The Trips Album 4

  

Back to the trips album that I actually found in the garbage.  A few years ago, my computer died, and while the scanner wasn't affected, I lost the software and it was too old, so the manufacturer wasn't supporting it anymore, so there went the color correction setting.  Too bad, I'd love to see these photos closer to what they looked like when they came from the photo lab.  Anyway, a collection of family vacation photos from multiple locations and multiple years.  These are all from Mexico, and it looks like they drove from Los Angeles.  Well probably, since that's where I found the album.  Click on The Trips Collection in labels to see everything that's been posted.  

The Mission Inn

   

Written on the back, "Mission Inn-Riverside, Calif."  Frank Miller opened The Mission Inn in 1876.  It started out as an adobe boarding house that became a full-service hotel in 1900.  In 1903, a series of expansions were begun that finished in 1931.  Frank Miller died in 1935, after which his family ran the inn until the mid-fifties.  It changed hands a number of times and was facing a possible demolition when Duane and Kelly Roberts bought the property in the late 1980s and began a restoration that was finished in 1992.  The Mission Inn and Spa is still in business, and despite being in downtown Riverside, not exactly a tourist destination is doing quite well.  And, by the way, it isn't a cheap stay. 

The Really Steep Part of the Mt. Lowe Railway

Okay, I'm not going to write a lot about Thaddeus Lowe and his bizarre attempt to build a tourist  railroad and resort in the San Gabriel Mountains above Los Angeles.  Go to Mt. Lowe in labels at the bottom of the post and go to the only other post about this rail line and you can read a rather long post I've already put up.  As a rule I don't scan the backside of postcards, but I liked the Mt. Lowe logo so I thought I'd share it. 

Long Barn 2

In a nutshell, I didn't want to put eight photos in the same post, so I'm just finishing up.  I have no idea if this is the Long Barn Lodge that burned down or the one that's still there.

Long Barn 1

Except for 8/56, nothing is written on these prints, though the seller has told me that they are all from Long Barn, California.

Anyway, Long Barn is what's known as a census designated place.  It's not a true town, but then again it's more than a wide spot on the road.  Long Barn started out as a nineteenth century wagon stop near Sonora Pass in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  By the 1920s, a resort, The Long Barn Lodge, opened for customers.  The original lodge burned down in 2002, and was not rebuilt.  Believe it or not, it wasn't insured.   There was a second lodge that's still in operation.  It has motel rooms, private cabins,  a swimming pool, ice skating rink, a hall for events.  It's a popular wedding venue.  And, of course, Long Barn is surrounded by the Stanislaus National Forest and is only a couple of hours from Yosemite National Park, so there's plenty of hiking.

Hobergs

A brief over view of Hoberg's, mostly from their website, so take it with a grain of salt.

Before Hoberg's became a resort, it was a working ranch,  homesteaded in 1885 by Gustav Hoberg and his wife, Mathilda.  Located along a main road, travelers would stop to rest horses and have a home cooked meal.  By 1888, Gustav and Mathilda had given up ranching and turned their property into a hotel and restaurant.

 With a reputation for hospitality in a beautiful, natural setting, it wasn't long before the rich and famous of San Francisco were making Hoberg's a regular weekend getaway.  As the resort's popularity grew, a bowling alley, social hall, swimming pool, tennis courts, dining hall, and the Pine Bowl,  an outdoor dance floor, were added to the grounds.  Even the great depression couldn't kill Hoberg's, as it began to attract the Hollywood crowd.  In 1940, an airport was built so famous actors could fly in for some rest and relaxation.  Sitting California governors stayed there at a mansion built on the property for their exclusive use.

By 1950, Hoberg's was the largest private resort in northern California, often hosting more than 1,000 guests per night.  Some of the biggest entertainers played the Pine Bowl, including Tommy Dorsey and Xavier Cugat.

In 1968, the Beatles traveled to India to study transcendental meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.  Now world famous, the Maharishi decided to move to the United States and start a meditation center.  In 1971, he purchased Hoberg's, changed it's name to the Center for the Science of Creative Thinking, and closed the property to the general public.

In 2008, the Maharishi died, and the property was shuttered until new owners were found.  Hoberg's reopened in 2014.  With the buildings in disrepair, the new management began the rebuild, including the addition of an amphitheater, which hosted the Summer of Love Music Festival, featuring bands from the 1960s.

In 2015, a wildfire started that would burn for months, and eventually destroy over 76,000 acres in south lake County.  Hoberg's was burnt to the ground.  Today, the Hoberg's Historical Association is trying to rebuild.  Their plans include an Eco Center Museum.

This postcard has been trimmed down, and some of the writing has been cut away.  But what's left, "Dear Carilyn, If you ever go on a vacation this is the place to come.  This is the kind of place you read about.  The dances are marvelous.  Kind of late."  There was more, but it's gone.  The postmark, "HOBERGS JUN 9, 5 AM 1943 CALIF."  Part of the address is gone, but the name, "Miss Carolyn Cline" and she lived in San Francisco.

Royal Palm Hotel

Built on the north bank of the Miami River, the Royal Palm Hotel opened in 1897. It was built by Henry Flagler, partner of John D. Rockefeller, railroad owner, and real estate developer. Flagler is credited with starting the resort building boom along Florida's east coast. When he showed up in Miami, it was just a small town, but after only a few years, it had become a major resort destination for the wealthy of New York, Boston, and Philadelphia. The Royal Palm was the first building in Miami to have electricity, elevators, and a swimming pool. It was built on a Tequesta Indian burial mound, and over sixty skulls were removed during construction, which were given away as souvenirs. Damaged by a hurricane in 1926, infested by termites, it was condemned and torn down in 1930. Each card has the usual stamp block with postage listed as "ONE CENT For United States and Island Possessions Cuba, Canada, and Mexico. TWO CENTS For Foreign. The color image of the hotel is from the 'FLORIDA ARTISTIC SERIES" and has a publishers mark, "PUB. BY THE H. & W.B. DREW CO. Jacksonville, Fla." Also, "IN GOD WE TRUST." The black & white image was printed by "The Rotograph Co., N. Y. City. (Germany)" The color shot of the dock, "Made in Germany. A. C. Bosselman & Co., New York." The only thing I could find about any of the card publishers was about the son of A. C. Bosselman. The son was killed on New Year's eve, 1921. It seems he got a bit rowdy, got into an argument with a policeman who hit him in the head and fractured his skull. In the articles I found from the January 3, 1921 edition of the New York Times, Bosselman senior was listed as a souvenir manufacturer, and his son was listed as the manager of his father's Washington office.

Good Times In The Great Depression, The Town & Country Album 2

This is part two of two. Navigate back one post to see the entire album in order. Part two expands things from guests to staff. When I purchased this small album, some of the photos were missing. The seller told me that he hadn't removed any of the photos, and since some of the photos were loose and falling out, that's very possible. Of the loose images, only a few had any information written on the back. The staff photo of the women standing on the steps, written on the back, "Marty Wilson" Could be the same Martha Wilson, the presumed owner of the album. The interesting question is why the owner would have to label her own picture. The final two pictures in the album, the woman holding her folding Kodak camera is dated, "Sun. Sept. 2, 34." I think that it's likely that the young woman is Martha Wilson. The Johnston's ad on the inside of the back cover was under the last photo. I was hoping that I could get a location after a little research into company, but was unable to find any information on the actual business, but I did find a Johnston's ad on an online auction sight that listed locations in New York, Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, and Oakland.

Good Times In The Great Depression, The Town & Country Album 1

This is part one of two. When two photos are on the same page, I'll show the whole page to show position. When there is only one photo per page it will be scanned in as a single image. This album is dated 1934, during the great depression. By 1934, the absolute worst of the depression had passed and things were starting to turn around. At it's nadir, there was around 30% unemployment, and at a time when the majority of women didn't work, that probably actually translated to around half of the American population out of work. But no matter how hard things get, there are always some people who do well. This small album shows some of those lucky ones for whom the good life of the roaring twenties never ended. A country club, or a rural resort? Whatever the location, these people were having a good time. Written on the inside front page of the album, "Martha Wilson" Written on the margin of the first photo, "Poppy Day"