Long Dead but still around

Fedco Sign in Colton, California
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

In November 2006 when my wife and I were on extended vacation in Southern California to visit family plus hit some sights, we passed this sign but we did not have the opportunity to stop since we were on our way to visit my Uncle.

In October, 2007 we made another trip down there before taking Amtrak's Coast Starlight up to Seattle so I made sure to have a few minutes to get a picture of this sign.

So what's so special about this sign.

Well for those that are not familiar with the company, Fedco was a chain of stores (I think there were similar to a K-Mart of the time but I am not sure since I never was in one). However, this chain died probably 20 or 25 years ago.

So the fact that this sign which is near the San Bernardino/Colton on Mt. Vernon along what was US Highway 91 is still around is amazing. A friendly reminder of retailing history much like the old Woolworth store in Bakersfield, California that is now an antique store but still has the Woolworth sign and trim.

Back in the days...

RTD 6100 in Pasadena
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

The first camera I started taking pictures with was my dad's old Polaroid Instamatic that he used for his job but was also our personal camera.

It wasn't long before I got my first camera to call my own which was an old 110mm with no built in flash (yes you actually had to buy disposable flash bulbs for it). My second 110mm camera did have a built in flash and I used that camera until graduating to a SLR in High School.

With those old 110mm cameras I mostly took pictures of buses and trains.

This photo was taken across the street from the Plaza Pasadena mall that was under construction. The company my brother worked for at the time (Ernest Hahn) was the one building the mall.

The bus is a 1968 Flixble 40-footer with a/c. These were the first buses ever ordered by the RTD with A/C in them.

While those old 110mm cameras may have been nothing special in the picture department, a picture is still worth a 1000 words...

Would you eat at this restaurant?

Chinese Buffet in Ogden
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

In my last entry I showed I picture I took in Ogden just before getting back on the commuter train in order to return to Salt Lake City.

This picture was actually taken a little earlier in the day. After arriving in Ogden I caught a couple of buses in order to get up to the Ogden sign which crosses Washington Blvd where the street crosses the Ogden river.

After taking pictures of the Ogden River area I started heading south on Washington Blvd taking pictures. It was about an hour before I was going to eat lunch but was looking for someplace that look appetizing. Some of my favorite foods are Chinese and I like buffets because I can get the items I want.

Well, during the walk I encountered this buffet place which sits across from the LDS temple. Well it was Chinese and it was a buffet but....

If you take a close look at the picture part of the canopy is falling down and the building is in bad need of a repaint. Finally all the vegetation around the building is dead or dying.

Needless to say I kept walking...

Mighty Engine of the Past...

UP Gas Turbine on Display in Ogden
Originally uploaded by Dornoff Photography

This photo is of a Union Pacific Gas Turbine engine that UP used sometime in the late 50's through the 60's. UP was looking for massive horsepower in order to pull its trains along its main line especially through Wyoming.

These engines only had one minor little problem. Or one big problem if you lived near the tracks as they were extremely noisy. So noisy in fact that many municipalities banned the use of the locomotives in their area (of course didn't that interfere with interstate commerce so became a federal issue?).

I took my first revenue ride on Front Runner one day then rode some buses in order to get pictures of the area. Finally I came back to Union Station before heading back to the transit center in order to ride Front Runner back to Salt Lake City.

It was a very hot and unusually humid day with temperatures reaching 95 degrees and the humidity level following close behind. While I may have lived in Charlotte for a couple of years that as several years ago and I was not used to the heat and humidity anymore. I was glad to get back on that nice cool Front Runner train.