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The smallest church in Arizona!
Loren Pratt’s Tiny Chapel, Little Church, Yuma Arizona. This diminutive chapel was built in 1995 by farmer Loren Pratt on the edge of his fields along the road (Highway 95), in honor of his deceased wife Lois. It measures just 8 feet by 12 feet inside. With six tiny pews, there is seating for twelve worshipers.
Union pacific No. 4014, also known as ‘Big Boy’, is a steam locomotive, the largest in the world, owned and operated by the Union Pacific. Big Boy was built in 1941 by the American Locomotive Company. No. 4014 is the only operating Big Boy, of the eight that remain. The locomotive was in service until it was retired in 1959. In 2013, Union Pacific launched a restoration project at their Steam Shop in Cheyenne, Wyoming. In May 2019, the 762,000 pound Big Boy was operated for the first time in almost 60 years. As part of the Western States tour, Big Boy arrived in Yuma, Arizona, in October 2019.
The late, ‘Kaptain’ Robbie Knievel, making one of his final jumps, in Palm Springs, California, 2015.
Lieutenant Colonel Richard ‘Dick’ Cole, USAF (Ret.), the last survivor of the Doolittle Raid; the first U.S. strike on Japan during World War II. Cole was one of 80 men who volunteered for the dangerous, top-secret mission to bomb Japan on April 18, 1942. He was the co-pilot for Lieutenant Colonel James ‘Jimmy’ Doolittle, who became one of World War II’s first heroes and received the Medal of Honor following the mission. The pair were the first of 16 planes to fly off the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-8) to lead the strike in a B-25 Mitchell bomber. Lt. Col Cole, here, at age 102. Born September 7, 1915, Cole passed away on April 9, 2019. General Jimmy Doolittle died in 1993, at age 96.
The inset photo shows Doolittle and Cole with their crew, on board the Hornet, before the historic mission. In the background, the famous, Planes of Fame, B-25 Mitchell bomber, “Photo Fanny.” I had the pleasure to take a flight in this B-25 in the 1990s.
Yuma, Arizona’s ‘Ocean-to-Ocean’ bridge. Opened in 1915, as the first US highway crossing of the lower Colorado River, Yuma, Arizona to California. Technically, two different bridges, both still in use today, for trains (far side bridge) and autos. Nowadays, vehicles use the modern US 80 freeway over the Colorado River.
Yuma, Arizona, ‘Bridge to Nowhere.’ Completed in December 1929, the narrow, ‘McPhaul Bridge,’ nearly 800 feet long, carried vehicle traffic over the Gila River on US 95 until 1968. Later, a new dam was built upstream that rerouted the river. A new bridge was also built for highway traffic, leaving this old suspension bridge abandoned. Due to safety concerns because of its age, you can no longer walk or drive over the bridge. Located outside of Yuma, Arizona, and visible from US 95, it has become known as ‘Yuma’s bridge to nowhere.’
The Bell UH-1 helicopter, nicknamed ‘Huey.’ They must be somewhat rare nowadays. I’ve seen many, but this one was the first operational, Vietnam-era Huey I photographed, all others have been on display non-flyable. Developed by Bell Helicopter for the U.S. Army in 1952, more than 16,000 have been produced since 1960. Around 7,000 were used in the Vietnam War.
