Historic Hood River
Automobile Tracking
5-23-2025
Notes
You may never have to drive a rear wheel drive automobile with primitive tires up the east side grade through snow, but the tracks in this Alva Day image may help you imagine the experience.
The History Museum of Hood River County
Bringing the Rich History of Hood River County to Life
Dale Nicol
Indeed a problem!
Interestingly, the first effective automobile tire chain was patented in 1904 by Harry Weed in New York.
WAAAM has a small example of early tire chains in a couple of displays.
Roger Sheldrake
Driving down hill wouldn’t have been much fun either! Mechanical brakes on the rear only, frozen with slush. What a ride! I think I’d work from home that day.
Thorn
Any info or good guesses on the location? Scenic Highway maybe? Hard to tell the tree types to narrow it down.
Arthur Babitz
I was thinking Eastside Grade on the Mt. Hood Loop Highway (35) but that’s just a guess.
Ellen Shapley
Agree with you, Arthur, on the location. I walked that route downhill many times from our home on Highline.