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Driving in a Hayfield
An early automobile in a hayfield. The steering wheel is located on the right as was the custom for horse drawn buggies. After 1908, car manufacturers moved the steering wheel to the left side to increase safety for passengers getting into the…
Early 20th Century Automobile
A driver and passenger in a car at what may have been the race track. Another car and buggies are in the background.
Early 20th Century Automobile
An early automobile on a street in Rockford, Illinois. The style of the vehicle is similar to horse drawn buggies.
Early Automobile
Three men in a circa 1910 automobile. Wicker containers are at the side and rear of the automobile.
Early Motor Boat
A motor boat under what may be the North End high bridge at Auburn Street. Motor boats came about before the automobile. As automobiles became more popular, boat design began to mimic cars with dashboards, steering wheel and front facing seats. The…
Early Motorcycles
Five men on early motorcycles. The earliest motorcycles had motors attached to bicycle frames. The center motorcycle is a Harley Davidson.
Early Nineteenth Century Automobile
This early automobile has a similar body design as a horse drawn buggy and is similar to cars made in 1902 - 1906. Illinois license plates were first issued in 1911. There is a safety bar that extends across the width of the vehicle for passengers to…
Early Nineteenth Century Automobile
The vehicle pictured is the same as in image number 85.109(I).905.96. The vehicle model appears to be a very early car that mimics a horse drawn buggy.
Early Passenger Plane
An airplane faces to the right of the photo with its propellar moving, possibly at the Machesney Airport. Two men appear to be boarding the plane. Three men are walking away from the plane. World War I spurred the development of airplanes, making…
East State Street Trolley Tracks
Trolley tracks on East State Street, near 9th Street, for the Rockford and Interurban Railway Company. Rockford Street Railway began operation in 1880 with horse pulled cars, changing to electricity in the early 1890s. The company expanded its city…
Electric Car
Possibly an electric car. The first small scale electric cars were invented in the 1830s with the first practical electric car being built in the 1870s and becoming popular by 1900. Electric cars at this time were quieter and cleaner than the gas…
Excursion Boat
An excursion boat.
Excursion Steamboat "Illinois"
The excursion steamboat "Illinois" with passengers standing on the deck.
Excursion Steamboat "Illinois"
The excursion steamboat "Illinois" docked at the Rockford Public Library.
Excursion Steamboat "May Lee"
In 1896, "May Lee" was the second steamboat owned by Theodore C. Largent, who named it after his daughter May and son Lee. The steamboat was cut into two pieces when it proved to be too small to keep up with the demand for passenger travel. A middle…
Excursion Steamboat on the Rock River
An excursion steamboat docked on the Rock River, looking north. The Rockford Waterworks is in the background at left. The Waterworks building was built in 1874 near the Rock River on the south side of Park Avenue. It was the headquarters and main…
Family Camp Site
Family camp site. A tent with a cook stove in it is at the left. To the right of the tent is a Horse Drawn Wagon with the horses unhitched.
Family Outing
One of the first cars available to the general population was the Ford Model T. Its cheap cost made it affordable for many to have an automobile. Americans adopted this method of transportation very quickly, replacing their horse drawn carriages.
Ferry
People traveling on a ferry on an unknown river. In 1836 Germanicus Kent established a ferry in Rockford, located where the State Street bridge would be built later. The ferry transported vehicles, people and animals across the Rock River. Ferry…
Fisherman
A fisherman on the Rock River.
Fisherman
A fisherman on the Rock River.
Fisherman
A fisherman with his boat. A motor is in the center of the boat.
Fly Net
Horse Drawn Wagon. The horse has a fly net over its back as part of its tack. The fly net was used to keep flies off the horse and was used on horses pulling vehicles.
Fly Net
Horse drawn carriage. The horse has a fly net over its back as part of its tack. The fly net was used to keep flies off the horse and was used on horses pulling vehicles.
Fred Machesney
Fred Machesney standing in front of a plane posing for a painting.
Fred Machesney
A portrait of Fred Machesney, founder of the Machesney Airport.
Gravel Truck
This truck was used to haul gravel from the gravel pit at Alpine Park for use on roads in Guilford Township. Axel Holmes and his father Charles Holmes were Guilford Township Road Commissioners.
Green Street, Rockford, Illinois
Parked cars along Green Street, Rockford, Illinois in 1927.
Groom with Horses
Groom with two horses.
Hardware Purchases
Bill of sale to C.I. Horsman, from Reeves and Company, for hardware and carriage repairs
Harlem Park
Rock River at Harlem Park
Harlem Train Depot
The Harlem, Illinois train depot in the snow.
Harlem Village Creamery
Transporting milk cans for the Harlem Village Creamery. The wagon is pulled by donkeys.
Harlem Village Train Wreck
Harlem Village train wreck. About ten trains per day served Harlem Village by transporting mail, freight and passengers. Train service ended May 3, 1937. The woman at left may be Erma Taylor. The Taylor family were farmers and founders of Harlem…
Harley-Davidson
Man on a 1909 Harley-Davidson motorcycle. By 1914 Arthur L. Johnson was selling motorcycles at 130 North Madison Street in Rockford, Illinois. In 1923, Mr. Johnson was ready to retire. The regional Harley-Davidson sales manager contacted Joe Kegel,…
Horse Drawn Buggy
Man in a horse drawn two wheeled buggy.
Horse Drawn Buggy
Man in a horse drawn, two wheeled buggy.
Horse Drawn Buggy
Two unidentified men and a horse drawn buggy.
Horse Drawn Carriage
Two unidentified children and a dog are in a carriage outside of a grocery store advertising Coca Cola.
Horse Drawn Fire Engine
Fire engine with oscillating engine driving rotary pump. Engine manufactured by Mansfield Machine Works, Mansfield, Ohio. The company completed their first steam powered fire engine in 1883. Their goal was to have steam engines replace hand engines…
Horse Drawn Fire Engine
Horse drawn, steam fire engine used at Fire Station number 2 in Rockford, Illinois. The steam engine was used for pumping water at a fire and it needed to be transported by horses.
Horse Drawn Sleds
Horse pulled sleds on a busy city street on a cold winter day.
Household Transportation
An unidentified cottage with a couple and a saddled horse.
Ice Wagon
An ice wagon advertising "Excursion Penitentiary-Chicago Drainage Canal - $2.00 round trip." The Ice house was on the river bank. The wagon is full of ice and the two men are wearing large metal tongs.
Illinois Central Crossing Gate
Illinois Central Railroad crossing on Seminary Street. Automated gates were introduced in the 1930s to protect cars and pedestrians. Crossing warning signs were not standardized until 1949. Originally wooden crossing gates blocked the entire…
Illinois Central Depot
Illinois Central Railroad depot tower possibly near Kent Creek, Rockford, Illinois.
Illinois Central Track Building
Men building tracks for the Illinois Central Railroad at the viaduct on South Winnebago Street. The house at right is facing South Winnebago Street on property adjacent to Robert Tinker's cottage.
Illinois Central Train Wreck
Train wreck in Illinois Central railroad yards. A car carrying corn kernels is split open.
Illinois License Plate
Illinois first required car owners to register their vehicles in 1907 with owners providing their own license plates until the state issued them in 1911. Front and rear plates were required each year along with an aluminum dashboard disc with the…
Illinois License Plates
A car with a 1938 Illinois license plate. Illinois first required car owners to register their vehicles in 1907 with owners providing their own license plates until the state issued them in 1911. 1934 is the first time the state name, "Illinois", is…