Keep the Show on the Road! Posted October 11, 2008 Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 I haven’t convinced anyone here that we should have a two lane post cards and travel ephemera subforum, so I’ll take Dave’s advice and post in General Discussion. Below is a neat image from a real photo post card, probably taken in the late 1930's or very early 1940's. The grade is the one that comes up from the old Vantage Bridge on the east side of the Columbia River. The road is still there, long bypassed by I-90. As I recall, it was US 10, a major east west cross state route. Rock climbers access the rocks in the background via the road today. Interestingly the road, if you could look the other way, just disappears today under the waters of the Columbia River, as it is backed up behind a modern dam. Ellis was a very popular producer of B&W real photo post cards in Washington. That no doubt is his car parked in the lower right. What is more or less interesting here, in addition to the spectacular cliffs…which still inspire today….is the oil slick up the hill. The old two lane roads typically had oil slicks down the middle of each lane, and wider and more prominent slicks at the bottom of any dip. I suppose the slick here is in part the result of engines laboring at higher RPM up the incline, thus higher oil pressures, and the effects of heat that thinned oil so that it leaked. The oil slicks made for some pretty exciting driving, especially just after a rain Note the cars coming down the hill. The lead auto may be crossing the very vague solid white or yellow line….not the fellow you prefer to meet on that curve. Note the cars behind him as well. Perhaps they want to pass. Narrow or no shoulders, oily roads, anxious drivers, and blind curves…..the old roads weren’t all the good things we chronologically advantaged want you to believe they were! For those using Google Earth, I have marked the coordinates where the photographer was probably standing. Incidentally, I have a Kodachrome slide of my sister and myself when I was about 8 taken about a half mile behind the spot where the photographer’s car is parked, a little closer to the river, when the road was the main route. Keep the Show on the Road! Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mobilene Posted October 11, 2008 Report Share Posted October 11, 2008 Very nice! I've been looking up postcards on eBay all year for my Michigan Road stuff and have found a few that are just of an Indiana road. I even bought one of them. Maybe there <i>could</i> be enough interest here... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Burr - hester_nec Posted October 12, 2008 Report Share Posted October 12, 2008 I have several U S 40 post cards, somewhere around here that I bought off ebay. Just can't remember where I put the album they are in. I remember one shows the road thru the gap in Maryland, another of the Y bridge in Ohio and still another shows Berthoud Pass west of Denver. I'll have to dig that one out sometime. Hudsonly, Alex Burr Memphis, TN Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keep the Show on the Road! Posted October 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted October 12, 2008 I have several U S 40 post cards, somewhere around here that I bought off ebay. Just can't remember where I put the album they are in. I remember one shows the road thru the gap in Maryland, another of the Y bridge in Ohio and still another shows Berthoud Pass west of Denver. I'll have to dig that one out sometime. Hudsonly, Alex Burr Memphis, TN Alex, The sooner the better! Those sound like beauties! And they tell the story of a great road. I am waiting to see them, and so are hundreds, maybe thousands of others! Keep the Show on the Road! Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Reese Posted October 14, 2008 Report Share Posted October 14, 2008 I have inherited nearly 1000 old postcards, but so far I have made no attempt to see what I have. Maybe a long cold winter can get me started on sorting and viewing them to see if I have anything fun to post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Rowland Posted October 14, 2008 Report Share Posted October 14, 2008 I remember one shows the road thru the gap in Maryland, another of the Y bridge in Ohio and still another shows Berthoud Pass west of Denver. We just drove through Berthoud Pass this morning on our way to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It was my first time through the pass, and it was great! I took a few pictures I hope to post when I get some time... Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.