Skip to main content

Image / Southern Pacific advertisement detailing the Taylor family's trip down the Pacific coast

Have a question about this item?

Item information. View source record on contributor's website.

Title
Southern Pacific advertisement detailing the Taylor family's trip down the Pacific coast
Publication Information
University of Southern California. Libraries
Contributing Institution
California Historical Society
University of Southern California Digital Library
Collection
California Historical Society Collection, 1860-1960
Rights Information
Doheny Memorial Library, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189
Public Domain. Release under the CC BY Attribution license--http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/--Credit both “University of Southern California. Libraries” and “California Historical Society” as the source. Digitally reproduced by the USC Digital Library; From the California Historical Society Collection at the University of Southern California
Send requests to address or e-mail given
USC Libraries Special Collections
specol@usc.edu
Description
Photograph of a Southern Pacific advertisement detailing the Taylor family's trip down the Pacific coast, [s.d.]. A young boy can be seen from behind at right wearing a suit and hat. He is pointing at a map showing railroad routes across the United States. An inset at bottom left shows a cactus in the Arizona desert, while a depiction of crater lake can be seen at bottom. Photonegative sleeve reads, "S.P. Lord Thomas J. Logan. Printed".
Advertisement reads [part 1 of 2]: "The Taylor family pushes. The time had come when Sam Taylor decided something had to be done about it. Of course there was nothing wrong. His salary was livable, wife -- lovable, children -- adorable. Yet life just didn't click. An occasional discord sounded in the accustomed rhythm of his work. Something was dulling the sparkle in Mary's eyes. Certainly something had to be done. He needed...well...that was it! A change. A trip? Not one of those regular summer vacations to the same old nearby resort, but a trip that would open his mind, stir his pulses. He would go into that land he had long since visited in his imagination -- the West! That night he casually suggested to the family that this summer they might visit the Pacific coast. Sam will tell you now that the excited pleasure of that evening was worth every cent the trip cost him. The Taylor family journeyed West many, many times before they actually boarded the train. Mary wanted to see Santa Barbara and Del Monte, little Miss Margaret insisted that they visit Hollywood, Sam knew he must see the Pacific Northwest before he died, and if Junior didn't get to go through San Francisco's Chinatown, it would be much safer to stay at home. Sam had to find tickets that would include them all. The Taylor family went West, -- Southern Pacific. Their baggage bristled with golf clubs and tennis rackets. But the clean, brisk fun on cool fairways and tennis courts that overhung the Pacific's shore was only part of the vacation's reward. Days of hiking and riding, nights of dancing, merry tours to Mount Rainier's flower-edged glaciers, to Yosemite's half-mile high waterfalls, and to Los Angeles' movieland -- these, too, were but a part of the outing."
Advertisement reads [part 2 of 2]: "As they wandered through the many shrines America's history has left them -- Davy Crocket's Alamo to San Antonio
the old Missions of the heroic Padres
Ramona's Marriage Place at San Diego
the land of the Forty-Niners
the Mark Twain and Bret Harte country
Monterey
Lewis and Clark's mighty Columbia
they felt the full inspiration of this Western Land. Horizons fell back. These United States became their United States. Mary's eyes will carry forever the sparkle of mountain lakes. The thrill of new friends will live in their memories. The brave sweep of this Pacific slope, its contrasts, people and natural wonders will stand behind them always. The Taylors became a family with a national background. In the fast developing Pacific slope Sam had visioned the possibilities of a branch factory for his firm. And, somehow, he knew he had gained the poise and self-confidence to make the dream real. To the casual observer, Junior carried home only two things from the West. A bit of western sunset in his cheeks and a strange imitation of two Chinamen in argument. But a few knew that his school-books had come to life. Glaciers, craters, mountain-passes and old trails were memory keys that opened new worlds for him. -- Why don't you invest in this trip West this summer? -- Sam Taylor, his wife and youngsters are mythical folks, of course, but the trip they might have taken is a very real trip that has been actually made by many a happy family. -- Deep in Arizona's mysterious desert winds the Apache Trail. A one-day motor detour on Sunset or Golden State route. -- Nature's mystery, Crater Lake, in the gorgeous Cascade range of Southern Oregon -- served by Southern Pacific's Shasta Route. This is one of the many fascinating side-trips that may be included in your journey to and along the Pacific Coast this summer."
Type
image
Format
1 photograph : photonegative, b&w
18 x 13 cm.
negatives (photographic)
photographs
Identifier
chs-m24141 [Legacy record ID]
CHS-48353
http://doi.org/10.25549/chs-m24141
http://thumbnails.digitallibrary.usc.edu/CHS-48353.jpg
Subject
Railroads--Stations
Southern Pacific Railroad
Railroad features
Place
California
USA
Source
48353 [Accession number]
CHS-48353 [Call number]
California Historical Society [Contributing entity]
unidentified no: TRAN-50 [Identifying number]
Relation
California Historical Society Collection, 1860-1960
USC
chs-m15009

About the collections in Calisphere

Learn more about the collections in Calisphere. View our statement on digital primary resources.

Copyright, permissions, and use

If you're wondering about permissions and what you can do with this item, a good starting point is the "rights information" on this page. See our terms of use for more tips.

Share your story

Has Calisphere helped you advance your research, complete a project, or find something meaningful? We'd love to hear about it; please send us a message.

Explore related content on Calisphere: