I continue finding some awesome historical postcards of Snoqualmie Falls. A recent acquisition includes a familiar image taken by Charles R. Laidlaw. Fans of Mark Frost’s “The Secret History of Twin Peaks” will immediately recognize this image.
CHARLES R. LAIDLAW AEROPHOTO POSTCARD OF SNOQUALMIE FALLS
This postcard includes a color drawing of Snoqualmie Falls in Snoqualmie, Washington. Featuring catalog number 48371, the front image also includes a description – “232: Snoqualmie Falls on Route to Snoqualmie Pass on Highway US 10 Washington.” This could be part of a series as indicated by the “232” number.
The back of this postcard contains information about who took the image – Chas. R. Laidlaw – Aerophoto – and who published this postcard – C.P. Johnston Co., Seattle, Washington.
Sadly, I found no information about C.P. Johnston other than numerous postcards of Seattle published between the early 1900s through the 1970s. One page said the company was a “defunct postcard manufacturer.” The company seemed pretty prolific as there were many image of buildings, landscapes and events including the Space Needle from the 1962 World’s Fair in Seattle.
There was, however, more information about photographer Charles R. Laidlaw. He was born in California on February 8, 1899 before his family moved to New York. Charles served in the National Guard from April 6, 1917 to 1919. About nine years later while in Vermont, he married a Canadian woman named Ada. The moved to Seattle by 1930 where Charles was working as a photographer on behalf of the government. On July 24, 1963, he remarried with a woman named Bertha G. Julin.
Laidlaw died on July 8, 1974 at the age of 75 in Orange City, Florida. I found his obituary in The Orlando Sentinel from July 10, 1974. Graflex Co. was a camera manufacturer which had been absorbed and sold off by Kodak throughout its 137 year history. The company was dissolved in 1973 when Singer Corporation purchased them.
Interesting nerdy side note, The lightsaber prop used in the original Star Wars was a modified Graflex 3-cell flashgun. This item would hold flash bulbs for vintage “Speed Graphic” cameras. The model in the film had the patent #2310165 stamped onto the bottom.
THE ORIGINAL LAIDLAW AERIAL PHOTO
According to the Snoqualmie Valley Historical Museum, Charles took this aerial photograph of Snoqualmie Falls somewhere between 1918 and 1940. But Archives West places him in Seattle in 1930, so I would lean more toward 1930-1940 when the photo was taken.
The best part is you can see the Snoqualmie Lumber Mill in the upper left corner in the shadow of Mount Si.
Mark Frost later used this image as the title page in The Secret History of Twin Peaks.
STATE ROUTE 202 IN WASHINGTON STATE
US 10 was an earlier name to what is known today as State Route 10. But US 10 is not the road seen in the postcard image.
Highway 202 is the road that passes by Snoqualmie Falls and Salish Lodge & Spa.
The same road is seen briefly in episode 2.005 during an establishing shot of The Great Northern Hotel. Most likely this footage was captured in February 1989 when they shot scenes for the pilot episode.
In the 1910s, dirt roads were part of the Yellowstone Trail before becoming a Washington state route in 1925. The official State Route (SR) 202 was established in 1964 as part of a new state highway system, running from Woodinville to Monroe.
At one time, SR 522 was designated to the Woodinville–North Bend highway, continuing west to Seattle. By 1970, the designations were reversed, with SR 202 serving as the Woodinville–North Bend highway, and SR 522 rename the Bothell–Monroe highway.
US 10, which later became State Route 10, followed tracks built by the Northern Pacific Railway in the late 1890s. The road became part of SR 3 in 1923 which later became Primary State Highway 3 (PSH 3) when primary and secondary state highways were created in Washington state in 1937. SR 10 was established in 1970 as the successor to US 10 after the completion of I-90 across the Snoqualmie Pass in 1968.
But this road did not pass Snoqualmie Falls. My gut tells me, however, that the falls were a popular tourist spot (just as they are today). Most likely, people would take a detour to see the falls before continuing on to Snoqualmie Pass via a turn in North Bend. The postcard would have served as a reminder of things people saw along their trek to the Cascade Mountains.
