Robert Fowler and his airplane

Pioneering aviator Robert Fowler’s crumpled airplane in 1911, after it crashed in Alta, California, in the Sierra Nevada mountains. He was trying to fly across the country in an attempt to win $50,000 that had been offered by William Randolf Hearst for the first person to fly across the country. In addition to strong mountain winds, a spark plug wire came loose, and he lost power, forcing him into a crash landing. What a marvelous photo with the dapper Fowler and what appears to be an ad hoc welcome committee of residents in front of the crumpled machine.

Fowler had taken off from San Francisco’s Golden Gate Polo Fields on September 11th and managed to land in Auburn, where the next day, he resumed his attempt. He managed to get close to Donner Pass, but the headwinds from the mountains and mechanical problems forced him to crash land into pine trees, where he was temporarily caught in his plane. The machine was taken to Colfax, where the local rod and gun club members helped repair the plane. There is a plaque in Colfax, right by the train station, mentioning this aviation history.

On September 23rd, after 10 days of repair to the airplane, he took off from Colfax to continue his journey east. He reached an altitude of 5000 feet until he reached Blue Canyon where he increased his altitude to 6000 feet. He attempted to cross the summit for two hours but could not get the speed or altitude and had to return to Colfax.

Fowler and his airplane taking off in Colfax.

On September 24th, Fowler again took off headed for Donner Pass but found the winds that day even more treacherous than during his previous attempt. On this attempt, he reached an altitude of 7500 feet but was forced to turn around and land at Carpenter’s Flat at Emigrant Gap. Below we can see the plane with a group of people enjoying what looks like a picnic around the flying machine. Imagine how exciting it must have been for these mountain folks to witness this historic event taking place in their little corner of the mountains.

Fowler’s plane at Carpenter’s Flat, Emigrant Gap

Fowler made a third attempt on September 25th, where he reached an altitude of 8000 feet when he was again confronted by fierce winds between Cisco and Tamarack and was forced to turn around and head back to Carpenters Flat, where he broke a landing skid.

Below we see some cowboys and others checking out the newfangled flying machine.

Fowler eventually made the cross country trip, but it was done using a southern route from San Diego where there were no mountains as high as the Sierra to contend with. His cross-country flight was completed on February 8, 1912, in Jacksonville, Florida after the deadline, and the prize expired without a winner.

Despite not having won the prize, Robert Folwer’s attempts to cross the Sierra Nevada have gone down in history as one of aviation’s great feats. In 1918, Robert Fowler established the Fowler Airplane Corporation, located on Howard Street in San Francisco. He died in 1966 in San Jose, California, at the age of 81.

The map above shows Carpenter’s Flat, which is just behind the buildings along Laing Road. This area is historic as Laing Road was the Overland Emigrant Trail, The Lincoln Highway, and eventually Highway 40. Today it’s a lonely exit off Interstate 80 with a restaurant, post office, and a ton of history out back.

All photo’s used with permission of Norm Sayler, Donner Summit Historical Society.

Once upon a time at "Lookout Point", Emigrant Gap.

Emigrant Gap’s name came from 19th Century travelers who used this narrow ridge and gap to continue their travels to the Bear River Valley. The emigrants would have to lower their wagons down a very steep slope to reach the Bear River Valley far below. The site soon became known as “Lookout point” and was separate from the small town of Emigrant Gap, located about a 1/2 mile to the south-east.

The photo above shows the first visitors building to occupy this spot, a Pacific Gas & Electric Company (P.G.&E) lookout, built so travelers on the Lincoln Highway could stop and view Lake Spaulding's 1913 construction, a project of the power company. Notice the Lincoln Highway sign at the far left.

The photo above was taken by TC Wohlbruck, who purchased this property from LB Allen, who owned a hotel at Emigrant Gap. We can tell it’s a Wohlbruck photo from the distinctive writing on each of his pictures. He would sell these photos as postcards from his Canteen/Service Stations at Echo Summit, Donner Memorial State Park, and Emigrant Gap. Wohlbruck was one of the first people to recognize the profit potential in offering service for the new-fangled autos and their drivers. We can see the Lincoln Highway heading off to the left of the entrance to the Canteen.

A Wohlbruck photo above shows the Cafe that was a part of the “Lookout Point Hotel”.

Another Wohlbruck photo above showing the sleeping quarters of the “Lookout Hotel.” Walking out the doors, guests would confront the amazing view and cliffs leading down to the Bear Valley.

Photo: Donner Summit Historical Society, Norm Sayler Collection.

The above photo comes to us from the TC Wohlbruck era and shows the curved rockwork at the Canteen/Service Station. Herstle Jones, who built the later Nyack Lodge, was assumed to be the stonemason that put up this wall. Herstle and his brother Oscar were expert stone masons and constructed or added to the Rainbow Lodge at Big Bend and the Soda Springs Hotel. This photo shows that TC Wohlbruck was the one who built the wall that would become part of the Nyack Hotel.

The construction of the Nyack Hotel in progress on the now renamed Lincoln Highway, “Hi-Way 40”.

The above photo shows the completed Nyack Lodge, owned by Herstle Jones. We can see beautiful stonework in front of the building.

The photo above shows the service station component of the Nyack Lodge complex. E. Stewart Wells, whose family still runs the Nyack Shell nearby, was the service station operator.

Here we see a color photograph of the interior of the dining room of the Nyack Lodge. Guests looked out over the precipitous cliffs to the Bear Valley and Spaulding Lake, far below.

Here we have a great color photo of the cozy interior of the lodge with a lit fireplace. Notice the fantastic rock work which was a signature of the lodge.

Nyack Lodge Menu from the 1940s.

Donner Summit Historical Society, Norm Sayler Collection

Photo: Donner Summit Historical Society, Norm Sayler Collection

With the construction of Interstate 80 in the early 1960s, the Nyack Lodge faced a crossroads. They needed a bit of space from the Southern Pacific Railroad, but with that company's refusal to release a portion of their land to make the necessary room, the lodge's fate was sealed. The massive building was destroyed, but the service station building was cut into three sections and moved a short distance to today's Nyack Shell Station site. The present-day service station is part of the old lodge complex! The old lodge was well built, and the demolition crews used explosives to take the rest of the building down.

Photo: Donner Summit Historical Society, Norm Sayler Collection

The above photo from the 1960’s shows the parking lot that has replaced the older buildings at “Lookout Point”, Emigrant Gap. This is the scene we are familiar with today.

Map of the location and certain features.

Highway 40 crossing at Emigrant Gap

This 1931 photo shows Highway 40 crossing the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks at Emigrant Gap. The truck crossing the tracks is headed west and towards the photographer. This crossing would be converted into an auto tunnel under the tracks as traffic increased over the years. The westbound truck is headed up the hill to a lookout/canteen, which is pictured below. This was the Lincoln Highway until 1927 when the named highways were converted to the number system.

Notice how the downhill truck has to stop, wait until the other truck crosses before proceeding. You can imagine the confusion and danger as two automobiles try to cross, and a train is headed down the tracks. Apparently, there were quite a few accidents here.

Photo: Donner Summit Historical Society, Norm Sayler Collection.

Eventually, the beautiful Nyack Lodge would be built at this location, and a more modern freeway would be built a bit further from this spot. The fork in the road we see in the second photograph shows the Highway going left, and going right, the entrance to the lookout.

TC Wohlbrück and his Canteen Service Stations

Entering the State of California via the Lincoln Highway meant you had two choices to make in Reno. Take the northern route up and over Donner Pass, or take the southern route pass Lake Tahoe and over the summit at Johnson's Pass. Either option meant a challenging climb, which was brutal for both people and machines. What was needed was a place to rest, body, and engine while picking up supplies to keep both on the road.

PG&E lookout which T.C.. added to create his canteen. Notice the Lincoln Highway sign.

Theodore Clemens Wohlbrück (1879–1936), known as "T.C." Wohlbrück, was a photographer who arrived in California in 1912 from Massachusetts after getting a divorce in Reno. He made his living by traveling around the state in his automobile, taking school class pictures. Wohlbrück noticed how important the car was becoming in everyday life. The motors of that time were a bit unreliable and needed regular oil and water top offs and gasoline to keep moving on the road.

This color postcard shows the view of Bear Valley below the PG&E Lookout at Emigrant Gap. Click photo for larger view.

T.C. was an entrepreneur. He saw a need and decided to address it with a business. His idea was to provide these services and food, trinkets, and rooms for rent. Long before the mini-mart gas stations, we see today T.C. decided to build what he called a "Lookout" and "Canteen Service Station" at Emigrant Gap along the Lincoln Highways northern route. At this time, he had also envisioned another canteen at the Donner Memorial, dedicated in 1918, but that project would come later.

The view is looking west towards the lookout. Eventually, this would become the site of the famous Nyack Lodge.

Pacific Gas & Electric (P.G.&E) had built a small "lookout" at the Emigrant Gap, the historic "gap" in the mountains where the early pioneers had crossed over the spine of mountains and down to Bear Valley. The power company had built the lookout so travelers could stop and take in the fantastic view and watch the construction going on in the distance of the enlarging of Spaulding Dam. However, the lookout site was not occupied and frequently vandalized, so T.C. offered P.G.&E a deal. He would build his first "Canteen" there while maintaining the spot's integrity and preventing further damage. This lookout, completed in 1919, included an additional 100 acres that Wohlbrück had purchased from a man named Allen, to prevent anyone else from opening up a competing business, which he had heard was in the works.

TCs “Echo Summit Lookout” on Johnson Pass Road.

This photo is the view overlooking Tahoe Valley. Sign at right says, “Make your own postcards from the top of the world. Echo Summit, elevation 7890.” Click photo for larger view.

Wohlbrück built his second canteen on the Lincoln Highway's southern route at Echo Summit on Johnson's Pass. This canteen also had spectacular views which could be seen out back on the deck. A spyglass for travelers to take in the scenery was available, and postcards with Wohlbrücks photos of the region were for sale.

Interior view of Echo Summit Canteen, Some of the hand- made furniture by Wohlbrück still exists in the Alpine Club. Click photo for larger view.

The Echo Summit canteen still exists as the Alpine Club Lodgehouse and even includes some of TCs handmade furniture. The color photo shows the lodge as it is today. It still has a Lincoln Highway sign!

Echo Summit Lodge today.

Wohlbrück's third canteen was near the recently completed Donner Pioneer Memorial in Truckee, just east of Donner Lake. Before the park existed, the monument sat by itself with people removing the rocks at the base as souvenirs. Wohlbrück saw an opportunity and leased the land from the Native Sons of the Golden West, who owned the property. He offered to protect the monument while servicing travelers with his canteen service station. Visitors had been removing rocks around the base of the statue, so he put a cap of concrete around it.

The view of the Donner Memorial from the Lincoln Highway. Photo from Donner Summit Historical Society, Norm Sayler collection.

View from porch at Donner Canteen looking toward monument . Click photo for larger view.

Interior of Donner Canteen. Click photo for larger view.

Wohlbrück was an avid collector of memorabilia as well as automobiles. In 1930 he presented his collection to the Horse and Auto Museum in Redwood City. Soon the collection outgrew that space, and he moved it to San Jose in 1936. It never opened to the public. Wohlbrück asked the State of California if they would build a museum to house his priceless collection of horse-drawn vehicles, automobiles, and antiques, but they declined.

Four days before his death on November 28th, 1936, he agreed with the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan, to sell them his collection. The collection included 152 carriages, coaches, and wagons, 60 motorcars, including the 1913 Mercedes used by Crown Prince Wilhelm of Germany used on the eastern front during World War I, the family carriage of Leyland Stanford, and the hunting wagon of Mark Hopkins.

TC Wohlbrück was a man ahead of his time and an essential part of the history of transportation over the Sierra Nevada.

Although very difficult to locate in this photo, there two Signal gas pumps located in the background that State Parks didn’t realize existed. Located on the highway between the small shrub in center of the photo and the tress to right is a Lincoln Highway concrete marker post.

Thanks to Norm Sayler, of the Donner Summit Historical Society, for keeping the memory of TC alive. It was Norm that said there was a fascinating story to be told, and he was right. Photos are from Norm’s collection.

Lincoln Highway, Emigrant Gap

Monica and I spent a couple of days camping at Prosser Creek Reservoir, just east of Truckee. The reservoir filled a canyon with historic crossings, both The Overland Emigrant Trail, as well as the first generation of The Lincoln Highway. We were able to follow the old trails and enjoy some spectacular scenery.

Trey and Norm talking in The Donner Summit Historical Society Museum at Soda Springs.

The highlight to our trip was The Donner Summit Historical Museum, in Soda Springs. This small museum has more Donner Summit History than any other museum I know. It's run by Norm Sayler, who for over 40 years owner and operated The Donner Ski Ranch. He has amassed a collection of Donner Summit memorabilia and photographs that is unparalleled. We spent over 5 hours during two days talking with Norm and going through his amazing collection. There is so much to see and take in that it will require many more trips up to Donner Summit and Soda Springs to help record and preserve what is stored there.

This photograph shows two ladies standing in front of The PG&E (Pacific Gas and Electric) lookout station at Emigrant Gap, around the 1920s. This location is now a large turnout and vista point along Highway 80. If you look closely, you can even see a Lincoln Highway Directional sign on the left of where the women are standing.

The PG&E Lookout at Emigrant Gap, 1920’s. Photo from Donner Summit Historical Society, Norm Sayler Collection.

The photograph below shows two women on skies near Cisco Grove. Notice the Lincoln Highway Sign buried in the snow and The Transcontinental Railroad Snow Tunnels on the hillside.

Notice the Lincoln Highway Sign buried in the snow! Photo from Donner Summit Historical Museum, Norm Sayler collection.