This is something a little different for Sky Watch......a bit of history.
This picture is of the sky in Washington DC around 1930 when my dad was an engineer for the Bureau of Public Roads. I'm sure it is a colorized version of a B&W photo. Dad is the driver of the pavement test truck in this picture. For anyone living near Washington DC.....I bet it hasn't looked like this in a long, long time! Such a clear view of all the monuments from one spot and roads empty enough to do road tests in the area!
This picture is of the sky in Washington DC around 1930 when my dad was an engineer for the Bureau of Public Roads. I'm sure it is a colorized version of a B&W photo. Dad is the driver of the pavement test truck in this picture. For anyone living near Washington DC.....I bet it hasn't looked like this in a long, long time! Such a clear view of all the monuments from one spot and roads empty enough to do road tests in the area!He wrote a "memoir" for us about his life and work and had this to say about Washington at that time:
"Washington was my first experience in working and living in a big city. Actually it didn't seem like a big town; just like a little country town grown up. The streets were wide and not too crowded, and everywhere they were lined with trees, giving the place sort of a rural look. Would you believe that when I got there they didn't have a single traffic light in the whole city? The cops would get out on the corners for an hour each in the morning and evening rush hours, and for the rest of the time you were on your own" (R.C. Herner)
"Washington was my first experience in working and living in a big city. Actually it didn't seem like a big town; just like a little country town grown up. The streets were wide and not too crowded, and everywhere they were lined with trees, giving the place sort of a rural look. Would you believe that when I got there they didn't have a single traffic light in the whole city? The cops would get out on the corners for an hour each in the morning and evening rush hours, and for the rest of the time you were on your own" (R.C. Herner)
He lived a very fascinating life.....growing up on a farm in the early part of the century, when they still used horses for everything, and then becoming a civil engineer and building roads in Pennsylvania and later building airports all over the country. He saw so many things happen in his lifetime including the beginnings of the automobile and planes. I'm so glad he wrote about all of it for us and took lots of movies and photos! Guess that is where I got my love of taking photos!
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35 comments:
Oh, Mary, I would love reading what your dad wrote. That is the kind of stories I always go for. If stories is the correct term...I always tend to buy journals, diaries of common people.
Nice catch for skywatch! Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don't even recognize__ blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, and our own two eyes. All is a miracle!!! Happy skywatching! Hope too see you @ corner too...
Having recently moved away from the greater DC area, I can attest that it doesn't look like that anymore. If nothing else, you'd never find that stretch of street with only one car on it any time of the day or night.
I like that you shared an older photo & some family history for skywatch. I always enjoy not only the different pictures but also the different approaches to theme.
Wow, it's amazing how clutter free the skyline is. I would never have recognized it if it wasn't for the Washington Monument in the background.
What an awesome post.You are so blessed to have your Dad's memoirs and pictures like this.
Rose: Thanks! I'm always drawn to journals and memoirs of lesser known everyday folks also. I hope we get his book self published some day, instead of the typed copies we have!
Pretty life: Thanks! Glad you stopped by.
Wren: I figured it looked a bit more crowded now :-)
John: It's been years since I visited DC, but I just knew this wide open looked had to be a bit different....and his comment about no traffic lights really hit me.
Thanks for sharing that bit of history about your dad... Very interesting...
Mary, what a great post! You know, amazingly enough, you can still stand in one spot and see al the monuments - they don't build tall buildings in DC - but that clear road - have NEVER seen a clear road , night or day! Thanks to your dad and everyone who helped create this beautiful city - I'm afraid his road never get repaired now though - there's no chance....they just throw up road blocks for security purposes, and fill the potholes in spring. I never drive in; I take the metro.
This is such an interesting post, a great history lesson indeed. Imagine driving around any city with no traffic lights! Times sure have changed.
Fantastic post! Wonderful. And - of course, loved your Mallards, too!
Cheers, Klaus
aphotoday: Thank you for stopping by!
Helen: I figured you and Denise would know where this was. I'm glad to know they don't build real tall buildings and there are still nice views. We drove through briefly one year for a quick view, but mostly used the metro to get to the Smithsonian. Dad always liked the logical layout and naming of the streets. He attended GWU while working there.
Hi Mary, you wouldn't believe how much I have enjoyed this post. I LOVED IT!!! I'm going to show your Dad's photo and commentary to my husband. He will get a kick out of it as we've been across this bridge so many times. And how wonderful that your Dad wrote a memoir for you all to enjoy, something we should all do for our children and those that follow. Thanks for sharing.
EG tour guide: The traffic light thing really caught my eye, too, since my own city has on occasion been called "Stoplight City" (not a title we like)
Klaus: Thanks!
Denise: I knew you and Helen would recognize the place :-) I agree about the importance of memoirs, although I have a lot less interesting things to write about than he did. I wish my mom had done this also, because I know little about her family or past. I've helped a couple of "seniors" write down parts of their life story and love doing that. It's always so interesting.
What a wonderful memory and abeautiful gift to his children. Thanks you for sharing Mary!! :)
Precious photo, and interesting piece of history to go along with it.
Joan: Thanks...we are happy that Dad left this book and all the stories we heard over the years, but would not remember without it.
Indrani: Thanks!
What an interesting bit of history. I'm into genealogy so I love stuff like this. Wonderful old photo.
Marnie
Great post Mary!! I used to live in a suburb of DC. I can't imagine what it must have been like when your Dad was there. I bet it was AWESOME!!
Marnie: Genealogy can be very interesting. I actually do some computer work for a small local genealogy site started by one of the local funeral homes. My family goes back to Germany, so I don't have much that is easily traced.
Kerri: It must have been a really different world to the fast paced world we are in now.
This is wonderful, Mary, and I think this look at the past is so extra special today. I also love the personal touch that creates so much more meaning to a picture such as this. This is a great skywatch.
I really enjoyed this. It means so much more, at least to me, when you see and hear such things from someone's personal history than in a book. I know a book is someone's personal history but...well, I hope you know what I mean. Thanks for sharing.
:-)
One of the most fascinating skywatch posts this week.
Mary: A really neat SWF post, nicely done.
Such a neat story about your Dad. It's so good to have wonderful memories. Thanks for sharing this one with us.
Washington looks so BARE.
Ann: I love the photo and wish that the corners weren't damaged from some album he used to have it in. There is probably a way to fix that in a computer program if I knew how. He left a lot of neat old photos and I also have movie film dating back to the later 30's.
2sweetnsaxy: I know what you mean :-) I'm so thrilled that he left us all of his stories and lots of photos and movies. They bring that era to life for me in a way that other people's history doesn't.
Babooshka: Thank you! I wasn't sure if anyone would like it or not.
Fishing Guy:Thanks!
Becky:He wrote a lot about Pennsylvania, too....he built roads there in the early 30's. It's fascinating to read some of the stuff. I'll have to see if there are any train photos :-)
Very interesting. I lived in Washington for about 10 years off and on in the 1980s and 1990s. I got my civil engineering degree at the University of Maryland College Park. I haven't built any roads however. I drove over this bridge many times. Even while I was there it became a much busier urban area.
what a terrific post! The photo on it's own is interesting and unusual, but to have your father's words to go with it -- well, that is just icing on the cake! Thanks for sharing, and have a happy weekend. :)
Colin Campbell: As a civil engineer you would probablly find my dad's book really intersting! He went from the BPR into the CAA and sent most of his life building airports. That test truck was a sort of prototype, I believe and he became an expert of flexible paving.
Mary: For a moment I thought this was me :-) Mary is too common a name as I'm sure you know! Thanks for the kind words and I'd love to do more posts from his book some time.
What treasures- the things your Dad wrote down about his life. I have an old man who often rides my bus and he tells some of the most fascinating stories about "back in the day". His voice is very quavery and it's hard to understand him, especially over the bus engine roaring, but luckily he'll tell the same story more than once and I eventually get the whole thing.
Thanks for coming by my blog!
I'm going to add you to my Friends page- I really like your blog and would like to visit again.
Cindy: Thanks for the kind words. Stop in any time! You should encourage the man to write his stories for his children. I love helping someone do that.
Excellent post. Happy SWF! :)
This is so cool that you have not only pictures by his comments. Priceless. Great post. Can't imagine DC ever not having traffic can you.
Thanks for visiting my blog and your nice comments.
Have a blessed day!
Dave and Gramma: Thanks! The nicest thing about SWF is getting to visit so many other nice blogs. I wish I had time to visit them all....but I don't know how anyone can do that!!
wow wonderful sky watch... I love the old photo and the history and commentary your dad left you... its so totally awesome!
What a great story...I love history like this.....
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