204 results for: Railroads
Ephemera
White Pass & Yukon Route leaflet, circa 1910
When gold was discovered in the Yukon in 1897, prospectors had to make the dangerous journey on foot from the Alaska coast to the gold fields, some 550 miles into the Canadian interior. After the building of the first section of the White Pass & Yukon Route railroad in 1898-1899, the trip, which had formerly taken days, could now be…
ID Number:1981.7290.3
Date:1910
Photograph
Train of Tomorrow at Union Station, Seattle, 1950
The Train of Tomorrow was a four-car American demonstrator train built as a collaboration between General Motors (GM) and Pullman-Standard between 1945 and 1947. It was the first new train to consist entirely of dome cars, or "Astra-Domes," as well as other features such as tri-level seating and sleeping accommodations. After being christened at a dedication ceremony in Chicago on…
ID Number:1981.7392.11.18
Date:1950
Photograph
Man and large log on railroad flatcar, circa 1909
Sometime around 1909, the St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Company advertised the firm using a huge log of Douglas fir. This photo shows a man and the log on a Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad flatcar. The sign reads, "This fir log is a sample of the raw material used by St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co., Tacoma, Washington…
ID Number:1983.10.208.1
Date:1909
Photograph
Seattle waterfront near the Canadian Pacific dock, circa 1925
Starting in the late 19th century, trade with Asia grew to be an important part of Seattle's economy. By the 1920s the waterfront was crowded with piers, railroad tracks, and warehouses. A roadway had been built to keep the increasing car traffic away from the busy railroad tracks. This photo, taken in the 1920s near the Canadian Pacific dock, shows…
ID Number:1983.10.459
Date:Circa 1925
Photograph
Tourists in open-top observation cars, 1925
In the summer of 1925, the Great Northern Railway inaugurated its new open-top observation cars in the Rocky Mountains near Glacier Park. In Seattle, the railroad kicked off this new service with an open-air trip between King Street Station and Skykomish.In this 1925 photo, a group of sightseers sit in the Glacier Park observation car in Seattle's King Street Station…
ID Number:1983.10.495.2
Date:1925
Photograph
University of Washington crew leaving for the east coast, June 5, 1926
Before the 1960s, the University of Washington's athletic teams traveled by train to games and matches at other universities. In this photo, members of the University of Washington's rowing team wave from the train's observation platform as they leave for the annual intercollegiate crew races in the east. The crew's rowing shells were also on board the train. The trip…
ID Number:1983.10.605
Date:1926
Photograph
Electric hauling motor at New Black Diamond Mine, circa 1927
By the late 1920s, electric hauling motors had replaced mules for getting coal out of mines in the Cascade Mountains. Engines were attached to the electric line by means of a boom similar to those seen today on top of Seattle's electric-powered buses.This photo shows an electric-powered mining train coming out of the New Black Diamond Mine at Black Diamond.…
ID Number:1983.10.647.1
Date:Circa 1927
Photograph
Railway employee with Wee Coyle, probably in Seattle, circa 1930
Legendary local athlete William Jennings "Wee" Coyle (1888-1977) was raised in Seattle, attending Seattle High School (later Broadway High School) and the University of Washington. Wee served in both WWI and WWII, and was the first commander of the American Legion Post No. 1. He was elected Lieutenant Governor under Louis F. Hart, serving from 1921 to 1925. Wee managed…
ID Number:1983.10.880
Date:Circa 1930
Photograph
Great Northern Oriental Limited train at King Street station, Seattle, May 27, 1924
When the Great Northern Oriental Limited train initiated service in 1924, it arrived in Seattle the same day as the historic train called the William Crooks. The public was invited to view the two trains at King Street Station, and compare the old with the new. A newspaper account described the new train with its huge locomotive and long steel…
ID Number:1983.10.989.1
Date:1924
Photograph
Great Northern William Crooks Special train at King Street station, Seattle, May 27, 1924
The first locomotive on what later became the Great Northern Railway was the William Crooks, named for the line's first chief engineer. As publicity for the opening of Oriental Limited service to Chicago, the historic William Crooks train visited Seattle's King Street station. The public enjoyed viewing the ancient relic, and comparing it with the modern Oriental Limited train. The…
ID Number:1983.10.989.2
Date:1924