1919 Army Convoy film, Part II

Here is the second installment of the 1919 Army convoy film showing the run from just outside Placerville, to Stockton, Oakland, and finally two ferries to San Francisco.

The Convoy is Coming!

That cry was heard over 100 years ago as The Military Convoy of 1919 rolled into towns across the country. The Army wanted to see if it could send men and machines across the country on the new transcontinental road known as the Lincoln Highway. Starting in Washington DC, the caravan drove over 3000 miles to Oakland where it then boarded ferries to San Francisco and the Palace of the Legion of Honor, the terminus of the Lincoln Highway. Onboard, was a young major by the name of Dwight D. Eisenhower, future President of the United States.

Eisenhower, 1919.

The El Dorado County Arts Council has an exhibit titled, "Convoy 1919: Centennial of the 1919 Transcontinental Motor Convoy" running from August 29, through October 6, 2019, at the Confidence Gallery on Main Street. According to their website, "The convoy - consisting of 81 vehicles, including 31 heavy cargo trucks, 4 kitchen trailers, a wrecker, 4 motorcycles and 5 ambulances – made its way westward over long stretches of roads that were often little more than dirt tracks. On the evening of September 2, 1919, the convoy, motoring on the Lincoln Highway through El Dorado County, reached Placerville, California to cheers from the welcoming crowd. That evening more than 200 troops were treated to 'a huge barbecue, a revival of the 'Days of Forty-nine' and a street dance."

Vintage film of the convoy!

Want to cheer the convoy yourself? The MVPA (Miltary Vehicle Preservation Association) has been crossing the country in their vintage military vehicles, following the route the Army took back in 1919. They will leave Carson City, Nevada on September 12, destination Placerville! The convoy will pass down Main Street later that day, with a stop at the County fairgrounds where they will spend the night.

MVPA convoy in Iowa.

Truck entering new snowshed subway at Donner Summit

Pictured is the famous auto subway under the Central Pacific Railroad tracks at Donner Summit. The actual summit is another couple hundred yards past the tunnel. The truck is headed north and then west. The photo is likely taken around 1914, as as the snowshed has been removed directly above the 1913 built subway. The snow shed was soon re-built after construction.

Close up of the photo.

Here we see a close up of the photo showing the supporting timbers holding back the dirt as construction commenced on the subway. Notice the two Lincoln Highway logos on the back of the truck. A lantern partially obscures the logo at left. Notice how clean the walls of the subway are. Looking at photos of the underpass after 1914 shows graffiti started showing up very soon after construction.

Lincoln Highway by Donner Lake

This view is looking south towards Donner Lake, where we see an automobile using the Lincoln Highway, approximately mid-1920’s.. Yesterday's post concerned the Donner Lake camp located on the west end of Donner Lake. A reader thought the car pictured yesterday was the photographer's car. It was a common practice back in the day to make sure your vehicle was in the photo. It appears that today's photo has the same car, so it must be the photographer's.

Click photo for larger view. Title: Office Donner Lake Camp

The above photo shows the Donner Lake Camp, which was located on the west end of the lake. We can see the photographers car just off The Lincoln Highway, lower left.

Donner Lake Camp

We are looking east from the west side of Donner Lake, approx 1920’s. The building seen is the office for the Donner Lake Camp, an early “autoist” campground. In the close up below we can see a “Red Crown” gasoline sign, as well as a car headed down the road. The road curves around the lower part of the photo and ends up at the right side where it would soon start the climb up towards the summit.

Lets stay in a Quonset hut tonight!

Driving the old roads like the Lincoln Highway or Highway 40, you come upon the early rest stops and motor lodges that once lined the highways. Back in the day, people had to stop more frequently on their travels. Your auto might need to have it's radiator filled, gasoline topped off, or oil added. Most stops would have food available, and some even had rooms to rent for the night. Early motor lodges and motels were seen frequently in all the small towns along the way as people didn't travel as far each day.

Just outside of Colfax, along old Highway 40 and Lincoln Highway (today's Highway 174), one could cozy up to their very own Quonset hut, complete with stone fireplace, at the Quonset Village Motel. Quonset huts were quite popular just after World War II when the Army sold their excess war supplies, including these huts. We capitalize Quonset as it's Quonset Point, Rhode Island, where the huts were built.

The view today. One Quonset hut is still standing, and all the stone fireplaces are lined up in front of their long-gone huts. Click the above photo to control the view.

Dedication of corner stone for Donner Memorial

On June 10th, 1910, a dedication ceremony was held at the Breen cabin's site, including members of the Donner Party in attendance! This dedication was to formally mark the spot that would, in about 8 years, hold the massive statue and support for the Donner Party Memorial. An immense granite cornerstone was inscribed and placed at the corner of the Breen cabin's site.

The inscription on the stone read, "This cornerstone marks the site of the Donner Party cabins where a monument will be erected under the auspices of The Native Sons of the Golden West to the pioneers that crossed the plains."

This evocative photograph shows CF Mc Glashan, Truckee attorney, who spearheaded the monument construction, speaking to the assembled audience. Sitting on the stand listening are three of the Donner Party survivors, Virginia Reed Murphy, Patty Reed Lewis, and dressed in white, Francis Donner Wilder. All three women would show up 8 years later for the monument dedication.

Donner Monument, unfinished

I am working on a video concerning the construction of The Donner Pioneer Monument and came upon this intriguing photo. It shows the Donner Memorial without the statue of the family on top. The base was hand built and the sculpture installed piece by piece.

What captured my attention was the immense cornerstone sitting next to the base. The stone was dedicated a few years before as the start of the year's long effort to get the statue up. It marked the corner of the Breen cabin, who were members of the Donner Party. We see the cornerstone in pictures taken before, during, and just after the monument was dedicated. However, sometime after that, it went missing, and no one knows what happened to it.

Army Convoy, 1919

In 1919 the U.S. Army decided to send a convoy of trucks, motorcycles, tractors, and men on a transcontinental trip from Washington DC to San Francisco. The road they would follow was the recently completed Lincoln Highway. Some of the convoy's journey was filmed, and we look at the section from western Nevada to San Francisco, California. The text comes from a diary and film record made during the trip.

Dedication of The Pioneer Monument

Here we see a familiar landmark, The Pioneer Monument at Donner Memorial State Park. On June 6, 1918, a grand unveiling of the monument took place, complete with two governors and survivors of The Donner Party. The above photograph, from left to right shows Governor Emmett D. Boyle of Nevada, Martha J Patty (Reed) Lewis, Eliza P. Donner-Houghton, Frances E. Donner Wilder, and Governor Wm. D. Stevens of California.

What an amazing photograph! Three of the survivors have returned to the site of their travail, to witness this historic event. Notice the governor of Nevada holds The United States flag, while the Governor of California holds the state flag. The building of the monument is an interesting story in itself, and I hope to have a video up soon concerning its construction.