Tag Archives: Colorado

“A Drink of Water” by L. H. ‘Dude’ Larsen

This image is a reproduction of the painting by the prolific Western artist known as Dude Larsen, who created postcards for the tourist trade along U. S. 66.

Pub. by L. H. Larsen, Kanab, Utah

The description states:
A DRINK OF WATER
Taken form an original oil painting by the noted cowboy artist and poet, L. H. “Dude” Larsen.
—Dude Larsen worked during the 1930s and 1940s making postcards from original paintings such as this one.
This postcard is dated 1939.

Appaloosa Stallion “Charlie’s Pride”, Cascade, Colorado

This is a painting of an award-winning horse named Charlie’s Pride raised on a ranch in Cascade, Colorado.

Color Reproduction by Pike’s Peak Lithographing Co.

The description states:
1318
GRAND CHAMPION APPALOOSA STALLION —
“Charlie’s Pride” owned by the Appaloosa Four Bit Ranch of Cascade, Colorado. The Appaloosas are booming well known throughout the west for their Conformation, Color and Ability.
The painting is by Western Artist Darol Dickinson of Calhan, Colorado.
— A basic search for the ranch does not show any current indications it still exists.
The Appaloosa is distinctive for its coloring as clearly shown in the painting. Some examples are completely covered in spots, though spotted hindquarters are more common. The word appaloosa is derived from the region where these horses were first common, the Palouse, where they were called ‘a palouse horse”.
This particular coloring pattern is known as ‘blanket with spots’.
One website indicates that this horse was born in 1958, so this image likely dates from a few years after that.

Never Summer Range, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado

This image shows a viewing spot with parking lot on a road through the Rocky Mountains, with a view of the Never Summer Range in the background.

Color by Floyd Walters

The description states:
166–NEVER SUMMER RANGE and FOREST CANYON from TRAIL RIDGE ROAD in ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK
–This range of mountains is located in the northwest corner of the park, and has seventeen named mountains.
This postcard was used and is dated 17 July 1963.

Train Standing at Hanging Bridge, Royal Gorge, Colorado

This image shows a train headed by a steam locomotive of the era as it waits at the Hanging Bridge, where it was common to stop for several minutes to allow passengers to view the canyon.

Published by Van Noy-Interstate Co., Denver

The description states:
HANGING BRIDGE IN THE ROYAL GORGE
The Grand Canyon of the Arkansas is nearly ten miles in length, extending from near Canyon City to Parkdale. About midway is the Royal Gorge, the deepest and narrowest part of the Canyon, where the walls rise to a height of 2,500 feet and the river channel is so restricted that the railroad is carried over the stream by a bridge suspended from the rocks above.
–Again here, the fanciful colors of the rocks and foliage are the result of manual colorization of the original black and white photograph. This image likely dates from the 1930s.

Train Passing Hanging Bridge, Royal Gorge, Colorado

This image shows a steam locomotive as the train it is pulling crosses the Hanging Bridge in Royal Gorge, Colorado.

Published by Van Noy-Interstate Co., Denver

The description states:
HANGING BRIDGE IN THE ROYAL GORGE
The Grand Canyon of the Arkansas is nearly ten miles in length, extending from near Canyon City to Parkdale. About midway is the Royal Gorge, the deepest and narrowest part of the Canyon, where the walls rise to a height of 2,500 feet and the river channel is so restricted that the railroad is carried over the stream by a bridge suspended from the rocks above.
–By comparing this image with the previous posting, it is clear that these postcards are colorized, as the colors do not match. This image likely dates from the 1930s.

Hanging Bridge, Royal Gorge, Colorado

This image shows a view of the Hanging Bridge from the opposite side of the previous posting, with a better view of the support beams and cabling, and a clearer view of the unsupported underside of the bridge.

Published by Van Noy-Interstate Co., Denver

The description states:
HANGING BRIDGE IN THE ROYAL GORGE
The Grand Canyon of the Arkansas is nearly ten miles in length, extending from near Canyon City to Parkdale. About midway is the Royal Gorge, the deepest and narrowest part of the Canyon, where the walls rise to a height of 2,500 feet and the river channel is so restricted that the railroad is carried over the stream by a bridge suspended from the rocks above.
–This image likely dates from the 1930s.

Discharging Passengers, Hanging Bridge, Royal Gorge, Colorado

This image shows the most popular train stop on the original line into Royal Gorge, at the site of the Hanging Brige. Passengers can be seen on the observation platform of the last car and on the tracks.

Published by Van Noy-Interstate Co., Denver

The description states:
AT THE HANGING BRIDGE IN THE ROYAL GORGE
The Grand Canyon of the Arkansas, Colorado, is nearly ten miles long, extending from near Canyon City to Parkdale. About midway is the Royal Gorge, the deepest and narrowest part of the canyon. At this point, where the walls are only 30 feet apart, the constructing engineers were obliged to build a bridge parallel with the river to provide space for the roadbed. All daylight trains through the Royal Gorge now stop ten minutes at the Hanging Bridge.
–As can be seen, the Hanging Bridge is so named because there was no room for the rail bed at this point, and a normal bridge across the narrows was impractical because of the lack of room. Thus, a section of rail bed was built suspended from above, with the support members embedded into the canyon walls on either side.
This card likely dates from the 1930s, based on the clothing worn in the image.

Lower Entrance, Royal Gorge, Colorado

This image shows one of the two entrances to Royal Gorge by train, this one approaching from the east.

Published by Van Noy-Interstate Co., Denver

The description states:
THE ROYAL GORGE
The Royal gorge, the mother of the Arkansas River, is a gigantic slit or canal in the Rocky Mountains, cut from the summits of the lofty peaks to the very foundation stones. At the bottom flows the river and is built the D. & R. G. Railroad, an engineering feat looked upon as well-nigh impossible. A span wide in places and rising 3,000 feet perpendicular to the close, it presents miles of scenery equaled in few places on the globe. The swinging bridge is suspended from immense steel supports buried in the granite walls on either side.
–The D. & R. G. is the Denver and Rio Grande Railway, whose history in the building and operation of trains in the canyon is one of the more colorful and dramatic in the history of American railroading.
This postcard likely dates from the 1940s.

Yellowstone Lake, Wyoming

This image shows the largest body of water in Yellowstone National Park, also called Yellowstone Lake. The lake is situated at over 2200 meters above sea level.

A Mike Roberts Color Production, Berkeley 2, Calif.

The description states:
YELLOWSTONE LAKE
7,731 feet above sea level and covering 139 square miles, Yellowstone Lake is the largest body of water in North America at so great an altitude. Its crystal blue waters abound with native trout.
–This card likely dates from the 1950s.

Dunraven Pass, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

This image is a colorized view of the Dunraven Pass, part of the Grand Loop Road in Yellowstone National Park.

Sanborn Souvenir Co., Denver, Colo.

The description simply states:
1029 — DUNRAVEN PASS HIGHWAY IN YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK
–This image is from the same series as the previous post, but is printed with a different process, so the texture of the image is smoother. This card likely dates from the 1940s.