this post was submitted on 20 Feb 2026
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HistoryPhotos

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HistoryPhotos is for photographs (or, if it can be found, film) of the past, recent or distant! Give us a little snapshot of history!

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Train Wreck: 1914 (media.piefed.social)
submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social to c/historyphotos@piefed.social
 

Circa 1914. "New York Central and Hudson River Railroad -- wreck of NYC 1063. No note on location. 4-4-0 1063, ex Rutland 193, Schenectady 1889, to NYC & HRR 938 January 1913, to 1063. 2059 is in charge of the wreck derrick. 2059 4-6-0 ex Ogdensburg & Lake Champlain 337. Then Rutland 492, to 59 then NYC 2159, 2059." 5x7 inch glass negative from the Louis A. Marre Rail Transportation Photograph Collection.

https://www.shorpy.com/node/27861

A word about Shorpy's: it's a long-time, ever-growing exhibit of quality photographs, primarily spanning... the late 1800's to 1950's, let's say. Pretty fascinating focus on contemporary peoples in history, just a little before our times.

Browsing the photos, I frequently get an 'oh, that's so modern but also so antique' feeling that kind of scratches a certain itch I didn't know I had...

Also a terrific source of content to share here, with 9000+ high-quality photos in the collection(!)

top 6 comments
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[–] PugJesus@piefed.social 5 points 1 month ago

Damn near folded

[–] humble_boatsman@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 month ago (2 children)

What's that guy up too? Spotting the train car as some prehistoric steam crane tries to lift it up?

[–] acockworkorange@mander.xyz 3 points 1 month ago

He's lifting with his knees, that's OSHA approved.

[–] JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social 3 points 1 month ago

Lesser-known fact: superheroes existed before the advent of gaily-covered tights.

[–] PancakesCantKillMe@lemmy.world 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I have not heard the name "Shorpy" in a long time. An excellent historical archive. I still have a Shorpy's photo in my images collection that I come across from time to time. I found "The Close of a Career in New York" quite moving to me.

https://www.shorpy.com/node/7521

[–] JohnnyEnzyme@piefed.social 2 points 1 month ago

Whoa, how about that? And the comments do a good job explaining things...