a specialty? Maybe he was the grandfather of Debbie Downer on SNL.
It's a RepublicHere's a photo of a 1920 Republic truck.  Compare the wheels, tires, running boards and toolbox to the Gospel Car.

I would hate to seewhat would happen if you had a couple of big people in the back. 
VeterinaryNotice the sign on the building on the left. Probably was a horse hospital before turning into a garage.
Gospel Wagon
Carrying the Gospel By Motor

(click for larger)

Popular Science Monthly, 1920 

(The Gallery, Bizarre, Cars, Trucks, Buses, D.C., Natl Photo)

Hotel Meade: 1942
April 1942. "Bannack, Montana. Old hotel." The supposedly haunted Hotel Meade . Medium format ... of the ghost town of Bannack, now a state park in Montana. Eerie vibe. Would absolutely love to go back in time and see ... in the 1990's the Park Ranger/Guide said that the State of Montana kept the buildings in a state of "arrested decay". I revisited the ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/17/2022 - 11:20am -

April 1942. "Bannack, Montana. Old hotel." The supposedly haunted Hotel Meade. Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
Historic PlaqueIn case you're wondering what the plaque mounted on the rock says, here it is.
'Cook's Tour'? No: Carter'sShorpy's latest photo sets seem like they've been guided by Sunset's
"Ghost Towns of the West" (And IIRC, Central City was listed as a "tourist" town, while Bannack was rated "pure").
RestoredThe Hotel Meade has since been restored and was recently used in the 2017 movie "The Ballad of Lefty Brown."  It is one of many original structures of the ghost town of Bannack, now a state park in Montana.
Eerie vibe.Would absolutely love to go back in time and see the workings inside the hotel.  Thank goodness it was preserved!
Arrested DecayThe first time I visited Bannack in the 1990's the Park Ranger/Guide said that the State of Montana kept the buildings in a state of "arrested decay".  I revisited the town again last year. All the buildings looked the same - so "arrested decay" is working. The Hotel Meade still looks just the way it did when John Vachon photographed it. 
Bring your snowshoes!Winter visit to Bannack?
https://nwtravelmag.com/bannack-state-park-ghost-town-montana/
(The Gallery, Frontier Life, John Vachon, Small Towns)

National Market: 1942
... 1942. "Grocery store in copper mining center of Butte, Montana." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security ... 307 North Main Street An article in the Montana Standard gives the address, and informs us that this whole block was ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/12/2022 - 1:19pm -

April 1942. "Grocery store in copper mining center of Butte, Montana." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
That's Not RainMy grandfather contributed to the staging of this picture.
The open window of the truck and the mostly dry street suggest the localized wet area of the sidewalk in front of the grocery store is the result of it recently being washed down with a hose, as opposed to being the remnant of a rainstorm.
At the time this picture was taken, my grandfather worked for the Butte Water Company, nice to see his handiwork preserved for posterity.   
307 North Main StreetAn article in the Montana Standard gives the address, and informs us that this whole block was demolished in 1970 and is now a parking lot.
https://mtstandard.com/news/local/in-uptown-butte-even-the-parking-lots-...
The Good, the Bad and the UglyThe good: The exact location of this scene can be identified very easily thanks to the address on the truck's door - 307 North Main Street. The bad: Literally everything in the photo is gone. The ugly: It's a parking lot now. Well, at least with some trees next to it. Better than nothing. 
Long Gone?I did a search for the address of this building (I got it off the truck).  In the photo, it seems to me anyway, this is on a slight incline.  The google.map shows this location also on an incline, but sadly it appears these two buildings are long gone. (?).
Anyway - new here - I love losing myself in wonder with the help of these photos and the commentary so many members post here.
That's my jamThere appears to be a wide selection of jams, jellies, and preserves arranged on the groaning shelves of the New National Market. I hope they have Damson Plum.
Visit ButteI think anyone who likes Shorpy would love to spend some time in Butte. I usually go for the Montana Folk Festival, which is free and is spread out around old Uptown—perfect for exploring.
[I've been to Butte, which is arranged around an enormous ore pit. Whose name would seem to suggest itself. - Dave]
(The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, John Vachon, Stores & Markets)

La Casa Enchilada: 1940
... when the photographer told him about a job opening in Montana. - Dave] Just askin' Do you get an enchilada or two if ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/21/2018 - 11:31am -

June 1940. "Detail of front of store building. Mogollon, New Mexico." Photo by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
The Conversation Just After"C'mon in for a spell", the man with the dirty apron said, waving around a glass with some tired foam on it.
"Nah, can't. Got work to do." said the photographer, feeling he'd been caught. "Government work. It's important. Might be famous someday."
"What do you think I'm sayin, bud? I'm makin some more signs here and I need some help. I need a spell checker."
[And that's when the photographer told him about a job opening in Montana. - Dave]
Just askin'Do you get an enchilada or two if you board there?  Looking at the prices, it might be a good deal if they're any good.
Travel book releaseTitled "Mogollon, New Mexico, on $1.40 per day."  The bench may not look too sturdy and the curtains double as dish towels (or vice versa) but where else can you take a vacation including food and lodging for that price? 
I wonder... if irregular boarders got a discount.  
Grill MarksGiven that bench is made out of straps of sheet metal, it's a wonder anyone ever actually sat on it.
An interesting little town!... but the road to get there is not for the faint-hearted!
It Still StandsIf you go to street view, it's known as the Old Kelly Store. It's easy to find in such a small area. It's been patched oa bit over time.
(The Gallery, Eateries & Bars, Russell Lee, Small Towns)

War News: 1942
April 1942. "Wisdom, Montana. The Ansons visit their daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Len ... might be a gas or electric heater, very useful in Montana. (The Gallery, John Vachon, Small Towns, WW2) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/19/2021 - 11:12am -

April 1942. "Wisdom, Montana. The Ansons visit their daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Len Smith." Acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Month by Month With VachonBased on the last several posts, John Vachon apparently spent the winter and spring of 1942 touring the upper Midwest, sending back windswept snow scenes so chilling I shivered, and social suffocation scenes like this one that make me want to go out and walk down to the local tavern to escape. Coupled with the coy, on-the-road self portraits you've shown us before, I'm starting to regard him as a mythical, Everyman sort of character straight out of Kerouac. Can't wait to see where he's headed next.
Doolittle Raid, James Doolittle and co-pilot Richard Cole"War Information" in action. The headline has it: this was the Doolittle Raid of April 18, 1942, the first U.S. air strike on Japan. The low-level daylight attack killed 50, injured about 400, and did minimal physical damage; but the psychological effect was great on both sides--witness that headline.
The last survivor of the crew, co-pilot Richard E. Cole, died at 103 on April 9, 2019. In the photo below, pilot Lt. Col. James Doolittle is second, Lt. Cole fourth from left.
Sassy lookin'Ceramic cat.
I sense tension in the roomMr. Anson is unhappy about something, and is searching for just the right words to convey his thoughts to Mr. Smith. Meanwhile, Mr. Smith is pretending to be absorbed in his magazine as he awaits the complaint. 
Doolittle RaidI'll get my comment in before the rush - I'm sure most Shorpy faithful know who and how Tokyo was bombed a mere four months after the war started.  Pretty much the first bright spot for the US in WWII to offset the litany of setbacks, retreats and surrenders.
Couldn't Mom have a chair?Instead of making her sit on a tuffet?  Even a kitchen chair would have been more comfortable.  And she's still wearing an apron from doing the dishes!
[That's not Mom. - Dave]
I wouldn't call it "news"The Time magazine issue Mr. Smith is reading is dated March 9, 1942.
[I wouldn't call it Time, either. - Dave]
Questionable framingMr Vachon probably regretted capturing so much of the top of the room at the expense of the lower parts where the people live. I'm curious what that blurry thing is in the right foreground -- thought for a while it might be an accordion, which would certainly liven things up. These people don't appear to be the big smokers that so many folks in Shorpy pix are -- there's maybe an ashtray on the desk, but it looks like it's used for something else.
Life MagazineThe issue is dated March 9, 1942
Let there be LightMust be a dark room. Five lamps! And that's just one corner of the room. Near the windows. 
Strategic Outcome of the RaidIt was the Doolittle Raid that convinced the Japanese military leadership to increase their Pacific defensive zone - hence the attack on Midway Island in June of 1942.  That disaster was the turning point in the Pacific war and marked the outward boundary of the Japanese conquests in WWII.
What is that apparatus?Is that an accordion or an organ in the lower right? 
A surfeitof lamps!
Family of readers.On the far right, we see glimpses of the daughter, who appears to be going through the mail. What a bunch of readers they all are. The radio was probably also on. Mom being forced to sit on the tuffet seems harsh though.
[Daughter is in the middle. Mrs. Anson is at far right. - Dave]
The Front Page
Had to do a double take.  After looking at the object on the desk and thinking it was some kind of streamline mouse, I finally figured out that it's a blotter. For when you're writing letters at that lovely desk.  
Also doesn't look to me as if sis is wearing her apron from doing dishes looks more like she's getting ready to cook dinner because i do believe that is a handwritten recipe book in her lap.
["Sis"? That's Len's wife. - Dave]
My dad often called my sisters quote 'sis'; I even had a cousin Sis.
Blurry heater?The blurry object in the right foreground might be a gas or electric heater, very useful in Montana.
(The Gallery, John Vachon, Small Towns, WW2)

Grizzly Gas: 1942
April 1942. "Missoula, Montana. Entering the town." Grizz vs. Pennz at fifty paces. Medium format ... see the Grizzly name on the gas station. The University of Montana was founded in Missoula in 1893. Turns out the first mention of a ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/21/2021 - 11:10am -

April 1942. "Missoula, Montana. Entering the town." Grizz vs. Pennz at fifty paces. Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Hope that Pennzoil sign survivedA full bell porcelain Pennzoil with the stand. Oh my ... I would die and go to heaven to have that signage. Just beautiful.
Things you can do in Missoula#1 - Buy gas.
#2 - Buy more gas.
What this town needsis a gas station.
Putting 20 cents in perspectiveAccording to a National Archives summary of 1940 Census data, average wage income in that year was $1,368. Even assuming wages had risen to $1,500 a year with the onset of the war--or roughly $29 a week--a 10-gallon fill-up for $2 would still be a nontrivial hit to your pretax pay.
Source: https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2012/spring/1940.html
VehicleWhat is that bug-eyed conveyance on the highway?
[A loud Buick! - Dave]

The GrizzlymobileGas jockey drives it up and down the strip broadcasting: "Get gas at Grizzly for just 17.9 cents a gallon."
Loud Speaker CDI think it's a Civil Defense vehicle with loudspeakers.
[Or is it the Grizzly Gasoline parade car, with the company logo on each door and GRIZZLY emblazoned on each loudspeaker? - Dave]
In the more things change department ...Gas at 19 cents per gallon would be roughly $3.20 a gallon in today's dollars. Pricey!
Bluesmobile 1.0Attention, you by the gas pumps, tonight, for one night only, the fabulous Blues Brothers Revue.  And it’s Ladies’ Night.
I-90 into Missoula is now BroadwayMissoula has grown and now some of the old highways are streets.  I found this by getting the mountains to line up as in John Vachon's 1942 photograph.  Also, if you back up the Google street view a little and swing to the left I believe the two story building with a sign in front saying, Colonial is the same two story building in the 1942 photograph with a sign in front saying, Texaco.

Grizz territoryInteresting to see the Grizzly name on the gas station. The University of Montana was founded in Missoula in 1893.  Turns out the first mention of a college mascot was in 1897, when they used live bear cubs to promote their athletic teams, known as the Bears. The "Grizzlies" name was adopted in 1923.
Last GasIs that another Texaco station way down the road?
(The Gallery, Gas Stations, John Vachon, Small Towns)

Just Add Water: 1942
... sexy: it seems amazing that Life magazine chose a photo of Montana's Fort Peck Dam (by Margaret Bourke-White) for the cover of its first ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/26/2022 - 10:16am -

June 1942. "Shasta Dam, Shasta County, California. The dam under construction." Medium format acetate negative by Russell Lee for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Like an EgyptianSeeing photographs of projects like this are always amazing to look at.  And then you go back and look at all the things built before power tools.  Absolutely incredible what man can do. 
Dam dam damWe have almost forgotten how crucial dam-building was to the New Deal and how much it transformed America via resource management and rural electrification, as well as job creation.
Dams became patriotic symbols, and rather sexy: it seems amazing that Life magazine chose a photo of Montana's Fort Peck Dam (by Margaret Bourke-White) for the cover of its first issue. Boulder (later Hoover) Dam, dedicated in 1935, became a major tourist attraction because U.S. Route 93 went across the dam's crest. (You can still drive across, but this has become much more complicated.)
The Shasta Dam, which Lee photographed, had been envisioned for two decades, but it took the New Deal and the Bureau of Reclamation to get it built starting in 1937.

Needs water now!Currently Shasta Lake is 37% full -- about half of what the average level in other years was this time of year.
Only two guys workingI only see two guys working. They must have put in some major overtime to build such a dam.
Just add colorhttps://www.shorpy.com/node/26703
Remember GuysIf you drop a tool, you get to climb down and bring it back. Oh, by the way, you're off the clock until you get back.
Careful!I'm seeing a couple of OSHA violations here.  Specifically, think the guy in the front of the picture on the edge of the dam, balancing on a narrow piece of wood, forgot to put on his safety harness.  But he's probably wearing sure footed leather sole shoes.
America in the time of war.Look at this. If anyone had doubts America was in danger of losing a war on two fronts look no further than to these awe inspiring historical pics of major construction projects, factories, or any other infrastructure all underway during a very troubling era. As Yamamoto mentioned: A sleeping giant was indeed awakened. 
Volume of concreteThis incredibly effective perspective relays the strength and the massive volume of concrete used on this dam: 15 Million tons!
The dam flooded an old mining town, Kennett, under approximately 400 feet of water.
(The Gallery, Industry & Public Works, Russell Lee)

Fall Colors: 1942
October 1942. "Scrap and salvage depot, Butte, Montana." 4x5 inch Kodachrome transparency by Russell Lee for the Office of War ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/27/2022 - 5:32pm -

October 1942. "Scrap and salvage depot, Butte, Montana." 4x5 inch Kodachrome transparency by Russell Lee for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Like a Walker EvansI wonder if Lee was aware of/paying homage to Walker Evans' famous FA photo of Bethlehem, PA, with the cemetery in the foreground and the town in the distance.
Taylor Tot Strollerfor little kids slightly left of front and center in the image. I have a photo of me in one of those a few years later than this image.
Healthiest spot in town ??That wouldn't be true in most places, of course, but in one of America's most contaminated cities, this location on the southern outskirts of the city (note the MILW Station tower), well removed from the "The Hill" - and presumably out of the direction of the winds that blow therefrom - may be eligible for consideration.

All metalToday that heap would be 90% plastic. 
One man's junk ...The site now is probably an upscale housing development.  The owners are warned to drink bottled water instead of the 'glowing' tap water.
Stroller/walkerI recognize that stroller/walker with the rattan back and wooden handle. There was a removable handle to allow it to be pushed like a stroller, and with the handle removed, it was a walker. I had one as a tot in the early '50s, and it hung around for quite a while.
PoisonvilleDashiell Hammett based 'Red Harvest' on events in Butte, which he renamed Personville, aka 'Poisonville'. He had a different sort of contamination in mind, however.
So many car partsMiddle right is the firewall and cowl of a car.  It has an integral gas tank.  Model T?  Beyond that and to the right is the rear of a sedan.  To the left in front of the tree is a stainless steel radiator surround.  At the left edge, orange with surface rust and sporting some chrome trim, is a hood or door or ... ?  Below that looks kinda like a black fender.  Probably more parts to find.
Still available?Dang! I see just what I need to get that old Plymouth running again.
I had one 11 years later ...Me in my Taylor stroller, 1953.
(The Gallery, Kodachromes, Russell Lee, WW2)

Missoula: 1942
April 1942. "Missoula, Montana." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War ... you know Every time I hear or read the words "Missoula Montana" I think of that scene in Twin Peaks where Ray Wise (as Leland Palmer) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/23/2021 - 11:39am -

April 1942. "Missoula, Montana." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size.
The turntable is still thereBut the buildings have gone.
https://www.google.com/maps/@46.8761404,-113.9892682,3a,60y,244.79h,95.25t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s1ReWcT0iuv0JuXq_HnvBYw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
TurntableThe roundhouse is gone, so now we can see the turntable. However, it was not housed or sheltered. It was an open air table, like almost all of them were.
Three C's DeploymentMy dad was in this area a few years earlier with the Civilian Conservation Corps. I suspect it looked pretty much the same when he was out there.
Changed, but not totally differentThis Street View is taken from what is now Interstate 90, also called MT-200.  The main body of the train station is still on the other side of the tracks but the house sheltering the turntable is gone.  At left the cupola atop the Missoula County government building is still visible.

The roundhouse is gone  - - but the turntable is still there and in use.
Round? Yes. House? Nope. Poor trains, nary a roof over their heads. 
Spare tires?There are several piles of large rings in the foreground, to the left of the locomotive barns. Are those spare tires for the drive wheels? 
The view from Waterworks HillSurviving buildings include the former Atlantic Hotel (including its wall sign), the former Northern Pacific Railroad Depot, St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, and the Missoula County Courthouse. Vachon took this picture from "Waterworks Hill," which is getting a major upgrade (including its own parking lot) for the benefit of others using the spot to look over the City, or as a trailhead.  
A bunch of balloons?Nice view of the now-gone roundhouse.  Everything here is fairly recognizable except for the odd looking load in this gondola.  Anybody know what this is?  And there is the oddly proportioned caboose next to the gon.
[The load of logs is behind the gondola. - Dave]
The Paint on the Building ...The Atlantic Hotel and Coca Cola signs painted on the side of building located at 519 N. Higgins Ave are both still there.
Missoula StationMissoula Station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985, as the Northern Pacific Railroad Depot. Near the depot is the preserved Northern Pacific #1356 4-6-0 steam locomotive.
If you know, you knowEvery time I hear or read the words "Missoula Montana" I think of that scene in Twin Peaks where Ray Wise (as Leland Palmer) is in the process of murdering Sheryl Lee (as Maddy Ferguson, his niece) and he shoves her into a mirror bellowing "You're Going Back ... to Missoula ... MONTANAAAAAAA!"
(The Gallery, John Vachon, Landscapes, Railroads)

Road Trip: 1936
July 1936. Miles City, Montana. "Drought refugees from Glendive, Montana, en route to Washington state." Yet another carload of Dust Bowl ... on the old Dodge. Port of Entry The highways in Montana had Port of Entry stations? Was that some kind of border crossing ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/02/2012 - 2:19pm -

July 1936. Miles City, Montana. "Drought refugees from Glendive, Montana, en route to Washington state." Yet another carload of Dust Bowl migrants. Photo by Arthur Rothstein for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
What's on the roof?From the shape, it looks like a dead body.
Overloaded?Take a look at what you can see of the rear spring - pretty flat. Could be due to the load or the wear and tear on the old Dodge. 
Port of EntryThe highways in Montana had Port of Entry stations? Was that some kind of border crossing station?
[As the sign indicates, they were primarily designed to serve tourists. See this article. - tterrace]
Re What's on the roof?Make that three.
[My guess: a bunch of their stuff, covered up with bedspreads to keep the dust out. - tterrace]
Stuff or stiffs, they'll be moving on. Using bedspreads to cover anything, of course, means somewhere there are dusty beds.
My first recolorI would love to hear your feedback
[You can submit it for publication in our Colorized Photos gallery by clicking the link near the top of the left column. - tterrace]
Great  jobSpot on colors,very natural.
[See it here]
She will be missedPoor Aunt Edna.
(The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Dust Bowl)

Hamilton: 1942
April 1942. "Hamilton, Ravalli County, Montana." At the Montana Cafe: "Good Eats." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/21/2021 - 10:25am -

April 1942. "Hamilton, Ravalli County, Montana." At the Montana Cafe: "Good Eats." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Passed Gas (station)Today, the major change is that the gas station has been replaced - not the other was around for once !! - by a building that looks almost as old as this photo.
https://www.google.com/maps/@46.2470347,-114.1565847,3a,60y,329h,100.87t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sFsPTzGIyaBHFlbQyW8dbbA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
Still thereThe JC Penney's building is still there.
https://www.google.com/maps/@46.2470347,-114.1565847,3a,90y,320.98h,90.91t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sFsPTzGIyaBHFlbQyW8dbbA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
As Seen on 2018 OctoberHere's Google Street View of approximately the same location taken in October of 2018.  https://goo.gl/maps/4MSJgbY4h8TtTCiU6
Bet they wished- - they had kept those streetlights, they did not !
Mostly intact.https://goo.gl/maps/Andk1QMEwJneevbK7
*Sigh*Who will be the first commenter to correctly embed a Street View of 21st-century Hamilton?
A True PioneerPenney's had the foresight to lock down their website decades before we were blessed with computers.
Dave, here is a testThis should embed a map Hamilton but it isn't working.  The address Google supplies to embed doesn't look the same as it usually does.  Just FYI.
[Don't use an "a href" tag. Simply copy and paste the code google gives you, as I've done below.  - Dave]
Thank you, Dave.  It's 6AM the next day and after sleeping I realize I overthought the problem.  I wish I could say it's the first time I've done that.

More Good EatsGreat article about the cafe, and the sign lit up!
(The Gallery, Gas Stations, John Vachon, Small Towns, Stores & Markets)

Time to Boil the Diapers: 1943
... the lady had eight kids. And ran for the state Senate in Montana! What did she know that we don't? - Dave] That's a big ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/23/2012 - 3:32pm -

December 1943. "Lynn Massman, wife of a second class petty officer who is studying in Washington, does the washing every morning." View full size. Medium-format negative by Esther Bubley for the Office of War Information.
You're putting those on me?!The look on the baby's face says it all  ...  "You're doing WHAT to my diapers!!!???"
24/7Man may work from sun to sun,
But woman’s work is never done.
Makes you think...I wonder where that baby is now ... Shorpy.com makes you think about that kind of thing. Thank you!
[Joey died eight years ago. Read the comments here for more info. - Dave]
SuppliesThat's an awful lot of steel wool.
YikesMy kid would have rolled off the table the second I walked away.
Baby in PerilThere are so many baby-hazards in that kitchen I can't believe the kid lived at all...the cord, the kid on the table......
[And yet the lady had eight kids. And ran for the state Senate in Montana! What did she know that we don't? - Dave]
That's a big camera flash......would've loved to see the baby's expression after the bulb went off. At least he's got clean diapers lined up.
You know, I don't think kids just walk off tables. They have the instinct, you know, to not jump off a cliff and all that.
[Esther Bubley used floodlights, not flashbulbs, for illumination in these photos. - Dave]
(The Gallery, D.C., Esther Bubley, Kids, Kitchens etc., Massman, WW2)

Rest Stop: 1936
... July 1936. "Drought refugees from Bowman, North Dakota, in Montana." En route to Oregon or Washington. Medium-format nitrate negative by ... the least of Dad's worries right now. And whoever told him Montana's the place to go must not have seen this particular spot. Hanging ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/17/2012 - 10:01am -

July 1936. "Drought refugees from Bowman, North Dakota, in Montana." En route to Oregon or Washington. Medium-format nitrate negative by Arthur Rothstein for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Seven kids in one car!I agree with you OTY.  The despair these people must have known in their lives.  Seven mouths to feed and bodies to clothe.  I can't imagine.
Is that a AAA Trip-Tik she's reading in the car?  It sure looks like one.
"I'm Bored"Along with the words in my comment title, here are some of the things my four kids said on our cross-country auto trips 45+ years ago.  "He's touching me."  "There's nothing to do."  "I'm thirsty."  "I'm hungry."  "I need to use the bathroom."  "Mary keeps looking at me."  "I'm too hot."  "He's taking up the whole back seat." "Are we there yet?"  That is just a small fraction of the crabbing, even though we had books, toys, little cars, games, crayons, snacks and cold drinks in an ice chest and we slept in motels at night.  Here I see SEVEN kids, not a sign of a toy in sight, everyone looks exhausted, hungry and tired and their treat will be water rationed by Dad.  We cannot even imagine the despair in the lives of these people but I bet there was not one single peep from anyone about their discontent, despite the lack of Gameboys, Hot Wheels, snack-paks, cold beverages, iPods, auto TVs, etc.   What strong character they had, even the tiniest of the group, and we are so spoiled. 
As if all this toil and trouble weren't enoughOne of the triplets has managed to bust himself an arm. Big sister, I am sure, is quite a help to Mother, who comforts the most recent addition to the family while checking a map. That rear tire could use some air but I'm guessing that's the least of Dad's worries right now. And whoever told him Montana's the place to go must not have seen this particular spot.
Hanging water bags up front in the airflow helped lower their contents from hot to tepid, some times. Often it was useful to knock the dead bugs off before you drank, so some of them didn't join the water going into your mouth.
The Canvas water bagworks on the principle of evaporation.  The bag is slightly porous and the evaporation of the water that comes through the bag cools the water.  It's out on the radiator to get lots of air.  And I assume as a side benefit the cooler air passing around the bag may help cool the radiator.
My Dad had one.  Being born in 1889 I imagine he used them on trips.  I believe the bag is still around in the house or garage somewhere.  I'll have to look for it.
Wade
Water bagTo those of a certain age (like me), a familiar sight was what's sometimes called a "desert water bag" hanging in front of the radiator on passing cars. Here's a rare shot of one in actual use. I'd always assumed the water was strictly for the radiator, not human consumption.
I'm Next!I drank from one of those until 1953. Nice cold water. We always carried it out west from Texas to California and back. It was the only thing that was cool on our '38 Pontiac in the summer.
I wonder if he got to go to Disneyland when it opened in 1955? He seems to already be a fan of Mickey.
Why did they have seven kids?Because there wasn't room for eight of them in the machine.
My grandfather was about this man's age and always referred to any automobile as "the machine." I think that was rather common terminology for his generation.
Brother!This shot just makes me puddle up! 
Wow, a family of nine.Let us hope they did all right. 
[Papa was evidently no idler. -Dave]
The 2-Door Sedan Picturedis a 1927 Chevrolet Coach. The Coach was one of eight body styles available that year. It had a 171 cubic inch, overhead valve 4-cylinder engine and a 3-speed transmission. Chevrolet made just over 1,000,000 vehicles in 1927 and outsold Ford for the first time.
Meryl Streep lookalikeThe oldest daughter looks like she was self-consciously reaching to take off her glasses before the photo was taken. (She also bears a striking resemblance to Meryl Streep.) She must have been miserable crammed in the back of that car with five younger siblings (assuming that the baby rode up front with Mama).
Shoes for girls, barefoot boysInteresting to note that here we have a clear example of where the kids being barefoot is not an issue of poverty as we might have otherwise assumed. Seeing several barefoot boys in a cramped car in the Depression era would suggest parents too poor to provide shoes. But the fact that all the girls, even those younger than some of the boys, wear shoes proves that the boys are barefoot out of choice. Or perhaps because it was more socially acceptable or even expected for boys to run around that way but not for girls. 
(The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Great Depression, Kids)

Midwest Cafe: 1941
... The left car has California plates, the center is from Montana, and the right from Wyoming. Craig seems like an unlikely tourist ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/09/2022 - 11:04am -

September 1941. "Main street of Craig, Colorado. A new and thriving boom town in the Yampa River Valley." Photo by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
Straight 8, V-12, Straight 6The Zephyr, with its aerodynamic lines and V-12, was a marketing coup for Ford Motor Company in the depths of the Great Depression.  It came back for 1946, then was gone.  
Out of stateInteresting that none of the cars shown are from Colorado. The left car has California plates, the center is from Montana, and the right from Wyoming. Craig seems like an unlikely tourist destination, but perhaps the food at the Midwest Cafe was worth the detour.
Air ConditioningI enjoyed seeing the "air conditioned" sign.  It reminds me of the old Kool cigarette ad on many a restaurant door:  "Come in, it's KOOL inside."
The cars are the Stars!The partial car on the left is a 1940 Buick Special coupe. The middle car is a 1940 Lincoln Zephyr, and the car on the right is a 1937 Chevrolet Master Business Coupe, which came with only ONE (the left one) taillight!
This Boomer Boomed From CraigJust a bit after this photo was made, I was conceived in this place. My mother said there were reasons I was NOT born there. Mostly, she said it had to do with exiting the family house from the second floor in winter. Also, leaving the family car running all night in winter. Then, there was the unpleasant task of hanging laundry that froze nearly instantly, including my sister's diapers. 
Mom said people were neighborly. If you were starving in winter, they'd bring you a deer carcass to gnaw on and trade eggs for a cup of coffee. Also, Mom did say there were decent cafes & bars, but that they absorbed too much of my old man's time. 
So one blistering cold winter morning Mom packed her bags, determined to get the Hell out of there. My old man said, "If you'll wait a day, I'll go with you." 
Over the months ahead, there were reasons I was not born in Alaska, Washington, California nor Texas.
There's a whole armoire of inherited family photos in the next room, some of which almost certainly were processed by those folks at Irwin's.
KodaksUnlike in Canada, where we say Kodak and Lego (which are the actual names), in the US people say Kodaks and Legos.  Why?
["Kodaks" = Kodak cameras. - Dave]
+81 YearsThe Midwest Cafe was located at 520 Yampa Avenue, now the Spicy Basil.

Oh yes ...Yes  please, three over easy, hash browns, whole wheat and gravy, coffee for sure.
AAA approvalBet it was good back then.
KodaksInteresting how brand names take on a generic item identification. Kodaks refer to Kodak cameras specifically, but could have been used for all cameras?
Similarly in the UK 'Hoover' became used as a generic term for vacuum cleaning:  "I"m going to Hoover the carpets"
(The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Eateries & Bars, M.P. Wolcott, Small Towns)

Business Pardners: 1941
... Quarter Circle U, Brewster-Arnold Ranch Company. Birney, Montana." Photo by Marion Post Wolcott. View full size. Sartorial ... verses). Here's the first verse only: My home's in Montana, I wear a bandana, My spurs are of silver, My pony is gray. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/30/2015 - 7:41pm -

August 1941. "Cowboy in the corral at Quarter Circle U, Brewster-Arnold Ranch Company. Birney, Montana." Photo by Marion Post Wolcott. View full size.
Sartorial EclecticismIt's always refreshing to be reminded that working cowhands never dressed like the Mix-Autry-Cassidy crew, but I believe that's Mr. Rogers' cardigan he's wearing.
[A natty hybrid of Fred and Roy. - Dave]
Song from seventh gradeMany moons ago, the public school day would start with a prayer, a patriotic song and two old folk songs (our teacher was a piano player).  This photo brought to mind this song (which has four different verses).  Here's the first verse only:
My home's in Montana,
I wear a bandana,
My spurs are of silver,
My pony is gray.
While riding the ranges
My luck never changes,
With foot in the stirrups,
I'll gallop away.
To a Connecticut kid, Montana was a foreign land and I still have not been there.
Cruelty-FreeNote the bitless bridle.
HandsomeNow that is one handsome cowboy!
Bosal hackamoreA hackamore bridle can be harsh or cruel depending on the hands of the rider, just like a bridle with a bit, but more so.  A horse's face is soft with lots of nerve endings, and many small bones that protect the nasal passages.
TenderfootCowboy? With that hat and sweater: I think not.
(The Gallery, Horses, M.P. Wolcott)

Good Popcorn: 1942
August 1942. "Butte, Montana. Children are transported to Columbia Gardens, an outdoor amusement ... the roller coaster during high school. An article from The Montana Standard is quoted here . (The Gallery, Kids, Russell Lee) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/12/2012 - 6:09pm -

August 1942. "Butte, Montana. Children are transported to Columbia Gardens, an outdoor amusement resort, every Thursday during the summer by city buses." Medium-format nitrate negative by Russell Lee. View full size.
Better than goodThe boys on the right with the bad haircuts seem to be investigating what's for sale in the next booth.  According to its sign, it's better than Good, it's Fine!
That buckle can't be worn anywhere else but on the back of his dungarees, because it's not on a separate belt, but on a denim cinch that's sewn on as part of the jeans.
Chino BucklesWhen I was in high school in the 50's, the chino buckle served a purpose for guys.  If it was unbuckled, you were available for dating the ladies.  Buckled, you were going steady with someone.
Letter Until You Run Out of RoomGot enough adjectives on that butter, have ya'?
Butter adjectivesActually, "sweet cream" is a term of art in butter making. It indicates that the butter was made from uncultured cream as opposed to cultured cream. The latter is a generally richer flavor and predominantly European, though available in the more civilized parts of the US.
Women in pantsInterestingly two of the women in the picture seem to be wearing pants. That must have been something of a novelty.
[Definitely not in the rural West. - tterrace]
Brave parents!Trusting the two very dapper children wearing crisp, summery white clothes to a dusty amusement park in August.
Popcorn with sweet cream butterWell after reading JWP's interesting explanation about the butter, I could murder a few bags of that popcorn!  Yum!  Don't you just know that it had to be absolutely delicious?
Those Back-Belted PantsThat late 50's/early 60's style for trousers (can't remember buckles on jeans) were called "Ivy League" style. Ivy League caps (think sports car drivers' caps) had little "belts" on the back too.  These are also associated in my mind with "Dobie Gillis" three-quarter length shirt sleeves from the same general era.
[I had a pair of pants like that in high school, 1960-4. I was never quite sure if I looked cool or silly. - tterrace]
Fashion PoliceThese belts on the back of the pants were popular when I was in grade school in the middle to late 50s. However the nuns weren't too crazy about them because they would scratch the wood on the back of the desk chairs. 
Bucking the trendNot everyone in the picture was getting popcorn; the small boy on the left appears to have an ice cream on a stick.
Tonsorial ArtsThe two boys on the far right seem to be victims of the same barber, probably a close relative.
A Real CinchThe kid on the far right shows an early sense of style, wearing dungarees (my wife hates it when I use that dated word) with a buckle in the back. I had always thought this was a fashion statement from the late '50s when it became the in fashion for me and most others to wear chinos with that same useless buckle. Along with the obligatory madras shirt, of course.
The kid in the middleLooks like he is wearing his Keds.
Butter, Womens Pants, Madras and bucklesYes indeed, cultured butter is the best. I make my own from time to time adding cultures to "sweet cream" for a far more flavorful product. Re the panted females: I have a picture of my aunt wearing pants in 1943- the year of her death at age 18. She did not live out West but in southern Illinois. The back-buckled jeans was a surprise to me as well; I thought this was a late '50's thing when I was in grade school, along with madras shirts. Forgot how fashionable we all were back then. A final comment: I was the victim of a tonsorial artist who was a close relative until we got in an argument about her lack of skill. She quit right in the middle of a contested haircut and told me I could just go to the barbershop - and pay for it out of my pitiful allowance. I was broke but happier after that. We are now speaking again, but she still bosses me around. Mom, cut me some slack - I'm 64  
Columbia Gardens historyColumbia Gardens was a fantastic place in its day. My mother and her first husband used to go dancing there before the war. I remember riding the roller coaster during high school. An article from The Montana Standard is quoted here.
(The Gallery, Kids, Russell Lee)

Rancho Glutenous: 1941
... with combines on Schnitzler Corporation ranch at Froid, Montana. There are about 2,800 acres on this part of the ranch and they are ... I realized the bad advertising involved in naming Froid, Montana. Froid (pronounced fwad) is the French word for "cold", which is ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/17/2019 - 7:15pm -

August 1941. "Harvesting wheat with combines on Schnitzler Corporation ranch at Froid, Montana. There are about 2,800 acres on this part of the ranch and they are getting over forty bushels to the acre. It is one of the largest wheat ranches in the West." Medium format acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
"Ranch" ?? You would be hard pressed to find a  grain farmer who would refer to his farm as a ranch, "farm" would be the term, "wheat ranch'' ?  C'mon.
[Scroll up. - Dave]
Forecast - hot and dryHaving spent a bit of time in wheat country, I look at this picture and can relive exactly how it looks, feels, smells, and sounds.  You have to squint a bit because in the direction of the light tan wheat, with shiny stalks, it's really bright, it's hot and and (perpetually) windy, there's a smell of dust and the unmistakable smell of the moisture sucked up that is getting released as it's cut. There's a very "large" silence with rustling wheat from the wind, with the sound of the tractor a tiny source in a huge, huge space. 
Cold by any other nameHad to chuckle when I realized the bad advertising involved in naming Froid, Montana.  Froid (pronounced fwad) is the French word for "cold", which is appropriate for winter in Montana.  Maybe it was a Froid-ien slip.
The combiner ...... seems to be a McCormick-Deering No 31-T Harvester-Thresher.
Ranch!It seems the family referred to it as a ranch as well, at least per this obituary for a family member "She was raised in Froid, devoted to her father who was a leading newspaperman, wheat rancher, banker and state senator."  
Source:  https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/obituaries/obituary/article_b46635...
(The Gallery, Agriculture, Landscapes, M.P. Wolcott)

Double Duty: 1942
April 1942. "Wisdom, Beaverhead County, Montana. Accommodations at the Wisdom Hotel." Acetate negative by John Vachon ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/26/2021 - 1:02pm -

April 1942. "Wisdom, Beaverhead County, Montana. Accommodations at the Wisdom Hotel." Acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size.
Two things rarely seen these daysCatalogs and outhouses. Sears stopped producing its general catalog in 1993.  
It's a long, long way to necessaryYears ago I learned a German word. It is one of those complex German words that has a nuanced meaning involving a stressful situation, the distance from point A to point B and a toilet. Fahrfumpoopen.
Just a word from an experienced user. While waiting to finish, tear out a generous number of catalog pages and give them a good rubbing up. Much more satisfying than straight from the book.
Ya gotta love the Google Books search engineIssue 134 of the Montgomery Ward catalog (1941), Page 412.  https://books.google.com/books?id=uWhQAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA412&dq=sun+valley+pl...
No thanks!A hotel with an outhouse? And a shared outhouse at that? Umm ... maybe I don't want a time travel machine.
Thank GoodnessFor the camera angle ... I've used facilities like this in my younger days, and the combination of visual and olfactory assaults were a bit much.
No No, not the glossy pagesWhen I was a kid we were the only ones with a septic tank and flush toilet. My great-grandparents who lived behind us and my grandfather across the road had outhouses and used old telephone directories and the soft pages from Sears and Roebuck catalogs. When those were gone then the misery of the glossy pages began.
Re: Ya gotta love the Google Books search engineLooks like they kept the Sears catalog to use for actually buying things and the Monkey Wards catalog for ... oh well.
Two cowpunchers walked into a bar...On April 22, 1942, John Vachon wrote from Wisdom to his wife:
"Last night 2 soused cowpunchers had a real slugging knocking down rolling on the floor fight in the joint next door ... After a few minutes I ran and got my camera, and when I came back they were buying each other drinks and lighting cigarettes. They wouldn't fight again for the camera."
From the book, "John Vachon's America."
Careful!The seat appears smooth so splinters may not be an issue but watch out for those gaps in the board.  They are just waiting to pinch someone.
Slick paper?That's rough.
Deluxe OuthouseTravel through British Columbia and you will find that most Rest Stops on the highways feature modern concrete pit toilets and a few picnic tables. Regional parks in the Vancouver area also have outhouses; there is one just 1 km. from where I live.
On Lopez Island in Washington State there is this amazing pit toilet. From the outside it is a plain wood building, but when you open the door you are greeted with a spotless interior - including fresh lilacs.
Best title ever?Certainly right up there!!
Additionally, it looks like the wall covering was used once or twice as emergency TP -- that couldn't have been pleasant.
(The Gallery, Bizarre, John Vachon, Small Towns)

Oregon or Bust: 1936
... ] and family of Lemmon, South Dakota, near Missoula, Montana. Leaving the grasshopper-ridden and drought-stricken area for a new ... luck all the rest of the way. But we got around Missoula [Montana] and we was having a good time. See somebody along the road or ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/21/2012 - 12:31pm -

July 1936. "Vernon Evans [interview] and family of Lemmon, South Dakota, near Missoula, Montana. Leaving the grasshopper-ridden and drought-stricken area for a new start in Oregon or Washington. Expects to arrive at Yakima in time for hop picking. Makes about 200 miles a day in Model T Ford. Live in tent." Medium-format nitrate negative by Arthur Rothstein. View full size.
Vernon Evans interviewAn interview with Vernon Evans (at center in photo) about how this picture came to be taken:
Well, we was all without jobs here [in South Dakota]. And the jobs was so few  and far between at the time we left that you couldn't even buy a job. We had friends that we knew out in Oregon, and we decided we was going to go out there and see if we could find some work. We had $54 between the five of us when we started out from here to go to Oregon. And when we got to Oregon, I think we had about $16 left. We had absolutely no idea what we was going to do.
We all got in an old Model T and started for Oregon. We started out, and, I don't know, we got out six miles and broke the crankshaft. This old rancher, he had some old Model T motors laying around. He said we was welcome to a crankshaft if we wanted one. So, we went back and proceeded to tear the motor out of the old Model T and put the crankshaft in. And that night we made Baker, which is a matter of 24 miles from the night before.
Well, then we had pretty good luck all the rest of the way. But we got around Missoula [Montana] and we was having a good time. See somebody along the road or something. And here was this car sitting alongside the road, and a guy sleeping in it. So, we honked and hollered at him, having a good time. Pretty soon, this car was after us. We'd heard they was sending them back [police sending migrants back at state borders], wasn't letting 'em go on through. So, we thought, "Well, here's where we go back home." He motioned for us to pull over to the side of the road.
Anyhow, he come up and introduced himself [as Arthur Rothstein] and said he was with the Resettlement Administration and asked us questions about the conditions here and one thing or another. Where we was headed for. This "Oregon or Bust" on the back end was what took his eye. Then, he asked us if we cared if he took some pictures of us. Oh, we said, "I guess not." I think he took eight different poses. And then after we was out there [in Oregon] I guess probably it was that fall or winter, why these pictures started showing up in the different magazines and papers. Anyhow, we got out there and I went to work on the railroad.
Source: Transcribed from an audio clip at livinghistoryfarm.org
SeinfeldesqueLooks like Vernon is channeling Kramer.
I hope one of themgot a job as a sign painter with the scripted serif-laden destination sign.
"200 Miles Per Day"When things were running right and the roads were good, Model T's might be able to average 35 miles per hour.  Looking at the road condition in this photo and dropping the average to 25 mph for rest, gas and food stops means the five of them spent 8 hours a day in that little Ford.  Sounds like fun!!!
Love the ladies' pantsThose have to be the most stylish pants I have seen from the depression outside of a movie. What a sense of style she had during those difficult times.
(The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Great Depression)
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