The picture shows a red electric trolley car climbing the Mount Lowe Railway, its track curving along a steep, brush-covered mountainside while a sea of clouds fills the valley below and distant ridges rise beyond. The Mount Lowe Railway, opened in 1893 by Thaddeus S. C. Lowe in the San Gabriel Mountains above Altadena, California, was a celebrated scenic mountain line that carried tourists to alpine resorts until floods and fire ended operations in the late 1930s.
Postcard Details
Message · English, in pencil
[illegible] the back [illegible] to go [illegible] as big as [illegible]
like a [illegible] we [illegible] and [illegible] mountain [illegible]
glad to hear [illegible] had a fine [illegible] time in the [illegible]
mountains [illegible] from [illegible]
Handwritten message in pencil along the right side of the front; rounded corners; light foxing and edge wear.
Postmark: [illegible] NOV 2 4 PM [illegible] — undivided back with "NO OTHER WRITING" restriction, so the message was written on the picture side of the front; 1¢ green Franklin (1902 series) adhesive stamp; M. Rieder, Publ., Los Angeles, Cal., No. 3146 imprint, Made in Germany. Card is toned/soiled with corner and edge wear.
Cite this card
Mount Lowe Railway above the clouds, California, circa 1906, postcard, c. 1906. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/mount-lowe-railway-above-the-clouds-california-circa-1906. Accessed November 2, 2026.
