Stuck on Main Street
Title
Stuck on Main Street
Description
Sepia-toned image of a muddy street with a wagon and a steam-powered ditch digger stuck in the mud. One man tries to lever the rear wagon wheels out of the mud while another man watches. In the center background, a large machine leans precariously to one side, while three men appear to be examining it. Power poles can be seen lining the street on either side, while spectators watch from the sidewalks in the background of the image. A one cent stamp is affixed to the back side of the postcard. Steam ditchers were a major innovation in the late 1800s and early 1900s, providing machine power to dig drainage ditches which once had to be dug by hand.
[front] [white ink] We are stuck on this place. [back] [pencil] [address] Richard E. Wiley. H. M. A. Lumber Camp [?]. Nehalem, Oregon. [note] This is the main street works with the steam-ditcher stuck. Hath [illegible]. [postmark] Hillsboro [illegible], Sep [illegible] p.m.
Date Created
circa 1900s
Subject
Steam-engines
Streets
Communities
Civic improvement
Road drainage
Economic History
Scientific History
Place
Hillsboro, Oregon
Medium
photographic postcards
Language
English
Identifier
WCMpic_013469
Rights
Online access to this image is for research and educational purposes only. To inquire about permissions, order a reproduction, or for more information, please contact the Five Oaks Museum at Research@FiveOaksMuseum.org.
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/
Source
Robert L. Benson Research Library, Five Oaks Museum
Type
Still Image