What a magnificent invention the wheel is!  It has made life easier, brought many things closer, and enabled humans to travel farther and faster.  As early as 6,000 B. C., brilliant individuals were creating wheels throughout the area we now know as the Middle East.  The materials, colors, and embellishments have changed greatly throughout the millennia, but structurally, the wheel remains the same.  And each wheel tells many stories.  Oh, to know half of them!  The wheels on display at Fort Union National Monument in northeastern New Mexico, carry with them tales of tenacity and bravery, helping move people to an outpost seemingly in the middle of nowhere.

Fort Union wagon wheel

Fort Union, New Mexico

Fort Union archway and wagon wheel

The work wheels in the Antonito train yard of the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad have some years on them as well as stories of hauling goods and passengers before it became a historic tourist train.

railroad train wheels

The 1955 Chevy Bel Air shown below carries members of a wedding party in the Los Angeles area to the reception.  No doubt the truck wheel reflected in the Bel Air's highly polished paint is from a Chevrolet as well.

55 Chevy Bel Air hardtop

I suspect that in times past as well as today, wheels were a huge part of individual freedom, giving people the ability to move around the world and explore. It wasn't as easy for the American pioneers crossing this vast land as it is now, but it meant heading to a new world, and what many thought would be a different and better life, filled with opportunities.  We are along for the ride, so let those wheels turn!

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the image@