"Bomber factory. No caption for this image." 1943 or 1944. So, what are they and where is Shop 301? Office of War Information safety negative. View full size.

1909. "Mme. Diss-DeBarr," a.k.a. "the noted and notorious Ann O'Delia Dis Debar, of many aliases, a number of husbands and several prison terms," according to a 1909 article in the New York Times. The headline calls her an "ex-priestess of fake spiritualism." 8x10 glass negative, George Grantham Bain. View full size.

1865. "Cold Harbor, Virginia. Unburied dead on the battlefield of Gaines' Mill." Photographs from the main Eastern theater of war, the Peninsular Campaign, May-August 1862. Wet plate glass negative by John Reekie. View full size.

The Hotel Pontchartrain in Detroit circa 1907. By the mid-teens the hotel had been topped off with a huge mansard roof that added five floors of guest rooms. Detroit Publishing Company glass negative. View full size.

Washington, D.C., circa 1927. "Crosstown Auto Supply Co." 1801 14th Street at S Street N.W. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.

November 1965. Fabulous, glamorous, glittering, world-famous Hollywood & Vine. My mother, father and brother take in the dazzling sights while I snap off this Kodachrome, two years after my previous memorable visit. Looks like brother and I have been hitting the record shops. Notable vehicles include a shiny red pre-1957 Volkswagen beetle, a 1961 or 1962 Thunderbird, a 1958 Plymouth wagon and, most interesting of all, a City of L.A. Water & Power Studebaker Champ pickup. View full size.

"Recreation Pavilion. Mirman Residence, Arcadia, California, 1959. Architects: Buff, Straub & Hensman." Color transparency by Julius Shulman. View full size. I see the potential here for limitless, free-spirited fun. (Please do not move cushions more than one-quarter inch from designated positions on the Recreation Pavilion Fun Grid. The Herman Miller benches will not be moved more than 21 bricks away from decking. Tennis racquets allowed on pillows only if propped at an appropriately informal angle, 35 degrees to the horizontal. Thank you.)

January 25, 1917. "U.S.S. Mississippi launching at Newport News. Miss Camille McBeath, sponsor." Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative. View full size.

Washington circa 1920. "People's Drug Store, 14th and U." Another view of the drug emporium seen in the previous post. National Photo Co. View full size.

Washington circa 1920. "People's Drug Store, interior, 14th and U streets." We're happy to report that this branch upholds People's reputation as a purveyor of such household essentials as Glemby Hair Nets, hot water bottles and scary black rubber gloves. National Photo Company glass negative. View full size.

The Manitou cliff dwellings west of Colorado Springs. This was taken on my grandparents' honeymoon out west in 1962. View full size.

Chicago, Illinois, circa 1962. At 10:27 a.m. Looking north along Michigan Avenue at Adams Street, with the Chicago Art Institute on the right. View full size.

Washington circa 1924. "Southern Auto Supply Co." A nice holiday display of A-K radios and B&D power tools. National Photo glass negative. View full size.

Washington, D.C., 1916. "Post Office Department mail wagon." With a slogan we can all get behind. Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative. View full size.

"Experimental housing. Storage shed & garage." Remember that this garage is experimental, and that the slightest little bump could could send the whole business -- prototype potting bench, bleeding-edge tool storage -- pinwheeling off into the next dimension. Eric Schaal, Life photo archive. View full size.