Stereograph of Oregon Railway & Navigation Co. railroad tracks and The Needles, Columbia River Gorge, Oregon, after the winter storm of December 1884. Items 2/101 and 2/102 are duplicate stereographs on different mounts. Alternate caption on stereograph 2/102: "The Needles, Columbia River Scenery, Oregon."

Stereograph of Oregon Railway & Navigation Co. railroad tracks and The Needles, Columbia River Gorge, Oregon, after the winter storm of December 1884. Items 2/101 and 2/102 are duplicate stereographs on different mounts. Alternate caption on stereograph 2/101: "'The Needles,' View East, Cascades, Col. River, Or."

Stereograph of The Needles and the railroad tracks of the Oregon Railway & Navigation Co. in the Columbia River Gorge, Oregon, after the winter storm of December 1884 and January 1885.

Stereograph of the Oregon Railway & Navigation Co.'s railroad tracks past Bridal Veil Bluffs, Columbia River Gorge, Oregon, taken after the winter storm of December 1884 and January 1885.

Stereograph of workers clearing the Oregon railway & Navigation Co's railroad track on the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge, after the winter storm of December 1884.

Stereograph of the Oregon Railway & Navigation Co.'s railroad bridge at Oneonta Falls during the winter storm of December 1884 and January 1885.

Stereograph of construction materials at the Oregon Railway & Navigation Co.'s Bonneville Station for the building of railroad bridges, circa 1882.

Boudoir card of Castle Rock (also known as Beacon Rock) across the Columbia River on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. Photo taken from Oregon side of the Gorge. There is a railroad in the foreground.

Boudoir card of Castle Rock (also known as Beacon Rock) across the Columbia River on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. Photo taken from Oregon side of the Gorge. There is a railroad in the foreground.

Boudoir card of men at work clearing the track of the Oregon Railway & Navigation Company's railroad line along the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge during the winter storm of 1884-1885.

Boudoir card of the Bridal Veil Bluffs during the winter of 1884-1885. There is a railroad track at the base of the bluffs. The area is covered in snow.

View of the Columbia River Gorge from the Upper Block House, also known as Fort Lugenbeel, in the Washington Territory. View looks down the Columbia River. Railroad tracks border the river.

View of upper Cape Horn, near Celilo, on the Columbia River. Several people stand atop a train on the railroad tracks of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company, bordering the Columbia River.

Railroad tracks belonging to the Oregon Steam Navigation Co. at Eagle Creek Crossing in the Columbia River Gorge. Bradford Island is visible across the Columbia River. Loose duplicate plate in Box 5. This plate is part of Carlton Watkin's "Sun Sketches of Columbia River Scenery" album.

Men at work clearing snow from the track of the Oregon Railway & Navigation Company’s railroad line along the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge during the winter storm of 1884 – 1885. This plate is part of an album of Watkin’s New Series photographs originally owned by Charles H. Prescott, manager of the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Co.

View of Bridal Veil Bluff covered in snow during the winter storm of 188401885. There is an unidentified many standing in front of a cabin in the foreground and a train in the background on the right half of the image. This plate is part of an album of Watkin’s New Series photographs originally owned by Charles H. Prescott, manager of the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Co.

View of a train engine emerging from between a rock formation known as the Needles. Three unidentified men stand to the side of the tracks. There is heavy snowfall on the ground from the winter storm of 1884-1885.

View of railroad tracks passing through the rock formation known as the Needles on the Oregon side of the Columbia River Gorge during the winter storm of 1884-1885. This plate is part of an album of Watkin’s New Series photographs originally owned by Charles H. Prescott, manager of the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Co.

Winter view of the Columbia River and the Cascade Mountains of the Columbia River Gorge, taken from Bridal Veil, Oregon. Snow on the ground and railroad tracks in the foreground. There is a wooden structure in the trees near the tracks.

Winter view of railroad tracks passing through a rock formation known as The Needles in the Columbia River Gorge. Snow on the ground.

Platinum print of the Columbia River with a train trestle visible in the distance. Attributed to Sarah Hall Ladd.

Photograph of 4 railroad construction workers standing in an unfinished rock cut. Steep rock cliffs rise all around them. Railroad tracks, still under construction, end at the rock face behind them. Taken on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. Handwritten note on the back of the print reads, "Rock cut at 1488 near Carson landing." Second note reads, "Return to Traffic Dept., SP.S Ry."

Photograph of a large pile of rock and debris formed by a blast at a railroad construction site on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge. On the right, a person stands on the edge of a cliff, above the debris. A railroad is visible behind the debris. There is a large rock formation behind the railroad on the left. Handwritten note on the back of the print reads, "Shot from 400 kegs powder at 'Briton's Peak' Smith Creek near Carson landing."