Welcome to the California Zephyr

This piece of ephemera is about the size of an index card and greets passengers arriving on the California Zephyr.

The California Zephyr has a long, storied and extremely complicated history, and if you're interested in that, Wikipedia and many a railroad buff have you covered. This card is from the iteration of the Zephyr train service that operated from 1949 to 1970. It was operated by the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy, Denver & Rio Grande Western and Western Pacific railroads, as noted at the bottom of this card. It was one of the longest train trips in the country, running between Oakland, California, and Chicago, Illinois. I strongly suspect that my great-grandmother, Greta Miriam Chandler Adams (1894-1988), rode the California Zephyr in the 1950s or early 1960s. 

The card notes: 

"Dinner in the dining car is on a reservation basis so as to avoid standing in line. Advance selection of dining hour by each passenger should provide reasonable assurance that a seat will be available at the appointed time. The Zephyrette will pass through the train each afternoon to see about your reservations for dinner that same evening. We earnestly request your cooperation by being in the dining car at the selected time. No reservations are necessary for breakfast or lunch in the dining car or for any meal service in the buffet car."

Yes, "Zephyrette" was a thing. In fact, the Zephyrettes were famous enough to have their own Wikipedia page. It notes that a Zephyrette was a hostess on the California Zephyr between 1949 and 1970. It further states: "To qualify, a prospective Zephyrette had to fulfill a variety of criteria, from being single and either a college graduate or a registered nurse to being between 24 and 28 years old and between 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m) and 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) tall. Once employed, Zephyrettes were expected to conduct themselves with 'dignity and poise' and also refrain from smoking or drinking while in uniform, among other requirements. Somewhat akin to an air line stewardess, the roles played by a Zephyrette were many, from hostess and tour guide to first aid responder and babysitter."

In addition to Wikipedia, there's an in-depth webpage on the Zephyrettes here. It adds this fun tidbit: "The Zephyrette was expected to pass through the train every couple of hours, checking on the passengers. If there were letters or postcards to be mailed, she would be happy to take care of them. If a passenger needed some item that wasn't available onboard the train, the Zephyrette would rush out to a local store during a station stop. (One Zephyrette took the shopping thing a bit too far, more than once spending too much time at the newsstand, and had to be put into a cab in Denver, rushing off to catch up with the train that had already left.)"

***

Today, Amtrak's iteration of the California Zephyr runs from San Francisco to Chicago, taking a little over 51 hours. As best as I can ascertain from Amtrak's confusing booking website, a one-way trip on the California Zephyr would cost, at minimum, $300 for coach. For some privacy and a place to sleep, the starting minimum would be near $1,000.

I've always imagined that I would enjoy traveling long distances by train, certainly more than I would enjoy traveling by airplane, boat or blimp. The California Zephyr sounds enjoyable and incredibly scenic, but I have no reason to be in San Francisco or Chicago, so I'm not sure what the point would be. I believe, unless I'm forgetting something, that the farthest I've ever traveled by train is from Philadelphia to Manhattan, which I've done numerous times. Basically a commuter-level trip. It would be great fun to take one of those long train rides across Europe and/or Asia, like the trips you see in the movies. Especially Horror Express. Because who wouldn't want to traverse the the 5,800 miles of the Trans-Siberian Railway with Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing and Telly Savalas? (Of course, I'm completely setting aside 100% of complicating geopolitics and wars at this point, which would make such a trip impossible, because I need a momentary mental health break.)

My grandmother's 1981 trip to China

In 1981, the year before she took a safari trip to Africa, my grandmother Helen traveled from Wallingford, Pennsylvania, to China. My non-expert understanding is that tourism to China only began to be easily accessible to Westerners around 1978, as part of the "Reform and opening up" following the 1976 death of Mao Zedong, whose Great Leap Forward was arguably the deadliest and most disastrous policy implementation by any leader in world history.

This is a letter from Tours A La Carte that my grandmother received prior to the trip. It contains some "helpful tips" from another tourist who had recently returned from China. You can read the whole thing for yourself, but some of the highlights include encouraging anti-pollution masks, a reminder to take lots of Kleenex and a fork and knife (because some places offer only chopsticks), and a suggestion to pack granola bars to serve as snacks. 

It also has some tips on what to wear to the Great Wall of China, which my grandmother did visit, as you can see from some of these snapshots she took:

My grandmother's 1982 trip to Africa

Continuing with last week's theme of posting about some items I came across during the sorting and decluttering of family ephemera this month, here's the itinerary for my grandmother Helen Ingham's February 1982 trip to Africa, through Holbrook Travel of Gainesville, Florida. 

As you can see, the nearly-three-week trip involved parts of Kenya and Tanzania, including Serengeti National Park, Maasai Mara National Reserve and Ngorongoro Conservation Area. 

Here are some of my grandmother's better snapshots from that trip:

And here's a neat picture that someone else took of my grandmother...

Finally, here's a picture of my grandmother (left) and her good friend and companion on the trip to Africa, Betty Livingston. My grandmother died in 2003. Betty is still alive as of this writing and will hopefully be celebrating her 106th birthday this upcoming May!

From the readers: The Golden Institute, 'Bridge Babies' and more

Let's take our minds off the rapidly unfolding events in the Middle East for a few minutes with a roundup of recent reader comments...

Ads from a 1983 Marvel comic: RJSMACHINE writes: "Just came across this ad in a reread of New Mutants 3 from 1983. Don't know why it stood out but, yep, I too was curious about The Golden Institute. My search led me here. That's it, lol."

And Dustin adds: "I was also led here by an ad in a 1983 Hercules comic book I just received."

All roads from 1983 comics lead to The Golden Institute ... and Papergreat. But the answers may remain forever a mystery. I did a new search and didn't come up with anything about the $4 cures for loneliness, either.

1938 receipt from Albert Brothers Steam Bakery: Nancy Hayes writes: "Actually, the founder of Albert Brothers was my grandfather, Stanley Albert. He and his brother Henry founded the business. Stanley Albert died in the early 1960s. His wife was Gertrude Albert, nee Steiner, and they lived across the street from the bakery on Railroad Avenue." 

Thanks for sharing this information, Nancy! We now have a more complete and accurate record of the history.

Saturday's postcard: Ginza Tokyu Hotel: Anonymous writes: "When I was a kid, we did the 'round the world' trip and, while in Tokyo, stayed in this hotel. I remember that we stayed in the 'Western-style rooms,' but there were 'Japanese style rooms' also. I remember it was very close to the Kabuki theater."

Curious book cover: "Bridge Babies": Anonymous writes: "My dad was a competitive bridge player. This was in our house. As a kid I would look at this book for hours. Inspired my sense of humor for sure." 

It's definitely an unforgettable book cover!

The Lost Corners of Paul Crockett: Thanks to this 2018 post and the ongoing discussions in its comments section, I think we're destined to be discussing Crockett, the Manson family and Paul Watkins until the end days of Papergreat. 

The commenters have even included actor Wings Hauser, who, sadly, died earlier this year at age 77. I'll always remember his memorable scene with Bruce McGill in The Insider.

Anyway, in 2023, Chris Harris made the following comment on the Crockett post: "Much has been said in a negative way about Paul Crockett. I witnessed over a period of two years having introduced him to many notable people that Paul Crockett had a tremendous ability to inspire a positive attitude in all the people he met, including myself."

On May 18, Anonymous replied to Harris: "I was 3 or 4 times advantaged by spending some time with Crockett between 1971-1973 in Death Valley —  Baker (I think, or Shoshone), and at last at Little Paul's in Tecopa, where I also met a guy named Chris. I suspect that was you. I commented here in 2019 that a biography of the Big Paul I knew, whose influence I saw in others there, would stand as a useful memorial to his exceptional understanding of our natural selves. I thought then that Manson had also learned aspects of this way of being, that this was a source of his ability to control adherents, but which he ended up turning against those he envied and despised. Paul probably believed it'd be better not to have to live the rest of his life completely in the shadow of the Manson phenomenon. Many others, however, would now be better off knowing more about Paul Crockett."

Going back 45 years for a product that I'm not putting in the headline: Anonymous writes: "Arthur's used to have well-made women's clothing that you will never see today. All my clothing when I was little came from Alfred Carlos's Polly Flinders smocking."

The (new) oddest stuff I've found tucked inside a book: "evape" writes: "I found 6 small jigsaw puzzles among my father's old things. In the bottom it says © 1933 Cynthia Mills, Boston. I don't know how it got here but my grandather was in USA some time."

A letter my grandmother mailed to me 33 years ago: Tom from Garage Sale Finds writes: "What a sweet letter and a great keepsake. I remember 1992. I was just hitting the job market and couldn't find anything. Of course it wasn't so bad I was selling bleach door to door. Those people knew hard times.

Coincidentally, because I couldn't find a job during that year (1991 to 92) I spent a lot of time with my grandparents too and got to know them a lot better. I wish they were still around as I have so many questions now that I never thought to ask."

And even our parents. At least once a week I think of something I wished I had asked Mom about, or written down when she answered.

"Jim and Judy," a 1939 grade-school textbook with a York connection: Anonymous writes: "I started 1st grade in 1952. The Jim and Judy book was our primer. I loved them and have fond memories of learning to read with them."

Scholastic book: "27 Cats Next Door" (aka I feel seen): Kittiana of the blog Wind-Up Castle Of Wonders: Self Discovery writes: "I just wanted to thank you for posting! I enjoy your blog very much & hope you will continue posting for a long time to come!"

That's so nice of you to say! Thank you. I hope I can continue posting for a long time, too. 

Travel diary downsizing stress

As family members passed away, I came into possession of the world travel diaries of:

• My great-grandmother: Greta Miriam Chandler Adams (1894-1988)
• My grandmother: Helen Chandler Adams Ingham (1919-2003)
• Mom: Mary Margaret Ingham Otto (1948-2017)

They've been taking up a fair amount of space in a drawer. But I really must continue downsizing, and what am I supposed to do with them? It's kind of overwhelming and stressful, to be honest. (And, yes, I know this is a First World Problem.)

A big issue is that much of Greta's and Helen's handwriting is nearly indecipherable to me. And that's saying a lot, because I've prided myself on deciphering the old cursive handwriting on many postcards and other pieces of ephemera over the years for Papergreat. I could probably decipher most of it eventually, but I'm not sure if it's worth the work, and I'm not exactly swimming in time. This may be unfair, but 90% of it is along the lines of "Seas were calm today," "Had lunch with a nice couple from Topeka" and "Walked around the city and bought a pair of shoes." Going through pages and pages and pages of that is not how I envision my days. On the other hand, though, it's family history.

I'm going to try my best to sort through them, keep just a handful, and put the rest on eBay as a bulk lot. If the diaries can make someone else happy and I have less STUFF in drawers and closets and boxes, I think that's a win-win. 

In the meantime, here are some photos from the sorting ...

In the end, I went with about a 50-50 split, with half of the travel diaries going onto eBay (below, left) and the others going back in the drawer for now (below, right). I'm OK with that as progress. I'm keeping all of Mom's and among the others I'm keeping is a travel diary Greta kept in the summer of 1915, when she was just 21 and had much better handwriting. That will be well worth reading, I think.

Peeking inside 1916's "The Overall Boys in Switzerland"

Eulalie Osgood Grover (1873-1958) was a Minnesota-born author, primarily of children's books, who was best known for the "Sunbonnet Babies" series, according to an article by Barbara White on the Winter Park (Florida) Public Library website. The "Sunbonnet Babies" books were primers designed to build younger readers' vocabulary. They were informed, in part, by Grover's travels throughout Europe.

The "Sunbonnet Babies" did not, however, originate with Grover. They started with illustrator Bertha Corbett Melcher (1872-1950), who began drawing them in 1897 and published her first book, The Sun-Bonnet Babies, in 1900. After that, the subsequent books (about eight of them) were written by Grover and illustrated by Corbett.

Due to the success of the "Sunbonnet Babies," Melcher and Grover devised a second series of primers following exploits of young boys. Thus were born "The Overall Boys." And that brings us to today's book, The Overall Boys in Switzerland, which was published in 1916 by Rand McNally. It's a gorgeous and sturdy book, well-built to withstand being passed around the schoolhouse and passed down to younger siblings. 

Of course, to get to Switzerland you must travel through other areas of Europe, and the book documents that part of the Overall Boys' trip, too. It starts along the River Rhine before they arrive in Bern ("The Bear City"). And that launches adventures with chapter titles such as "Above the Clouds," "On Mount Rigi," "Shopping in Lucerne," "Saturday Evening on Lake Lucerne," "Over and Through the Mountains," "The Herdsman's Cabin," "A Summer Blizzard," and more. They encounter the legend of the Mouse Tower, the Fountain of the Child-Eater and other grim aspects of Europe's history. This children's book is pulling very few punches. 

The whole book is fascinating, and amusing at times. Here is just a small sampling of passages:

"Look!" shouted Joe. "I see the first castle! We are sailing right up beside it. I wonder if a really, truly King and Queen are living in it."

"Of course," said Jack, "unless they have been killed and their castle turned into a prison or museum."

"Do you suppose it has a dark dungeon under it?" asked Joe. "How I should like to see a real dungeon!"

***

Suddenly somebody screamed, and then somebody else screamed. The little boats began to hurry and scurry in every direction. It looked as if all the Chinese lanterns had gone crazy. Everybody's eyes were turned toward the sky, for up there, right above them, was a fire balloon. The fire had caught in the top of the balloon, and it was all ablaze. Now this blazing balloon was falling straight down, down, down, toward the little boats on the lake. Of course the boats were scurrying to get out of the way, and of course the people screamed. Each thought that the burning balloon would surely fall right into his boat, but it did not. It fell hissing and sputtering into the dark waters, right where the boats had been only a few moments before.

***

The boys bought a number of things to take back to America with them, and they bought a dozen or more post cards to send to their friends. The very prettiest of these cards were sent to their own little brothers, Tim and Ted, and to the Sunbonnet Babies.

***

But the boys liked best the carved wood shops. Sometimes they saw boys, not much older than themselves, carving jumping-jacks and bears and queer little dwarf men out of blocks of pear wood. ... The Overall Boys coaxed their father to buy a fine carved bear to take home with them. The bear was as tall as Joe.

I'm not the only one still reading the book in modern times. A Goodreads reviewer wrote this in 2020: "Years ago my grandma had to sell her house and move to assisted living. She passed many of her children's books to me. This book belonged to my uncle when he was young. ...  I enjoyed this book and also enjoyed learning what appealed to my uncle when he was a boy. I know Switzerland is a far different country today than it was when this book was written, but this book made me want to visit the country and have my own adventures there."

Here's a gallery of some additional images from my copy of The Overall Boys in Switzerland...

And here's a rare shot of Venus (the orange cat on the right). He's the only cat in the house who won't let me pet him, unless I've come upon him when he's sleepy and cornered. He's sitting here with his cousin Dusty.

Japan tourism guide: "How to See Fuji, Hakone"

"How to See Fuji, Hakone" is a 32-page staplebound booklet that was published by the Japan Tourist Association. There's no date of publication, so I'm going to guess the early 1960s. Shown above is the illustration by Shin Kurihara, featuring Mount Fuji in the background, that spreads over the front and back covers. (There was a Shin Kurihara (1894-1966) who served as one of Japan's official war artists, according to Wikipedia, though I'm not sure if that's the same person.) 

Four regions are covered in the booklet, which features a fold-out map in the back. They are:

Hakone: This is described as "an extensive mountainous region between Mt. Fuji and the Izu Peninsula" and "one of the most celebrated holiday resorts in Japan."¹ That's due in part to the numerous hot springs, and it also doesn't hurt that area is bucolic, with rolling hills, grassy fields, a lake and lovely views of Mount Fuji. The booklet provides the specific seasons that are best for viewing cherry blossoms, maple trees and azaleas. Also mentioned is the Daimonji-yaki end-of-summer festival in which spectacular fires are lit to help guide ancestral spirits back to the afterlife. 

Five Lakes District: "The Five Lakes District, lying at the north base of Mt. Fuji, is so named because of the five lakes embraced within the area," the booklet notes. "The lakes, in the order of their location from east to west, are Yamanaka, Kawaguchi, Saiko (also called Nishi-no-umi), Shoji, and Motosu." The area is known for scenery, camping, swimming, skiing, skating and duck hunting. The lakes have their own festivals, the modern incarnations of which are featured in this post by Japan Wireless.

Mount Fuji: The booklet offers information and advice for those wishing to climb the 12,000-plus-foot volcano. For example: "Foreign climbers are advised to take food and drink with them as the supplies sold en route may not suit their taste. A raincoat and a sweater, or a woolen shirt or two to wear at night or in the upper part of the mountain are indispensible. Waraji (Japanese straw-sandals), put on over the shoes, will save the soles from the wear and tear of the cinders strewn on the paths.)" Fuji is typically a two-day hike, but this guide says that some people start at 4 in the afternoon and ascend throughout the night so they can reach the peak in the early morning and witness sunrise. This can still be done, but it's not the most advisable approach. 

Izu Peninsula: It's another area of hot springs! This region is quite the hot spot for tourists from home and abroad. "Owing to its historic associations, its hot springs and seaside resorts, and its wealth of natural beauty, the Izu Peninsula is a favorite region for visitors all the year round," the booklet gushes. Among the spa towns noted is Shuzenji, which dates to the 9th century. That town no longer exists by that name, as it was merged with other locations to form the city of Izu in 2004.

Here are some of the mid-century photos from the booklet...

Footnote 

1. Hakone is the topic of this 2015 post.

Presto Magix for Ozark Air Lines

As a Generation X kid, Presto Magix sets were firmly in my wheelhouse in the late 1970s and early 1980s. My favorites were the Star Wars and superhero sets, of course. I also liked the historical battles, such as the Battle of Midway (which I didn't know a damn thing about), and the generic outer space panoramas featuring rockets, space stations and jetpacks.

I mostly remember getting Mom to buy Presto Magix for me at the pharmacy sometimes. They were displayed on those spinner racks that usually held paperback books. Pharmacies had a much higher "coolness quotient" in those days. That's where I got many of my Star Wars figures. They also sold baseball cards, plastic toy soldiers and those tiny paratroopers you could throw into the air and then (hopefully) watch their parachute open. And sometimes they had those Yes & Know invisible ink booklets — another Gen X treasure that deserves its own post someday. In retrospect, I'm sure our parents dreaded letting us go with them to the pharmacy.

One of the odder Presto Magix sets was this collaboration with Ozark Air Lines in 1980. They were designed to hand out to kiddos traveling with their parents on Ozark flights. It doesn't seem they made much of an impact. Unopened sets from more than 40 years ago are regularly listed on eBay for less than $10. 

Ozark Air Lines was purchased by TWA in 1986 and TWA then was merged into American Airlines in 2001, so Ozark has long since fallen from most memories. But at least we still have these Presto Magix sets to tell us that it existed.

Finally, though I had to shake off some rust, I can happily report that this Presto Magix set still worked after more than four decades.

Photos of Sutton, West Virginia, and the Flatwoods Monster Museum

In late-August 2020, Ashar and I got out of the house for essentially the first time since the start of the pandemic and traveled to a state park in West Virginia to visit my dad and stepmom, who similarly needed a chance to fend off coronavirus cabin fever (by traveling to an actual cabin in the peaceful woods). 

On the way back home to Pennsylvania after the visit, Ashar and I passed a sign for the Flatwoods Monster Museum, and we immediately knew that we had to leave the highway and see where this very rural West Virginia exit took us. 

The answer was Sutton, a town of fewer than 1,000 people in Braxton County.

And it is indeed home to a monster museum. The Flatwoods Monster doesn't have the same level of notoriety as Mothman in United States urban legends, but it's pretty interesting. The Braxton County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, which would very much like your tourism dollars, describes what a group of teenagers purportedly saw on a night in 1952:

"Upon reaching the site of the crash, the group saw a pulsing red light. Lemon shined his flashlight up the hill, and the group witnessed a terrifying sight — a ten-foot-tall creature, with a head shaped like a spade and what appeared to be a dark, metal 'dress'. The creature’s hands were twisted and clawed, and what seemed to be its eyes glowed an eerie orange color. It appeared to levitate off the ground. A strange, sickening mist hung in the air. The creature hissed and glided quickly toward the witnesses, the group then turned and fled in terror."

Here are some pictures I took at the museum...

The sign says, "Absolutely no Seances."

Sutton itself, which sits on a hillside, was just as interesting as the museum. I wish we'd had more time to explore, but we still had many hours of driving to get back to Dover. These are some of my snapshots of the struggling Appalachian town (I played around with filters on a couple of them.)

Past photography posts

• Sonoran Desert snapshots
• Ephemeral artwork seen on a late-night stroll through Brooklyn
• Old City Cemetery in Lynchburg, Virginia
• Oak Hill Cemetery in Vermont and Phoenix Cemetery Tioga County, Pennsylvania
• American Autumn (a 2014 photo essay)
• American Autumn 2020
• 2015 York Fair: My favorite photos
• Psychogeography, snickelways of Miami, Arizona: August 2021
• Alpine Road Cemetery (Bender Burial Ground) in York County, Pennsylvania
• Snapshots from a foggy morning at Prospect Hill Cemetery
• Return to Prospect Hill Cemetery
• Mount Zion Lutheran Church cemetery
• Manipulated photos of a graveyard at dusk
• Dilapidated structures of Southern Jersey
• The abandoned Great Barrington Fairgrounds (Massachusetts)
• Creepy & dilapidated structures of the eastern United States, Part 1
• Creepy & dilapidated structures of the eastern United States, Part 2
• Old house in Coudersport, Pennsylvania
• Artsy-fartsy photos from a night on the town with real artists
• Instagram snapshots of Ruins Park in Glen Rock, Pa.
• Atomic Warehouse photo gallery
• Timeline Arcade photo gallery