Alan Mays' photos with the keyword: railroad cars

This early postcard nicely captures the hustle and bustle of trains, cars, and wagons at a railroad station in Des Moines, Iowa, during the early twentieth century. Building signs provide some additional details. Below the sign for the "Passenger Station, Chicago and North-Western Railway" is another one that indicates that the "American Express Co." was based there as well. Barely visible signs on the brick buildings on the other side of the railroad cars identify one as the factory for "Garr Scott & Co " which manufactured threshing machinery, and another--the tallest building in the distance--as the Grand Hotel.

A tall-tale postcard created by M. L. Oakes in 1907. For other postcards by Oakes, see Washington Pear and Peach Orchard and The Way They Dig Potatoes in Idaho (below). Postmark on the other side of the card: April 5, 1910, Portland, Ore. Sta. E ( railway post office , RPO). Addressed to C. M. Bierly, Dents Run, Elk Co., Penna. Message: "Howdy? Dan."

"This card entitles Name: ________ to a day membership in the Mount Washington Club on the Top of New England, White Mountains, N.H. Date of ascent: Aug. 23, 1938." As Wikipedia reports, Mount Washington is the "highest peak in the Northeastern United States at 6,288.2 ft (1,916.6 m)," which certainly qualifies it as the "Top of New England." The unnamed original owner of this card evidently visited the mountain on August 23, 1938, and may have taken a ride on the Mount Washington Cog Railway --depicted on the back of the card--to get to the top.

An unused real photo postcard, date and location unknown.

"1899 - A Carload of Corn from ________."

"1891 - A Carload of Strawberries from ________." If you like these tall-tale postcards (above and below), then you may want to take a look at my other Edward H. Mitchell cards.

"Miniature Railway, House of David Park, Benton Harbor, Mich. 14." A miniature railroad at an amusement park that was operated by the House of David , a religious commune in Benton Harbor , Michigan, whose members also performed in touring bands and played on baseball teams. Check out another view of the Miniature Railway, House of David Park, Benton Harbor, Michigan .

Printed on the back of this postcard: "The Broadway Limited, the Aristocrat of the Rails, is America's foremost train. It makes the daily run over the Pennsylvania Railroad between New York and Chicago in 20 hours; Philadelphia and Chicago in 18¼ hours. Direct connections in new Union Station, Chicago, for Pacific Coast and points West." As Wikipedia explains, "The Broadway Limited was a passenger train operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad between New York City and Chicago. It operated from 1912 to 1995." The illustration on this advertising postcard comes from a 1920s painting by Harold Brett entitled Speed and Security . It shows the Broadway Limited traveling over the Rockville Bridge , which crosses the Susquehanna River a few miles north of Harrisburg, Pa.

An Erie Railroad car appears on the front of this exaggeration postcard, and the description on the back of the card (see below) mentions the railroad company twice. It seems likely that the Erie Railroad sponsored the card, but there's no indication of a publisher's name on the other side. Addressed to: Traffic Dept., Kalamazoo Tank and Silo Co., Kalamazoo, Mich. Postmarked: Detroit, Mich., Aug. 2, 1913. Printed on the back: Incandescent Lamps. The present yearly production of incandescent lamps in this country amounts to about 114,000,000--ranging from ¼ to 500 candle power. The largest factory is located in Harrison, N.J. (on the Erie Railroad); other important important points of manufacture are: New York City, Chicago, Cleveland, Youngstown, O., and Warren, O. (all of which are located on the Erie Railroad). A carload shipment of incandescent lamps contains 40,000 lamps of ordinary size--more than three times the number required to equip a modern skyscraper office building accommodating 7500 people.

A tipsy or drunk photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. A souvenir real photo postcard presumably from Tijuana ( not "Tiajuana" with its extra "a"), Mexico, shows three intrepid travelers--all holding bottles--posing in front of a painted backdrop of a Pullman railroad car . Although this was obviously staged in a photo studio, something about the giddy expressions on their faces (especially those of the man on the right-hand side and the woman) suggests to me that they may actually have been imbibing before the photo was taken.

Original caption: "I am pushing on the lines. Will show you a full line of samples about...." With written additions: "I am pushing on the lines. Will see you about next Saturday if plans pan out O.K. Shall I bring a trunk? Store's not open Sat., so if you come home, come to end of line, [or?] phone from square." A salesman normally would have used a postcard like this to notify potential customers when he'd arrive at their location to show them samples of his merchandise, but instead the sender of this card has altered the message to arrange a time to meet a friend or relative.

Flowery train Valentine postcard.

"1893 - I'm Sending You a Lemon from ________. Copyright 1910, Edward R. Mitchell, San Francisco."

"1883 - A Carload of Mammoth Navel Oranges from ________. Copyright 1909 by Edward H. Mitchell, San Francisco."

"2194 - A Carload of Blackberries from ________. Copyright 1910 by Edward H. Mitchell, San Francisco."

"2188 - A Carload of Cabbages from ________. Copyright 1910 by Edward H. Mitchell, San Francisco."