The White Mountains on Kodachrome in the 1950s
photos by Raymond V "Dick" Cull
The photographer in this series was Mr. Raymond V. Cull of Concord, Massachusetts. Known as "Uncle Dick" to my wife, Mr. Cull used Kodachrome film in his travels. These images are of New Hampshire's White Mountains in the 1950s. Said by geologists to have migrated from a different continent, the White mountains have a different look when compared to the Vermont's Green Mountains that lie a mere 70 miles west.
The White Mountains
In a scene that would be banned today by Nervous Nellies worried about lawsuits and insurance costs, the kids of days past eagerly clambered upon an historic logging locomotive in this scene likely taken near Lincoln.
No. 5 was a 1906 Baldwin 50-ton saddle-tank engine that operated deep in the woods for more than 55 years in the employ of J.E.Henry & Sons lumber company.For most of those years, Louis Boyle was at the throttle, having started on the railroad as a fireman at the age of 15.
Got fly rod?
A serene river, just right for the trout fisherman.
A little higher altitude here, perhaps near the Mt. Washington auto road.
This is a shot for 1950s car enthusiasts. That Buick hardtop on the right was considered sporty for an American car in those days, in spite of its two-ton weight. Just the thing for careening around the two-lane roads in the days before the interstate highways. When the Interstate did come to New Hampshire, the locals forced a compromise with the federal government and so I-93 is today a two lane road through the heart of the most scenic area.
New Hampshire is home to about 55 covered bridges today, the majority of which are historic structures. There were once more than 200 covered bridges in the state.
Many covered bridges have been around long enough to have more than one name, and this one was the Joel Eastman or Redstone covered bridge in Conway. On 4 July 1975 this bridge was arsoned and completely destroyed, a fate all too common for covered bridges in the USA.
Dick Cull often traveled to New Hampshire during foliage season to catch the colors.
Often a simple tourist shot would take on a wondrous look on the old K-12 process film as seen directly above.
On May 3,2003, New Hampshire's Old Man of the Mountain, seen here as a familiar profile, succumbed to the forces of nature and fell from the face of the mountain.
More autumn color above as seen through Dick Cull's lens. I have yet to establish the camera brand, though I believe it was a large SLR.
This was possibly the Mt. Washington auto road above. We see clearly in this view the snow line in the distance. A large number of hikers are rescued from Mt. Washington every year because they are lost, or because they are not dressed for the rapidly changing weather scene. There has been talk of making them pay for the rescue services, which makes sense to me.
In the slide above we see the Cranmore Mountain Skimobile carrying tourists down from the heights during the fall foliage season. Opened in 1939 and equipped with 60 cars like those seen here, the skimobile helped make Cranmore one of the most popular prewar ski resorts in the country.
This is the Swift River covered bridge at Conway, built in 1870.
The Conway Scenic RR remains quite popular today.
This view has likely captured Dick at one of his favorite locations. The splayed birches seen here were featured in his slides many times. Thanks for the show, Dick.