The One that Started It All

Although I did not know it at the time, this post card was to become the first card in my Train Post Card collection. I was ordained as a Roman Catholic priest on June 5, 1982.

One of the guys in the class one year before me knew my passion for trains. He gave this to me as an "ordination card" on that occasion. It measures five and half inches tall and eight and three quarters inches wide. I kept the post card because a) I do love trains, and b) Patrick and I were good friends. I did not know at the time, that it would be the first card in my train post card collection - which today numbers 3,014 cards from around the world. I seriously committed to collecting post cards the year that England was the feature country at Klondike Days here in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was in the 1990s. I wanted to collect something related to trains that would not take up much room. They had a huge selection of train post cards at their exhibit for sale. I committed and bought one of each!!

This post card features a partial history of the development of what is know today as the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad Company. [Of course, at this time (1982) the Santa Fe part was still its own railroad company.] the train on the far left was built in 1892; the next one is from 1923; that is followed by a 1934 model of the "Zephyr". The second from the right is a 1955 diesel engine (an E-9 unit) as is the one on the far right, which is a GP-30 from 1962.
They all got together to celebrate "A Century of Locomotives".

The picture was taken by the Burlington Northern Railroad, as the company was known back in the 1970s. The post card itself was published by Lyman E. Cox from Sacramento, California - the home of the California State Railroad Museum.

Today in Railroad and Post Office History

This post card is a very modern one from my collection. However, it is a

reproduction of a post card that was originally published in 1934 for the Chicago Worlds Fair. It celebrates the first time ever that United States Post Office mail was sorted on a moving train.
The picture in the upper right-hand corner is a photo of the original "mail car" on which this historic event happened.
Sorting mail on the train lasted from July 28, 1862 to June 30, 1977... almost 115 years.

This back of the post card shows that it was published by the Whippany Railway Museum. The Whippany Railway Museum is a railway museum and excursion train ride located in the Whippany section of Hanover Township in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. The Whippany Railway Museum began when the Morris County Central Railroad (MCC) first opened to the public on May 9, 1965 at Whippany, NJ.

International Crossing

Built in 1887 by the Dominion Bridge Company out of Montreal, Quebec and designed and engineered by Strauss Bascule Bridge Company (Strauss Engineering Company) of Chicago, Illinois

The Structure Type is described as A Metal 8 Panel Pin-Connected Camelback Through Truss, Fixed and Approach Spans: Metal 12 Panel Rivet-Connected Pennsylvania Through Truss, Movable: Double Leaf Bascule (Heel Trunnion)

The main span is 368 feet long (there are 9 spans); the entire bridge length is 5,580 feet long (over a mile); and the roadbed over which the train travels is 21 feet wide.

It was renovated in 1913.

The International Railroad Bridge is a magnificent landmark bridge whose significant size comes from a large number of smaller spans, rather than a single large bridge. Indeed, the bridge is unparalleled in its variety of span types. It is one of the few bridges in North America to have more than one type of movable span. It is one of the few bridges in North America to have more than one type of movable span. Indeed, within this bridge each of the three most common movable bridge types is represented. When all these sections are combined, the result is a bridge that is unrivaled in variety, size, beauty, and history. These separate and different structures that carry the railroad over the St. Mary's River and its canal systems are collectively referred to as the International Railroad Bridge. The bridge was designed for and continues to carry a single set of tracks. In addition to the variety of span types, the bridge's existing spans were also constructed at different times. Two dates are most significant in the bridge's history. First, is 1887, which is what the oldest spans on this bridge date to, including the fixed camelback spans and the swing bridge. The second most significant date is 1913 when the Strauss Bascule Bridge Company designed the largest (and one of the most unusual) bascule span in the world for this bridge. Because of the variety of span types and span ages, photo galleries for this bridge as well as the narratives have all been organized into separate sections by bridge span type. The bridge crosses the river and canals of St. Marys River by making use of islands, some of which are artificial islands created by the locks. As such, from a technical definition, this bridge could be thought of as several bridges, since there are a few short sections that has track running along the ground. However, the structure is generally referred to in discussion as a single bridge, and therefore this bridge is being presented here on HistoricBridges.org in that format.

Mabel is going to the top of Pikes Peak

Pikes Peak rises to 14,115 feet above sea level in the state of Colorado.

Mountains with elevations this high have a very slow melting rate of the snow that it accumulates over the winter. Here, in this picture on this post card we see how that affects the ride up the mountain on the Pikes Peak Cog Railroad.

At the beginning of Spring it was announced that Pikes Peak would not open this year... and maybe never again. It was too old and needed too much money to rehabilitate it. https://www.pikes-peak.com/pikes-peak-cog-railway-closed/

Recently there was a second announcement that this may not be the case. A new company has either purchased the railroad or will pitch in to rehabilitate it. Keep watching the news!!!

Pikes Peak is named for Zebulon Montgomery Pike, an early explorer of the Southwestern United States. Lieutenant Pike (later General Pike), first sighted what he termed "The Great Peak" in mid-November of 1806. A few days later, he attempted to climb the mountain with a small band of men, however, heavy snows around the 10,000-foot level turned his party back. In 1820, Edwin James, a botanist who climbed many peaks in Colorado, made it to the top. The first woman, Julia Holmes, climbed the peak in 1858.

In 1873, the U.S. Signal Service (an early Weather Bureau) built a telegraph station on the summit to monitor the weather. The station was lived in by Sergeant John O'Keefe.

On the afternoon of June 30th, 1891, the first passenger train, carrying a church choir from Denver, made it to the summit of Pikes Peak by train. Mabel, the author of today's post card, decided that she would rather drive up to the top of the mountain in the middle of July, 1939.

She is letting her good friend Mrs. James Baker know this little tid-bit of information. The post card is being sent to Sipesville, Pennsylvania. It is a town just about 70 miles southeast of Pittsburgh and 30 miles south of where the Johnstown Flood of 1889 happened.

We have seen the little mascot in the top center of the post card before. This is the emblem (plus the arrow pointing up at it) used by the H.H. Tammen Company on their post cards.

Raphael Tuck & Sons

This picture shows a train crossing the Delaware River - something George Washington did back on Christmas Day in 1776. It sure was a lot easier in 1905 when the train took you across!

There is a company's name in the bottom right-hand corner of the post card. I tried to find something about it on line, but could not. The best I could find was that there was an Oscar Woodworth in Trenton in 1905. It is in a part of a newspaper that also included the words: "violet scented rice toilet powder". It sounds to me like O. Woodworth was a five and dime type of a store.
The train is on the Morrisville–Trenton Railroad Bridge, which today is a rail bridge across the Delaware River between Morrisville, Pennsylvania and Trenton, Mercer County, New Jersey, in the United States.

The bridge carries the Amtrak Northeast Corridor trains and SEPTA Trenton Line as well as non-revenue trains for NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line that have terminated at the Trenton Transit Center bound for the Morrisville Yard.

This post card was printed by the Raphael Tuck & Sons Company. It was founded in 1866 by Raphael Tuck, a seller of furniture and picture frames. After only a few months in business he expanded to become an important dealer in popular lithographic prints and greeting cards. In 1871, after concentrating on the picture side of the business, Tuck’s three sons joined the firm and they began publishing their first Christmas cards, printed in their native Prussia. When Raphael retired in 1881, his son Adolph took over the family business. He opened offices in New York in 1882 and Paris in 1885 to facilitate orders and distribution. By 1894, a year after they were appointed official printers to Queen Victoria, they printed their first Souvenir Card. When postal regulations were finally changed after much lobbying by Tuck and others, it provided better opportunities to enter the postcard market. Tuck immediately began the printing of postcards in chromolithography, and their twelve card set of London became the first illustrated card set in England. After opening their new facilities in 1899, Raphael House became the first publisher to print postcards in a larger size that we now call standard. They went on to publish a very wide variety of card types and all sorts of printed matter, including many innovative designs, eventually becoming a major publishing house. Not one to miss an opportunity, Tuck also became a major supplier of postcard accessories such as albums and display frames for cards. While most of Tuck’s cards were printed in Prussia, Saxony (a.k.a. Germany), and Holland until the First World War, the designs on them not made at Raphael House usually came from artists local to the subject at hand working through their international branches. After Raphael’s death in 1900 his son Adolph ran the business until his own death in the Great War. The firm was then taken over by his son Reginald. Their London factory and offices were destroyed in 1940 during a German bombing raid, but they began publishing anew after the war. Reginald died in 1954 and the business then passed to his brother Desmond who retired in 1959. Soon after the firm was purchased by Purnell & Sons.

American Falls, Idaho

This post card can certainly be dated as being 109 years old today. The post mark tells us that it was mailed on July 1, 1909. But, it is older than that. This type of post card was used for mailing post cards prior to March 1, 1907. Prior to this date, one could only write the message on the front of the post card. The back was reserved for the address only.

After March 1st of '07 the Divided Back post card took the country by storm. You can see that this post card has an added feature of being embossed. Those grey lines on the post card are from the rocks and river on the front of the post card.

The front of the post card is showing the American Falls in the Snake River

in Idaho. The town of American Falls was once a thriving, active hub located on the west bank of the Snake River, but during what was easily the largest government relocation of its time, the town was moved in it’s entirety to avoid flooding by the nearby dam. The known history of American Falls is just as fascinating as what remains shrouded by the passage of time. Part underwater marvel, part ambitious undertaking, part prehistoric wonder, and part active community, this (literal) hidden gem is a spectacular portion of Idaho’s history that few know the full story of… and even fewer know of the incredible discoveries that its muddy depths have revealed. In 1925, the Bureau of Reclamation began the job of moving American Falls to make way for the American Falls Dam. It was an ambitious and expensive undertaking that involved moving nearly 350 residents and their homes, over 60 businesses, churches, and schools, and lifting the entire railroad across the river an additional 22 feet to prepare for the increased water levels. The above information can be found at: http://www.onlyinyourstate.com/idaho/id-underwater-ghost-town/

66 Years Today

The title at the bottom of this post card drives me crazy. I have several that say something like "entrance to the Spiral Tunnel", as if there is only one tunnel. There are two Spiral Tunnels, one right after the other in the same area of the Rockies. The problem is that the "Lower Spiral Tunnel" is much easier to see from the road and to access for dramatic pictures.

As you can see, this train is going over a tunnel entrance from which it will soon be emerging. I have a couple of modern post cards in which the train is actually driving over itself. This particular train is westbound, so it has already gone through the "Upper Spiral Tunnel" and passed under the Trans Canada Highway.

That is Mount Stephen in the background. It was named after the first president of the Canadian Pacific Railway, George Stephen. He is pretty famous because was the first Canadian to be elevated to the Peerage of the United Kingdom (as opposed to the Peerage of Great Britain). He was also one of the presidents of the Bank of Montreal. He is especially remembered for his philanthropy in the community.

The back of the post card contains a bit of uniqueness of history. The person on the three cent stamp is King George VI. He died on February 6, 1952. His daughter, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned queen until June 2, 1953. That means that, even though Elizabeth was the queen, her picture was not on the stamp used by Bill, the writer of the post card. The post card was mailed on June 28, 1952 - 66 years ago today - when a picture of the queen would normally have been on a stamp.

The post card was published by Gowan Sutton. They were a publisher of real photo and printed postcards of the Canadian West. Not only did they produce cards depicting large cities, they captured many hard to reach views within the Canadian Territories. Many of their cards were hand tinted in a simple manner striving for style rather than realism, which created cards in vastly differing quality. While the real photo cards were made in Canada their printed cards were made in England. This is a real photo card, so it was made in Canada.

The Georgetown Loop 102 Years Ago

The Georgetown Loop Railroad got its name from this:

In the upper right-hand corner of the map you can see how the train doubles back in the canyon in order to gain height or lower itself, depending on the direction of travel. The front of this post card illustrates the principle perfectly as two trains drop in elevation while they are on The Loop.

The Georgetown Loop is located in Clear Creek County just west of Denver in Colorado. Clear Creek County was one of the original 17 counties created by the Colorado legislature on 1 November 1861, and is one of only two counties (along with Gilpin) to have persisted with its original boundaries unchanged. It was named after Clear Creek, which runs down from the continental divide through the county. Idaho Springs was originally designated the county seat, but the county government was moved to Georgetown in 1867. Clear Creek itself is a tributary of the South Platte River, approximately 66 miles (106 km) long,[2] in north central Colorado in the United States. The creek flows through Clear Creek Canyon in the Rocky Mountains directly west of Denver, descending through a long gorge to emerge on the Colorado Eastern Plains where it joins the South Platte. Clear Creek is unusual in that it is a stream named "creek" fed by a stream named "river". Fall River empties into Clear Creek along I-70 west of Idaho Springs, Colorado.

The words on the back of the post card include this sentence: "From the High Bridge of the Loop six pieces of track can be seen apparently detached, and the tourist realizes something of the marvel of engineering skill over which he has ridden."
The post card was published by the H.H. Tammen Company, a novelty dealer and important publisher of national view-cards and Western themes in continuous tone and halftone lithography. Their logo does not appear on all their cards but other graphic elements often remain the same. H. H. Tammen (1856-1924) Harry Heye Tammen was born in Baltimore, Maryland on March 6, 1856, the son of a German immigrant pharmacist. He attended Knapps Academy in Baltimore, then worked in Philadelphia before moving to Denver in 1880. With his partner Charles A. Stuart he worked as a Denver bartender in 1880, and in 1881 they established the firm of H.H. Tammen & Co. (which in 1896 became the H.H. Tammen Curio Co., with partners Carl Litzenberger and Joseph Cox) in Denver, Colorado. Deeply interested in the study of mineralogy, he published a promotional journal called Western Echoes magazine, "Devoted to Mineralogy, Natural History, Botany, &c. &c." Volume 1 number 1 is copyrighted 1882. In 1895 Tammen formed a partnership with F.G. Bonfils (whom he had met at the Chicago World's Fair) and they became co-owners and co-editors of the Denver Post. Their publishing business flourished, and Tammen's business successes made him a wealthy man. In 1917 Buffalo Bill Cody happened to die while in Denver, and Tammen (one of the city's biggest boosters) offered Cody's widow $10,000 if she would allow Cody to be buried in Denver; she accepted, and the ensuing funeral procession drew 50,000 people. He established the H.H. Tammen Trust in 1924, providing essential health care for children of families who cannot afford to pay. Tammen died July 19, 1924. The H.H. Tammen Curio Co. was in business until 1953, and possibly as late as 1962.

Written 110 Years Ago Today

Today's post card does not have a picture of any part of a train in it. Instead, there is an empty Santa Fe train track. I chose to collect this card because it is indicative of the type of terrain some of the trains in the Southwest United States had to traverse. A "bonus" feature is that it was near this canyon that the Battle of Glorietta Pass was fought during the Civil War. "Glorietta Pass and Apache Canyon are the site of the 1862 battle called "The Gettysburg of the West," when Union troops from nearby Fort Union, joined by volunteers from Colorado led by John Chivington, turned back a Confederate attempt to march north up the Rio Grande and capture the gold regions around Pikes Peak and Denver, Colorado." --- from http://www.pbs.org/weta/thewest/places/states/newmexico/nm_glorietta.htm The result of this battle was that New Mexico did not become a confederate territory.

This post card is an example of the 1915 - 1930 era post card called the "White Border" era.
In the bottom left of the post card is the numbering: H-1363. This indicates to me that this was a post card printed by Curt Otto Teich for Fred Harvey. This is quickly confirmed by looking in the upper right hand corner where it says, "Copyright by Fred Harvey". The Harvey House was an oasis of comfort and civilization along the railway routes of the Southwest. Entrepeneur Fred Harvey, dismayed by the often crude facilities he had seen at railway stops, endeavored to provide clean and welcoming lunchrooms, restaurants, and hotels as alternatives. His name became synonymous with quality accommodations -- an image fostered by clever and attractive advertising which drew in tourists from around the world. The Harvey House chain also offered tours to cultural, geological, and archeological attractions, further opening the Southwest to visitors. Harvey had close connections with the Santa Fe Railway, contracting to provide dining services along the line; this mutually beneficial association allowed Harvey to use the railroad for free shipment of supplies, while providing railway passengers with quality rest stops. --- from https://abqlibrary.org/c.php?g=19363&p=108880

The back of the post card also confirms that this is a Fred Harvey post card. The message was typed onto the post card; don't see that very often, although I do have a couple of them. The date on the back that was typed in says it was written 110 years ago today.

McKeen Motor Car

From the source of all knowledge worth knowing [Wikipeida] because the McKeen Motor Car Company website is under construction. www.mckeencar.com The McKeen Motor Car Company of Omaha, Nebraska, was a builder of internal combustion-engined railroad motor cars (railcars), constructing 152 between 1905–1917.[1] Founded by William McKeen, the Union Pacific Railroad's Superintendent of Motive Power and Machinery, the company was essentially an offshoot of the Union Pacific and the first cars were constructed by the UP before McKeen leased shop space in the UP's Omaha Shops in Omaha, Nebraska.

The UP had asked him to develop a way of running small passenger trains more economically, and McKeen produced a design that was ahead of its time. Unfortunately, internal combustion engine technology was not, and the McKeen cars never found a truly reliable powerplant. The vast majority of the cars produced were for E. H. Harriman's empire of lines (Union Pacific, Southern Pacific and others). Harriman's death in 1909 lost the company its major sponsor and investor, and Harriman's successors were less enthusiastic about the McKeen cars. Many McKeen cars ended up being re-engined with a variety of drive mechanisms — gasoline-mechanical, gasoline-electric, diesel-electric, or even steam power. Most, although not all, McKeen cars had the distinctive "wind-splitter" pointed aerodynamic front end and rounded tail. The porthole windows were also a McKeen trademark, adopted allegedly for strength after the 7th production car. A dropped central door, as pictured, was also present on the majority of the cars. Two lengths, 55 and 70 feet, were offered; either could be fitted out with a large mail and express area ahead of the center doors, a smaller mail/express area, or the car could be all seats for a maximum capacity of 64 or 105 respectively.
It is when I read the backs of postcards like this

that I wish that I could speak a multitude of languages. I would love to know what is being said, even if it only, "I'm OK; are you?" The post card was published by a company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska - just like the Union Pacific and the McKenn Motor Car Company. The Barkalow Brothers, Sidney D. Barkalow and Derrick V. Barkalow, arrived in Omaha from Ohio in 1856. BARKALOW BROS., news agents U. P. R. R., firm composed of D. V. and S. D. Barkalow, commenced business in 1865. D. V. B. of above firm was born in Warren County, Ohio, February, 1843. In 1856 he removed with his parents to Omaha, Neb. Learned printing and telegraphy, and about 1862 was engaged as operator on the overland telegraph line. He married in Cheyenne, W. T., May 24, 1876, to Miss Kate Whitehead. They have two children, Weltha M. and Robert V. Mr. B. is a member of the Pleasant Hours Club. S. D. Barkalow of above firm was born in Warren County, Ohio, in 1844; removed to Omaha Neb., with his parents in 1856. At the age of fifteen years he commenced clerking, and at seventeen started in business for himself in book and stationery firm of Barkalow Bros. They became the exclusive distributors of printed materials, including postcards, for the Union Pacific Railroad. They won won their contract with the U.P. in 1865 and became the exclusive news agents on the trains and in the stations along the line. The Barkalow Brothers also published non railroad oriented view-cards that were often printed by Tom Jones. They eventually became suppliers of hotel gift shops and moved their business to Fort Myers, Florida. They have been known to cooperate with Williamson-Haffner Company in their publishing efforts. The forgoing was found on the great website of the Metropolitan Post Card Club of New York http://www.metropostcard.com/index.html.

Want to Join a Club?

Taken from the Union Pacific Railroad's website:
Long an advocate for a rail line that would extend all the way to the Pacific, former railroad attorney and now President Abraham Lincoln realized his dream when he signed the Pacific Railway Act of 1862.

The Central Pacific Railroad of California, which had been chartered in 1861, was authorized to build a line east from Sacramento. At the same time, the Act chartered The Union Pacific Railroad Company to build west from the Missouri River. The original legislation granted each railroad 6,400 acres and up to $48,000 in government bonds for each mile it completed. The UP deadline for completion: July 1, 1874. The Corporate Headquarters for the Union Pacific Railroad is in Omaha, Nebraska. probably not very far from where this picture was taken.

The writer of the post card is inviting himself to join a club in which they trade post cards with each other. The other person, Miss Nellie Valentine, lives in Michigan. He lives in Omaha, thus the nature of the post card.

Look, Ma! No hands!!

OK Get a load of this caption on the back of the post card: "Gravity Car of Mill Valley and Mt. Tamalpais Railway descending Mt. Tamalpais from Muir Woods, California." What a wild ride that could be... although it does look like the person in the front left of the car has his hand on a braking mechanism of some sort. Mount Tampalpais used to have a hotel, tavern at the top. During its time a trip on the Mount Tamalpais Scenic Railroad was a favorite city getaway for San Franciscans. The railway was an immediate success when it opened for business in 1896 and was dubbed by locals as the “Crookedest Railroad in the World” because of its 281 curves in just over eight miles of track, which were depicted in the company’s logo, seen left. Imagine the feeling of excitement and anticipation people must have felt as they ferried across the bay to Sausalito. At the nearby Mill Valley train depot a sleek Heisler or Shay steam engine’s whistle signaled the beginning of the train ride to the top of Mount Tamalpais. Passengers breathed the fresh mountain air from open cars as the train climbed to an elevation of 2,500 feet at a speed of 10 miles per hour. At the summit people marveled at views of the entire San Francisco Bay Area. Locomotives were positioned on the downhill end of the train and pushed the passenger cars uphill, allowing for unobstructed vistas. Watching the engines push from below was an added spectacle for riders, who could see the train’s gears and engineer at work. Ridership declined in later years. By 1920, automobiles could drive to the mountain summit on twisty roads. A fire on Mount Tamalpais in 1929 left many of the rail ties damaged or destroyed. Rail managers lost hope for profitability and abandoned reconstruction efforts. The last train traveled up the mountain on October 31, 1929. Tracks were pulled up in 1930, signaling the end of travel to Muir Woods on the Mount Tamalpais Scenic Railway.

The writer of this post card is telling Miss Alice Lazarus that they are going camping in Yosemite National Park for two weeks. They even have tents and utensils. The writer tells us that Ted looks fine [I presume that Ted is her husband] and the letter that Alice sent arrived on "my anniversary, May 3" So, I don't know if Ted is her husband.... Why else would she have an anniversary? AND the writer does not sign the post card with a name.

The Back Says 1911 but the Front Says 1902

The front of this post card shows a section of track leading to a tunnel in the Eagle River Canyon on the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. That is what the caption at the bottom left of the picture says. The copyright on the bottom right says that the picture was taken in 1898. That doesn't mean that the post card is that old; or at least I cannot prove that it is that old. More on the age of the card at the end of this post.

The following information was taken from: www.drgw.net/info/TennesseePass

The first part of the Denver & Rio Grande line from Salida, CO, up to Malta was constructed as part of the narrow gauge extension of the Royal Gorge Route route in 1880. From Malta, what would become the Blue River Branch was run up to Leadville, and then up and over Fremont Pass at 11,330 feet. The branch then worked down the north/east side of the pass as far as Robinson. Another branch was extended north to charcoal ovens at Crane's Park, near the south side of today's Tennessee Pass. The objective was not to cross the Divide and reach points west (that goal having already been accomplished via Marshall Pass), but rather to tap the mining boom under way in Leadville.

The next year, 1881, was more of the same. The branch from Malta to Cranes Park was extended over the Divide at Tennessee Pass, and then down the Eagle River valley/canyon

to Red Cliff to serve a new pocket of silver mining. 1882 brought two more miles from Red Cliff to Rock Creek. Aside from more spurs around Leadville, the line over Tennessee essentially stayed the same until 1887.

Only just shy of a year after the Union Pacific-Southern Pacific merger, on 23-Aug-1997, the last through revenue train went over the pass. The train was OMIGV-19, a westbound unit taconite train with two units on the front and three in the middle. It departed Pueblo at 1125h and pulled into Minturn at 2005h. The last train over the top of the pass is questionable, but Denver Rio Grande Western 3075 went over the top from the west side on 23 Dec 1997 with two gondolas for Malta, running back light. The Malta Local continued to run from Pueblo-Malta until 9-Mar-1999, and beyond that only a few work trains have plied the east side of the pass.

Now about the age of the post card. This is one of my favorite post cards. I love and respect all post cards that are from the era when the only thing allowed on the back of the post card was the address. The sender had to be creative if s/he wanted to send a message and not just a picture. You can see at the bottom on the front of the card, John has written "On DRG Train May 8 - 06" So this post card is guaranteed to be 112 years old today. But keep reading; it may be older. It wasn't mailed until three days later in Spokane, Washington.

The printer of the card was the Detroit Photographic Company. Originally a printer of religious books and calendars, the Detroit Photographic Company Ltd. shifted production in 1897 when owners William A. Livingstone and Edwin H. Husher saw the potential in postcards. After negotiations with Orell Fussli, Detroit became the sole American company to license the Swiss photochrom process, which they would eventually register in 1907 under the name Phostint. In addition they would also distributed Swiss made prints for Fussli in America. When the well known Western photographer William Henry Jackson joined the company as a partner, he added his thousands of negatives to Livingstone’s collection of Great Lakes imagery and Husher’s photos of California. All this provided a strong foundation to start publishing postcards. Jackson traveled around the United States taking many additional pictures until 1903 when he took over the management of Detroit’s factory. By 1904 as postcards sales increased to 7 million per year they changed their name to the Detroit Publishing Company. They produced postcards on a great variety of subjects but they are best known for their view-cards. The quality of their cards are considered some of the finest produced in America. They also printed many contract cards whose numbers increased as ordinary sales began to fall. Many of their views found on postcards were also produced as larger sized prints. Detroit went into receivership in 1924 but printed contract cards until 1932. The look of these cards changed over the years as the phostint technique was secretly perfected. All their cards were printed in Detroit except for a rare few from Austria and Switzerland.

The company kept very good records of their printing history and so I know that this particular card was printed in 1902 because it is numbered between 6000 and 6999.

Dizzying Heights 108 Years Ago

The Mount Lowe Railway was the third in a series of scenic mountain railroads in America created as a tourist attraction on Echo Mountain and Mount Lowe, north of Los Angeles, California. The railway, originally incorporated by Professor Thaddeus S. C. Lowe as the Pasadena & Mt. Wilson Railroad Co. existed from 1893 until its official abandonment in 1938, and had the distinction of being the only scenic mountain, electric traction (overhead electric trolley) railroad ever built in the United States. Lowe’s partner and engineer was David J. Macpherson, a civil engineer graduate of Cornell University. The Mount Lowe Railway was a fulfillment of 19th century Pasadenans to have a scenic mountain railroad to the crest of the San Gabriel Mountains. The Railway opened on the 4th of July 1893.

What you see here is the second phase of three train trips that the tourists took to get to the Alpine Tavern at the top of the mountain. If it looks like the people are posing for a picture, that is because they are. Mr. Lowe hired a photographer to take pictures of the people after they got onto the cable car. Then, of course, the tourists could purchase the pictures once they were developed.

After having their pictures taken, they were taken up the mountain. That building is NOT the Alpine Tavern. The tourists disembarked at the top and transferred to a trolley that took them farther up the mountain into the wooded part. That is where they could find the Alpine Tavern and a friendly "pet bear".

The post card was mailed on May 2, 1910 - one hundred and eight years ago today. The writing is very small because she has a lot to say in a very small space. Basically, she is saying that she hasn't heard from her aunt and uncle, the recipients, [and she hopes it is not because they have been ill] and she wants to stay with them while she is in their area. She has been to California to recover from an illness, herself. She is on her way back home feeling better but without any more pounds on her frame. I know it is a she because she signs it your affectionate niece.... but her name is obscured by the top post mark.

103 Years Ago

After looking at the picture on the front of this post card, then reading the title of it here on the back of the card, I was mortified. I do remember when people in the United States of African heritage were called "boys". It was not a complimentary term, either. And then, to read that these two are on a handcar on a track that goes through Colony No. 1,

I thought that this was the lowest anyone could go after the Civil War.

OK, I was wrong. Not about it being the lowest anyone could go, but I was wrong in my 21st century interpretation of what I was reading. "FARMER BOYS" was a movement begun by Will B. Otwell in Carlinville, Illinois.

It was like a predecessor to the 4-H club movement. He sponsored agricultural contests among the boys who lived on the farms. At first the competitions were just local. Will B. Otwell had been active in the Macoupin County (Illinois) Farmers' Institute from the beginning in 1898. As a local nurseryman, he was elected secretary of the group in February of 1898. For their first Institute day, held later that same month, the officers engaged speakers of state-wide reputation to talk on farm subjects. Otwell promoted the institute extensively, advertising in 13 county papers and instructed the janitor of the courthouse to open the doors early to accommodate the crowd. But when the doors of the courthouse opened, the only ones to enter the hall were the officers and the chaplain. A couple of years later he decided to do something grand to promote the event. First, he wrote to leading corn growers in Iowa, Indiana, and Illinois and procured 12 samples of first-class seed corn. He then called 12 farmers into the parlors of a local bank and asked them to select the variety best adapted to the soil of Macoupin county. This done, he bought several bushels of the seed corn at $2 per bushel. Next, he solicited $40 in cash and divided it into $1 premiums. A plow company gave a two-horse plow for a sweepstakes premium. Otwell then published a notice in the county papers that every boy under 18 who would send in his name and address would receive a package of seed corn - all that could be mailed for one cent postage. The response was considerable; 500 young boys requested seed corn for the contest and during the summer these youthful contestants advertised the forthcoming Farmers' Institute as no other medium could have done. By 1901 Otwell's annual corn growing contest had attracted 1,500 boys. Soon equipment manufacturers offered premiums to contest winners: a three-wheeled riding plow, a walking cultivator, fanning mill, a high-grade bicycle, a double harrow, a washing machine, a one-hole corn sheller, a box of 100 bars of soap, and even a windmill. The attendance in 1901 set a record and that of 1902 surpassed it, with the result that Otwell and his county Institute became known all over the state of Illinois. Eventually, he opened his contest up to all farm children in Illinois. Then he opened it up to the a wider audience and eventually he opened it up to the entire United States. You can find more about this story at http://4-hhistorypreservation.com/History/4-H_Promotion/Single_Story.asp?ps=38

AND.... it turns out that the Colony No. 1 is one of many real estate ventures that Will Otwell undertook with a partner. Wow!! Was I ever wrong. A good lesson to learn here for me.

One Hundred and Eight Years Ago

From Wikipedia: The Grand Trunk Railway (reporting mark GT) was a railway system that operated in the Canadian provinces of Quebec and Ontario, and in the American states of Connecticut, Maine, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont. The railway was operated from headquarters in Montreal, Quebec, with corporate headquarters in London, England (4 Warwick House Street). It cost an estimated $160 million to build. The Grand Trunk, its subsidiaries, and the Canadian Government Railways were precursors of today's Canadian National Railways.

The Grand Trunk station was a historic railroad station in Hamilton, Ontario, which was located on Stuart Street, at the beginning of Caroline Street North. In 1885, an effort was made to beautify the area to the east of the station itself with ornamental gardens. The embankment along Stuart Street provided an opportunity to let passengers passing by to know exactly what city they were in, with the word "Hamilton" written with white stones. You can see this on the embankment to the left of the station and below the white building with the red roof.

The message is Marjorie telling her cousin, Florence, that all is well and that she was the housekeeper while her mother and Martha went to Detroit over Easter. The publisher of the post card, W.G. MacFarland, was a very active post card publisher. If you search for the name you will find quite the number of results, including pictures of his post cards.

110 Years Ago Today

When the railroad was built, the Dollarhide family owned the Siskiyou Pass wagon road, which became the Pacific Highway, U.S. Highway 99, and Interstate 5 later. They also owned a sawmill, for which they had originally purchased this right of way. The material for the pictured trestle came out of the nearby Dollarhide Sawmill, and Southern Pacific therefore named it "Dollarhide Trestle". Like all the wooden trestles along the Siskiyou Pass route, it was filled with rock and soil later, and is a dam today. On some maps, the location is still called "Dollarhide Curve". The nearby settlement "Dollarhide" has been abandoned, like most of the small settlements along the railroad pass route.
It must be a very steep grade. There are two engines at the front of this train and one at the back, pushing. The Oregon & California Railroad proposed an alternate route for the Oregon and California rail connection, which would have avoided Siskiyou Pass. However, Oregon politicians decided in favor of the present rail route. When Tunnel 13 was completed in 1887, beneath the Siskiyou Pass, there was finally a rail link between Oregon and California. In the 1920s, the Southern Pacific Railroad constructed the Natron Cutoff, a faster, cheaper route between the two states.

The message on the back is simply letting someone know that the writer arrived in Salem, Oregon safely and that the weather was much better than she expected.

81 Years Od Today

There is so much to say about this post card.... Because the title on the front of the card claims that it is "The Steepest Railway in the World" we should check on that. The rails are 1,550 feet long from top to bottom of the canyon. For 100 per cent of the ride the rails are set at a 45 degree angle. That sounds like the steepest Railway in the world to me - - - at least back on June 14, 1931 (not quite 6 years before this post card was mailed) when it was dedicated. If you search on line for the world's steepest railway today, you will find that it is, of course, in Switzerland. It is certainly steeper than this railway is today - it no longer exists. It was destroyed beyond repair by a fire in June of 2013. That was the same month as its 82nd birthday. The incline railway was owned by the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. You can see that when we turn the card over:

The purple circular stamp in the top, middle says, "The top of the world Tennessee Pass Colorado" at the bottom of the circle it has the letters: "D. & G. R. W. Rail..." It also tells you that you are a the 10,242 foot elevation mark (not quite 2 miles above sea level. On left side of the card we see that it was published by the Interstate Company out of Denver. Van Noy Railway Hotel and News began a series of mergers and acquisitions in 1914, starting with the Brown News Company (also headquartered in Kansas City) which was acquired on October 1, 1914 being operated as Van Noy News. In 1915, the Company began consolidating operations with the New York City based Interstate News Company. The company name was changed to Van Noy-Interstate News Company in 1917, but the company headquarters remained in Kansas City under the leadership of Ira C. Van Noy. As a result of changes in railroad passenger train service, Van Noy Interstate began to focus more on the hotel side of their operations. In 1922, the Company acquired the Gem Fountain Company, and in 1926 the company began operating as the Interstate Company.
The line down the center of the card indicates that it was printed by the H. H. Tammen Curio Company. A novelty dealer and important publisher of national view-cards and Western themes in continuous tone and halftone lithography. Their logo does not appear on all their cards but other graphic elements are often remain the same. H. H. Tammen (1856-1924) Harry Heye Tammen was born in Baltimore, Maryland on March 6, 1856, the son of a German immigrant pharmacist. He attended Knapps Academy in Baltimore, then worked in Philadelphia before moving to Denver in 1880. Tammen also manufactured a very popular line of "Colorado curiosities" and "mineral novelties" consusting of a variety of numbered and identified Colorado mineral and ore specimens cemented onto clocks, caskets, inkstands (one of which won an award at the 1881 Colorado State Fair), centerpieces, crosses, horseshoes and so on for ornamental purposes. He described these items as "perfect in taste, blending of colors, etc., and absolutely trustworthy as regards the cataloguing, classification and specifications of the different minerals employed in the construction of each article." He also dealt in stereoscopic and other photos of the West (he was supplied by the famous Western photographer W.H. Jackson), photo albums, books on the West, silver souvenir spoons, a wide variety of humorous and scenic postcards (especially of mining areas), fossil fish, polished agates, botanical specimens, Pueblo Indian pottery, Tlingit Indian carvings, relics and taxidermy items from his stores in Denver.

115 Years Ago - Regarding a Bay Colt Horse

I know that the title of the blog says, "Bay Colt Horse" but that is not the subject of the picture on the post card. That is one of the topics in the message. This person is writing to George Cramer in Mapleton, Minnesota asking, "Have you driven your bay colt yet? He must be a dandy by this time." Mapleton is about 100 miles South-Southwest of Minneapolis. On Google maps it looks like it could still be farm country where they raise bay colts. Other interesting notes about the back of this post card:
1) The post card is published by Edward H. Mitchell from San Francisco. Edward H. Mitchell was one of the earliest and most prolific postcard publishers in the United States, and he was a San Franciscan. Cards bearing his name as publisher have been used, collected and studied since the end of the nineteenth century – the dawn of the Golden Age of Postcards. Several extensive checklists running to over three thousand entries have been compiled and updated. Mitchell published very early cards – colored vignettes – that were printed in Germany. He was publishing undivided back cards from a Post Street address before the earthquake and fire of 1906 destroyed his printing operation and much of San Francisco. He continued to work out of his home until he built a plant and warehouse on Army Street. From there he published thousands of divided back cards including many views of San Francisco and the West, series on the Philippines and the Hawaiian Islands, high quality real photo views, comics, artistic designs and a series of early exaggerations of California fruits and vegetables. He printed cards for himself and other publishers, most notably to promote the 1915 Panama Pacific International Exposition. Collectors and researchers of all Mitchell cards cannot help but feel a personal link with the publisher because he identifies himself on each of them as “Edward H. Mitchell”–  not “... Company,” not “... Inc.” just Edward H. Mitchell.”
2) Contained in the postal cancellation is an advertisement for the upcoming WORLD'S PANAMA PACIFIC EXPOSITION IN SAN FRANCISCO IN 1915. It was ostensibly advertised as a celebration of the that fact that the recently opened Panama Canal would connect the Pacific world to the rest of the world through the canal. Being a train post card blog spot, I have to mention that the C. P. Huntington, the first steam locomotive purchased for the Southern Pacific Railroad, was included in the exhibits.
3) If you look carefully at the cancellation mentioned in number 2, above, the I in SAN FRANCISCO is spelled with an exclamation mark !

I do not know how intentional that is. I can find no references to it on line or in any of the books that I have. I do know that the city had experienced a devastating earthquake less than a decade earlier and they were excited to show the world how they had recovered. Maybe this was a hint.

The picture on the front of this post card is from a mountain in the range that surrounds Las Angeles, California. I have written about Mt. Lowe before in this blog. That is the San Gabriel valley in the background. In order to get to this point in the Mount Lowe experience the riders would have taken a Pacific Electric trolley from Los Angeles to the base of the mountain. Then they took an incline railroad very nearly straight up the side of the mountain where they would then transfer to this trolley, which would then take them through the Granite Gate, across Las Flores Canyon and around the circular bridge in order to get to the Inn at the top of the mountain. Unfortunately, today there is very little that remains of this marvel. You can read more about Mt. Lowe here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Lowe_Railway

Boy Away from Home 94 Years Ago

"Trains entering California and Florida through Orange Groves" is a theme that repeats again and again in my post card collection. I posted earlier this year about two post cards with the same scene, one claiming it was in California and the other Florida. This post card is sticking with the California concept. It is certainly a real possibility. When I lived in California there were train tracks that passed next to and through orange groves. I remember one that went through an avocado grove! In the bottom left of the post card, starting the title, is the combination: H-2290. This immediately tells me that this post card was printed so the the Fred Harvey Company could sell it.

In 1878 Fred Harvey was the first to established a chain of restaurants then hotels across the Southwest that provided quality service. Much was done to market the region including publishing large series of postcards depicting Native Americans and local scenery. In 1897 Harvey took over the news stands for the A.T.&S.F. Railroad and began distributing postcards. The Santa Fe Railroad also did a great deal to publicize its Route to the Grand Canyon. A large amount of postcards were produced depicting the canyon and the Railroad’s hotel interests within the National Park.

Fred Harvey himself provided some of the images for these cards until his death in 1901. Between 1901 and 1932 the Company contracted all their cards with the Detroit Publishing Company (that is who printed this post card). These cards have an H prefix before their identification number, but in addition Detroit published many of Harvey’s images on their own. After Detroit closed, many of Harvey’s cards were contracted out to Curt Teich among others.

The message on the back is a son telling his mother that he is okay and in North Bend, Oregon. She lives in Hilltop, Kansas. My short research indicates to me that Hilltop's post office was discontinued in August of 1951. I am not sure if it disappeared altogether, or if it was absorbed into Wichita. There is an area in Kansas that is remembered in Wikipedia as Hilltop, but there is also a district in Wichita named Hilltop.

Lonely 109 Years Ago

The publisher's title for this post card is "Three Elevations of Track on F. & C. C. Ry., Colo." If you look very, extremely carefully at the very top of the hill in the middle, you can see a dark line with a very slight puff of smoke heading skyward. That is the first level. The second level is obvious with the engine and three passenger cars. The third level of tracks stars in the lower left and crosses a wee bridge to the right. The railway is the Florence and Cripple Creek, a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow-gauge railway. It went Northwest out of Florence, Colorado where it met with the Denver and Rio Grande. It included Cañon City (from where this post card was mailed) on the banks of the Arkansas River. The C & CC Railway traveled up the steep and narrow Phantom Canyon to the Cripple Creek Mining District, west of Pikes Peak. It was founded in 1893 and went out of business in 1915. (from Wikipedia)

I love the kinds of messages this post card contains: Why haven't you written to me!! I find humorous because the author is complaining that he hasn't hear from his cousin, but he certainly hasn't told her much in the way of news with this post card.

See America First 104 Years Ago

The back of this post card promotes that Americans should see their own country first. It is very politely worded, "SEE EUROPE IF YOU WILL BUT SEE AMERICA FIRST". It is very cute that they have a dark outline of all of North America (with white border line above and below the States) but they don't really mention Mexico and Canada as options. The giveaway to me is that HUGE American flag. I am pretty sure that they meant for Americans to visit the 48 states (there were only 48 in 1914) first, then, if there is time left in the visitor's life, he or she can go to see Europe.

Of course, the front of the card hints at the absolutely very best way to "See America first".... take the train. This is a picture of a steam train crossing the Great Salt Lake in Utah on the Lucin Cut-off. The train is leaving the Midlake Station on its way to the other shore. The Lucin Cut-off is a railroad line which included a railroad trestle which crossed the Great Salt Lake in Utah. Built by the Southern Pacific Company between February 1902 and March 1904 across Promontory Point, it bypassed the original Central Pacific Railroad route through Promontory Summit where the Golden Spike was driven in 1869. By going west across the lake from Ogden, Utah to Lucin, Utah, it cut off 43 miles and avoided curvatures and unpleasant grades. The trestle was eventually replaced in the late 1950s with a parallel causeway built under contract by the Morrison Knudsen construction company. Today the wood from the old trestle is being re-used by the Trestlewood Company. I have a piece of the original trestle to go along with my train post card collection. Thank you, Trestlewood.

The message on the back is reassuring if not disconcerting. "Everything is just right in this city. Will depart 21st." If everything in the city is just right, why are they leaving?

Mailed on a Train 104 Years Ago

This post card reminds me very much of a joke my father would suggest that we play on our art teacher in elementary school. He suggested that we color the entire paper black and title it "Midnight on the Desert". I did that in grade 5 or 8 (I had the same teacher each of those grades) using a black colored pencil on a 4 by 6 piece of card stock. She then brought me the paper and a pencil with an eraser and started to lightly erase areas to look like cactus, mountains in the background and a coyote. I didn't think she had much of a sense of humor. The picture on the front of this card must have inspired my dad's joke.

The message on the back is no laughing matter, however. It is written by someone who has been on the train across the American prairies for perhaps one day too long. "Here we are getting back East. Leaving the Mountain & riding thru prairie all day Friday." I am not sure, but I think the writer tried to balance off the complaint by signing the card from everyone in the family (three of whom had a name that started with the letter T). It is signed "S+S+S+ HM"

The post card was published by The Barkalow Brothers. I have many post cards in my collection thanks to their efforts.
The Barkalow Brothers were Sidney D. Barkalow and Derrick V. Barkalow. They arrived in Omaha from Ohio in 1856. BARKALOW BROS., news agents U. P. R. R. commenced business in 1865. D. V. B. of above firm was born in Warren County, Ohio, February, 1843. S. D. Barkalow of above firm was born in Warren County, Ohio, in 1844; removed to Omaha Neb., with his parents in 1856. At the age of fifteen years he commenced clerking, and at seventeen started in business for himself in book and stationery firm of Barkalow Bros. They became the exclusive distributors of printed materials, including postcards, for the Union Pacific Railroad. They won won their contract with the U.P. in 1865 and became the exclusive news agents on the trains and in the stations along the line. The Barkalow Brothers also published non railroad oriented view-cards that were often printed by Tom Jones. They eventually became suppliers of hotel gift shops and moved their business to Fort Myers, Florida. They have been known to cooperate with Williamson-Haffner Company in their publishing efforts.

What I really like is that this post card was mailed while the writer was still on the train. It was a Union Pacific passenger train that traveled the route: Omaha, North Platte & Denver. The R.P.O. at the bottom of the round postmark indicates that the post card was mailed from a Railroad Post Office.

From Los Angeles to Toronto 108 years ago

This post card was mailed 108 years ago today. The message is Jean is telling Rosena that, although, she sent pictures to others in the area, she knew that Rosena would see them. My take on this is that Jean moved to Los Angeles

in 1909; her family built a new home and sent pictures of it to the old neighborhood. I went on line and searched the addresses of both the sender and the receiver. For the sender I found that the home is now very close to the Santa Monica freeway. It was built in 1909 with 4 bedrooms and 1 bath. The total square footage is 2,336. The estimated value on the real estate market today is just under $800,000. The home to which this message is being sent is almost straight north of downtown Toronto. It is a 5 bedroom and 1 bath home on a piece of property 15 feet wide and 90 feet deep. It is described as a semi-detached bungalow, but it looks like a multi-story duplex. Jean adds that it is the "rainy season " in the Los Angeles area so she cannot go sight-seeing. So, she sends Rosena a picture of a sight near Los Angeles:

This is a picture of the incline railway that takes visitors up to the top of Mt. Lowe. Visitors arrive via the street car that you see in the lower left of the picture. They transfer to the cable car to ascend 1300 feet in altitude over a 3,000 foot installation of tracks: the incline. From there, there catch a tram that takes them over the "circular bridge", across Los Flores canyon, through the "Granite Gate" and on to the Mount Lowe Tavern. I have 95 post cards that depict the various scenes of this day-trip from Los Angeles.