Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone! The PRR advertisement is "Holiday Homecoming" from 1948 by Jerome Roxen.

PRR's Holiday Homecoming from 1948 by Jerome Roxen.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

"Main Lines of Commerce" by Grif Teller (1951)

The Packing House Updates - November 2022

Take a look at this photo by The Packing House (in Cambridge, MD) that converted the former Phillips Canning Company buildings that are still standing into mixed use. I saw the plans a few years ago to incorporate the track into the property, & they sure did! Look here:

Former Phillips Canning Company in October 2022, The Packing House photo

Good Ol' Life

Frank Sinatra's That's Life released November 18, 1966, Reprise Records

Well, I had plans to publish something in September 2022, but unfortunately life got in the way. The worst was a brief hospital stay by my wife (she's home & OK now - thank you very much). I'll have something to say later this month here.

eBay Sales Are Going Good

I'm actually surprised how my sales are going to help contribute to building the layout. I'm getting rid of stuff I don't use & just takes up space in storage. Funny thing is, I really haven't gotten to my railroad/model railroad stock yet.

If you haven't done so already, take a look here at eBay: chessie3877 on eBay

eBay Sales are Live as of July 31, 2022

After talking about it for almost 2 years, I've (finally) put stuff up on eBay as of Sunday, July 31, 2022. It's not everything I've set aside to sell, but at least it's a start.

You can look at the various items under my ID at eBay here:

chessie3877 at eBay

Almost Up on eBay

I finally have 12 boxes (16” x 12” x 12” in size) of stuff that must go. I just have to load the stuff up to eBay, but everything is inventoried (& it’s an eclectic mix of stuff). As soon as the stuff goes live, I’ll notify everyone here so you can take a look.

Still Working on the "eBay Thing"

I'm still trying to put together my sale items on eBay (look at my post back from February 20, 2021). I've had my stuff organized for the sale, but thanks to work & family, nothing has been done.

My objective, before Summer 2022 is over, I plan on putting stuff up on my account.

It's a mix of both prototype & model stuff (& a mix of other stuff that's in my house).

Keep an eye out, someday....

Hauling Grain in Box Cars

This is a great write-up on hauling grain in box cars on Bob Avritt's blog. Take a look here:

Industrial History: Carrying Grain in Boxcars

CB&Q Box Car in Vernon, TX in 1948, by Lee Russell, Newberry Library collection

June 1937 Strike at Phillips Packing Company

On June 23, 1937, workers in the canning factory in Phillips Packing Company walked off the job. Other workers from the various other factories inside Phillips joined them during the daytime. At night, 1,000 workers joined with other supporters marched through Cambridge. Trucks were overturned & the police responded. The issue didn’t end until July 1937, when the workers settled for small raise (that they had turned down originally, prior to the strike).

The federal Farm Security Administration (originally known as the Resettlement Administration & would be folded into the Office of War Information during WWII) sent Arthur Rothstein (June 17, 1915 – November 11, 1985) to Cambridge to take photographs of the strikers & the activity in Cambridge & that’s what I’m showing in this post. Arthur had an interesting history & spent fifty years photographing various subjects across the United States. His most famous picture is of a farmer & his two sons walking in front of ramshackle building during a dust storm in Cimarron County, Oklahoma, in 1936, during the Dust Bowl years.

You can see that photo here: Dust Bowl

Jim Duffy has a great write-up on the strike back in 2017 on his Secrets of the Eastern Shore website. You can find that here:  Secrets of the Eastern Shore 2017

I’ll put a caption on each photo so you can see what Rothstein was capturing at that time.

Arthur Rothstein on L Street in Washington, DC in 1938, Wikipedia

Employees reporting to work at the Phillips Packing Company photo by Arthur Rothstein, June 1937 (Farm Security Administration Office of War Information fsa 8c33010)

Phillips Packing Company Warehouse No. 4, Cambridge, MD, photo by Arthur Rothstein, June 1937 (Farm Security Administration Office of War Information fsa 8b38856)

Phillips Tomato Packing Company - driver waiting to deliver tomatoes, Cambridge, MD, photo by Arthur Rothstein, June 1937 (Farm Security Administration Office of War Information fsa 8c25760)

Strike at Phillips Packing Company in Cambridge, MD photo by Arthur Rothstein, June 1937 (Farm Security Administration Office of War Information fsa 8b38856)

Strike at Phillips Packing Company No. 2 in Cambridge, MD photo by Arthur Rothstein, June 1937 (Farm Security, Administration Office of War Information file  fsa 8b36137)

Trucks unload into the canning room 3, Phillips Packing Co., Cambridge, MD photo by Arthur Rothstein, June 1937 (Farm Security Administration Office of War Information fsa 8c33084r). The lines at the top of the photo are what was posted online.

Trucks unload into the canning room, Phillips Packing Co., Cambridge, MD photo by Arthur Rothstein, June 1937 (Farm Security Administration Office of War Information fsa 8c33054r)

Trucks waiting at the Phillips Packing Co., Cambridge, MD photo by Arthur Rothstein, June 1937 (Farm Security Administration Office of War Information fsa 8c33117r)

Modern-Day Phillips Packing House

Take a look at the updates to the former Phillips Packing House in Cambridge, MD. The transformation is amazing!

The Packing House

Here's a Phillips Delicious soup advertisement from Time Magazine dated October 26, 1936.

Phillips Delicious ad from the October 26, 1936, issue of Time Magazine