Continuing with the Jim Wich collection this week with two more '50s vintage photos scanned from 35mm slides.  This week I am posting  photos of the mighty USS Missouri transiting the Panama Canal northbound to the Atlantic.  I have read that this transit was probably in 1954, the last time she went through the Canal before decommissioning in 1955.  These Iowa Class BB barely fit in the chambers so lots of paying attention by pilots and locomotive operators is a must.

Jim caught and took a photo of  a very historic item on the deck of the ship which is a plaque of the spot where Japanese signed the surrender documents that ended WWII.  I reads "OVER THIS SPOT ON 2 SEPTEMBER 1945 THE INSTRUMENT OF FORMAL SURRENDER OF JAPAN TO THE ALLIED POWERS WAS SIGNED THUS BRINGING TO A CLOSE THE SECOND WORLD WAR - THE SHIP AT THAT TIME WAS AT ANCHOR IN TOKYO BAY".  It also has the Lat. and Long of the spot they were anchored.  The bottom photo I found on-line.

Note the black locomotives.  Gatun Locks had black locomotives while the Miraflores and Pedro Miguel locomotives were gray. Here we are at Pedro Miguel with black locomotives.  Locomotive guru and CZ Images contributor Bill Fall told me that these black locomotives were brought to the Pedro Miguel Locks when the new locomotives started to arrive first in Gatun.

Note also the lamp post stumps where the old concrete lamp posts are being removed and replace with the pole light.  The center wall still has to old concrete posts.

More from the Wich collection next week.