Grand Coulee Dam Washington-1938: Steam Locomotive Passing Beside Turbulent Water

Catalog date: estimated · Catalog location: estimated. Review source evidence · Request a source quality check

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use. $149 flat from Stockfilm. Royalty-free worldwide license for commercial and editorial use, delivered as the restored 4K master.

Year1938
Decade1930s
LocationGrand Coulee Dam, Washington, United States
Duration3s
Price$149 USD
Collection1938 · Grand Coulee Dam, Washington, United States
StatusStockfilm Exclusive

$149 · CommercialDirect license: commercial and editorial use

$149 USD flat · royalty-free worldwide · 4K restored master (MP4)

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What is in this clip

dam construction
steam power
industrial transport
infrastructure
railway history
visitor observation

Shot type: wide
Camera: pan · handheld · Elevated, steep downward view
Setting: outdoor · Construction railway and rough service road beside turbulent water
Time and weather: daytime · undetermined · undetermined
Lighting: Natural daylight with muted contrast
People: 2 · Two small, distant figures appear near the lower right edge late in the shot; faces and ages are indiscernible.
Vehicles: steam locomotive · railway tender · early flatbed truck
Landmarks: Grand Coulee Dam construction site, identified through section context
Objects: railway tracks · locomotive boiler · smokestack · engine cab · tender · truck bed · scattered timbers · rocky embankment
Colors: gray · black · off-white
Master dimensions: 3840 × 2160
Audio: Silent
Date confidence: Low
Location confidence: High

Moments in the footage

Select a time to watch that moment in the preview.

The tender and part of the engine enter the elevated view beside a parked flatbed truck.
The pan reveals the locomotive's cab, boiler and stack.
A dark exhaust plume rises above the passing engine.
The plume spreads as the engine shifts left in the frame and distant figures appear at the right.

Steam Locomotive Passing Beside Turbulent Water — Clip Details

Grand Coulee Dam, Washington, circa 1938 home movie footage shows a steam locomotive and tender passing along a construction railway beside turbulent water. An early flatbed truck stands on the rough roadway behind the tracks. The elevated camera pans along the engine as a dark exhaust plume rises and spreads across the background. This single black-and-white shot ends with the locomotive toward the left and two distant figures near the lower right edge.

Licensing & Technical Details

Original Format: 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie
Shot details: Black & white
Resolution: 4K restored master (MP4)
License: Direct license: commercial and editorial use
Delivery: Instant Digital Download
Duration: 3s
Price: $149 USD
Clip ID: 800004207

Rights & Clearance

$149 · Commercial Direct license: commercial and editorial use. $149 flat from Stockfilm. Royalty-free worldwide license for commercial and editorial use, delivered as the restored 4K master.

Editorial use is the safest path. For commercial use, a clearance review is recommended for the flags below.

People visible: Yes
Minors visible: No
Logos / trademarks: No
Audible music: No

Flags come from automated catalog metadata, not a legal opinion. The source is an original 8mm / Super 8 Home Movie reel. For high-stakes commercial use, request a full rights review.

Source & Documentation

Source reel: Reel record not linked for this clip
Date: 1938 Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Date evidence: Catalog estimate based on source metadata and visual or technical evidence; no reel-level note is linked.
Location: Grand Coulee Dam, Washington, United States Estimated (Catalog estimate from the footage and file metadata; not independently confirmed.)
Location evidence: Catalog estimate based on source metadata and visual evidence such as signage, landmarks, or terrain; no reel-level note is linked.
Licensing route: Direct license available from Stockfilm

Confidence labels are defined on Archive Integrity. Fields without a recorded value are shown as not recorded rather than assumed.

Open Clip Documentation Record Request source information

Topics & Keywords

Archive Intelligence

Archive brief fit: Supports documentary and museum requests for circa 1938 Grand Coulee Dam construction transport, with a steam engine passing beside turbulent water.
Period detail: The steam engine, separate tender and early flatbed truck provide visible period clues consistent with circa 1938.
Home-movie behavior: The elevated visitor-shot perspective follows passing machinery during a brief observation of the construction site.
What appears in frame: The shot contains a steam engine, tender, flatbed truck, parallel rails, rough embankment, turbulent water and an expanding exhaust plume.
Film character: Monochrome grain, vertical scratches, soft detail and dark frame edges give the projected-film capture a pronounced archival texture.
Edit role: Use as a short transport insert between wider construction views or as a movement cutaway driven by the rising exhaust.
Historical context: The section context places this railway within the original Grand Coulee Dam works, while the clip itself shows machinery and waterside tracks rather than the dam structure.
Research note: No readable branding or identifiable faces are visible; copyright in the film and any likeness or property permissions are separate considerations.
Research search match: Matches searches for circa 1938 Grand Coulee Dam steam railway home movies and black-and-white construction transport footage.
Archive pairing path: Pair first with this reel's construction railway, cranes and spillway clips, then other circa 1938 Grand Coulee views, followed by steam-powered industrial transport.

Still Frames From This Clip

An elevated view of a tender and partial steam engine beside turbulent water at Grand Coulee Dam, Washington, circa 1938. — The tender occupies the foreground below a flatbed truck on the rough waterside road.
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Steam locomotive and tender on the Grand Coulee Dam construction railway, Washington, circa 1938, viewed from above. — The passing engine's cab, boiler and stack come into view beside the tender.
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A steam engine releases dark exhaust beside turbulent water at the Grand Coulee Dam works, Washington, circa 1938. — A dark plume forms above the stack as the engine passes through the lower frame.
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An expanding exhaust plume above a passing engine at Grand Coulee Dam, Washington, circa 1938; two distant figures stand at the right edge. — The engine shifts toward the left as its exhaust spreads over the waterside background.
License this still · $49

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