This is an old postcard that has been in our family for nearly a century. The center man staring at the camera is my great-grandfather Harry Jackson. He was a Railroad Fireman and Locomotive Engineer for the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad from before 1908 to 1941. Nothing was ever written on the postcard and it is undated, but I would hazard a guess that it was taken in the 1920s. Everyone in the family has always been so fascinated that one of our relatives was pictured on a postcard that we never even noticed that they were standing in front of a train wreck!
We just focused so hard on Harry and vaguely registered the fact that there was a train in the background. We assumed he was at the train yard where he worked and the photographer came by to sell picture postcards. None of us ever took a close look at the background until recently. I am astonished at how unobservant my family is!
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Oh that's funny, but I didn't focus on the fact that it was a wreck either! The wreck must have stayed there for awhile, because everyone seems rather cheerful, especially your great-grandfather. Maybe it was THE thing to do - go see the wreck and get your picture taken.
ReplyDeleteThat's a strange one Sherri, but Wendy may be right. perhaps it was a local attraction.
ReplyDeleteKnowing the name of the company, it shouldn't be too difficult to dig up this train accident in an old newspaper.
ReplyDeleteSeeing all these men almost underneath the locomotive, it looks like "recent" accident. I think the locomotive was pushing the wagons. One of them is visible in front of the locomotive.
Interesting picture.
That's an interesting postcard. The train is hard to miss! It shows that people see what they want to see.
ReplyDeleteOh, we didn't miss the train...my great-grandfather worked for the railroad. We all registered that there was a train in the background but just assumed his picture was taken in the train yard where he worked without looking closely at it. It is very easy to go into tunnel vision.
DeleteHow interesting. I have some of my grandfather's photographs of a train wreck which I researched and wrote about for a previous Sepia Saturday post (#77). It wasn't until researching that that I discovered how many train accidents (and wrecks) there were in the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. You might be able to discover when this one happened.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great photo. So much detail in it. You might even be able to work out the season by what they're wearing. And I wonder if that building still exists.
ReplyDeleteHaving been involved at one time in advising on implementation of actions recommended in accident reports from train crashes in the UK I found this a fascinating image. Crashes always draw crowds where access is possible. The train number may also help you find where and when it was.
ReplyDeleteI have tried finding information online about this wreck, or derailment, by searching on the engine number. The closest I come is a Central Railroad of New Jersey train that went off the Newark Bay drawbridge in 1958. Too late for this photo.
DeleteA perfect example of background and foreground. How lucky you are to have such a photograph and to know the story of it.
ReplyDeleteI didn't notice the wreck either! What a great piece of history.
ReplyDeleteKathy M.
I can see how one might miss what's going on even a train wreck, if your focus is else where! That is funny indeed. I too posted a couple photos of a train wreck, but it really stands out, and I don't have any relatives to distract from it in mine. Thanks for such a cool story too!
ReplyDelete