Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
October 23, 1943 A little over ten months after being launched by Basalt Rock Company in Napa, California, a rescue and salvage ship was commissioned into the U.S. Navy as USS Diver (ARS-5). This ship, which was paced under the command of Lieutenant Alexis T. Terrio (1902-1985), began her military service at a time when... Continue Reading →
October 22, 1925 A technological milestone for locomotives in the United States took place when the Central Railroad of New Jersey (CNJ) began using diesel-electric locomotive No. 1000 to switch freight cars at the Bronx Terminal in New York City. This 300-horsepower (304.2-metric horsepower) boxcab – also widely characterized at the time as an oil-electric... Continue Reading →
October 19, 1875 In the northern part of Michigan, a lighthouse built on Menagerie Island within the northwest corner of Lake Superior was first lit. Menagerie Island is a small island off the southern coast of Isle Royale, which is the largest natural island in Lake Superior, the second largest island in all of the... Continue Reading →
Sheldon “Red” Chaney (1916-1997) opened what would become a highly popular restaurant along the portion of U.S. Highway 66 (Route 66) in Springfield, Missouri. He and his wife Julia Elizabeth Etter Chaney (1914-2006) moved to Springfield not long after he completed his military service during World War II. As a new resident of Springfield, Red... Continue Reading →
October 14, 1910 British aviation pioneer Claude Grahame-White (1879-1959) captured the attention of numerous Americans when he piloted a plane in the skies above Washington, D.C. This flight took place during a year that had already marked a few other major milestones for him and his airborne ambitions. In April of that year, for example,... Continue Reading →
About three-and-a-half months after their first full meeting was held in Washington, D.C., members of the Joint Board on Interstate Highways reconvened in the nation’s capital to assess and address the next crucial steps for shaping a coast-to-coast uniform highway system. This gathering of federal and state highway officials took place at the office of... Continue Reading →
October 8, 1998 In the west-central region of Saskatchewan, a newly completed vehicular bridge in that Canadian province’s town of Outlook was officially opened. This structure, which crosses the South Saskatchewan River, was the second version of the Outlook Bridge to be built in that vicinity. The original Outlook Bridge – nicknamed the “Big... Continue Reading →
October 7, 1834 The completion of Pennsylvania’s first state-owned railroad was celebrated with an inaugural journey of two train cars on the entire route, which covered 82 miles (132 kilometers) between the borough of Columbia and the city of Philadelphia. Those train cars were pulled along by steam locomotives respectively named Columbia and Lancaster. ... Continue Reading →
October 2, 2018 In the Canadian province of Saskatchewan, a girder bridge in the city of Saskatoon. This bridge, which crosses the South Saskatchewan River, carries six lanes of McOrmond Drive and two multi-use paths. Originally called the North Commuter Parkway Bridge prior to its completion, this structure was renamed after a local 19th century... Continue Reading →
The formal efforts to develop what became the U.S. Numbered Highway System began at the annual 1924 meeting of the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) in San Francisco. It was at this venue that the association approved a resolution called on the U.S. secretary of Agriculture (USDA was the “umbrella” department for the... Continue Reading →
