Peaks Island

Peaks Island is actually part of the city of Portland Maine, three miles away. It consists of 720 acres and was once known as the Coney Island of Maine. Ferry boats have been landing there since 1880. The first photo is dated 1910.

Atlantic City Boardwalk

The first boardwalk in Atlantic City NJ was built in 1870 and was intended to keep sand out of the hotels along the beach. The golden age of Atlantic City was in the 1920s, as liquor flowed openly even though Prohibition was in effect. Later on the boardwalk began to fade but was saved by legalized gambling in the late 1970s. The first photo is undated.

Pikes Peak CO.

Pikes Peak sits at an elevation of 14,115 ft. It can be reached by the longest (nine miles) cog rail system in the world, which began service in 1891. Two years later, during a trip on the railway, Katharine Lee Bates was inspired to write “America the Beautiful.” Following a three year, 100 million dollar renovation, the railway opened again on May 27, 2021. The first photo is undated and the third was taken in 1892.

Daytona Beach FL.

In 1926 four towns in Florida merged to become Daytona Beach. Its wide, smooth, and compacted sand had been attracting car and motorcycle races since 1902. In its hay day, Daytona Beach was known as “The world’s most famous beach.” The first photo is undated.

Early Means of Transportation

Tourists traveled to their destinations by:

Trains

Planes

and Automobiles

The first major tourist attraction in the U.S. was Niagara Falls in the mid 19th Century followed by Yellowstone National Park. It was not until after World War II that mass tourism took off. Early tourism can, therefore, be viewed as early 20th Century up to the late 1930s. Several of the leading destinations are listed below.

Coney Island

Coney Island was the largest amusement park complex in the U.S. from the 1880s to World War II. One of the main attractions was the Cyclone roller coaster built in 1927, and it is still in use today. The first photo is dated 1927.

Grants Tomb

Grants Tomb is located in New York City. It was opened in 1897 and is seen here in a 1911 photo.

California Redwoods 1920s

Rollins Pass

Rollins Pass is located on the Continental Divide at an elevation of 11,676 feet near Winter Park CO. It was a three-hour train trip from Denver, where trips in July were advertised as “from sultry heat to Colorado’s North Pole.” The first photo is dated 1910.

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk is located in Santa Cruz CA. It opened in 1907 and was called “The West Coast Coney Island.” It has been a major tourist destination ever since. The first photo is dated 1912 and the second 1925.

Seaside OR

Much further up the west coast is another beach destination in Seaside OR. Known as the Seaside Historical Promenade–a fifteen-foot-wide walkway along the Pacific Ocean. Also known as The Prom, it includes a turnaround where the street meets the ocean. The Prom is 100 years old this year as is the first photo.

Walloon Lake

Walloon Lake is located on the northern tip of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. It was frequented by Chicagoans, in particular, with the most notable being Ernest Hemingway. He spent many summers at the family cottage, which is still owned by the Hemingway family. The first photo, showing the steamship Tourist, is undated.

Petosky Evening News June 24,1910

Gloucester MA is located on Cape Ann. It was founded in 1623, but, due to harsh conditions, it was abandoned in 1626. It was finally incorporated in 1642. The company Gortons of Gloucester was started there in 1906. Rudyard Kipling’s Captains Courageous was filmed there as was Stephen King’s The Perfect Storm. Currently, National Geographic’s Wicked Tuna is set there.

Notable sites around town are:

Gloucester Fishmans Memorial

The monument stands eight feet tall and overlooks Gloucester Harbor–America’s oldest seaport. It was built to commemorate Gloucester’s 300th anniversary and memorialize the thousands of fishermen who were lost at sea. The first photo is dated 1927.

Main St.

The first photo is dated 1910.

Gate Lodge at Niles Beach

Gate Lodge was built in 1888 and is located on Eastern Point Road, which leads to the Eastern Point Lighthouse. The first photo is dated ca.1905.

Eastern Point Lighthouse

The Lighthouse was built in 1848, and a new dwelling was constructed in 1879. Winslow Homer spent the summer of 1880 there painting his famous seascapes. The first photo is dated 1848.

White-Ellery Farm

The White-Ellery Farmhouse was built in 1710 and has been in the same family for 200 years. Due to highway construction in 1947, it was moved 100 yards and was turned over to the Cape Ann Museum. The first photo is dated 1880s.

Tablet Rock

Tablet Rock is located in Stage Fort Park. The tablet was installed in 1907 to commemorate Gloucester as the first permanent settlement of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. The first photo shows the dedication.

Chilcoot Pass

The trail to the summit was four miles long with an elevation gain of 3,500 feet. Carved into the ice and snow were 1,500 steps that became known as The Golden Staircase. The average load carried was 50 pounds, but each man had to bring up food and supplies for one year (about one ton) or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police would not allow entry into Canada. This meant it took an average of three months to get everything to the top! Eventually, five tramways were built which helped considerably. Notice the boat, sled, and bike in the following pictures.

An area known as The Scales was a flat basin on top of Long Hill, and it was used as a staging area for the ascent. Long Hill is seen here in a then-and-now photo provided by the National Park Service.

The Summit

Sliding back downhill for another load

There are remnants of the Gold Rush still visible.

Discarded canvas boats

When the Gold Rush was over in 1899 many left to seek their fortune in Nome where gold was just discovered!

For a superb narrative with numerous photos of the entire trek, including a miner’s life in the Yukon after reaching the summit, see The Klondike Quest by Pierre Berton.

Gold was discovered in a tributary of the Klondike River in Canada in 1896, but word did not get out until the winter thaw in June 1897. A stampede of 100,000 people set out, but only about 35,000 actually made it to the Klondike. By 1899 it was all over. Most people had no experience at mining and no idea where to go once they got there, and getting there meant overcoming horrendous conditions.

Upon arrival at the starting point, Skagway AK, a choice had to be made between the Chilkoot Trail and the White Pass Trail. Most chose Chilkoot because it was thought to be easier. Here is a map showing the two routes and stops along the way to the Canadian border.

Leaving Seattle for Skagway

Bustling Skagway

Skagway Undated

Entertainers Arriving in Dyea

Dyea Waterfront and Start of Chilkoot Trail

The Many Modes of Transit

Canyon City–Stopping Point before The Golden Staircase

Trail up to Chilkoot Pass Known as The Golden Staircase

Minnesota

Home to the longest shoreline of any city on the Mississippi River (26 miles), St. Paul is the site of the current (and third) Minnesota statehouse. Construction began in 1886 when Minnesota had been a state for only 37 years. It opened in 1905 at a cost of 4.5 million dollars (126 million today). In 2017 a 310-million-dollar restoration was completed. The first photo is dated 1905.

New Hampshire

New Hampshire’s capitol is located in Concord where the first alarm clock was invented in 1797. It is the oldest capitol where both houses occupy their original chambers. The building’s construction began in 1816 and lasted three years. It is the fifth oldest capitol

New York

New York’s capitol is located in Albany. The building was built by hand and took 32 years to complete–1867-1899. It has been said that reporters wanting to talk with the then governor Teddy Roosevelt (1899-1900) had to beat him up the 77 steps of the capitol to get an interview. The first photo seems to show some politicians anxiously awaiting a look inside their new building. If so, they would have to wait another 28 years!. The second photo is dated 1899.

Utah

Utah’s capitol is located in Salt Lake City. The building opened in 1916, has a stunning marble interior, and underwent a 310-million-dollar renovation in 2017. Oddly, Salt Lake City is home to more non-Mormons than Mormons. Also, the city is not dry; it has 118 bars, and the first KFC franchise opened there in 1952. The first photo shows the 1916 dedication.

Texas

The capitol of Texas is the largest of all capitols in the U.S. It is located in Austin, which is the largest city in the country without a professional sports team, and whose motto is “Keep Austin weird.” The building was constructed between 1882-1886. It was funded by two Chicago investors who made good on their investment. They were given ten counties consisting of three million acres that eventually became the XIT Ranch, the largest cattle ranch in the world! The first photo, dated 1888, shows the Lady of Freedom statue shortly before it was installed on the capitol dome. Sixteen feet tall and weighing 20,000 pounds, the Lady of Freedom had exaggerated features so her face would be visible from 300 ft. below. A replacement was installed in 1986, and the original now resides in the Bullock Museum.

Vermont

The smallest state capitol (building) is located in the smallest state capital (city) , Montpelier,VT. The building was opened in 1859 making it the 8th oldest capitol in the country. Also, it is the only capital city without a MacDonalds. The first photo is dated ca.1870.

North Carolina

North Carolina’s statehouse is located in Raleigh. It was built in 1840, making it the 7th oldest. The Senate moved out in 1881, and The General Assembly moved in 1961. The statehouse is currently occupied by the Governor’s office. Raleigh is notable for having the first Historically Black College in the South, Shaw University established in 1865. Shaw was the first to admit women and also the first to offer a four-year medical degree. The first photo is dated 1861.

Colorado

The Colorado capitol is located in Denver. Construction of the building took 15 years, beginning in 1886 with the ground breaking. The cornerstone was laid four years later, and the building opened after another four years. However, it was not considered complete until 1901, 30 years after the land was donated by Henry Brown. Oddly, Denver is the site of the most beer brewed in a U.S.city: 200+different kinds per day. The first photo is dated ca.1895.

Tennessee

The Tennessee capitol is located in Nashville and was another long-term construction, 1845-1859. It is one of twelve dome-less capitols and the tenth oldest still in use. Nashville is known as “The Athens of the South” owing to it’s large number of colleges and universities. It has the only full-scale replica of the Parthenon and houses a 42 ft. statue of Athena–the largest indoor statue in the country. The first photo, showing a Union encampment, is dated 1862.

Michigan

The Michigan capitol is located in Lansing. It was built between 1873-78 and designed by the same architect who did Colorado and Tennessee statehouses. Lansing was chosen because so many larger cities were endlessly arguing about being the chosen one. The first photo is dated 1899.

Placerville is located in northern California near Nevada and it’s Mother Lode Region. From 1849-54, it was known as Hangtown, but the name was changed for obvious reasons. Many buildings from the mining days remain, so much so that the entire town is a California Historical Landmark. Several of the more prominent buildings are:

Cary Hotel

The Cary Hotel was built in 1856 and has hosted the likes of Buffalo Bill, Mark Twain, U.S. Grant, Betty Davis, and Elvis, to name a few. The first photo is undated.

Combellack-Blair House

The Combellack-Blair House was built in 1895. It is the subject of a Thomas Kinkade painting known as Victorian Christmas. Kinkade was from Placerville, and the painting was so nostalgic for him that he put Norman Rockwell in the lower left hand corner. The first photo is undated.

Hangman’s Tree Saloon

The Hangman’s Tree Saloon opened in 1895 and operated for several decades. Later it was saved from demolition and opened as an ice cream parlor in 2017. The first photo is dated 1890.

Residence

Note the children on the porch. Photo is undated.

Placerville Hardware

The current Placerville Hardware store was built in 1856. It started as Sturgis & Alderson in 1852, making it the oldest hardware store west of the Mississippi River. Rolling ladders were installed in 1900, and those ladders are still in use today. The first photo is undated.

Main Street

The bell in the tower on Main Street was cast in England in 1860. It arrived in Placerville in 1865, but was not placed in the tower until 1878. A new, steel tower was erected in 1898 and the first photo shows the re-dedication ceremony. The second photo is dated 1900.

Hollywood Sign

Just like Lucy The Elephant, the Hollywood sign was built to attract home buyers. It was constructed in 1923 at a cost of $21,000 and, originally, was intended to last 1 1/2 years. Numerous and frequent repairs had to be made, including in 1947 when the word “land” was removed. A completely new, concrete version replaced the old sign in 1978 at a cost of $250,000. The first photo is dated 1935.

Meramec Caverns

Meramec Caverns, located in Stanton, MO., were built about 400 million years ago (give or take). At 4.6 miles in length, it is the largest cave west of the Mississippi River. Three hundred feet from the entrance is a 50′ x 50′ room that began use as a ballroom in the 1890s. Another prominent feature is the formation known as the “Stage Curtain.” It is 70′ high, 60′ wide, and 35′ thick. Amazingly it is the largest single cave feature in the world and is older than the Grand Canyon! The Caverns true size became known in the 1940s and barns in 14 states soon had signs painted on them advertising the site. That soon grew to 400 barns in 40 states after it opened as a tourist attraction in 1935. Seventy-five of those barn signs remain. The first and third photos are undated.

Paul Bunyon and Babe

The Paul Bunyon and Babe the Big Blue Ox statues were built in 1937 in Bemidji, MN, as part of a winter carnival to promote tourism. There are about 14 versions of these statues in the US. The first photo is dated 1945.

Airplane Gas Station

Located in Powell, TN, this airplane gas station was built in 1931 and was inspired by Lindbergh’s plane The Spirit of St. Louis. The gas station operated for 35 years then served as several commercial ventures. It was abandoned and almost totally destroyed but was saved in 2003 with a $100,000 renovation. It is currently a barber shop. The first photo is dated 1931.

Haines Shoe House

The Haines Shoe House is located in Hallam, PA, and was completed in 1949 by Mahan Haines, who called himself “The Shoe Wizard.” He never lived there, but he used it as a promotional prize for his own lottery at his chain of shoe stores. The lucky winners could stay a week and enjoy a chef, chauffeur, and maid. The shoe is currently open for tours and ice cream. The first photo is dated 1948.

Tea Pot Gas Station

The Tea Pot gas station was built in Zillah, WA, in 1922 as a reminder of the Tea Pot Dome Scandal. In 1978 it was relocated one mile down the new highway and operated there until 2006. In 2012 , it was renovated, moved again, and is now Zillah’s visitor center. The first photo is dated 1925.

Castle Rock

Castle Rock is located in Ignace MI. It stands 195 ft. above Lake Huron and provides a stunning overlook of Mackinac Island. It opened in 1929 and is still operated by the same family. The first photo is undated.

Coral Castle

Coral Castle is located near Miami. It consists of 1,100 large stones, each weighing about half a ton. Edward Leedskaalnin built it by himself, working mostly at night and unnoticed by anyone. He labored for 28 years, finishing in 1951. The stone walls, chairs, doors, tables, sundial, etc. were all cut precisely and lifted in place and, to this day, no one is certain how he did it. The first and third photos are dated 1930.

Dinosaur Park

Dinosaur Park consists of seven life-size replicas on a hillside outside of Rapid City, SD. It opened in 1936 in a region long prized for its dinosauer fossils

Lucy

Lucy is a six-story elephant built in 1881 and made of wood and tin sheeting. It was designed to promote real estate in the Atlantic City area. It is the oldest surviving roadside attraction in the US. Lucy was slated for demolition in the 1960s, but was saved and moved to a vacant lot 100 yards away in 1969. She was then refurbished and opened to the public in 1974. In 2020 Lucy became the only National Historical Landmark that permits overnight stays–$138 per night on Airbnb. For some great interior shots, search New York Times February 27,2020 Lucy. The first photo is dated 1885, the second is from the 1920s, and the third shows moving day .