Social media, circa 1945

We talk about the "revolution" of social media, and yet, if you peruse the archives of any small town paper from the 19th or 20th centuries, you'll find social media has been around much longer than we give it credit.

In this clip from the Feb. 22, 1945 Arlington Times, we have reports from Oso, Darrington, Cicero, Greenwood and Silvana. Previous pages include "news" from Lakewood, Bryant, Victoria and Edgecomb. Some of these places still live on, some are ghosts of what they once were; and others, like Greenwood and Victoria, have faded into obscurity.

Note too the familiar family names -- Giebel, Armstrong, Wangsmo, Hershaw, Husby.

1945's version of social media may have not had the immediacy or interactive qualities of our electronic age, but remember that life wasn't quite as speed-of-light as it is today -- and yet, this six page edition of the Times is crammed full of the same kind of news we share with each other today via Facebook, Google+ and other virtual communities.

Here in Arlington, the adage properly applies: "The more things change, the more they remain the same."

Dear Governor Stevens

Today we have a Northern Pacific Railway ad from the April 2, 1953 Arlington Times, celebrating the achievements of Washington State's first Territorial Governor, Isaac Stevens (1818-1862), for his role in bringing the transcontinental railroad to the Puget Sound.

Stevens set out west in 1853 and eventually determined two possible routes: from Walla Walla west, paralleling the Columbia River, to Portland; and across Snoqualmie Pass over the Cascade Mountains.

Northern Pacific completed the route along the Columbia in 1883, while the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway completed a line through Snoqualmie Pass in 1909.

Interestingly enough, Stevens Pass, the Great Northern Railway's route over the Cascade mountains, was not named for Governor Stevens, but for surveyor John Stevens, who had been promised the honor by James J. Hill.

It should be noted that at the time this ad was published, business interests such as the railroads still regarded Isaac Stevens as a trailblazing pioneer. In more recent times, however, his reputation has diminished as there is more awareness of his actions while in his dual role as Superintendent of Indian Affairs.

Stevens in fact was responsible for facilitating several key treaties in 1854 and 1855, including the Treaty of Point Elliot which created the Tulalip Reservation west of Marysville. But his means of "compelling" tribal leaders to sign the treaties consisted of intimidation and violence.  

"Greater things to come," indeed. Less than 20 years after this ad was printed, the Northern Pacific would merge with the Great Northern Railway, the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, and the Spokane, Portland & Seattle Railway, forming Burlington Northern Railroad.

Future of Olympic Theatre may be in question

Oct. 12, 1963 Olympic Theatre ad.

The Arlington Times reports today about a new challenge facing the historic Olympic Theatre in downtown Arlington: the plan by Hollywood movie studios to stop producing 35 millimeter film and go to a digital-only format.

Norma Pappas has owned the Olympic Theatre since 1977 when she bought the space with her dad. She has been running the theater for 35 years doing everything from splicing film to selling tickets and concessions. She prides herself on having affordable prices and being a staple in Arlington, especially for young families who could not afford the movie experience at large corporate multiplex theaters. (Source: The Arlington Times)

The cost of upgrading to digital could be as much as $100,000, according to Pappas. Not the kind of cash a family business has laying around.

I recently wrote an entry about the Olympic, as the start of an occasional series, "My Favorite Places." The Olympic Theatre has been in operation continuously since 1939, and is one of only two independent single screen theatres left in Snohomish County.

I have great memories of seeing movies there in junior high and high school, and we still make the trek down for the occasional "grown up" movie — the Olympic's demographic is families and children, so the schedule is heavy on child-friendly films.

So what can be done to keep the Olympic from going dark? So far, a "Save the Olympic Theater" Facebook page has been created by local fans. But thus far there is more talk than action — I think as outsiders looking in, many people are hesitant to offer help or ideas, because they don't want to be perceived as disrespecting Pappas' amazing 35 year commitment to the theater.

As with many things of a historic nature here in Arlington, there is so much potential for more. But things tend to move at a slower pace in Arlington then they do elsewhere.

The movie studio timeline for retiring 35mm film is on track for as early as 2013. That doesn't give the community a whole lot of time to take any action — that means now is the time to step and make a commitment to the Olympic.

But where to start? Easily enough, we can look toward the examples of other local historic theaters:

• The Edmonds Theatre, built in 1923, is privately owned and recently upgraded to digital. I was unable to find information on how the upgrade was financed, but in the last five years the owners have invested some $50,000 in other renovations.

• The Historic Everett Theatre, built in 1901, was rescued from oblivion in 1995 when the non-profit Everett Theatre Society was formed, which purchased and renovated the theatre for both live performances and movie screenings.

• The Lincoln Theatre in Mount Vernon, built in 1926, is maintained by The Lincoln Theatre Center Foundation, a volunteer board of directors who meet monthly. The theatre hosts independent and foreign films, live theater, concerts, and it can be rented for special events.

• The Grand Illusion Cinema in Seattle, built in 1968, was saved from closure in 1997 by the non-profit Northwest Film Forum, and after renovations continues to run independent and foreign films. 

These revitalization stories are just the tip of the iceberg. As more and more historic theaters go dark, it becomes more important to try to save the few remaining movie houses we have left.

And what a treasure the Olympic is for the town of Arlington — like many other historic downtown structures, it serves as a kind of "ballast" for the community.

So now is the time to ask ourselves: does Arlington want to be the kind of town that would let its movie theater close forever? I certainly hope it's not.

Sometimes you don't see the full picture...

At first glimpse, you might think this is the original Seattle Lake Shore & Eastern depot in Arlington. But it's not.

Lesson #1 of historical research: double check your "facts."

It seemed legitimate. I purchased this photo at an antique store in Arlington a few years back, where a fellow sells reproduction enlargements of antique photos. I was told by a shop employee that these photos are derived from old glass negatives which this gentleman purchased from the Arlington Times at some point in the past.

So it would be easy to assume this is a turn of the century photo of a trainwreck at the Arlington Seattle Lake Shore & Eastern/Northern Pacific depot, right?

To someone without an expert eye, yes.

But to my fellow members at the Northern Pacific Railway TellTale discussion group, there are several red flags. Roger Barrow best summed it up:

Prominent in the picture is an N&W [Norfolk & Western Railway] coal hopper. The depot is board and batten with gingerbread on the gable, and a lower-quadrant train order semaphore. The station platform is brick and a water tank appears in the (south?) distance. Helping to date the picture, we see a mix of steel and wooden hopper cars, and
rail with no tie plates.

So face bright red with embarrassment, I went to do some additional digging, and it turns out this is a postcard view of NOT the SLS&E/NP depot in Arlington, WASHINGTON, it's of a 1913 derailment at the depot in Arlington, OHIO.

Now it is possible the photo did come from The Arlington Times -- from other research I've done, the paper did publish news photos from other parts of the country, and many of them have been related to railroading.

I was excited about this photo when I bought it because I really thought it could be connected to a 1910 Northern Pacific blueprint which shows a (proposed) remodel or rebuild of the Arlington depot. Could it be a picture of the original SLS&E depot built in 1890?

Well, no. I should have looked more carefully at this photo of the depot, from the Stillaguamish Pioneer Museum:

Or this one, taken by former NPR employee Jim Fredrickson:

 Or this one:

Or this one, by former NPR employee Russell C. Johnson:

OR, just take a look at any other photo of original SLS&E depots, and you'll see the siding is horizontal, not vertical.

This might also be a lesson in what happens when you've been away for awhile from writing and research, and possibly what they call "chemo brain."

I'm just grateful that the folks at the TellTale group were so kind and helpful about my gaffe. With all  sincerity, they are truly a valuable resource for details on local railroad history -- which I will certainly call upon in the future. :)