Day 5 - Dirk and Lincoln at DennyGibson.com

Day 5: November 7, 2018
Studebaker and Crosley
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I did it again. Went to a place known for omelets, ordered one, and reluctantly left part part of it behind. "House of the Super Omelettes" is printed on the menus and painted on the window at Edelweiss Restaurant. Their Facebook page says "The ONLY complaint we get from our customers is that there is too much food on one plate!". Both statements are correct. Oh, and that's homemade blackberry jam in the little jar in the picture of the omelet.

From my motel in Auburn, I noticed that the museum that was closed when I was in Placerville was only about seventeen miles away. Knowing it would be open today, I headed there immediately after breakfast. The main thing I wanted to see was the wheelbarrow made by John Studebaker. Most people taking part in the 1849 gold rush made nothing at all. Very few found gold; More were successful "mining the miners". John was in the latter group and made money by selling wheelbarrows to prospectors. In 1852, he took his $8,000 in profits back to South Bend, Indiana, where he used it to help his brothers grow their wagon building business. Studebaker products, including the restored wagon, made their way back to Placerville.

John was born in Pennsylvania but was an Ohio resident when he set out for California. I was pleased to find that a lot of the objects in the museum also came from Ohio. I don't know where the model locomotive was made but the full sized version was made in Lima, Ohio. Shay's were all-wheel drive steam engines popular in logging. Some may recall that I was pulled up and down a hill by a Shay in mid 2017. A Shay locomotive is being restored at the museum, but, although I could peek at it behind the screen and glass, photographs were not possible. Other items from my home state include an extremely well preserved Icyball from Cincinnati's Crosley Corporation, and several products from Dayton's National Cash Register and Dayton Scale Company.

Now, this is Cool!

Incidentally, traveling that seventeen miles between Auburn and Placerville utilized twenty-five miles of road. Most of those on CA-49. It's a wonderful road, well maintained with lots of curves bordered by great scenery. I sadly got no pictures of those curves so am including this shot of the Auburn-Foresthill Bridge so I can at least mention them. The bridge is itself noteworthy as its 403 foot piers are the tallest in the U.S.

Here's more evidence that those California people have been busy since I was last here. The Paul Gilger (LHA Mapping Committee) designed monument was erected in 2014 under the guidance of past LHA president Bob Dieterich. There's a better look at the inscription here and of the salvaged pavement here.

I recall standing in the road in 2013 to read and photograph these contractor stamps. Today I felt nervous rushing across the street to get a different angle. Either traffic has picked up considerably or I picked a bad day. The point is that four different paving projects came together at this spot near Newcastle to complete the two lane road. One lane was completed in 1932; The other in 1934.

I had wanted to spend my last night in California on the Delta King but by the time I got it nailed down as to just when that would be, the place was full. Rooms were available for the night before and the night after but not the night I needed. So I stayed in a Best Western less than a mile away and walked to Old Sacramento on the paved bike path.

On board the Delta King, I headed straight up that marvelous stairway. I was thinking of having dinner in the restaurant until I saw bar's happy hour menu. American Kobe sliders and arugula salad for seven bucks. Saved myself some money and had a nice chat with a couple from South Carolina.

I walked into Old Sacramento past where the Christmas tree is being prepared and made one more stop. I had one beer at the River City Saloon then called Uber and effectively ended the trip. I've a plane to catch tomorrow.

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