Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
November 14, 1938 After two days of being made available exclusively for pedestrians to cross, the newly completed Lions Gate Bridge in the Canadian province of British Columbia was first opened to vehicular traffic. This suspension bridge traverses the First Narrows of Burrard Inlet and links the city of Vancouver with the North Shore municipalities... Continue Reading →
October 27, 1981 The Wonhyo Bridge in South Korea’s Seoul metropolitan area was officially opened. This girder bridge spans the Han River and connects Yongsan District with Yeondeungpo District in that region of the country. The 4,822.8-foot (1,470-meter)-long structure was the 13th bridge to be built across the Han River. Construction on the Wonhyo Bridge... Continue Reading →
October 2, 1902 Operations began for a lighthouse in England’s ceremonial county of East Sussex. This lighthouse is located in the part of the English Channel that is below the cliffs of the headland known as Beachy Head. It was built to replace the Belle Tout Lighthouse, which had been in service since 1834 and... Continue Reading →
May 19, 1950 A drive-in theater in Dearborn, Michigan, officially opened for business on a rainy Friday night. This theater, known as Ford-Wyoming Drive-In, was initially able to accommodate up to 750 automobiles. Despite the rain on its inaugural night, the theater’s lot was filled to capacity. The double feature that night was The Man... Continue Reading →
April 9, 1961 The California-based Pacific Electric (PE) mass transit system ended its operations after nearly six decades of serving the Greater Los Angeles Area. At its zenith during the 1920s, this network was the world’s largest electric railway system. More than 2,100 PE interurban trains covered about 1,000 miles (1,609 kilometers) of tracks altogether, providing... Continue Reading →
Aviation pioneer Phoebe Jane Fairgrave Omlie was born on November 21, 1902, in Des Moines, Iowa. When Omlie was 12 years old, she and her family moved to Saint Paul, Minnesota. Her lifelong interest in aviation started the day before she graduated from Mechanic Arts High School in Minnesota’s capital city in 1920. This was when... Continue Reading →
February 4, 1936 The British documentary film Night Mail, recounting a rail-based postal delivery service that spanned both England and Scotland, had its premiere. This screening took place at the newly opened Cambridge Arts Theatre in Cambridge, England. A little over 23 minutes in length, this GPO Film Unit documentary was directed and produced by both Harry... Continue Reading →
November 14, 1874 Operations began for a lighthouse in a section of the Hudson River within New York’s southeastern region. This navigational aid, which was constructed to help guide vessels safely around a treacherous part of the river known as the Middle Ground Flats, is specifically located between the cities of Hudson and Athens. As... Continue Reading →
May 16, 1929 The first-ever “Best Picture” Oscar went to a movie about planes. Wings, which was also the only silent movie to win that award, told the story of two men who are in love with the same woman and end up becoming fighter pilots in World War I. The actors who played these men... Continue Reading →
February 7, 1914 Charlie Chaplin, the silent-film comedian and one of the greatest influences in movie history, first appeared on the big screen as his now-iconic Little Tramp character. The film in which he first played that role for moviegoers was a transportation-themed comedy called “Kid Auto Races at Venice.” The film was produced by Keystone... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 