"Silver Ribbons of Adventure" - What's the Story?

[nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org]

On Sep 7, 2006, at 8:23 PM, nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org wrote:


> Attached is a famous N&W publicity photo.  In the VTU archives, it was 

> titled "Silver Ribbons of Adventure."

>  

> This particular version, which bears negative number 500537, depics a 

> class Y handling a Time Freight in double track territory.  There was 

> another version on which the artist had air brushed out the class Y 

> and substituted a streamlined passenger engine hauling varnish.

>  

> I remember both versions being used extensively in advertising and as 

> end-murals in passenger coaches.

>  

> 1.  What is the location where this picture was taken?

This was a popular location with company photographers, it was used 
frequently in the mid 1930s to about 1940. It is west of Shaffers 
Crossing near the VA hospital before the yard was extended 
considerably. The terrain has been drastically modified there, and has 
not even remotely resembled this for decades.


> 2.  What is the date of the photo?

I can't find a specific date, but it was taken the last day or two of 
May or in early June 1940, the streamlined train version, was created 
by the magazine department folks with the airbrush in January of 1943 
and copied on negative number 30123.


> 3.  Who was the kid, and what "became of" him?

That one may well be lost to history, however children in advertising 
photos frequently belonged to either one of the photographers or 
another member of the advertising and magazine department. 
Occasionally, they were mentioned stated as "R.R. Horner son" or 
something like that on the negative sleeve, but I don't believe this 
one was.

Detective Ken Miller :)
reporting