Last week I showed you Gus Hatner's school bus
and this week I thought I would show you his truck.
The roads on the peninsula
were not so great back then!
When I was a child all roads were metal
and winding and narrow.
My sister's father-in-law built the early roads with his brother
and Pop used to say they were paid for every corner.
Going to our nearest town, Waiuku, seemed such a long journey.
There were tar-sealed roads near the town
and we children would cheer when we hit them.
and this week I thought I would show you his truck.
The roads on the peninsula
were not so great back then!
When I was a child all roads were metal
and winding and narrow.
My sister's father-in-law built the early roads with his brother
and Pop used to say they were paid for every corner.
Going to our nearest town, Waiuku, seemed such a long journey.
There were tar-sealed roads near the town
and we children would cheer when we hit them.
Here is a car in trouble.
Broken axles were common too.
Lucky there were still faithful old farm horses to come to the rescue.
I somethimes think these old sepia photos are more revealing because of what's not shown. I also sometimes think what others will think 100 years from now about how we live now.
ReplyDeleteAs always, Joan, a thought-provoking post. Have a great weekend!
Joan, I cannot imagine trying to drive down a metal road. Oh my! First to lay the roads, then to ride them. Your sepia photos and stories are always so enlightening to me and how I admire the spirit of your family and others who surrounded you. Well done and I thank you.
ReplyDeleteOh for sure wonder how folks will us our photos when they are old. Good old horse, gotta keep them around. Almost every family in our neighborhood has horses, not for work but they just have their own culture of horses going way back. Great post.
ReplyDeleteQMM
I can't imagine just how bad the road was in the very early days; my childhood memories of it are bad enough. The corrugations on the corners were dreadful and our cars used to bounce around them; dusty in summer and muddy in winter.
ReplyDeleteI love the graininess of these photos and what amazing pictures they are - so evocative of that age.
ReplyDeleteIt's great that you have our Sepia Saturday widget in your sidebar. It's such a good advertisement to spark curiosity in potential participants.
Thanks! I'm sure Alan will be pleased as well.
Kat
Metal roads? I've never heard of them...
ReplyDeleteThe photos are fabulous. What a glimpse into the past. We take so much for granted these days, don't we?
Apparently the chains on the rear wheels weren't too helpful. That is some serious mud!
ReplyDeleteWhat a mess! LOL! Love those old cars, but I'm sure they would have loved 4WD back then! Would love to hear more about the metal roads!
ReplyDeleteWhat a mess of mud in that first photo. It would make one want to use only horses -- or stay home till the mud dried out! This post reminds me of the strength of our ancestors - from any family in an an earlier time period - and how much fortitude and courage they had to overcome things like mud to the knees. Great photos!
ReplyDeleteI know how it feels to land in a quagmire. The photos are marvelous. I wonder who had a camera and took the pictures?
ReplyDeleteThey are two wonderful photos. We tended in the past over here photograph every train wreck, car in the ditch or the river, or truck tipped over on it's side. Those are two classics.
ReplyDeleteAh, proof that the "good old days" weren't always so good.
ReplyDelete