Viewliner Ltd.

Universal City Studios

2012-01-23T11:24:00.000-08:00

Nothin' but fun here. ENJOY!

"EUROPE, U.S.A." - A ride through a French street, part of "trip around the world" feature of Universal City tours.

Fearless young tourist on the receiving end of bullwhip demonstration by movie stunt men - Universal City Studios.

The Munsters' lab, one of the highlights on tour at Universal City Studios, complete with Herman Munster and the whole Munster family.

The Deco Fair

2012-01-18T00:01:00.000-08:00

Here are 5 of my favorite 1939 New York World's Fair postcards.

You gotta love all that DECO!

General Electric Building - The exhibit building will feature three general sections, one devoted to product display, one having a "house of magic" auditorium, and Steinmetz Hall, in which 10 million volts of artificial lightning will be generated and discharged in spectacular fashion for Fair visitors. Harrison and Fouilhoux are the architects.

Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Building - The building is 25,200 square feet and its two great wings are 55 feet high. The great fountain in the center court, 120 feet high, plays a "synchronous symphony of color, sound and water."

Electric Products Building - Mural by Martha Axley depicts the use of electricity in modern industrial life. Architects: Walker and Gillette.

The Du Pont Building - A series of giant retorts and vessels, mounting 100 feet into the sky and filled with gases and liquids in ever changing colors, will emphasize the importance of chemistry in the Du Pont Company's exhibit. The sixty foot mural on the semi-circular wall which encloses the tower and forms the fascade of the building will depict the wonders of chemistry. Walter Dorwin Teague is the designer and A.M. Erickson the engineer.

The Marine Transportation Hall - Twin ship prows, each 80 feet high (30 feet higher than the nose of the Normandie), give a nautical flavor to the main entrance. Sea effect is further enhanced by boat decks, 150 foot mast and large basin for display of yachts and cruisers. Architects of the building were Ely Jacques Kahn, William Muschenheim and Morrison J. Brounn.

Martin Luther King

2012-01-16T01:00:00.000-08:00

The Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.
Photographer: Walter Bennett, 1957.

Freedom March (R-L): Matthew Ahmann, Floyd McKissick,
Martin Luther King Jr.and Rev. Eugene Carson Blake.
Washington August 28, 1963 - Photographer: Robert Kelley.

Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. giving his "I Have A Dream"
speech during the Freedom March. Washington, DC,
August 28, 1963 - Photographer: Francis Miller.

Photos from the LIFE magazine photo archive.

More Signs of LIFE

2012-01-12T01:00:00.000-08:00

Mobil Gas station, named "The Happy Landing" featuring a converted commercial passenger plane with Mobil flying red horse logo on its wing, used both as an office and a promotional gimmick to lure customers - Los Angeles 1936 - LIFE Photographer: Alfred Eisenstaedt.

Neon sign and spotlights being used for grand opening of a Jim Dandy Supermarket - December 1945 - LIFE Photographer: Walter Sanders.

A 19 foot chair being used as an advertising stunt in Washington, DC - October 1958 - LIFE Photographer: Ed Clark.

Night exterior of Eavey supermarket - Ft Wayne, Indiana - September 1957 - LIFE Photographer: Francis Miller.

A sign advertising the farm district in Dell City, Texas - October 1960 - LIFE Photographer: Joseph Scherschel.

LINK: LIFE Magazine Photo Archives

Burlington Northern

2012-01-05T09:32:00.001-08:00

Burlington Northern Railroad - EMD E9(A) - West of Naperville, Illinois, May 22, 1971 - A very early Amtrak "Denver Zephyr", with 4 domes.

Burlington Northern Railroad - EMD E8(A) - La Grange Road, La Grange, Illinois, August 17, 1973 - Note combine to provide head-end power to the bi-levels.

Burlington Northern Railroad - EMD E8(A) - Roosevelt Road, Chicago, Illinois, October 31, 1970 - Another "dinky" leaves downtown Chicago for points west.

All pictures copyright George W. Hamlin - Used with permission - Please visit George's website here.

Happy 2012

2011-12-31T00:01:00.000-08:00

~ Circa 1912 postcard ~ I wish you all the best in 2012 ! ~

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-19T01:00:00.000-08:00

These two turn of the century postcards celebrated Christmas and the holiday season over a hundred years ago. The second one depicts what it is all about ........................... Family!

A lot has changed since then, some good, some bad.

But the one thing that never changes is the enjoyment of family and friends. So during this Christmas season, I wish you and your families all the best and hope the New Year brings you all continued good health and success.

On Board the UP

2011-12-16T06:15:00.000-08:00

Here are some great 1950s postcards from The Union Pacific Railroad depicting interior views of some of their iconic streamlined "City" trains.

"Astra Dome" dining car on the "City of Los Angeles" Domeliner - Here's an unusual travel treat; the enjoyment of wonderful food, freshly prepared, while viewing the constantly changing scenery... the verdant valleys and rolling hills, palisades of vari-colored stone, and other typical western scenery.

The "City of Denver" Dining Car - When you board this sleek overnight Streanliner in Chicago or Denver, you're assured of a marvelous meal, graciously served, in the attractively appointed dining car. Traveling in Pullman or reserved Coach seat you arrive fully refreshed.

Pullman Rooms Offer Privacy and Comfort - You enjoy the comfort and facilities of a hotel room when you reserve sleeping car room space on Union Pacific trains. The touch of a button provides convenient "room service" by a thoughtful porter.

Cruising Florida

2011-12-11T09:08:00.000-08:00

Ocean Liners bring hundreds of sun seekers to Miami's eternal sunshine.

Miami is America's only combined air and sea world port.

Yacht passing through Drawbridge over Canal, Delray Beach

S.S. Florida - Havana Bound - Miami Florida

Palatial Cruise Ship leaving Miami Harbor

TAKE A BOAT RIDE - Conducted Scenic and Historical Cruise of St. Augustine Waterfront and beautiful Matanzas Bay, featuring 75 Points of Interest, aboard the 64 foot Pleasure-boat "Victoty II".

Cruises start from Usina's Bay Street Dock near Fort, where Fares and Schedule may be found. Phone 1819-J or write Captain Francis E. Usina, Box 301, St. Augustine, Florida.

70 Years Ago

2011-12-07T01:00:00.000-08:00

December 7th, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt, President of the United States of America.

Destroyer USS Shaw exploding after her forward magazine was detonated - National Archives Photo.

Pearl Harbor, taken by surprise, during the Japanese aerial attack. The USS West Virginia aflame - National Archives Photo.

Three U.S. battleships are hit from the air during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. From left are: USS West Virginia, USS Tennessee, both damaged; and USS Arizona, sunk - U.S. Navy Photo.

Beverly Hills 1950s

2011-12-02T16:40:00.001-08:00

Beverly Drive - Beverly Hills, California - Famous for its exclusive shops, in the heart of this celebrated residential community surrounded by the City of Los Angeles.

Beaumont 1950s

2011-12-02T16:38:00.001-08:00

~ Highway 99 near Beaumont Ave, Beaumont, California ~

Happy B-Day Mr. Clemens!

2011-11-30T01:00:00.000-08:00

Samuel Langhorne Clemens was born in Florida, Missouri, on this day in 1835. He is better known by the pen name Mark Twain. Twain is most noted for his novels, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (which has since been called the Great American Novel) and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

Twain enjoyed immense public popularity, and his keen wit and incisive satire earned him praise from both critics and peers. American author William Faulkner called Twain "the father of American literature."

Here are some quotes attributed to Mark Twain:

Always do right. This will gratify some people and astonish the rest.

Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.

Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.

If you tell the truth you don't have to remember anything.

I am opposed to millionaires, but it would be dangerous to offer me the position.

Greyhound Bus Lines

2011-11-26T01:00:00.000-08:00

The Greyhound Bus Lines was founded in Hibbing, Minnesota in 1914 by Carl Wickman, a Swedish born immigrant. In 1926 Wickman's bus operations became known as the Greyhound Lines.

Wickman continued to expand the company and by 1927 his buses were making transcontinental trips from California to New York. Today, it is headquartered in Dallas, Texas and is a subsidiary of the British bus operator FirstGroup plc.

One of Florida Greyhound's most popular Expense-Paid Tours follows the famous Overseas Highway from Miami to Key West - southernmost city in the United States - along 116 scenic miles of bridges and tropic islands. (Postcard Circa 1940's)

Greyhound Bus Terminal, Washington D.C. (Postcard Circa 1940's)

Greyhound Bus Depot, Charleston, West Virginia. (Postcard Circa 1940's)

Greyhound Bus Terminal, Cincinnati, Ohio. (Postcard Circa 1940's)

Cleveland Greyhound Terminal, Cleveland, Ohio. The beautiful new Greyhound Terminal is the largest in the world. Twenty-one loading platforms busy 24 hours a day provide fast bus service to all 48 states, Canada and Mexico. More than 300 people can be seated in the extra-spacious curve-lined lobby. This luxurious bus terminal cost over $1,250,000 to build, serves over 3,000,000 people each year. (Postcard Circa 1940's)

Through Vacation Wonderland by Greyhound Scenicruiser. Thousands of vacation-bound travelers enjoy these luxurious dual-level air-conditioned buses operated by the Greyhound lines between hundreds of cities and vacation areas throughout the United States and Canada. (Postcard Copyright Dexter 1961)

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-23T01:00:00.000-08:00

I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and a great Holiday Season. And please do what you can to Support Our Troops. This is the time of year when it is always the toughest for our men and women in the military. Especially the ones so far from home.

It's Thanksgiving already, so you get to see this picture again for the 4th time...

From one turkey to another, here is my favorite Thanksgiving Day picture taken by me at The Turkey Farm outside Manti, Utah in 1976. The noise was unbearable!

Conrail Trains - 1977

2011-11-21T08:00:00.000-08:00

The Consolidated Rail Corporation, commonly known as Conrail, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeast U.S. between 1976 and 1999. The federal government created it to take over the potentially profitable lines of bankrupt carriers, including the Penn Central Transportation Company and Erie Lackawanna Railway.

With the benefit of regulatory changes, Conrail began to turn a profit in the 1980s and was turned over to private investors in 1987.

The two remaining Class I railroads in the East, CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern Railway, agreed in 1997 to split the system approximately equally, returning rail freight competition to the Northeast by essentially undoing the 1968 merger of the Pennsylvania Railroad and New York Central Railroad that created Penn Central.

Conrail EMD FP7 - Engine facility - Conway, Pennsylvania, November 11, 1977 - An eclectic early Conrail group. Note that all three colors of classification lights are lit on the 2479.

Conrail GG-1 - Engine facility - Enola, Pennsylvania, May 21, 1977 - "Rivets" in newly acquired patriotic dress.

Conrail EMD GP40 - Enola, Pennsylvania, May 21, 1977 - All in the family now... except for that red unit at the left, which is now Delaware & Hudson.

Conrail GG-1 - Enola, Pennsylvania, May 21, 1977 - A colorful "Rivets" and friends.

Conrail EMD GP38-2 - Conway, Pennsylvania, November 11, 1977 - Still relatively early in the transition era.

LINK: Please visit George W. Hamlin's Transportation Website for more information and photos.

Lackland AFB

2011-11-14T01:00:00.000-08:00

Lackland Air Force Base is a base of the United States Air Force operated by the Air Education and Training Command (AETC). It is located in the western area of San Antonio, Texas.

Construction on Lackland Air Force Base began in 1941, and it was originally part of Kelly Field. One year later, it became an independent organization, the San Antonio Aviation Cadet Center.

In 1948, the facility was named Lackland AFB after Brigadier General Frank Lackland.

Greetings from Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonia, Texas - The Gateway to the Air Force.

Because thousands of young men report to Lackland Air Force Base as civilians and graduate as trained airmen, the base has become known as Gateway to the Air Force. The Base is also site of the Air Force's only Officer Candidate School.

This is Lackland Air Force Base, Texas - Martin B-61 "Matador" pilotless bomber - Located in the background is the "History and Traditions Classroom".

Air Force trainees return from parade by way of the Highway 13 overpass. The highway divides the base. Lackland AFB, the largest training center in the free world, is located nine miles southwest of downtown San Antonio.

Lackland AFB - Matador is one of the new type of Guided Missles, which denotes the newest phase of Air Research and development.

Link to Lackland Air Force Base website.

11.11.11 - Veterans Day

2011-11-11T01:00:00.000-08:00

The Veterans Day National Ceremony is held each year on November 11th at Arlington National Cemetery . The ceremony commences precisely at 11:00 a.m. with a wreath laying at the Tomb of the Unknowns and continues inside the Memorial Amphitheater with a parade of colors by veterans' organizations and remarks from dignitaries. The ceremony is intended to honor and thank all who served in the United States Armed Forces.

Newport & Balboa Postcards

2011-11-01T10:36:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of my favorite 1950s Orange County postcards. ENJOY!

Dory Fish Market - Newport Beach, California - At this picturesque market one may buy fish right from the man who caught them earlier in the day!

Balboa Island - Newport Harbor, California - On South Bay Front of the Island, looking across the Harbor to Balboa and beyond to Newport Beach.

Happy Halloween to All!

2011-10-30T17:40:00.000-07:00

VAN RIPER'S FARMS, INC.

Established in 1791

524 Chestnut Ridge Road - Tel. (201) 391-6555

Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey 07675

For your pleasure, we have constructed this "bewitching" display. Our vegetables, fruits and flowers are among the finest grown in the heart of Bergen County's finest farmland. (Dexter Press postcard)

Nightime at the Fair

2011-10-24T13:03:00.001-07:00

A Century of Progress International Exposition was the name of a World's Fair held in Chicago from 1933 to 1934 to celebrate the city's centennial. The theme of the fair was technological innovation. Its motto was "Science Finds, Industry Applies, Man Adapts" and its architectural symbol was the Sky Ride, a transporter bridge perpendicular to the shore on which one could ride from one side of the fair to the other.

Magnificent ad the view is in sublight, it becomes a real wonder at night, with thousands of colorful light, many concealed, thereby developing indirect lighting. This view shows Northerly Island with Lake Michigan in the background.

One of the most interesting features of Chicago's World's Fair is the "Sky Ride". The towers are 600 feet high. Double decked rocket cars run suspended from 4 cable tracks between and around the two towers.

Here is the supreme thrill of a lifetime - a ride on the Sky Ride, an unequalled view of the Fair Grounds and the City of Chicago from rocket cars suspended beneath the rails. Approximately 1,800 feet apart: the rocket cars shoot across this space at a level of 210 feet.

Colorful, dazzling lights, some soft and dim, others dharp and contrasting - a magnificent sight to behold. This view, taken from the observation platform of the Sky Ride, 629 feet high, shows the Electrical Building in the foreground, across the lagoon showing a few of the many general exhibit buildings.

The Interior Court of the Hall of Science by Night, brilliantly illuminated by indirect colored flood lights.

(Postcards published by C.T. Art Colortone, Chicago and distributed by Max Rigot Selling Company, Chicago, for the Century of Progress Exposition)

Happy 100th Mary!

2011-10-21T05:19:00.000-07:00

Mary Blair (October 21, 1911 – July 26, 1978)

The Beauty of Cyd

2011-10-12T01:00:00.000-07:00

Cyd Charrise has always been one of my favorite actresses, so here are three very nice pictures of a beautiful and very talented woman.

Cyd Charisse entered films in the 1940s. Her roles usually focussed on her abilities as a dancer, and she was paired with Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly. Her films include Singin' in the Rain (1952), The Band Wagon (1953) and Silk Stockings (1957). She stopped dancing in films in the late 1950s, but continued acting in film and television.

In her later years, she discussed the history of the Hollywood musical in documentaries, and participated in That's Entertainment! III in 1994.

She was awarded the National Medal of the Arts and Humanities in 2006.

Disneyland & Knotts PCs

2011-10-06T13:51:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of my favorite Disneyland and Knott's Postcards. ENJOY!

TREASURE TRAILS, Inc.

Disneyland Hotel Plaza - 1440 So. West Street

Anaheim, Calif. 92802 - (714) 635-4271

World's finest selection of Authentic American Indian arts & crafts.

Pueblo Indian girl "Cradle Star" models beaded Indian costume.

1960's Dexter Postcard by Locantore - Costa Mesa, Calif - Card #39077-C.

Prospector and Indian Chief - Knotts Berry Farm and Ghost Town

Buena Park, California - Mid 1950's Postcard.

LIFE With Jayne - Revisted

2011-09-23T01:00:00.000-07:00

I am sorry I haven't been posting regularly. But I have been very busy lately, which is a real good thing. As a matter of fact it is AWESOME! So here we revisit a post I did about 2 years ago of my all-time favorite beautiful lady... Jayne Mansfield. ENJOY!

Jayne Mansfield on the cover of LIFE, April 23, 1956 - Photographer: Peter Stackpole.

Jayne Mansfield posing with intensity, at home. Hollywood, CA March 1956 - Photographer: Peter Stackpole.

Bodacious actress Jane Mansfield clad in a revealing negligee as she looks over newspapers with her pet chihuahua dog in her lap, at home. Hollywood March 1956 - Photographer: Peter Stackpole.

Bikini clad actress Jayne Mansfield posing with shapely hot water bottle likenesses floating around her in her pool. Hollywood, CA 1957 - Photographer: Allan Grant.

Actress Jayne Mansfield, who won violin playing contest as a child, enjoying some eleventh hour fiddling in the company of her dogs on poolside terrace before her wedding in 1958 - Photographer: Ralph Crane.

Sex symbol actress Jayne Mansfield on the stairs of her Sunset Boulevard home, decorated with posters and magazine covers featuring her image. Los Angeles, CA 1960 - Photographer: Allan Grant.

Actress Jayne Mansfield, wearing bikini in Berlin, Germany 1961 - Photographer: Stan Wayman.

LINK: LIFE Magazine Photo Archive

Got Gas?

2011-09-12T05:42:00.000-07:00

Gulf Summer Grade No-Nox gasoline - 1951 magazine advertisement.

Texaco Sky Chief gasoline with Petrox - 1956 magazine advertisement.

The Peanut Store

2011-09-02T09:06:00.000-07:00

Here are some very cool 1950s Planters Peanuts store advertising postcards.

The Peanut Store On Route 1 South of Richmond, Virginia - The Home of Mr. Peanut where world famous PLANTERS PEANUTS are sold. See PLANTERS PEANUTS roasted right before your eyes and mail them to your friends back home. See Mr. Peanuts' complete line of souvenirs.

The Peanut Store - 6424 Expressway, Jacksonville, Florida - The home of MR. PEANUT where world famous PLANTERS PEANUTS are sold. See PLANTERS PEANUTS roasted right before your eyes and mail them to your friends back home. See Mr. Peanuts' complete line of souvenirs.

LAX Revisited

2011-08-20T01:00:00.000-07:00

Aerial view of Los Angeles Municipal Airport on Army Day, circa 1931 - Publication: Los Angeles Times - 1931.

The New Theme Building at Los Angeles International Airport, 1961. The newly expanded airport will be in full operation by May 1. A restaurant, 75 ft. above ground in this building, is scheduled to open next Saturday. Above the restaurant is an observation deck - Publication: Los Angeles Times - January 8, 1961.

Esther F. Hall and granddaughter Erika watching 747 jumbo jetliner, on route to LAX, fly over their home in Los Angeles - Publication: Los Angeles Times - September 27, 1973.

Men and women flight attendants during their training in Los Angeles. The airlines are hiring stewards now, as well as stewardesses. These trainees are about to practice emergency evacuations - Publication: Los Angeles Times - December 11, 1972.

Five flight attendants modeling mod inspired and culturally influenced uniforms. Airlines are getting away from traditional stewardess uniforms as these girls attest: Jeanne Kendall, 21, American, Mary Anne Touhy, 22, Western, Junko Kawai, Japan, Sherron Goldizen, 22, Continental, and Bonnie Campbell, 20, American - Publication: Los Angeles Times - March 22, 1967.

LINK: Much more at the UCLA Archives

Happy Birthday Esther !

2011-08-08T00:05:00.000-07:00

Esther Williams born August 8, 1921 in Inglewood, California, is a retired American competitive swimmer and MGM movie star. Williams set multiple national and regional swimming records in her late teens as part of the Los Angeles Athletic Club swim team.

Unable to compete in the 1940 Summer Olympics because of the outbreak of World War II, Williams joined Billy Rose's Aquacade. (More about Esther on Wikipedia)

It was at Aquacade that Williams first attracted attention from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer scouts. MGM's head, Louis B. Mayer, had been looking for a female sports star for the studio to compete with Fox's figure skating star, Sonja Henie. Williams signed her contract with MGM in 1941.

Esther Williams and Van Johnson starring in the motion picture "Thrill of a Romance" released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1945.

Rawlins, Wyoming

2011-08-06T10:38:00.001-07:00

It's funny how sometimes great minds think alike. Major Pepperidge over at Gorillas Don't Blog posted a few great pictures of this town today. Huh !!! Incredible coincidence !!! What are the odds?

Rawlins is a city in Carbon County, Wyoming. It was named for Union General John Aaron Rawlins, who camped in the locality in 1867.

Panorama view of Rawlins, from Monument Hill - Cattle and oil metropolis of the plains and long a tourist center. Located in South Central Wyoming on the Lincoln Highway "U.S. 30" and U.S. 287.

1960's Plastichrome Postcard published by Geo. Mc Co., Box 7146, Murray, Utah. (This guy must be the pre-cursor to the McPostcard chain of stores we all know and love today!)

Resting Places

2011-07-29T09:58:00.001-07:00

My fascination with motels and roadside America in general is never ending. Having traveled to many like destinations back in the day. Here are some great examples of "resting places" postcards from my collection. Enjoy!

Sun Dial Motel on U.S. 66 and 89 - Gateway to Grand Canyon - Williams, Arizona - Offering nicely furnished, fully carpeted units with tubs and showers. In the tall pine country of Northern Arizona - Phone 257 - Doc and Bea Starkey, Managers.

KON TIKI HOTEL - 24th Street & Van Buren, Phoenix, Arizona - Fabulous Polynesean atmospher in the midst of Phoenix. Only minutes to all business and points of interest. One "short mile" from Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. - Come to Kon Tiki and take away a life long memory.

Crestview Motel on U.S. 60-70 West - Wickenburg, Arizona - Phone: Mutual 4-5522 - 14 nicely furnished units, air conditioned by refrigeration. Full tile showers and Panelray vented heat. Cafe adjoining.

N-H Trailer Ranch - 1360 North 3rd Street, Laramie, Wyoming - 35 Pull Through Spaces for Overnighters or Permanent Parking - Woodall 3 Star Rating - Showers and Laundromat - Highway 30 - 287 North.

DENTON CREEK MOTEL - 374 Lake Shore Drive on M-55 & M-18, Zone 16. Prudenville, Michigan. 8 Modern Housekeeping & Overnight Units with Private Beach on Beautiful Houghton Lake. Electric Refrigeration, Good Hunting & Fishing. Boats & Motors. Open Year Around - Phone 2465. Mr. & Mrs. Albert Lettau, Owners.

Holiday Inn Hotel Courts - Memphis, Tenn - 4 Locations - U.S. Hwy. 70, 79 & 64 East - U.S. Hwy. 61 South - U.S. Hwy. 51 South - U.S. Hwy. 51 North - 450 Rooms, 450 Baths. 100% Air Conditioned, Steam Heat. Restaurant in Connection; Sample Rooms. Banquet and Convention Facilities for 500 in "Holiday Room" - Phone 5-7381.

1950s Palm Springs

2011-07-26T01:00:00.000-07:00

Here are some great slides of Palm Springs life in trailer parks and hotels during the 1950s. ENJOY!

Buckleys Trailer Park - 1954.

The El Mirador Hotel - 1953.

The El Picador Hotel - 1954.

The Dexter's Trailer - 1953.

LINK: Many more pictures at 20th Century Nostalgia from vieilles_annonces on Flickr.

Las Vegas Past

2011-07-24T09:02:00.000-07:00

NEW FRONTIER HOTEL, LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - Crash Corrigan and his party of Hollywood celebrities arriving at this new "Out of this World" hotel, where the spectacular Venus Room nightly offers the finest of stage show productions. The hotel's Cloud 9 Lounge and Planet Room are unique and indescribably beautiful.

THE HOTEL FLAMINGO, LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - This famous hotel is considered one of the most beautiful and luxurios on the Las Vegas Strip. There is certainly truth to the slogan, "If you haven't seen the Fabulous Flamingo you haven't seen Las Vegas." This hotel has been the setting for many of Hollywood's great Film and TV productions.

OLD WEST MOTEL - 801-817 South Fifth Street - Las Vegas, Nev - Tel. DU 2-3700 - Fine Air Conditioned Rooms, Carpeted Tile Showers, Telephones, Circulating Ice Water and Free Ice - Heated Pool - Sun Deck, Shaded Area - Near Downtown, near Strip, on Hiway 91 - Reservations Suggested.

More All American Girls

2011-07-23T01:00:00.000-07:00

The term pin-up is documented back at least to the 1890s. A pin-up girl, also known as a pin-up model, is a model whose mass produced pictures see wide appeal as popular culture.

Here are some more 1950's and 1960's pin-up postcards from my collection. No tattoos or piercing here... Thank Goodness! ENJOY!

Come Fly With Me! - Part 2

2011-07-22T10:00:00.000-07:00

Here are some more very cool 1960's airport postcards from my collection. I can tell you that it was exciting and fun to fly back then. ENJOY!

Theme Building - The central structure of the new "Jet Age" International Airport of Los Angeles, California. The entire design planning is different and unique - featuring an aerial view dining room under the dome.

A scene at the Greater Pittsburgh International Airport, in which planes of Eastern, TWA and Lake Central Airlines are featured.

Peoria Airport Illinois - Peoria's jet age airport is located 4.5 miles southwest of downtown Peoria; comprises 1,200 acres; four runways up to 8,000 feet long; is headquarters for various governmental groups including the 169th Fighter Squadron, Air National Guard.

Sky Harbor Airport - Phoenix, Arizona - Spectacular murals by world famous artist, Paul Coze, adorn the Lobby. This center panel "Water and Fire" shows the Phoenix Bird aflame sitting on a date tree, burning himself to be reborn from the ashes. Smoke turns into rain clouds and water collected by Roosevelt Dam. Native materials were used in building the bird.

Come Fly With Me! - Part 1

2011-07-21T14:32:00.000-07:00

Here are some very cool 1960's airport postcards from my collection. I can tell you that it was exciting and fun to fly back then. Part 2 tomorrow. ENJOY!

Cleveland Hopkins Airport Ohio - 3,150,000 people pass through the Cleveland terminal annually. The Cleveland Hopkins Airport, with twelfe major airlines, serves the "Best Location in the Nation" with complete passenger and freight facilities.

Quad City Airport, one of the finest in the midwest. Serviced by three major airlines - United, Braniff & Ozark. 50 daily flights, both propeller and jets. Located on Route 80 at Miline, Illinois.

Bradley Field, Windsor Locks, Connecticut - Serving Hartford, Connecticut and Springfield, Massachussets. Over 90 scheduled flights each day. Seven Air Lines use this Terminal.

Port Erie Air Terminal - Erie, Pennsylvania.

The Pharmacy

2011-07-13T01:00:00.000-07:00

The Peoples chain of drug stores was based in Washington, D.C. and founded by Malcolm Gibbs in 1904 and by 1930 the chain had 110 stores. The following photographs were taken in the 1920's and early 1930's. Here is a link to another Peoples Drug Store post I did in January 2009.

Peoples Drug Store at 14th and Park Road, Washington, D.C.

Interior of Peoples Drug Store, 7th and M Sts, Washington, D.C.

In 1970, Peoples had 252 stores operating in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, New York, and New Jersey. That year there were 5,500 employees.

Interior of Peoples Drug Store, 804 H St N.E., Washington, D.C.

In 1984, Peoples was acquired by the Canadian conglomerate Imasco, the Canadian arm of British American Tobacco. Peoples and its divisions had close to 800 stores and became one of the country's leading drug chains.

Dixie Soda Fountian Co., Peoples Drug Store #40, Washington D.C.

Peoples Drug Store, interior, 7th and K Sts, Washington, D.C.

In late 1990, CVS Corporation purchased Peoples. The Peoples name was considered to be too strong a name to change it to CVS/pharmacy immediately, but was ultimately changed in May of 1994, just a few months before the Peoples Drug name would have celebrated its 90th anniversary.

LINK: These glass negative photographs are part of the National Photo Company Collection at the Library of Congress.

Summer Camp

2011-07-05T10:05:00.000-07:00

I came across these vintage summer camp photographs a couple of days ago and the story that goes along with them. And because I believe that family and children are what it is all about, I thought you might enjoy this. Give a little if you can!

For years, the Washington Evening Star raised money to support the summer camps. A 1950 editorial cartoon by Jim Berryman encourages readers to donate. When the Evening Star folded in 1981, The Washington Post took over the campaign.

For many poor children, the tents of Camp Good Will in Rock Creek Park were their first taste of the outdoors.

The Associated Charities summer outings program took poor Washington children on day trips to the country.

In 1904, Associated Charities established Camp Good Will, which was where the Rock Creek Golf Course is today.

Camp Good Will was for whites only, so black Washingtonians raised money for a summer camp for African Americans. Camp Pleasant was established in Tuxedo, in Prince George's County.

Founded in 1882, Associated Charities worked to improve the lives of the poorest Washingtonians. Volunteers visited slum dwellings such as these. Today, Associated Charities is called Family Matters of Greater Washington, and Camp Moss Hollow is the direct descendant of Camp Good Will.

All photographs courtesy of Family Matters of Greater Washington.

Happy Fourth All!

2011-07-04T01:00:00.000-07:00

Holiday Inn

2011-06-25T14:00:00.000-07:00

Kemmons Wilson initially came up with the idea after a family road trip to Washington, D.C., during which he was disappointed by the quality and consistency provided by the roadside motels of the time.

The name Holiday Inn was given to the original hotel by his architect Eddie Bluestein as a joke, in reference to the Bing Crosby movie. The first Holiday Inn opened on Summer Avenue in Memphis, the main highway to Nashville, in 1952. (More Info on Wikipedia)

"Your Host From Coast to Coast"

Holiday Inn 180th Street - Miami Beach, Florida - 18001 Collins Avenue - Swim time at the beach or pool, delightful dining in the attractive restaurant, game time at the recreation area, refreshment time in the cocktail lounge or at the pool patio - All await you at the Holiday Inn - Tel: 947-0671.

Holiday Inn - Lake City, Florida - U.S. 90 at Interstate 75 - Post Office Drawer 1239 - Phone 752-3901 - Air Conditioned, Restaurant, Swimming Pool, Free TV and Free Holidex Reservations.

The UP City Trains

2011-06-19T15:53:00.000-07:00

Here are some vintage 1940's Union Pacific Railroad "City Trains" luggage labels. Awesome stuff! ENJOY!

The City of Portland was a named passenger train operated by the Union Pacific Railroad and Chicago and North Western Railway between Chicago, Illinois, and Portland, Oregon. It started in June 1935, using the M-10001 streamliner trainset with only one set of equipment the train left each of its terminals five times a month. It was the first of the Chicago-to-Coast streamliners, and its 39 hour 45 minute schedule became the standard. (More on Wikipedia)

The City of San Francisco was a streamlined passenger train operated jointly by the Chicago and North Western Railway, the Southern Pacific Railroad, and the Union Pacific Railroad. The train ran between Chicago, Illinois and Oakland, California, with a ferry connection to San Francisco.

The City of San Francisco is perhaps best remembered for the January 1952 event when a blizzard in the Sierra Nevada Mountains entrapped the train for six days at Donner Pass, California. (More on Wikipedia)

The City of Denver was a passenger train operated jointly by the Chicago and North Western and Union Pacific railroads. The train operated on both railroads' rights of way between Chicago, Illinois, and Denver, Colorado. In 1955 the Milwaukee Road assumed the service, replacing the Chicago and Northwestern between Chicago and Omaha. This train service was the fastest long-distance passenger train in the world when it debuted in 1936. (More on Wikipedia)

The City of Los Angeles was a streamlined passenger train that ran between Chicago, Illinois and Los Angeles, California, via Omaha, Nebraska and Ogden, Utah. Between Omaha and Los Angeles, the train was operated by the Union Pacific Railroad. East of Omaha, the train was operated by the Chicago and North Western Railway until 1955, and by the Milwaukee Road thereafter.

This train was the top-of-the-line for UP, which marketed it as a direct competitor to the Super Chief, a streamlined passenger train operated by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, and the Golden State, a streamlined passenger train jointly operated by the Rock Island and Southern Pacific railroads. (More on Wikipedia)

Streets of LA

2011-06-15T14:55:00.000-07:00

For your viewing pleasure, here are some more of my favorite postcards of the Los Angeles area during the 1950s. Oh! how things have changed. ENJOY!

BRAND BOULEVARD - Glendale, California - New modern shops on Glendale's main thoroughfare. A city beautiful, nestled in California mountains.

SEVENTH AND BROADWAY - Los Angeles, California - The heartbeat of a busy metropolis.

SAN FERNANDO ROAD - Burbank, California - New modern shops on Burbank's main thoroughfare, constantly increasing with Burbank's fabulous growth.

Jack Delano - Photographer

2011-06-08T01:00:00.000-07:00

Photographers working for the U.S. government's Farm Security Administration (FSA) and later the Office of War Information (OWI) between 1939 and 1944 made approximately 1,600 color photographs depicting life in the United States.

Jack Delano was one of those photographers. The following are a sample of some of the 100's of pictures he took during this period. These photographs are now housed at the Library of Congress. Wikipedia Link for Jack Delano.

1940 - Sylvia Sweets Tea Room corner of School & Main streets, Brockton, Massachusetts.

1943 - View of part of the South Water Street freight depot of the Illinois Central Railroad, Chicago, Illinois.

1940 - Trucks outside of a starch factory, Caribou, Aroostook County, Maine.

1943 - Pennsylvania R.R. ore docks, unloading ore from a lake freighter by means of Hulett unloaders, Cleveland, Ohio.

1943 - Freight Depot of the U.S. Army consolidating station, Chicago, Illinois.

1943 - C&NW Railroad, putting the finishing touches on a rebuilt caboose at the rip tracks at Proviso yard, Chicago, Illinois.

1940 - Children in the tenement district, Brockton, Massachusetts.

D-Day June 6th, 1944

2011-06-06T01:00:00.000-07:00

The Normandy Landings were the first operations of the Allied Powers' invasion of Normandy, also known as Operation Neptune and Operation Overlord, during World War II. D-Day for the operation, postponed 24 hours, became June 6, 1944, H-Hour was 6:30 am. The assault was conducted in two phases: an air assault landing of American and British airborne divisions shortly after midnight, and an amphibious landing of Allied infantry and armoured divisions on the coast of France.

The operation was the largest single-day invasion of all time, with over 130,000 troops landed on June 6th 1944. 195,700 Allied naval and merchant navy personnel were involved. The landings took place along a stretch of the Normandy coast divided into five sections: Gold, Juno, Omaha, Sword and Utah.

American assault troops in a landing craft huddle behind the protective front of the craft as it nears a beachhead, on the Northern Coast of France. Smoke in the background is Naval gunfire supporting the landing.

A LCVP (Landing Craft, Vehicle, Personnel) from the U.S. Coast Guard-manned USS Samuel Chase disembarks troops of the U.S. Army's First Division on the morning of June 6, 1944 (D-Day) at Omaha Beach. (Chief Photographer's Mate (CPHOM) Robert F. Sargent, U.S. Coast Guard)

Members of an American landing party lend helping hands to other members of their organization whose landing craft was sunk be enemy action of the coast of France. These survivors reached Omaha Beach, by using a life raft. (Photographer: Weintraub, 6 June 1944)

Crossed rifles in the sand are a comrade's tribute to this American soldier who sprang ashore from a landing barge and died at the barricades of Western Europe.

Landing ships putting cargo ashore on Omaha Beach, at low tide during the first days of the operation in June, 1944. Among identifiable ships present are LST-532 (in the center of the view); USS LST-262 (3rd LST from right); USS LST-310 (2nd LST from right); USS LST-533 (partially visible at far right); and USS LST-524. Note barrage balloons overhead and Army "half-track" convoy forming up on the beach. The LST-262 was one of 10 Coast Guard-manned LSTs that participated in the invasion of Normandy, France.

Link: Watch this D-Day presentation by the U.S. Army.

Los Angeles Streetcars

2011-06-02T12:39:00.000-07:00

Here is a very cool look back at the transit system in and around the Los Angeles area in 1957. All brought to you by the photography of John Dziobko at Godfatherrails.com and descriptions by Ray Peacock at Heartlandrails.com Thank you John and Ray !!!

Metropolitan Coach Lines - MCL 5119 Los Angeles, California - September 13, 1957 - Down the line in Watts - Graham Tower controlled the maze of trackage radiating from Graham yard.

Metropolitan Coach Lines - MCL5116 Slauson Jct. - Los Angeles, California - September 13, 1957 - Looking at northbound cars to downtown, about to cross Slauson Ave. The branch behind is the Pacific Electric Whittier-Fullerton branch.

Metropolitan Coach Lines - MCL 407 San Pedro - Long Beach line - Los Angeles, California - September 09, 1957 - Express cars roll by at Slauson Jct. in south central L.A. The inner two mains were express tracks, running from downtown to Long Beach. Don't be mislead by the term 'express', as the preponderance of grade crossings through this part of the line, protected only by wig-wags, kept speeds at 25mph max.

Unfortunately the wig wags weren't the objective of the photographer on this day, but we can all be thankful for John's documentation of the line in color. Note the sharp-dressed motorman through the window. Today this is the Metrolink Blue Line.

Metropolitan Coach Lines - MCL 415 San Pedro - Long Beach line - Los Angeles, California - September 09, 1957 - Car 415 moves towards downtown after crossing the Santa Fe Harbor line at Slauson Tower on the MCL Southern District. This is the main stem of the MCL system as it existed in 1957, express trains ran on the inner two mains of the 4-track right of way, in the heart of south-central L.A.

INDY 500 - 100 Years

2011-05-29T09:23:00.001-07:00

The Indianapolis 500, celebrates its 100 Anniversary this year at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana - (1960s postcard)

The event, billed as The Greatest Spectacle in Racing, is considered one of the three most significant motorsports events in the world.

Around Nevada

2011-05-10T01:00:00.000-07:00

The California-Nevada State Line on Tahoe's east shore. Today this site is crowded with casinos on the Nevada side. To the right of the sign is a souvenir shop selling Coca Cola and Chism Ice Cream. To the left is the Nevada Club casino, which in the 1950s morphed into Harrah's.

This nighttime shot shows downtown Reno in the 1960s. At the end of the block is the second Reno Arch. On the east side of the street is Harold's Club, Nevada Club, and Harrah's Club. On the west is the Primadonna, the Horseshoe Club, and a cacophony of other clubs and stores.

The Camp N Town RV Park sits right on North Carson Street, near the intersection with Hot Springs Road. It's a "Good Sampark" and "A good place to park your RV." They offer a swimming pool, arcade, laundry, and of course, liquor and gambling.

This postcard shows the outside of the Nugget as it appeared in the 1960s, as well as several promotional shots from the inside.

The red brick of the Arlington Hotel shines brightly in this color photo of downtown Carson. Here on the west side of Carson, between Spear and Robinson, are the hulking Arlington and the smaller Gray Reid Wright Building next door to the left. In that building is the Western Auto Supply Co., Carl L Cathey proprietor.

For many more great photos and postcards visit The Western Nevada Historic Photo Collection.

Happy Mothers Day Moms!

2011-05-08T01:00:00.000-07:00

There is none in all this cold and hollow world, no fount of deep, strong, deathless love, save that within a Mother's heart. ~ Mrs. Hermans 1915.

Upcoming Rail Events

2011-05-02T12:17:00.000-07:00

NATIONAL TRAIN DAY

Arrives this Saturday to over 200 locations around the country.

For more information CLICK HERE.

40 Years as America’s Railroad

Amtrak has carried passengers on journeys across the length and breadth of the United States. People take our trains to visit family and friends, see America, experience the journey and come home again. For more info CLICK HERE.

Glendale Pacific Electric Red Car Line

Historian Paul Ayers presents a slideshow on Glendale Pacific Electric Red Car Line from its beginning to the last day of service in 1955. Over 240 slides include past and present images of the route. The program is sponsored by The Glendale Historical Society and hosted by the Glendale Public Library. Admission is free.

And because I love trains so much... here are some more pictures from the San Bernardino Railroad Days Event held a couple of weeks ago. More to come!

This is one of the new Cab / Passenger Rail Cars being used by Metrolink California. This car is produced by Hyundai-Rotem and seats 122 passengers and is 85 feet long.

The car features Crash Energy Management (CEM) technology, all seats face torward rear of car, inward and forward facing video cameras, restroom, drinking fountains, bike racks, wheelchair accesibility and automated station announcements.

Exposition Postcards

2011-04-25T17:44:00.000-07:00

At the Pacific Gas and Electric Company Exhibit

Electricity and Communications Building on

Treasure Island in San Francisco Bay

1940 Golden Gate International Exposition.

Westinghouse... The name that means everything in electricity.

1940 Golden Gate International Exposition.

Standard Oil Tower to the Sun - Plaza De America - A beautiful edifice of Mayan architecture dedicated to the Western National Parks. The tower, 108 feet tall is visible from most every point within the exposition area - America's Exposition, San Diego, California.

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T06:17:00.000-07:00

San Bernardino Railroad Days

2011-04-19T12:58:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was the 3rd Annual San Bernardino Railroad Days event. It was held (where else) at one of the most historic railroad stations in the US, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Passenger and Freight Depot - San Bernardino Station.

This is the track side of the Santa Fe Station. I took this picture about 2 years ago. Click on this Wikipedia link to read about the station and its renovation.

There were lots of trains and vintage fire trucks and other transportation vehicles on hand. I will post more of this event in the near future. But first... one of the great Santa Fe Railway steam locomotives arrived pulling a train of vintage railroad coaches and other rolling stock.

The Santa Fe 3751 is a restored 4-8-4 steam locomotive that was originally owned and operated by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The engine was built in 1927 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works.

An Old West type of show was staged and along with the many other passengers was a neferious character who had escaped from a prison up North and was apprehended and returned to the San Bernardino Marshall to be incarcerated once more.

But as fate would have it, his long time gang of outlaws would do what they must... not to allow this incarceratrion to transpire.

The Marshall and his deputies pleaded with the gunmen not to attempt to take the prisoner from them... as they would not relinquish their custody of him without a fight.

But alas, the appeal of the Marshall would fall on deaf ears. A ferocious gun battle ensued. (And I might add, loud as all hell. My ears are still ringing.)

After all the smoke had cleared... there laid three dead hombres and they would hang the fourth one at an off-site location.

Well there you have it folks, I will post more of this event in the near future.

Here is a link to the PTA Transit Authority, for one of the newest diesel locomotives manufactured by General Electric that was on display at the event. This is awesome! Take my word for it!

Shopping Centers

2011-04-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

Northcrest Shopping Center on U.S. 30 Bypass, Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Oakbrook Center - This ultra modern shopping complex is located in Oakbrook, Illinois, west of Chicago and hosts the finest store in this area.

Southdale Center - Minneapolis, Minnesota - The World's Most Fabulous Center - Seventy-five stores surround a spectacular Garden Court all under one roof and air conditioned the year 'round. Parking is provided for 5200 cars in areas designated by unique and colorful animal signs.

The Fresno Mall - A small Tram Line carries passengers the full length of the six block promenade - Fresno, California.

Around LA

2011-04-02T12:06:00.001-07:00

Here is a look back at some Los Angeles history, as seen through the images of late 1940s postcards. I can't wait for those new modern freeways to be completed. ENJOY!

The Hollywood Freeway is one of a vast network of major highways engineered and designed to provide unobstructed driving to and from the Metropolitan Area of Los Angeles. When completed these freeways will constitute the finest and most modern motor connections with cities and towns throughout Southern California.

LUCCA RESTAURANT - One of the most colorful restaurants in America, with the charm of the old world in a new world setting and where Hollywood begins. Comfortably seats 500 in an air cooled atmosphere. The food is world famous, as Ten Million patrons can testify. Unique Pokerchip Bar, Coffee Shop and Curio Shop. Be sure to get gift souvenir pastry box. Open from noon till midnight.

The Carthay Circle Theatre in Los Angeles, is the home of gala world premieres. Thousands of cheering fans line the streets and stand outside the theatre and enthusiastically greet the hundreds of illustrious stars who attend.

"WORLD FAMOUS COCOANUT GROVE"

at the Ambassador Hotel where stars of the motion picture and

theatrical world mingle with Southern California's smart set nightly.

El Rancho Vegas

2011-03-29T12:24:00.000-07:00

El Rancho Vegas was the very first hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip (US 91). It was located at 2500 Las Vegas Boulevard, at the southwest corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Sahara and opened on April 3, 1941. Up until 1942, it was the largest hotel in Las Vegas with 110 rooms. The hotel was destroyed by fire in 1960.

Las Vegas, Nevada, world famous as a resort area, is justly proud of El Rancho Vegas, its first and finest luxury hotel. One of the many attractions at El Rancho Vegas is the beautiful garden area pool where year round swimming is possible because of the temerate desert climate.

EL RANCHO VEGAS, (Americas's Finest Western Hotel) Las Vegas, Nevada... The fun and entertainment capital of the world... all daytime sports and brilliant night life to make Monte Carlo seem dull! "Stop at the Sign of the Windmill" for the time of your life!

The Final Frontier

2011-03-26T16:46:00.000-07:00

In September 2010, NASA astronaut Douglas Wheelock, who was the ISS Expedition 25 Commander of the International Space Station, shared pictures of Earth, station and space he took, with the world through Twitter.

Known to his nearly 68,000 Twitter followers as Astro_Wheels, Wheelock has been posting impressive photos of the Earth and some of his thoughts ever since he moved into the space station in June, five months after it got Internet access.

Greek islands on a clear night during our flight over Europe. Athens shine brightly along the Mediterranean Sea.

'Mystery Island' ...located in the Indian Ocean close to Madagascar. Interesting features on the island and the unusual shape should be enough to help you discover this beautiful place.

Northern lights in the distance in one of the finest nights over Europe. The photo clearly shows the Strait of Dover. Paris is dazzling with the city lights. A little fog over the western part of England, particularly over London.

Of all the places of our beautiful planet few can rival the beauty and richness of colors in the Bahamas. In this photo, our ship is seen against the backdrop of the Bahamas.

At a speed of 28,163 kilometers per hour (8 kilometers per second), we rotate the Earth's orbit, making one revolution every 90 minutes, and watch sunsets and sunrises every 45 minutes. So half of our journey is in darkness. For the work we use lights on our helmets.

Beautiful atoll in the Pacific Ocean, photographed using 400mm lens. Approximately 1930 km south of Honolulu.

Above the center of the Atlantic Ocean, before another stunning sunset. Downstairs in the setting sun visible spiral Hurricane Earl.

Over the Sahara desert, approaching the ancient lands and thousand-year history. River Nile flows through Egypt by the Pyramids of Giza in Cairo. Further, the Red Sea, Sinai Peninsula, Dead Sea, Jordan River, as well as the island of Cyprus in the Mediterranean Sea and Greece on the horizon.

Our unmanned 'Progress 39P' approaches the ISS for refuelling. It is full of food, fuel, spare parts and all necessities for our station. Inside was a real gift - fresh fruit and vegetables. What a miracle after three months of food from a tube!

Module Union 23C Olympus docked with the ISS . When our work ends here, we go back home to Earth. We fly over the snow-capped peaks of the Caucasus. The rising sun is reflected from the Caspian Sea.

All the beauty of Italy, a clear summer night. You can see many beautiful islands that adorn the coast - Capri, Sicily and Malta. Naples and Mount Vesuvius are allocated along the coast.

Florida and southeastern U.S. in the evening. A clear autumn evening, the moonlight over the water and sky, dotted with millions of stars.

In this time of year you can enjoy the beauty of the polar mesospheric clouds. With our high-angle illumination, we were able to capture a thin layer of noctilucent clouds at sunset.

Elizabeth Taylor R.I.P.

2011-03-23T14:31:00.000-07:00

(February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011)

Monorail Madness

2011-03-15T07:12:00.001-07:00

Monorail Train Ride at Fun Pier - Wildwood by the Sea, New Jersey.

Riverside Park - Route 5A, Agawam, Mass - Monorail: Latest development
in amusement rides. Only one on the East Coast.

Trailblazer, the first Monorail train. Located at Fair Park in Dallas, Texas.
Erected in U.S. placed in service October 6, 1956.

Dutch Wonderland U.S. Route 30 East, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
A 34 acre "Wonderland" of Enchantment & Fantasy.

Greetings from Pomona, California. Monorail car, one of 14 on mile long monorail tour of huge grounds, glides over visitors to annual Los Angeles County Fair.

Frank Woodruff Buckles

2011-03-01T14:49:00.000-08:00

"The Last Known American Veteran of World War I Has Died "

Frank Woodruff Buckles (February 1, 1901 - February 27, 2011)

(Official Associated Press Story)

Charles Town, West Virginia USA- 110-year-old Frank Woodruff Buckles, the last veteran of WWI, died peacefully in his home in Charles Town, West Virginia of natural causes at approximately 12:30 AM on February 27, 2011.

Buckles, who also survived being a civilian POW in the Philippines in World War II, died peacefully of natural causes early Sunday at his home in Charles Town, biographer and family spokesman David DeJonge said in a statement. Buckles turned 110 on Feb. 1 and had been advocating for a national memorial honoring veterans of the Great War in Washington, D.C.

When asked in February 2008 how it felt to be the last of his kind, he said simply, "I realized that somebody had to be, and it was me." And he told The Associated Press he would have done it all over again, "without a doubt."

On Nov. 11, 2008, the 90th anniversary of the end of the war, Buckles attended a ceremony at the grave of World War I Gen. John Pershing in Arlington National Cemetery.

"I can see what they're honoring, the veterans of World War I," he told CNN.

He was back in Washington a year later to endorse a proposal to rededicate the existing World War I memorial on the National Mall as the official National World War I Memorial. He told a Senate panel it was "an excellent idea." The memorial was originally built to honor District of Columbia's war dead.

Born in Missouri in 1901 and raised in Oklahoma, Buckles visited a string of military recruiters after the United States entered the "war to end all wars" in April 1917. He was repeatedly rejected before convincing an Army captain he was 18. He was 16 1/2.

"A boy of (that age), he's not afraid of anything. He wants to get in there," Buckles said.

Details for services and arrangements will be announced later this week. The family asks that donations be made to the National World War One Legacy Project. The project is managed by the nonprofit Survivor Quest and will educate students about Buckles and WWI through a documentary and traveling educational exhibition.

LINK: Visit the Official Frank W. Buckles Website.

LINK: Here is my original 2009 post "Faces of World War I"

Meet Sue

2011-02-16T18:05:00.000-08:00

With the advent of "Jet Age" travel in the 1960s, the railroads would try anything to hold on to their share of the transportation pie. In this case, the Northern Pacific Railway added stewardess' like "Sue".

The service on these trains like the North Coast Limited was top-notch to say the least. But it was not to be. We all know what happens next. So here we take a look back at the way it was... on trains. ENJOY!

"Travelers Rest" for which this de luxe car was named, was a favorite campsite of explorers Lewis and Clark.

The Lewis and Clark Traveller's Rest Buffet Lounge car, designed by Raymond Loewy, is just one of the extras on the Vista-Dome North Coast Limited. Stewardess service is another extra on this famous transcontinental streamliner.

Sue the stewardess says: Plan your next trip on Northern Pacific's Vista-Dome North Coast Limited. It's the train that makes travel fun again.

Rail Scene 1971

2011-02-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

Approximately 40 years ago, we take a look back at what railroads used to be, just before AMTRAK takes over... and a little while after... through some great photographs from George Hamlin - Transportation Specialist. Thank you George!

Milwaukee Road - EMD E8(A) - Canal Street, Chicago, Illinois, April 29, 1971 - The second-last "Cities" streamliner prior to Amtrak begins its westward journey. Note lack of portholes on lead unit.

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (ATSF) - EMD FP45 - Roosevelt Road, Chicago, Illinois, October 31, 1970 - "Super Chief / El Capitan" approaching its eastern destination, Dearborn Station.

Penn Central - EMD E8(A) - 18th Street, Chicago, Illinois, April 29, 1971 - The "Broadway Limited" matches a dismal day in appearance, two days before Amtrak.

Penn Central - EMD E7(A) - 18th Street, Chicago, Illinois, April 29, 1971 - Two days before Amtrak, the remant of the "Twilight Limited" presents a pretty sad picture.

Burlington Northern Railroad - EMD F3(A) - North of the station, Glenview, Illinois, May 09, 1971 - Early Amtrak behind an early F unit - Former Northern Pacific units pulling former Great Northern train.

Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific (Rock Island) - EMD E8(A) - LaSalle Street Station, Chicago, Illinois, April 09, 1971 - At the south end of the station.

Illinois Central Railroad - EMD E9(A) - Central Station, Chicago, Illinois, April 09, 1971 - Ready for departure.

LINK: All pictures Copyright George W. Hamlin - Used with permission - To see many more great pictures, visit George W. Hamlin's Website.

Rio Grande Zephyr

2011-01-28T01:00:00.000-08:00

The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, served mainly as a transcontinental bridge line between Denver, Colorado, and Salt Lake City, Utah, with a motto of "Through the Rockies, not around them".

The Rio Grande was the epitome of mountain railroading, operating the highest mainline rail line in the United States, the over 10,240 ft Tennessee Pass in Colorado, and the famed routes through the Moffat Tunnel and the Royal Gorge.

Known for its independence, the D&RGW operated the last private longhaul passenger train in the United States, the Rio Grande Zephyr. (All photographs copyright Chris Nuthall)

Burns, Colorado, December 12, 1981 - Vista domes Silver Pony and Silver Sky trail the westbound Rio Grande Zephyr as it follows the horseshoe bends of the Colorado River at Dell, on the Dotsero cut off.

Helper, Utah, October 18, 1981 - With a skittering of snow on a relatively open area between Colton and Kyune, the #18 Denver-bound Rio Grande Zephyr still has the Price River Canyon in front of it on the way down from Solder Summit.

Pinecliff, Colorado, March 20, 1982 - With business car Wilson McCarthy trailing, #17 Rio Grande Zephyr is up to full load as it approaches Tunnel 29.

Glenwood Springs, Colorado, June 13, 1981 - Attempts to emulate the classic California Zephyr shot in Glenwood Canyon with the RGZ was always made difficult by the RGZ passing through the canyon seemingly earlier in the day to the CZ.

Glenwood Springs, Colorado, June 13, 1981 - Close to midday near the longest day of the year, the westbound Rio Grande Zephyr travels through the west switch at Range on the Dotsero cut off.

Burns, Colorado, December 12, 1981 - The Rio Grande Zephyr follows the Colorado River near Burns on the Dotsero cut-off on its westbound journey to Salt Lake City.

LINK: See more of Chris Nuthall's railroad pictures on RailPictures.Net

Pan Am Terminal

2011-01-26T17:16:00.000-08:00

Pan American Airways was founded in 1927 as a scheduled air mail and passenger service operating between Florida (Key West, and later Miami) and Havana, Cuba.

Entrance to Pan American Airways Terminal Building, Miami, Florida.

Pan American Airways Terminal, Dinner Key, Coconut Grove, Florida.

Boeing Flying Boat

2011-01-24T01:05:00.000-08:00

The Boeing 314 was a long-range flying boat produced by the Boeing Airplane Company between 1938 and 1941. One of the largest aircraft of the time, it used the massive wing of Boeing’s earlier XB-15 bomber prototype to achieve the range necessary for flights across the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Twelve Clippers were built for Pan American World Airways.

Sun Line Helicopters

2011-01-24T01:00:00.000-08:00

SUN LINE HELICOPTERS, Inc. - 1050 MacArthur Causeway, Miami, Florida - Sightseeing by helicopter is one of Miami's finest attractions. Thousands of visitors annually enjoy the incomparable panoramic view of the Gold Coast from a Sun Line helicopter.

War Humor

2011-01-21T07:01:00.000-08:00

War is HELL! But HUMOR is PRICELESS! When your having a bad day and feeling somewhat down at times, just think about what these guys are going through on a daily basis.

Thank God they can still maintain their sense of humor over there! You gotta love these guys. SUPPORT THEM ALWAYS! Sorry about the small picture size, but I think you get the point.

More Sunshine Girls

2011-01-18T01:00:00.000-08:00

Here are some more great 1950's Florida pin-up girl postcards. The girl with the Alligator is Bettie Page.

~ There Is Fun Under The Florida Sun ~

~ Greetings From Florida ~

~ Oh! Those Florida Oranges ~

The Dream Continues...

2011-01-17T00:01:00.000-08:00

~ Dr. Martin Luther King ~ 1929-1968 ~

Sunshine Girls

2011-01-15T08:53:00.000-08:00

Beautiful Aquamaids at Florida's Cypress Gardens

"America's Tropical Wonderland"

The Weeki Wachee Mermaids pose for photographers with the Mermaid Statues which adorn the newly decorated front of Weeki Wachee, just north of Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater on U.S. 19.

Beauty On Parade: The Aquamaids of Florida's Cypress Gardens, ski in four daily water ski shows and really exemplify the youthful spirit of Florida as they skim over the water in formation.

R.I.P. David!

2011-01-13T06:26:00.001-08:00

~ David Nelson - October 24, 1936 – January 11, 2011 ~

Surfside 6

2011-01-11T07:51:00.000-08:00

Surfside 6 is an ABC television series (1960–1962) about a Miami Beach detective agency set on a houseboat, featuring Troy Donahue as Sandy Winfield, II, Van Williams as Kenny Madison and Lee Patterson as Dave Thorne. Diane McBain co-starred as socialite Daphne Dutton, whose yacht was parked next to their houseboat.

Margarita Sierra also had a supporting role as Cha Cha O'Brien, an entertainer who worked at The Boom Boom Room, a popular Miami Beach hangout at the Fontainebleau Hotel, directly across the street from Surfside 6.

Surfside 6 was in fact a real address in Miami Beach, where an unrelated houseboat was moored at the time; it can also be seen in the sweeping aerial establishing shot of the Fontainebleu in 1964's Goldfinger.

Here's To Yah!

2011-01-05T10:41:00.000-08:00

Beer is the world's most widely consumed and probably the oldest of
alcoholic beverages, it is the third most popular drink overall,
after water and tea.

One of the magnificent eight horse hitches of International Champion Clydesdales used by the largest brewery in the world - Anheuser-Busch, Inc., St Louis, Missouri - Brewers of the famous Budweiser, King of Bottled Beer - 2 fold postcard circa 1950s.

Coors America's Fine Light Beer - Adolph Coors Company

Golden, Colorado - 100 Years 1873 - 1973.

The Hospitality Center - Adolph Coors Company

Golden, Colorado - 100 Years 1873 - 1973.

The Schiltz brewery, founded in 1849, welcomes 100,000 visitors every year from every part of the world. In the beauty and comfort of the Schlitz Assembly, they receive a warm greeting before touring the home of "The Beer that made Milwaukee Famous" - Copyright 1959 Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T08:26:00.000-08:00

I would like to wish everyone a very Happy New Year and wish all of you the best in the year to come.

Having returned home again after visiting family and friends for the holidays, I thought it would be cool to show everyone what traveling by train was all about in the 1950's, depicted on Fred Harvey - Santa Fe railroad postcards.

A way of travel that has many great memories for yours truly. ENJOY!

The Famous Santa Fe Streamlined Fleet - Super Chief, The Chief, El Capitan, Texas Chief, Chicagoan - Kansas Cityan, The Tulsan, Golden Gate and San Diegan. These swift streamliners provide daily service between Chicago -- California -- Texas and between points in California and the Southwest.

Under the shadow of the lofty precipitous Sierra Madre Range lies beautiful San Gabriel Valley. The Valley contains about 100 square miles of territory, nearly all of which has been transformed from sterile desert into a succession of small homes and thriving little cities.

One of the unique features of the dining cars on the "SUPER CHIEF" is the specially designed china, featuring Indian designs found on the centuries old pottery of New Mexico.

Fitted with roomy sofas, comfortable big chairs and small tables facing a modernistic bar, the lounge car on the "SUPER CHIEF" has panelled walls of exquisite woods with inlaid Indian ceremonial figures and authentic Navajo patterns in the window shades and decorations.

Passengers relax leisurely for a luxurious Fred Harvey meal in the Santa Fe's streamlined transcontinental El Capitan.

Cajon Pass at the summit of the Coast Range is the Santa Fe's gateway to Southern California. In the descent from the summit (altitude 3,819) a drop of 2,700 feet is made in twenty-five miles.

Santa Fe's streamlined "SAN DIEGAN" train arriving at the Santa Fe station in San Diego, California.

Happy Holidays !

2010-12-21T01:00:00.000-08:00

"Wherever I Go" -- I wish you all a very Merry Christmas
and a Happy New Year!

Will post again in the New Year, Richard.

Sundblom's Santas

2010-12-17T01:00:00.000-08:00

In 1930, famed Chicago commercial illustrator Haddon Sundblom painted a jolly, red-garbed Santa Claus for the Coca-Cola Company's 1931 advertising campaign. His depictions of the Coca-Cola Santa, formed America's perception of what Santa Claus looks like. The following four prints are from 1961.

Xmas Seals 1944-1961

2010-12-08T01:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas Seals appeared in the United States in 1907 and were issued by the American National Red Cross and the National Tuberculosis Association and other private foundations like the Boys Ranch in Amarillo, Texas.

Xmas Seals 1926-1943

2010-12-05T01:00:00.000-08:00

Eskimo Women

2010-11-29T13:20:00.000-08:00

Eskimo Women showing manner of carrying their children - PC circa 1909.

Panorama Postcards

2010-11-27T13:42:00.001-08:00

El Rancho Motor Lodge - 1701 Fouirth St. South on Florida Route 687 - St. Petersburg, Florida - Phone 862-8255 - A new concept in resort living. Luxurious surroundings in exotic setting of tropical beauty. 42 units, with T.V., Air Conditioned, Swimming Pool - Next to the famous Wedgewood Inn Restaurant.

The Algiers "On the Fabulous Strip" - 110 rooms, each with telephones and combination tub and shower. Coffee Shop - Cocktail Lounge - Heated and Filtered Pool. Located in the very heart of the multi-million dollar Resort Hotels and Casinos - The Showplace of the World - Las Vegas, Nevada.

Borrego Palms Resort - P.O. Box "U", Borrego Springs, California - ROckwell 7-5335 - Borrego's largest and most complete resort located in the scenic Borrego Valley, offers year-round swimming in beautiful 100' swimming pool, cocktails, dining, dancing, tennis, children's playground, shuffleboard, cookouts, jeep trips, etc. A vacation oasis for the ultimate in relaxation and fun.

Advertising Postcards

2010-11-20T14:57:00.000-08:00

May be purchased by SCHOOLS... NURSES... DENTISTS -- Not Released for Sale in Retail Stores! - IPANA'S BELOW-COST TOOTHBRUSHING KITS IN EXCITING NEW PACKAGE - Each Kit Contains: Multifine Nylon Toothbrush - Tube of Ipana - TV Game - Colorful Carton for storing Brush and Paste.

ORDER TODAY - Educational Service Dept. CP, Bristol-Myers Co., 45 Rockefeller Plaza, N.Y. 20, N.Y.

JUNIOR KIT --- For Children Under 10 Years $3.00 per case of 20.
REGULAR KIT --- For Children Over 10 Years $3.00 per case of 20.

P.S. Be sure to visit KENTS RESTAURANTS when you come to Atlantic City. They certainly have good food in their modern restaurants: UPTOWN: Atlantic Avenue at North Carolina - MIDTOWN: Pacific Avenue at Illinois opposite Post Office - DOWNTOWN: Atlantic Ave. Opposite Union RR Station.

Be sure to watch the Dodge dancing party every Saturday night on ABC-TV and drop in and see the '60 Dodge and Dodge Dart at your Dealer's showroom. Musically yours, Lawrence Welk.

Southern Motels

2010-11-15T19:51:00.001-08:00

ALAMO PLAZA COURT - Louisville, Kentucky - 33 single and connecting rooms. Each room has radio, tile bath with tub and shower, Beautyrest Mattresses, Simmons All Metal Furniture - Radiant Heat and Air Circulators. Concrete Parking Area - Excellent Dining Room serving Tasty Food - Phone: Pleasure Ridge 72917.

CAMELLIA COURTS, INC. Has 30 Units - Twin and Double Beds - Private Tile Baths - Hot Water Heat - Air Cooled - Beautyrest Mattresses, Simmons Hotel Furniture - Private Telephones, Lounge and Restaurant - Telephone 2077 - On US 301, one mile south of Jesup, Georgia.

LAKE EUFAULA MOTOR LODGE - Highway 82 East - In The City Eufaula, Alabama - Phone 687-4811 - 40 Units - Electric Heat - Air Conditioned - Color TV - Room Telephones - Swimming Pool.

GRANT MOTEL - 2872 U.S. 19 North - Clearwater, Florida - (Nine niles south of traffic light at intersection of 582 and U.S. 19) - Efficiency and one and two bedroom apartments. Nicely furnished and air conditioned. Tile baths, T.V. Spacious lawn. Shuffleboard. Short Drive to golf courses, beaches and all vacation activities. Nettie Grant, Owner / Manager - Phone 733-5841.

Vintage Hawaii

2010-11-12T09:16:00.000-08:00

Here are some vintage postcards from Hawaii. Hula girls and pineapples, what more can you ask for. The old Dole pineapple logo on the back of the postcards is very cool. Here is a link to the Dole Plantation. ENJOY!

~ Royal Hawaiian Troupe - Honolulu, Hawaii ~

~ Hula Girls - Hawaiian Islands ~

The Dole pineapple cannery in Honolulu is the world's largest fruit cannery. Here white-clad, rubber-gloved operators exert utmost care in trimming, inspecting and packing to insure Dole quality throughout.

In their own immaculately clean department, almost human Ginaca machines cut cylinders out of sun-ripened Dole pineapples, core them and remove that fruit which remains on the inside of the shells.

Veterans Day

2010-11-11T00:01:00.000-08:00

Joliet Union Station

2010-11-06T07:06:00.001-07:00

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (ATSF) EMD F7(A) - Joliet Union Station - Joliet, Illinois, June 12, 1962 - The eastbound GRAND CANYON rolls into Joliet behind an A-B-B-B-A set of F units. Lead unit F7 306L is a dual-service F7 that was delivered in 1952.

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (ATSF) EMD F3(A) - Joliet Union Station - Joliet, Illinois, June 12, 1962 - Santa Fe A-B-B-A F3 units are pulling the SAN FRANCISCO CHIEF away from Joliet.

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (ATSF) - EMD F3(A) - Joliet Union Station - Joliet, Illinois, June 12, 1962 - An A-B-B-B-A set of F units rolls to a stop with Santa Fe's GRAND CANYON as the semaphore drops.

LINK: For more vintage railroad photos, visit Bob Krone on Railpictures.Net

1940s Aviation Ads

2010-11-04T01:00:00.000-07:00

Beachin'

2010-10-31T01:00:00.001-07:00

Contestants for queen of Newport Beach Tournament of Lights, California, 1947 - Among 50 girls who will compete Sunday in contest to choose queen of Newport Beach Tournament of Lights are standing, left to right, Pat Sayre, Anita Coane and Joyce Purcell. Dorothy Babcock is seated. Junior Chamber of Commerce sponsors event. (Los Angeles Times Photo - UCLA Archives)

Ed Holovchik [aka Ed Fury], bodybuilder and Mr. Los Angeles contestant with model Jackie Coey, 1953 - (Los Angeles Daily News Photo - UCLA Archives)

Eight girls laying in the sand while tanning with jetty in the background at Cabrillo Beach, California, 1947 - (Los Angeles Times Photo - UCLA Archives)

Women's world surfing champion Joyce Hoffman standing with longboard in San Juan Capistrano, California, 1964 - (Los Angeles Times Photo - UCLA Archives)

Vintage Vegas

2010-10-24T18:33:00.001-07:00

The New Thunderbird Hotel, five minutes from the heart of Las Vegas, Nevada. America's most luxurious desert hotel, a miracle of modern comfort in the heart of the scenic west. Cheerful service, free and easy informality, endless fun, superb cuisine.

Stardust Hotel - Las Vegas Strip - Most exciting gaming casino in the world. Fine dining, super accommodations - Home of Spectacular "Lido de Paris".

Fremont Street - Las Vegas, Nevada - Casino district in all its incandescent and neon splendor. Some say the entire output of all Hoover Dam is required to keep these lights on... you must see it to believe it.

The Flamingo Hotel - A fantastic "Chuck Wagon" Midnight Buffet - This colorful array of just a part of a typical spread of the worlds finest foods, both hot and cold. All you can eat makes it no place for a calorie counter.

Happy Birthday Annette!

2010-10-22T01:00:00.000-07:00

In 1955, 12-year-old Annette was discovered by Walt Disney as she performed as the Swan Queen in Swan Lake at a dance recital in Burbank. On the basis of this appearance, Disney cast her as one of the original Mouseketeers.

She was the last to be selected, and the only one picked by Walt Disney. She soon proved to be very popular. By the end of the first season of the Mickey Mouse Club, she was receiving 6,000 letters a month.

In addition to appearing in many of the Mouseketeers' sketches and dance routines, Funicello starred in a number of serials on The Mickey Mouse Club. Including Adventure in Dairyland and her own self titled serial, Walt Disney Presents: Annette.

It was in a hayride scene in the Annette serial that she performed the song that was to launch her singing career. The studio received so much fan mail about "How Will I Know My Love," written by the Sherman Brothers, that Walt Disney decided to issue it as a single, and to give Annette a recording contract.

Penn Station to Kansas City

2010-10-20T07:00:00.000-07:00

This article written by C. Thomas Carr is from the 1994 National Railway Bulletin, Volume 59, #2.

Model Trains

2010-10-14T08:10:00.001-07:00

I know its early, but these model railroad advertising pages from the Fall 1958 issue of Model Trains magazine will give you an idea of what I would like for Christmas. I think the prices have gone up a little though. ENJOY!

Great Santa Fe Railroad, OK Brand trains from Herkimer Tool & Model Works, Inc. - 278 Harter Street, Herkimer, New York.

Kusan-Auburn KMT Model Kits - Nashville, Tennessee - New Haven Railroad Alco PA Locomotive with military railroad equipment.

Model Railroading by Athearn Inc., Dept MT, 11929 S. Western Avenue, Los Angeles 47, California - (These are in fact my favorite brand of model trains)

Cool Motels

2010-10-11T18:16:00.001-07:00

Frontier Motel - Flagstaff, Arizona - One Mile East of Flagstaff, on Highway 66 and 89 - 31 Brand New De-Luxe Units with Individually Controlled Heat, Tubs and Showers - Room Phones, TV - Refrigeration - Heated Swimming Pool - George and Vera Skylstead, Owners. (PC circa 1960s)

Jack Rogers - Jump N' Jack Motor Hotel - 2880 Pacific Coast Hwy (U.S. 101 Alt) - Torrance, California - Phone: 325-0660 -- 775-6661 - Heated Pool, 88 Individually Air Conditioned Rooms and Suites. Accomodations for Business Gathering and Conventions. Centrally located for Vacationers. Switchboard Service, Restaurant, Cocktail Lounge, Coffee Shop, Barber Shop, Water Beds, King Size Beds, Efficiency Apartments - South Bay Area's Newest and Finest. (PC circa 1950s)

Thunderbird Motel - Silver Springs Boulevard - Silver Springs, Florida - Florida State 40, 300 yards from entrance to World Famous Silver Springs - 54 "Kingsize" Rooms... Luxurious but not expensive... All fully carpeted... Centrally air-conditioned and heated with thermostatic control... Free T.V. in rooms... Heated swimming pool... Children's poolside sun deck... Family units... Fun for all! - Phone: MArion 9-3797 - Albert F. Meli, Owner - Operator. (PC circa 1950s)

Show-Me MOTEL - 34 Rooms "The Motel of the Future" - Air Conditioned - Steam Heat - Telephones - Free Radios - Restaurant - TV - Highway 40-63 North, Columbia, Missouri - Phone GI 3-8787. (PC circa 1950s)

Famous Streets

2010-10-07T18:09:00.000-07:00

Times Square, New York City - 1950s.

"The Fence" which serves as the International boundary between the United States and Mexico. Nogales, Sonora, Mexixo is to the left of the fence Nogales, Arizona to the right. Where U.S. Hwy 89 connects with Mexican Federal 15.

The fabulous new Turner Turnpike was completed at a cost of over $38,000,000. It has reduced the driving distance between Tulsa and Oklahoma City to 88 unimpeded miles - 1950s.

National Hotel on Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D.C. - Looking Towards Capitol - Rates: American Plan $2.50 to $4.00 - European Plan $1.00 to $2.50 - 1900s.

EMD Diesels

2010-10-03T01:00:00.000-07:00

EMD E and F units were a line of Diesel Electric locomotives produced between 1937 and 1963 by the General Motors Electro-Motive Division at La Grange, Illinois.

Union Pacific EMD E9(A) at Cheyenne Depot,
Cheyenne, Wyoming, 1974.

Great Northern EMD E7(A) at Minneapolis Union Station,
Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1956.

Missouri Pacific EMD F7(A) in Sugar City, Colorado, 1956.

Denver & Rio Grande EMD F7 at Denver Union Station,
Colorado, July, 1958.

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy EMD E8(A) in Fargo,
North Dakota, April, 1971.

LINK: All images are copyright Jim Hinkhouse on RailPictures.Net

Happy 50th Guys

2010-09-30T05:40:00.000-07:00

The Flintstones animated television sitcom ran from September 30, 1960 to April 1, 1966 on ABC. Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, The Flintstones is about a working class Stone Age man's life with his family and his next door neighbor and best friend.

California Zephyr

2010-09-26T01:00:00.000-07:00

The country's most famous train, the California Zephyr is westbound in Altamont Pass east of Livermore, California an hour east of Oakland, its destination, April 22, 1950. The CZ, train No. 17, provides luxury travel from Chicago to California with sleepers, dome cars, full diners and coaches.

The new diesel powered, stainless steel California Zephyr between Chicago, Denver, Salt Lake City and San Francisco features the unique Vista-Dome cars.

The diesel powered, stainless steel California Zephyr. This train operates via Burlington, Rio Grande and Western Pacific Railroads through the Colorado Rockies and Feather River Canyon ... the Scenic Way Across America.

Howard Fogg

2010-09-17T19:02:00.001-07:00

These postcards are from the New York Central Railroad System and are paintings by renowned railroad artist Howard Fogg. Why there is no biography of him on Wikipedia is beyond me. But HERE are more of his paintings and a little information about him. To see more of these cards please visit my other blog... The PTA Transit Authority. ENJOY!

"The Steam Locomotive Speed King", New York Central & Hudson River Railroad locomotive No.999 on "The Empire State Express" - 1893. The locomotive that ran at a speed of 112 miles per hour on May 10, 1893, the first machine to operate in excess of 100 m.p.h.

West portal of tunnel under Pittsburgh Works, Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation.

2-8-4 Berkshire Type Locomotive at Dickerson Run 1948.

Blast Furnaces of the National Tube Division, The United States Steel Corporation, McKeesport, Pennsylvania.

Niagara Type 4-8-4 Locomotive, Class S-1-b, on New York Central Train No. 50 - "The Empire State Express", in the Highlands of the Hudson, 1948.

Ghost Mountain Park

2010-09-13T01:00:00.000-07:00

Ghost Mountain Park in Maggie Valley, North Carolina, was a theme park that featured an 'old west' theme with the Old Mining Town, overland stage, ghost town street scene, general store, shoot-outs and much more. -- If anybody has more information about this place, please let us know.

Street scene in the Ghost Town - Ghost Mountain Park located at Maggie Valley, North Carolina on U.S. Highway No. 19.

The Mountaineer Town is, in its aown unique creation, an interesting sight to see. The Old Mill and real shops to wander through. The Mystery House is an unbelievable sight... water actually runs uphill. You lose your equilibrium... a wonderful experience.

Ghost Town Marshals gun down bank robbers before the eyes of Chief Marshal and judge standing in front of bank.

Ghost Mountain's Doc Holiday finds slain cowboy's boots two sizes too large after gunfight on streets of Ghost Town.

The Frontier Community Church of Ghost Mountain Park - In a more sentimental mood, the little white church stands like a sentinel at the end of the street. Sunday Services are held here and the view out the window behind the pulpit overlooks a world of high purple mountains, the log green valley and a sky as crystal blue as a gem stone with slowly drifting white clouds.

This view typifies the unconquerable beauty of Western North Carolina... a playground land, a land of pleasant living, a land of virgin unspoiled forests, sparkling streams and lakes... one which lives up to the name by which it has become renowned, "The Land of the Sky".

Pennsylvania Railroad

2010-09-12T01:00:00.000-07:00

The Pennsylvania Railroad was founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The PRR was the largest railroad by traffic and revenue in the US throughout its 20th-century existence and was at one time the largest publicly traded corporation in the world. At its peak, it controlled about 10,000 miles of rail line and employed approximately 250,000 workers.

Lima B1 electric at the PRR Harrisburg station in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania - September 10, 1951.

Baldwin BP60 diesel at the PRR Altoona station, in Altoona, Pennsylvania - September 10, 1951 (aka: Centipede).

Electro-Motive EMD F3A diesel at the PRR Altoona yard in Altoona, Pennsylvania - June 11, 1953.

Baldwin E3b electric at the PRR Meadows Yard in Kearny, New Jersey - May 02, 1953.

LINK: To see more great railroad photography by John Dziobko Jr. visit Godfather Rails.

Able-Stik

2010-09-09T17:36:00.000-07:00

Official "Able-Stik" New York World's Fair Travel Stickers - No Water, No Mess... Just Peel and Press! - 50 Cents - Allen Hollander Co., Inc., Bronx, N.Y. 10451