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Moonlight Tower: 1899
... carbon rods were exposed to the moist and often foggy night air from the adjacent bay, resulting in an all-night racket of pops and small explosions that kept everyone awake. San Diego's ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/17/2020 - 10:35am -

Detroit circa 1899. "Majestic Building." And a good view of one of the "moonlight tower" arc lamp standards whose base can be seen in the previous post. Some of these towers are said to have made their way to Austin, Texas, where they are the sole remaining examples of their kind. View full size. Public TransportationIt looks like you don't have to wait long for a streetcar. The lady carries a swordI am intrigued by the statue in the lower right. Does she still stand? And what is her story? All gone...nearly Corner of Woodward and Michigan Avenue. That's the old city hall at the left side of the photo. As in the previous photo of the old post office, nothing in this photo remains today. Well, almost. You can see this cannon at the Dossin Great Lakes Museum on Belle Isle, as it was removed there when the city hall was razed in 1960. Snap, Crackle and Pop!The early carbon arc street lamps were not necessarily as popular an innovation as one might assume. I don't know what Detroit residents thought of theirs, but a similar system was installed in San Diego in 1886, and earned many bitter complaints from the residents. The lamps were too bright for one thing, and people who had grown up with candles and kerosene lantern lights were appalled by the harsh, blue-white arc lights that cast shadows deeper than the noonday sun. The company's solution was to raise the masts to as tall as 125 feet (below, in an 1887 photo), but it scarcely helped. And the heavy carbon rods were exposed to the moist and often foggy night air from the adjacent bay, resulting in an all-night racket of pops and small explosions that kept everyone awake. San Diego's carbon arc lamps lasted only to 1889, when the lighting company failed in a local economic collapse, but their removal was unlamented by the long-suffering residents. Peninsular ElectricThere's another tower at the next intersection. It must have been successful because I can't see any remains of the gaslights that must have preceded it. The Peninsular Electric Light Company was founded in 1891 to run Detroit's street lights. It seems there were 142 of them (but probably not 142 towers). Aglow in AustinI live about two miles from one of the "moon towers" in Austin. It's very high up, and shines brightly every night. Of course, there's lots of other light around, so it's hard to tell just how much it's casting. I've often wondered what it would look like if it were the only light source. Austin memoriesI'd forgotten all about these. I moved to Austin for college 40 years ago and lived near a light tower myself. It wasn't "the only light source," but Austin in those days was a much, much smaller town with far less light pollution than today. The artificial moonlight was noticeable from almost anywhere in town, as I recall. Check the Plaque DaveLooks like they bought them new in Austin. [Hello? The plaque doesn't have a thing to say about new or used. There are, however, plenty of references describing how the city of Austin bought 31 used towers from Detroit in 1894. - Dave] Sword carrying ladyThe lady is on the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, dedicated in 1872 to honor Michigan's Civil War veterans. The monument was moved about 100 feet a few years ago. RE: circaI know the Library of Congress says circa 1880-1899. But I think this might be 1902. Because the sale signs say, "A BUSINESS REVOLUTION Change of Ownership-Management". Which jibes with this, from 1902: Pardridge & Walsh, dry goods merchants, for many years at the corner of Woodward avenue and Congress street, purchased the immense stock and fixtures of C. A. Shafer in the Majestic building for about $140,000, and continued the management of both stores until the end of the year. [Finish reading the signs and you'll see that the photo shows C.A. Shafer moving into the building, not out of it. This negative is listed in the 1899 Detroit Publishing catalog. - Dave] Cadillac SquareIf that's the Soldiers and Sailors Monument in the lower left right (as identified in earlier posts of Cadillac Square), then I'm guessing this photo was taken from the Hotel Pontchartrain. Eight Storeys in the Naked CityFrom Printer's Ink, July 5, 1899: "The finest commercial structure in Michigan is the Majestic Building, Detroit, occupied by the department store of C.A. Shafer ... Mr. Shafer uses eight floors and the basement." In 1901 Shafer was bought out by Pardridge & Blackwell. This photo must date from between 1896, when the building was completed, and 1901, when P & B took over. Also, General William Booth (as advertised on the street banner) did a tour of U.S. cities in 1898. Appearing at the AuditoriumGeneral William Booth wasn't just any Salvation Army speaker, he founded the organization in 1878, after the 13 years that he and his wife Catherine spent leading his East End (London) organization, The Christian Mission, nee The Christian Revival Society, itself formed after his four unhappy years as a Methodist (they wanted him to take a pastorate, he wanted to travel and evangelize). Initially regarded as a crank, by the time of this photo both William Booth and his Salvation Army were highly regarded. I am wondering if The Auditorium refers to the Auditorium of the Detroit Museum of Art, which at the turn of the century was criticized for booking "shallow" speakers, not aligned with the "purposes for which the art museum was organized." (see: "Museum on the Verge," by Jeffrey Apt, Wayne State Press, 2001) 1896-1962The Majestic was Detroit's second skyscraper. Soldiers and Sailors MonumentThe lady in the lower right stands atop the Soldiers and Sailors Monument, which commemorates the civil war. The statue, as mentioned above, was recently moved about 100 feet, to accommodate the re-creation of a park in Campus Martius. Its still there and looks as good as the day she was unveiled. Stop in sometime and have a look. Its at the heart of downtown Detroit. Demolition of City HallThe corner of old Detroit City Hall is seen at the left edge of the photo. In one of the most notorious incidents in the history of Detroit, as preservationists and boosters alike fought to save the old city hall, an injuction was filed to stop the demolition. The contractor snuck a bulldozer into the site at midnight and demolished the portico on the front of the building, compromising the structural integrity of the edifice, and forcing the full demolition. Moonlight Towers in AustinThere are indeed remaining moonlight towers here in Austin. Seventeen of them are still in use, retrofitted with incandescent bulbs in, I think the 1950's. More info here. lick below to enlarge. So little trafficLots of streetcars. Some commercial drays. A handful of private coaches. And many pedestrians. Looks something like Moscow would have until the end of the Soviet Union. Plenty of space on those broad boulevards. Austin TowersSee all 15 Moonlight Towers - http://www.andymattern.com/moonlighttowers/ Majestic DemolitionI was one of the two crane operators that participated in the demolition of the building in 1962. We hoisted a small 10 ton Bantam crane and a small John Deere loader-dozer atop the building and slowly worked our way to the third floor where the building was becoming unstable. We removed the equipment and finished the demolition from the ground. I worked for Arrow Wrecking Co. for nearly 20 years and am now retired to Upper Michigan. The photos of the demolition brought back many fond memories of my old home town. Thanks. I wonderWho can read THIS from the street. Not all goneRDown3657 stated that everything in this photograph is gone. There are at least two buildings on Merchant Row that are still standing. The Vapley Building (look for Vapley Brother Shoes in the photograph) is currently being renovated into loft apartments, and the building immediately south with the arched windows (I do know know of a name for it- it is at 1401 Woodward at the corner of Grand River. There may be others still standing, but those are the only two I can identify with 100% certainty. And, of course, the Soldiers and Sailors statue still remains. (Technology, The Gallery, Detroit Photos, DPC, Streetcars)
Skyscraper: 1909
... of 6 East 23rd street. Twelve firefighters were lost that night when the floor of the Wonder Drug Store collapsed. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/28/2012 - 10:52pm -

New York circa 1909. "Panorama of Madison Square." This glass plate, part of a nine-exposure panorama, affords yet another view of that enduring architectural icon, the Flatiron Building. 8x10 dry-plate glass negative. View full size. SprintLast time I was there in 2005, Sprint occupied the first floor of the Flatiron Building. Kind of sacrilege, really. 6 E. 23rdThe FDNY suffered its largest loss prior to 9/11 on the site of the Bartholdi Hotel. On October 17, 1966 a fire spread from an adjoining property on 22nd street to the basement of 6 East 23rd street. Twelve firefighters were lost that night when the floor of the Wonder Drug Store collapsed. http://nyfd.com/history/23rd_street/23rd_street.html Manure guyIn the foreground, white uniform, big shovel. Awful AwningsBeautiful building, but the aesthetic is somewhat spoiled by the awning obsession of the era. S.S. FlatironWith that puffy plume at the top, it looks like it's steaming up Broadway. Deja Vu All Over AgainWe return to Madison Square Park (bottom left) and the back of the statue of William H. Seward, he of the folly. Also we see the Hotel Bartholdi, named after the Statue of Liberty sculptor. The corner storefront of the Flatiron Building appears to contain our old friend the United Cigar Store. On the next block, East 22nd Street, the corner is occupied by the VanGaasbeek Oriental whatever. That corner now houses a usually deserted Restoration Hardware, which appears to be in the original building that we see in the photo. 1 of 9Please don't leave us hanging; we want to see all 9 negatives! As always, thanks for this. And I wouldn't describe it as an awning obsession, more like a necessity on those hot New York August afternoons. Ahhh summer!I am sure that the awning helped to keep the stores and offices cool in the summer. All the open windows (at least even one with a curtain blowing in the breeze) in skyscrapers! How odd to today's eyes of closed up buildings. That sign selling cordial sure gave me a start. Look at the TimeThe first thing that stuck out to me was the standing clock, which is very recognizable. It still stands there today. Also interesting is that that 200 Fifth Avenue, or International Toy Building (to the right of the Flatiron, next to the clock), was just built in 1912. It recently underwent an interior overhaul. Awnings were a necessityThis was long before air conditioning was prevalent so awnings were a common method used to cool down a building while still maintaining the view out the window. 23 SkidooLegend has it that the unique winds created at this intersection (Fifth and Broadway at 23rd Street) would lift many a lady's skirt, much to the delight of the male audience that would congregate here (at least when women still wore dresses). Awnings againThe main advantage of awnings (as opposed to, say, shades or venetian blinds) was that they let you keep the window open in the rain. Open windows were necessary probably as much for ventilation as keeping cool. [Although they do seem more prevalent on the sunny side of the building. - Dave] American ParthenonAlfred Stieglitz also saw the Flatiron as a kind of steamship: "With the trees of Madison Square covered with fresh snow, the Flat Iron impressed me as never before. It appeared to be moving toward me like the bow of a monster ocean steamer, a picture of new America still in the making. The Flat Iron is to the United States what the Parthenon was to Greece." 98 Years AgoIn the great span of history, 98 years isn't really all that long, and the march of history in centuries past wasn't all that brisk. But here we have a 1912 street scene from midtown Manhattan, less than a century ago (almost), within living memory of at least a few souls still among us, and the horses still outnumber the motor vehicles. I'm guessing that in another five years, by 1917 or so, the cars would outnumber the horses, and that in 10 more years -- 1927 or so -- the number of horses would be very small indeed. This is really a glimpse at the very last days of the pre-automobile world. We haven't lived with these infernal, gas-guzzling contraptions for very long. M&L Hess Real EstateSign was still somewhat visible as of 2003. http://www.14to42.net/20street1-2.html From 1 to 9, slowly.If I look at the panorama too quickly, I may get dizzy. Hotel BartholdiI am fascinated to find that this is the location of the Hotel Bartholdi. A few weeks ago I posted an image in the members gallery, of an electric charabanc parked, I assume, in front of the hotel. The streets are full of peopleThat's something you don't see these days. People are afraid of speeding cars. I assume that horse-drawn carriages weren't quite as dangerous. EntrancesComparing this picture with StreetView, the building entrances in the middle of each side seem to have been remodelled. Instead of the pillars supporting the canopy being proud of the main building, they are now just a relief on the surface. White WingThe Department of Sanitation's "White Wing" sweepers did their level best keeping those NYC streets clean. I don't know if white was the best color for their uniforms though! Google Clock ViewView Larger Map The streets are full of streetcars, too!Including the blurry end of one on the extreme left, and off into the distance, I count no less than 20 streetcars. Is it 1912 rush hour? OmnibusOk, I'm the first to spot the motorized bus! It looks more like someone chopped the back off a 1920s bus and shoved an open cab on the front with an engine. Neat! Also, notice the peculiar way of routing with a lampstand in the middle of the open street and ropes and posts in a line from it. The clockWho maintained it? I know there were lamplighters during the times when gas lamps lit city streets, but the clock must have been mechanical. Did someone wind it, or were they electric even back then? Pach Brothers StudioIf you look close at the building behind the Flatiron you can see a billboard (on the roof) for Pach Brothers Studio. I took portrait classes from the last owner of Pach Brothers, Oscar White. When he closed the studio it was the oldest operating studio in North America. He had an amazing archive of famous clients' images. President Ulysses S. Grant was involved in getting the studio started. Re: S.S. Flatiron and American ParthenonSomething as glorious as this had to appear sooner or later. (The Gallery, DPC, Flatiron Building, NYC, Streetcars)
When the Grocery Looked Like That: 1947
... plus riding the bus back home across the bridge every night with a briefcase stuffed with quarts of milk was probably getting old. ... 
 
Posted by tterrace - 01/09/2015 - 1:16pm -

My father in his San Francisco store, the De Luxe Groceteria, not exactly the proud, optimistic-looking fellow thirteen years before. The neighborhood was going to the dogs, charge customers were running up three-figure balances and paying a couple bucks on account when the mood struck them, plus riding the bus back home across the bridge every night with a briefcase stuffed with quarts of milk was probably getting old. Three years later, he had the place sold and was continuing in the grocery business in a lower-stress capacity, one that had a pension to boot. View full size. Groceteria artifactUnfortunately, we don't have any of the cool product signage, but here's a page from my father's account pad, showing the kind of balances some of his customers ran up. Too bad he didn't put the real date in, but I suspect this is from the 1940s despite the old "193_" pad. The well done run dryHas tterrace finally run out? He posted this pic two years ago. Way to goGotta tell ya tterrace, your father knew how to display his wares. In both pictures he shows how beautifully he laid out his merchandise. Any new baseball cardsToday, Mr. Terrace? No, well I guess I'll have a candy bar with that cold pop then. Fresh Frozen Fryers??They can be fresh. They can be frozen. They cannot be both. Just sayin'. Reissue"Digitally remastered from archival materials, with new commentary track." On my shopping listNow I know where I may find some Shinola White shoe polish, Nucoa oleomargarine, and Nuchief fruit all in one quick and convenient stop. None of my beeswax BUTdid your father ever get robbed at gunpoint by a thug or have any other "close calls" with bad guys? I currently live in middle America where I always thought people were safer but it seems like convenience store clerks and those who manage small grocery stores get robbed more than taxi drivers and pizza delivery people and often are shot and killed for a paltry sum of cash. To be alone managing a small store these days seems like an invitation for trouble. It probably was not considered a high risk job in 1944. ConfusedStill trying to figure the layout from the earlier picture in relation to this one. Where are the columns from the first photo? Are those the same windows? The state of the neighborhoodFrom the earlier posting of this picture I learned that your father's grocery store, in a neighborhood that went "to the dogs" back around the end of WWII, was just a block away from where I used to live at Valencia & 14th Street. Back when I lived there in the late '80s and early '90s the area was still a little dodgy. But you could see the gentrification coming then, and from the evidence of Google Streetview it seems to have arrived with a vengeance. Your father's old store is now surrounded by new apartment buildings with huge windows. I sure couldn't afford to live around there anymore. The ceilingThe ceiling seems to be flaking, leaking or otherwise displaying signs of damp issues. Hint HuntCould Hint Hunt be a punch card game? Some kind of lottery? Dad's almost-groceryThere was a similar store in my neighborhood in the '50s and '60s. They carried a lot of credit as well, all registered by hand in those little account books. They hung on for years despite a modern supermarket being open since 1958, less than a mile away. I think the owners tried to sell the store more than once. My old man considered buying the place but could not deal with staircases in the building due to a war injury. They finally unloaded the place in the mid-'60s. The new owners (with no prior experience) were out of the grocery business after about four years. They tried selling blue jeans for awhile, but they didn't last long doing that, either. Lights and columns and windows, oh my!Hi! I'm new here... only been lurking the last month or so. I like the contrasts provided by a "before and after" with a ten-year gap. But like someone else noted, the columns look different (they're gone in the later shot). So do the lights (two rows of lights earlier, one row of lights later). And the windows (they switch walls). Many other differences between the shots showing progress (?) and change in the ensuing ten years. The neighborhood outside may have been "going to the dogs" but building maintenance must have become a challenge, too. There are big patches in the ceiling of the later shot. Leaky roof or pipes in the ceiling? Condensation from air conditioning ducts? There's a ceiling vent that's not in the earlier shot. And who could have known back in the day that arch-rival brands Butternut and Wonder Bread would end up stablemates in the same company? http://www.hostessbrands.com/ also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_Bakeries Very cool! Thanks for sharing. I've been turned on by so many new (well, old) things by tracing the Library on Congress sources for some of your shots. Thanks again! Love all of your picsI have enjoyed all of your pictures. Keep them coming please. I was born in 1967. Love all of your photos. AlterationsThe answer is that the landlord decided to remodel the building, making more room for the middle business in the building, a bar. The new wall is where the columns were. The side windows were closed over, and the ones in back were boarded up, because there had been break-ins, and petty cash was taken. And the back wall to the storeroom was opened at the top, so you can see the two small windows that had wire mesh over them on the back wall. Father was angry at the landlord, because he had less room for his wares, and the rent was the same. During the war a large housing project was built in the neighborhood which was for workers in the war construction industry. Business was still good while the war was going on, but later when the ship yards and other industries were shutting down, and letting off workers, people had less money and took advantage of the credit that he let them have. And then used what cash they had to buy their groceries at the new supermarkets that were coming into the neighborhoods. Milk wasn't the only thing he brought home in his leather valise after work. It had a cloth bag with the contents of the cash register. Thank heaven he was never mugged. As far as robberies, I remember our father talking about the time a "young punk" came in pretending to represent the "Black Hand" and trying to get protection money from him. He said he grabbed the thug by the throat and told him if he ever came back he would get the **** beat out of him. He never did. Quiz Show"Hint Hunt" was a radio game show sponsored by Armour Star Meat Packing. Not sure when it started, but it was canceled in 1949. Excellent pictureMany of our grocers shops still look like this in England (except for the leaking ceiling!) The Layout ExplainedHere's my thoughts on the layout changes from the 1934 picture to the 1944 picture: A new wall was built where the row of columns once stood. In the 1944 picture, you can see the outline of the old counter on the floor in the middle front. You can also verify that this was the right edge of the counter because the row of lights in the earlier picture ran along that right edge. This looks like it's about the same distance from the wall as the original counter was from the row of columns. Using that as a location marker, I would say the two windows in the earlier picture are covered up by the Butter Nut poster and the poster behind it (looks like a wine ad?). I think the wall from the 1934 picture was knocked down, thus making visible the windows in the back of the 1944 picture as well as the ceiling vents. If you follow the floor of the later picture, you can see a slight change in texture that lines up with the wine poster on the right wall, thus further verifying that this was the placement of the back wall in the 1934 picture. [See the definitive answer below, under "alterations." - Dave] A Shorpy educationWow, I learn things on Shorpy I never knew before, even about my own family. Point-of-SaleGazing at the advertising displays lining the walls (Royal Crown, Butter-Nut), I am seized by ephemera-envy. I don't suppose any of those survived? Balance dueThat would be something like a $5,000 balance today! And that's only for a single customer. Glad your dad was able to get out of it. Grandmom's StoreMy grandmother had a neighborhood store. She would let us eat Fudgesicles and drink NuGrape sodas till we were sick. Grandmom had to deal with shoplifters mostly. One attempted armed robbery. The guy ran away when she began to pray out loud. Oh the memories!I remember stores like that. I never really liked the goods behind the grocer. :) Now, I'm not THAT old but I grew up in small towns in Kansas that still had stores like this. I rememberThis looks like the Ed Adkins grocery on Lawrence Ave. in Toledo when I was little. Supermarkets existed then, but were not all that common yet. You told Ed or Larry, his assistant, what you wanted and they went and got it, much like a modern auto parts store today. [This was a self-service store.] (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, Stores & Markets, tterrapix)
Nightline: 1924
... animal rights activists marched on the Capitol last night chanting "I'd rather bare my ankles than wear fur-lined boots" while ... came out to sell some snacks. Lined Up It's the night before the release of the newest gadget by Apple Differential Engines ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/21/2020 - 2:31pm -

The year is 1924 and the city is Washington, D.C. What's going on here? Your guesses, educated and otherwise, welcome in the Comments box. View full size. UPDATE: As correctly surmised in the very first comments, these are baseball fans. The original caption: "October 3, 1924. Washington, D.C. Waiting in line for tickets for the opening game of the World Series. Picture snapped at 10 p.m. October 3rd, twenty-four hours before the tickets will be placed on sale." Opening DayWalter Johnson's pitching tomorrow for the Senators, what else could it be? Waiting to buy World Series ticketsIt doesn't look like the Griffith Stadium box office but possibly one of the buildings across the street from it? Didn't speak easy enough?Wondering whether these men had just been rousted from a basement establishment. It's hard to read the expressions on their faces, but "My wife is going to kill me" and "They don't expect us all to fit in that one paddy wagon, do they?" seem to be among the plausible interpretations. I see at least one guy (tall young bow tie wearer) who may have been tending bar. Waiting on a saleTomorrow, dark suits and dark hats half off! Bow ties 75 percent off! ConcertThey're waiting in line for Rolling Stones tickets. Early protest marchDateline Washington DC, April 1924: Female animal rights activists marched on the Capitol last night chanting "I'd rather bare my ankles than wear fur-lined boots" while crowds looked on. 1924 was an Election YearIt doesn't look like the men on the right are in a queue because of the men on the stoop. I'd say they're waiting for "Fighting Bob" LaFollette to give his presidential election concession speech. The men on the left came out to sell some snacks. Lined UpIt's the night before the release of the newest gadget by Apple Differential Engines wizard Hieronymus Jobs: the iMonocle. I'm thinking Jim Doughty may be rightI focused more on the line of men and less on their facial expressions and body language. Busted! Looking For WorkLaborers of some kind maybe, waiting for the boss man to come around and select a lucky dozen or so for a weeks worth of work at fifty cents a day. Baby needs a new pair of shoesThe mother of all crap games is about to begin. ObviouslyThe DMV! Round 'em upI agree with the speakeasy or underground gambling establishment theory. A policeman can be spotted behind the African American man wearing the sweater-vest. And no one appears to be pleased at the circumstances in which he's found himself. Several of the men seem to be wearing similar lapel pins (one young man is wearing one on his sweater). Perhaps a meeting of a trade union or fraternal organization was the cover for whatever the real purpose of the establishment was. Big BangI don't know what they're doing, but I can speculate that the photographer set off a HUGE amount of flash powder, somewhere to the camera's left, to make this image. Must have been quite a pop, considering how far away the still-illuminated people in the center are. According to Wikipedia, flash bulbs weren't invented until 1927. So if you needed more light, you'd just use more powder. The FuzzIs that a ghost police officer to the right of the tree, behind the young African American man? The Local Graft AssociationAn emergency nighttime meeting to counteract the rash of civic improvement initiatives organized by the Capitol City Do-Gooder's Association. GeeksOpening night (midnight show) for the new "Star Wars" movie. IntegrationI'm not sure what's going on, but whatever it is, it's very interesting to me that this is a mixed-race group in what was at the time a segregated city. Waiting for WoodrowWoodrow Wilson died in February 1924. Since he lay in state at Washington Cathedral and is the only president to be buried in Washington, DC, it could be that the men are waiting for the funeral procession. (There are 2 policemen to the left). However, they don't seem to be particularly warmly dressed, though, and the man standing in the doorway is covered with mud. Calvin Coolidge was elected in Nov. 1924, but, again, they aren't warmly dressed fro it being November. I thinkI think they are waiting for Metallica backstage passes so they can rock out with the band. I have a dreamProtests to new segregation laws. Would-Be Bleacherites Ding-Ding-Ding! Leo and ghostofwadelefler called it right. A nearly identical photo of the same group of men accompanied the following article. Washington Post, Oct 4, 1924 1,000 Before 2 A.M. Take up Vigil for Seat in Bleachers "First Man" in Line Soon After Noon; Vantage Positions Sell High. Scorned since their erection because of their vulnerability to sun and rain, the bleachers at American League park this morning are the object of the greatest siege by ticket seekers this city has ever seen. At 2 o'clock this morning more than 1,000 red-hot baseball fans were bivouacked outside the high walls on the Fifth street side of the park, and their number constantly increased. The words "red hot" are used to describe the type of fan in line; not his condition physically. It was cold outside that wall, and even the blankets and overcoats that some of the more foresighted brought along did not keep away the shivers. Preceding the siege of the bleachers, which began at 1:30 o'clock yesterday afternoon, was a great rush for reserved seats. Five thousand frenzied fans lined up to buy the meager supply of uncalled-for reserved seat tickets that were put on sale at noon. Of this number only 200 went away happy, as there were only that number of tickets sold. Undoubtedly many of those who were disappointed in their efforts to get reserved seats fell in with the would-be bleacherites later on. There was a real world series atmosphere outside the bleacher walls as midnight arrived. Some of the fans in line were curled up on boxes asleep, others were crooning popular melodies, while the majority were engaged in seemingly endless discussion of the merits of the two teams that will take the field today. Vendors of "hot dogs" and coffee did fine business, as did vendors of soap boxes and pillows. There was also some scalping. Boys who arrived early offered to sell their places in line for as little as 50 cents and as much as $1.50, depending on the proximity of their seats to the ticket booth. The honor of being the first man in line went to Charles W. Bell, 507 Fourth street northwest. Bell left the veterans bureau at noon and at 1:30 o'clock took up his position next to the ticket window. … Further down the line was a 74-year-old farmer, who came here from Salisbury, Md., just to see Walter Johnson pitch in his first world series. He said he had been following Johnson for the last 18 years. It was evident a large number of those who would buy bleacher seats were going to be disapointed. There were about 3,5000 of these tickets. The booths selling the bleacher space in center field will open at 9 o'clock, and tickets will sell at $1.10. The standing room sells at $3.30 and will go on sale at 1:45. Photo Caption: A midnight flash shows part of the long line that extends down Fifth street and around Florida avenue to be on hand today for the $1 bleacher tickets for the game. Extra overcoats and blankets were in evidence. Along with professional "line holders," who sell their place to the highest bidder, were professional and business men, whose wives drove their machines home after seeing that their husbands were as comfortable as possible. Photo Credit: Hugh Miller, Post Staff Photographer. Oh shootI thought they were in line for the new iPad. I'd wager a small amount that the four young men on the right under the window are all brothers, possibly the one half hidden against the wall makes five, an just possibly Pa, just to the left of him? Spitting contest? That's a lot of loogie there on the sidewalk. I didn't know Bob Hope would need to wait in a line like this for tickets. Shouldn't have second-guessed myselfMy user name should clue you in on my interest in the '24 Nats. Facts be darned!Evidence, Schmevidence! Mr. Stanton Square's usual fine research notwithstanding, I would vote for Charlene's answer as the true story behind this photograph. Should we need an alternative, I suggest that this is a late-night spitting contest; the fellow in the flapjack-size hat appears to be winning! (The Gallery, D.C., Natl Photo, Sports)
Union Square: 1910
... accomplished circa 1910? [The melding was done last night. - Dave] Union Square Redux Again, another Shorpy beauty. The ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/01/2012 - 5:46pm -

New York circa 1910. "Union Square." The Met Life tower presides over this panoramic view, a composite of four 8x10 glass negatives. View full size. B&NThe Barnes and Noble on Union Square was my favourite B&N in Manhattan. It was originally the Century Publishing Company Building. They published the "War Series" about the Civil War, contributors to the series were Union and Confederate combatants including Generals Grant and Sherman. It included thousands of engravings, often from photographs by Matthew Brady and Alexander Gardner. They also published works by Edith Wharton, Mark Twain, Rudyard Kipling and Robert Lewis Stephenson. The Union Square Market is a great farmer's market. A crisp fall morning in New York City and fresh, organic fall products... heaven! Technical QuestionDid you, Dave, enhance the melding of the four glass negatives, or was that excellent job all accomplished circa 1910? [The melding was done last night. - Dave] Union Square ReduxAgain, another Shorpy beauty. The street on the left is now known as Union Square West, it really is an extension of Broadway. Beyond the foliage, north of of Union Square Park, is what is stilled called East 17th St, as opposed to Union Square North. The anchor store on that block is a mammoth (for Manhattan) Barnes & Noble which is in the same building that is in this picture. That location is at 33 East 17th St. The bookstore is a major attraction for the neighborhood. Their biweekly lectures, book signings and musical events are usually packed. The structure to the right of B&N, The Everett Building, erected in 1908, still stands. It was given Landmark status in 1988. The building is also known as 200 Park Avenue South and has as a retail tenant, the upscale multi-generational men's clothier, Rothman's. As mentioned, rising from near Madison Square Park on 23rd St., and high above East 17th Street, The Met Life Building, completed in 1909. SpeechlessI can't find the words. You have taken my breath away with this one Dave. I'll be spending the remainder of July right here, and still won't see it all. Kudos. Highrises Cometh On the right you can see modern NY high rise buildings encroach on mid-1800s tenements, so it won't be long before they are gone too. In a couple short decades, the familiar NY city-jungle of tall buildings and busy streets will be complete. Tick TockI noted that the street clock in the lower left and the clock on the Met Life building are showing the same time (+/-). Fast photographer. Babies 'R' UsWith the exception of a few very new glass mid-rise towers and some unexceptional mid-century mid-rises, this is how Union Square still looks. Like most parts of U.S. cities, building stopped around 1930 and never picked back up again. The building with the front stairs 2nd from right is now a covered entrance to Babies 'R' Us. The Lincoln BuildingThe building on the very left is the landmarked Lincoln Building or 1 Union Square West. I worked on the eighth floor for several years. The windows, visible in the picture, are very large, and most could be opened fully. No screen, no awnings, just wind and noise. I watched the late 90's renovation of the park every day from there. It was perfect! Also on East 17th StreetI really should mention the new construction to the right of Barnes & Noble and the Everett Building being built on East 17th Street. It was the Germania Life Insurance Building, soon to become the Guardian Life Insurance Building. It is now the very hip W Union Square Hotel home of the very fine restaurant "Olives." Good job!Well put together and all in focus. Union Square Sequential StillsIn this YouTube video of still photos, starting at 1:47, there is a quick view of Union Square that looks like it was taken from almost the same spot as the four photos in the composite Dave/Shorpy photo. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fk9EBOOAYiU Union Square: 2011I wanted to see what it would look like today in B&W. (The Gallery, DPC, NYC, Streetcars)
A Boy and His Toys
... decorations stay up in many homes through Twelfth Night (Epiphany, January 6th). Whatever the date, thanks and Merry Christmas to ... 
 
Posted by down_like_silver - 12/27/2008 - 4:20pm -

I'm sure Santa has been or will be good to this serious little guy, reminiscent though he may be of Augustus Gloop. I can't read the calendar, but the 31st falling on a Friday makes it either 1926 or '37. After researching, I found out that "Boy Scouts to the Rescue" came out in 1921, and the little poem "Am I Ready for School?" was mentioned in a 1924 Louisiana State Health Department bulletin. Any thoughts? [Update: The calendars are from January 1941.] View full size. The PhoneThe dial was invented in 1891 and put into use in 1892 when the first exchange was opened. The phone is an Automatic Electric 1A which was in use from 1925 to approximately 1950. The ShirtThat shirt he is wearing says 1940-41. His mother must have forced it on him. In 47-48 I got a similar one in a box of hand-me-downs from my cousins. Do your bestThe Official Flags of the BSA referenced by Gary Faules at 11:57 am, indicates that this is for Den 2 not Pack 2. Dens are subsets of packs and there are usually a number of dens making up a pack. It all adds up.In response to the A.T. question about the thing on the stool, a Google search turned up a Wolverine Toy Adding Machine (1940's). It's too late for this Christmas, but you can buy one on eBay for about $15. Deep in (evil) thoughtPugsley Addams contemplates new and exciting uses for dynamite. Allow Me to Pile OnThe Twenty Game Combination also seems to be from at least the late 1930's: http://www.tias.com/cgi-bin/google.fcgi/itemKey=1923109051 Merry Xmas, keep up the excellent work on the website!! Buckshot CorduroyI believe the boy got brand new Christmas pants and they were made of fabric called "buckshot corduroy". I remember this from the very early 40's (and for about a decade later) and they were extra heavy, thick, bulky and embarrassing because when you walked, it made the sound of someone tearing up cardboard and the faster you walked, the more tearing took place. People could be heard swishing everywhere, even when their shoes were nearly silent and it was an unwelcome attention-getter. Yeah, this kid was hefty, but we can't all be sylph-like and physically perfect. When one plants a McIntosh, one gets a McIntosh. Two rotund parents create a rotund kid, but that is just as God made him. I would guess this was about 1941. Hey Wally! Hey Beav!This is the corner of Wally and Beaver's room that you never got to see. The pendant says "Illinois State House" and I'll presume that the square flag is for Cub Scout Pack #2. That "thing" on the stool looks like an adding machine or some sort of early calculator - but not a ten-key. Beyond that, the picture looks a little stagey to me, not like a "real" boy's room - unless his Mother just spent the day in there cleaning and tidying for the photographer. I can see Dave putting on his white gloves as I type this, but I'll say it anyway: that boy has an awfully FAT ASS for a kid, doesn't he? And now that I've been banned, I'll go for broke and wonder out loud what nasty stuff might be hidden at the bottom of one of those drawers - you know, under his butterfly collection? Merry Christmas, Dave! Dead GiveawayIf you look at the board above his head you will see an image of an automobile. I believe it is a 1937 Chevy. But whatever it is, it is late 1930's or early 1940's. Another year1943 is also a year with a December 31st falling on a Friday. [That's a January 1941 calendar in the photo. - Dave] Wave your flag up highAccording to The Official Flags of the BSA the blue flag is a Cub Scout pack flag. http://www.mninter.net/~blkeagle/flags.htm The Good ScoutThat's Baby New Year and Father Time on the calendar, which would be for January -- 1930, 1936 or 1941. This photo has a mid-30s, early 40s look to it. What a great picture! The plane, the planeJust under the top shelf of the book case below the toy soldiers and the tent at the right in the picture is what seems to be a thin box. If you look carefully at the aircraft that's on the side of the box, you can see that it appears to be of a design that was not made until at least the mid to late 30s. An aircraft expert could help more. Just a swagI'd hazard a guess of 1937. Take a look at the toy truck by the book. Seems to have a decidedly 1930's look to me. That and the lamp and the telephone would make me think the later 1930's. The Phone, The Phone.The telephone is also a giveaway. Although invented in 1919, dial telephone service did not come into popular use until the 1930`s, and this phone is a later model. The truck.That truck under the Christmas tree looks like a more advanced design than any of the other mid 1920-s examples I've seen on Shorpy. Also, that carved elephant is awesome. On my honor I will do my best..."The Boy Scouts to the Rescue" was written by Charles Henry Lerrigo and the hardback with cover was copyrighted in 1920 and there was ony one printing ever published. That one appears to be brand new judging by the condition of it. [That book had a different cover. - Dave] PhoneThat phone looks awfully small for this period; I'd be willing to bet it's a toy. As to the period, everything about it - toys, clothes, furniture, graphics styles - screams late-30s to early-40s to me. A bit before my time, but my brother would have been about this kid's age then, and there was still lots of his stuff around when I was growing up and cohabiting his bedroom. Maybe a little later?I'd probably lean towards the later date, as the boy has a reasonably modern-looking wristwatch. I was under the impression that wristwatches were still "newfangled" and pretty expensive through the 20s. Also, the telephone should be a clue. I don't have any idea when phones made their various changes, but that style tends to make me think newer rather than older. It's also interesting that, if this is the boy's bedroom (and not a corner of the livingroom or den) then having his own phone is pretty noteworthy. Just having an extension was a nontrivial additional cost- this was back when you leased the telephone itself from the phone company. Any experts out there to help? Oh, one more hint I just noticed: See the cars on the feltboard? Those are definitely '30s-and-later designs, and not '20s. Any guesses on the cord coming out of the lamp? I'm assuming the Christmas tree is plugged into that- or possibly the desk lamp itself, which would explain why the tree isn't lit. The house could easily be old enough it has no- or very few- actual outlets. The truck, the truckThe cab and fenders of the truck under the Christmas tree suggest mid to late '30s at the earliest. Far too rounded and aerodynamic-style to be 1926. Looking at the cars pinned to the board above him, I'd venture to say the calendar shows January 1941. Toy SoldiersThe toy soldiers are made by Manoil, so it's gotta be '30s at least. The Pants, The PantsThe boy is wearing long pants, not very likely in 1926. Everything else in the room says late 1930s into the early 1940s, except that combination gas/electric wall sconce. Definitely an older house, but not so very old in 1937 or 1941. I'd go with January 1941, since the calendar art does appear to depict Father Time and the New Year Baby, and Christmas decorations stay up in many homes through Twelfth Night (Epiphany, January 6th). Whatever the date, thanks and Merry Christmas to you Dave, and everyone else, for providing us all with so much innocent merriment year-round. Around or after 1939The book under his little tree gives us a pretty close date... "Boy Scouts to the Rescue" by Leonard K Smith was published by Little, Brown in 1939. The book is not to me mistaken with "THE Boy Scouts to the rescue" by George Durston, published by Saalfield in 1921. If you look at the bottom of the book cover, you can clearly see the letters RD, so it's a pretty safe bet that it's the Leonard K Smith book. Also the Durston book has a very different cover. January 1941The image on the lower calendar is "A Boy Scout Is Helpful," painted by Norman Rockwell for the 1941 Boy Scout Calendar. Happy to be of help, The Art Sleuth Remaining MysteriesWhat do you suppose he's staring at and what is that thing sitting on the stool? Collective wisdomI went off to Christmas activities and came back to read what you all shared - it's overwhelming and I thank you. This picture came from a lot taken by an amateur photographer who lived in my present neighborhood. They span several decades and extended family and friends. Older than Yoda: I always wondered about those horrible pants! Where is "this neighborhood"?I like to add state and city details to the pictures! It's a beautiful day in the neighborhoodMost of the photographs were taken around Macarthur Boulevard in Springfield, Illinois. Dear Gramma...Thanks for the pants... I recognize the stance of a mandatory thank-you letter being written. The picture is just proof that it was done. Good one. Eau de CorduroyTo this day I can still remember the smells of the Shrine Of The Little Flower if by chance it rained on a Friday. The combination of wet corduroy and the egg or fish sandwiches we brown-bagged for lunch would fill the halls of learning with an odor I still remember 60 years later. It was a tough life, my children, when you had to walk uphill to school during driving rainstorms while protecting your homework and lunch. And yes we had to walk uphill going back home, too. Springfield, Illinois?I thought that whole photograph felt awfully familiar. I was born in Springfield in April of 1945, and lived there until 1964. Thanks for the details, folks. Toy soldiersThe toy soldiers on the shelves to the right - my dad passed along to me some that he had when he was a kid. Since Dad was born in 1925, I would guess that they are WWI cast toy soldiers. Very nice collectible. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, Christmas)
King of Cadonia: 1910
... "hottie" in this case is ill advised. This looks like Prom Night at the Women's Prison Guard School. Marx Sisters For some reason, ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/22/2012 - 9:32pm -

Washington, D.C., circa 1910. "King of Cardonia" is the caption here, perhaps the name of a play. [Update: The correct spelling is "Cadonia"; the play ended its D.C. run in January 1910.] Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative. View full size. When Willy met NillyThe photographer should have had the ladies lined up by height. This is a great example of why. I'll second the second from the right. Wow. Trippy DressesThose dresses seem entirely impractical. I guess that's the long train wrapped around the front for the photo? Love the expression on Ms. Third-from-Right. Beautiful!I'll take the second from the right.....be careful with those brooches girls! Hair ColorInteresting that nine out of 10 have dark hair, and the exception isn't blond. I imagine that a similar picture today would show at least five blondes. MermaidsThese ladies are probably portraying mermaids from "The Little Mermaid," in which the King of Cardonia appears. The long trains could loosely be described as their tails. Vintage HottiesShorpy: The New Home of the Vintage Hotty. Ladies in WaitingThese are the Ladies in Waiting in "King of Cadonia," which closed after only 16 performances in January 1910, at the Fifth Avenue Theater in New York. Imported from London by the Shuberts, this two-act musical comedy had enjoyed far greater success at the Prince of Wales Theatre, where it had opened in 1908 for a run of 333 performances. The play included sixteen songs and sumptuous costumes by the British designer Karl. Here is the London cover for the vocal score. [Brilliant. Thank you! - Dave] Rare SmileLooks like #2 from the left is breaking 1910 photography protocol by actually SMILING!!! Fantastic smile, though... At the Belasco ... Washington Herald, Nov 21, 1909 (click to enlarge) Be very careful with that pinbackTwo of them have no earrings but they all seem to have medals pinned in a most unfortunate position on their chests. The one on the far right looks like she's auditioning for her next role as Frau Rottenmeier in "Heidi." BootyliciousI'd say at least three of those could be described as bootylicious. I'm just sayin' My earlobesare sagging and quite sore with phantom pain after looking at those earrings. And I wonder what fabrics the dresses were made of, how many layers/boning underneath, and finally, how much they weighed. Coolies?I believe the colloquialism "hottie" in this case is ill advised. This looks like Prom Night at the Women's Prison Guard School. Marx SistersFor some reason, these gals remind me of the late Margaret Dumont, the straight-lady and nominal love interest for Groucho in so many Marx Brothers films. Maybe this is how Ms. Dumont got her start? Wedgie feverEvidently there's a right way and a wrong way to do this pose. Miss Third-from-the-right looks like she's trying to make some subtle adjustments. The lovely lighter-haired lass (fifth from the left) looks like the girl that the hero gets at the end of many a silent film. CannedThe only thought that comes to mind is sardines. Lost TechnologyThe dresses the ladies are wearing are another example of technology from an earlier period that has been forgotten. By simply walking around the room, the long dress serves as a Broom, or in the case of a wet floor the dress serves as a Mop to clean up untidy messes. For wood floors a Wax can be appled to the lower part of the dress to give a gleaming shine to any dance floor! Yowza!The beauty second from left looks amazingly like a girl I dated about 25 years ago. I second the thought on the pose, they should have lined up by height. I would like a time machineEvery last one of these ladies is lovely in her own right, yet by the industry standards of today they would all be considered fat. I was born a century too late -- how I would love to live in an era in which women are allowed to be curvy and voluptuous, like these dolls. I mean, just looks at those plush bottoms! Like, much! Want, badly! CorsetsI'm pretty sure that none of these ladies would even think of going on stage without a corset. One must maintain an hourglass figure, after all. The prize goes to second-from-left with honorable mention to second-from-right. Additional Musical Numbers by...Jerome Kern! wow! Cadonia ringtones, anyone? The music from the show lives on, at least as MIDI files: http://www.halhkmusic.com/cadonia.html I'm in love!The girl second from the left has stolen my heart. She can put her whalebone corset, lace-up boots and 50-pound earrings next to my bed any day! Rigid corsets, but not wasp waistedThese ladies are all VERY STRONGLY corseted! The fashion at this time, 1910, was for corsets from midriff to mid thigh (look at no 1,9 and 10 from the left). The wasp waist was dead, but it was still necessary to have a defined waist and absence of natural curves. This is a well posed photo, but it is interesting to note that the ladies are all in the “hands behind back, shoulders back” style that showed off the straightfront corsets. This style of corset is not easy to wear. It’s difficult to sit in anything but a straight back chair. Easy sofas and reaching for a low coffee table are impossible in these corsets. These girls are probably quite at home in their stiff corsets. Suppose their age is 25 (they don’t look very young to me) then they would have been born in 1885 and would have experienced the discomfort of the 19 cent wasp waist. (The Gallery, D.C., Harris + Ewing, Portraits)
All Our Children: 1964
... she dipped snuff. Let me be the first to say "Good night, John-Boy!" What's in the box? Just the requisite stuff for ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/13/2011 - 11:04pm -

Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1964. "Entire Cornett family on porch; Willie, Vivian and twelve children." Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. Now that takes ingenuityand fortitude to raise 12 kids as an unemployed coal worker (or his wife!) They look like a pretty happy bunch overall. That poor womanIn more than one sense of the word. My guess is she only had a couple non-pregnant years in the last 16. Not that I'm pitying her. They seem, and probably were, a happy bunch. I am reminded of a line from a movie -- I can't recall the title just now -- an admonishment to be wary of a certain family: "Watch yourself. There's a whole lot of 'em and they stick together." Not buying itWho ever anointed women "the weaker sex" was a damned fool. "High Explosives"What exactly WAS in the box, bottom left? Great pic. Betcha she dipped snuff. Let me be the first to say"Good night, John-Boy!" What's in the box?Just the requisite stuff for any kid growing up in Kentucky in the 60's -- an American Cyanamid dynamite crate. Footwear12 kids, 2 adults = three pairs of shoes and one pair of flip-flops. Not too many socks got lost in this house. Handsome FamilyWow, what a great-looking family. Even if the brother in the back on our right does give me a bit of that "Deliverance" feeling. Share and share alikeI would be willing to bet there was not even one spoiled brat in the entire dozen. They're out there nowClassmates.com has ten Cornetts from Leatherwood High School in this era. Before long Shorpy will be hearing from them! More than a Part Time JobShe was pregnant a total of 108 months - or 12 nine years. Holy smokes. [Assuming there were no multiple births. - Dave] No TVI'll betcha! Actually, she was pregnant "only" 9 years108 months divided by 12 is 9 years not 12 (assuming no multiple births and no more kids after this picture). A nice looking family. I was 6 years old when this was taken and I thought one of my neighbors with eight kids was a big family. But what did I know being only 6? Cornett HospitalityI found some more photos and info about the photographer here. He stayed with the family in their home for 11 days in 1964 and revisited them in 1972. Fit and trimNotice that none of the kids are fat. Or the parents. Lots of hard work and play in that family. Who says kids have it better today? I'd like to see a book made of their livesThey all look happy and healthy. Wish we could follow up with them - what a great book that would be! Mom and Dad deserve kudos for being strong adults. My grandmaMy paternal grandmother bore 18 kids, 17 before she was 29! Yep, these people could be my relatives. My parents are from Oklahoma and Kansas, BTW, but these could definitely be my relatives! How many are alive today?It's only 46 years, but accidents do happen. I bet that every one of those surviving have an internet connection in their home. That is how much things have changed. I do so hope to be here in another 46 years. What matters mostIt's easy to make fun and belittle people who are less fortunate and impoverished, but I'll bet their lives were a lot richer than most. Education, money and mean-spirited wit -- those things are valuable to the small minded. Kindness, compassion, and good manners are far better things to value. I'd say that everyone in that photo looks happy, in spite of their impoverished circumstances. That's one up on most people these days. If I may Pollyanna this a bitIt was God Who proclaimed woman the "weaker vessel" and He is most certainly no "damned fool." What He meant was, most women are weaker physically than most men. Emotionally, it has been my experience that women are generally more so than men, at least superficially, but when push comes to shove and there's a crisis on the home front, the woman's inner strength kicks in and often exceeds the man's. And having known the glory of motherhood four times myself, and being able to state unequivocally that my children are the best things that have ever happened to me apart from their own father, I believe Mrs. Cornett, despite her obvious life of hardship economically speaking, was blissful in motherhood and overall a happy woman. I hope she's still with us and if not, that she lived long and that those kids cherished her the way they ought to have done, to the very end. And I hope they still miss her. That Could Be Meon the far left standing on the porch. I was 4 years old in 1964. I wasn't anywhere near Kentucky then, but I would have liked to have known this family if I were. No frills living and I'll bet Mother Cornett always had lunch ready for other neighborhood kids that were playing there that day. I'd like to see a current family tree for this clan - probably quite a few grand and great-grandkids by now. [No doubt, although I don't know if you could say that this rural household was part of any neighborhood. - Dave] Love conquereth allMy first thought is that the mother, Vivian (name of my last child), was the mortar in the wall comprising this fortress. I'll bet her every child loved her fiercely, and she them. Dads are harder to figure out, often aloof, and shielded by kids and mother from the daily trials. It can't have been easy, but I am sure they were basically happy. Vivian died relatively young. My hope is that she had many grandkids close by in her last six or seven years. [Vivian had plenty of grandkids in just a few years, as the 1972 photos show. - Dave] Weaker vesselWow, no wonder the earth is becoming over-populated! Also, let's just clarify that god didn't write the bible, sexist goat-herding men did. Read it thoroughly and you'll realize that the authors are very clear that they consider women lesser in every way than men. Nice try though. (Cornett Family, Kids, Portraits, Rural America, William Gedney)
81 and Still Mowing: 1955
... Cary Grant film People Will Talk on NBC's Saturday Night at the Movies and being utterly mesmerized by Finlay Currie's ... Usually pointed south to catch the Fresno stations but at night reception improved enough we could get KTVU Channel 2 out of Oakland and ... 
 
Posted by tterrace - 09/29/2011 - 6:06pm -

My father (53) and my grandmother (73) watch my grandfather (81) mowing his lawn at his "new" house in Calpella, California; at left with trunk agape, our trusty Hudson (7). A couple years before, grandpa sold his large grape vineyard (off screen immediately to the left) that he'd ranched since about 1915. I still have a lot of memories of this house, like this, but geekily enough, also of watching TV, courtesy the gigantic TV antenna that picked up the nearest stations over 100 miles away in San Francisco. For some reason, I have a very detailed recollection of being 15 and watching the 1951 Cary Grant film People Will Talk on NBC's Saturday Night at the Movies and being utterly mesmerized by Finlay Currie's characterization of the mysterious Mr. Shunderson. Thanks to the fact that every bit of information ever is now on the Internet, I can actually pin down this memory to one of two exact dates in 1962, depending on whether it was a rerun or not. Zowie. My brother's Ektachrome slide. View full size. Modern HistoryIt amazes me, how fairly modern this photo appears, and to think, your grandfather whom you knew personally was born in 1874. I am now 40. In our family, six generations span back to 1796. I loved hearing my great grandmother talk of her childhood. She was 10 in 1905 and passed at 95. It is difficult to imagine someone's life spanning from before cars to landing on the moon and/or playing video games, etc. I think, many times, we do not truly appreciate the great wealth of knowledge present around us as children (by way of our grandparents) until long after they are gone. In any case, this is a great photo. I can just picture myself going in, when the lawn is done, cooling off with a cold beer with your dad and grand-dad and listening to a game the radio.. or arguing about those darned Communists down in Cuba. The antenna is great.However, I'd like to see your grandmother's kitchen. Marching Steadily BackwardsToday, with the so-called advancements of digital television, the over-the-air reception of television broadcasts from 100 miles away is no longer possible. PushmowersWow! Does this picture ever bring back the memories. My grandparents had one of those old push mowers, and by the time I was twelve, it was my job to push it up and down the backyard. I was so excited when my dad finally bought a power mower. TV MarketsDepending on any terrain obstructions, and if the antenna had a rotator, the stations from the closer Sacramento market might have been viewable there as well as SF's. Our 1955-57 TVs there only had VHF so 4, 5, 7, 9 and 13 (they moved it from Mt. Diablo shortly after we left) were it. Consistent DTV (mostly UHF now) reception over those ranges presents a formidable challenge, though some short-lived favorable conditions do occur. 81 and Mowingthat's amazing!!!! Are we there yet?tterrace, does the house still exist? Can you pinpoint it on Google Maps? That Mediterranean DietSomething in their lifestyle obviously kept your grandparents in really healthy condition well into their old age and I bet they took very few pharmaceuticals, if any. More likely it was PLENTY of good wine, fruits, vegetables, seafood and sociability along with not shirking hard work. (The "use it or lose it" theory.) I notice there are NO handrails on either set of entryway stairs, no ramps, no grab bars. To be 81 in 1954 and still self-sufficient bodes well for you and your siblings since good genes are also a major factor in longevity. Your photos are priceless and nostalgic and they all strike a chord in most of us. Live long and prosper "T". Good old antenna technologyLuckily we had a motorized antenna rotator back in the pre-cable days. Usually pointed south to catch the Fresno stations but at night reception improved enough we could get KTVU Channel 2 out of Oakland and sometimes other channels. Your grandfather reminds me of my neighbor across the street. 79 and active, just now going to be fully retired from his job. Grandpa's lawn today Rising to the topFirst post here. long time reader. As always an interesting glimpse into the memory files of TTerrace. The bits of childhood and teenage memory that stand out from a remove in time of 35 to 45 years is always interesting. So much goes by and is lost or submerged in the daily blur of life. Then there are those bits that rise up to the surface after many many years. Thanks TT, keep em coming. LessonsKeeping active is the best way to health. Your grandfather shows that. My grandmother was taking aquasize classes when she was in her 80's, walked a half hour every night until she was 95 until she went into a home and died at 99. She taught me that sitting around moping about thing does do something. It makes you lazy, fat and unhappy. The old " don't complain about it unless you try to do something about it." Photos like this a prove that people like this existed. Fave!Ahhh, "People Will Talk," one of my favorite movies! Tterrace, we seem to have more and more in common. My last surviving grandparent died last year. Ironically, he was mowing his lawn and fell off his riding lawn more and broke his hip. It is amazing to think how much life changed while he was alive. Northern CalI really enjoy all the wonderful photos that you share tterrace. I've especially enjoyed the old Marin Co. pics i.e. Larkspur, Greenbrae, Corte Madera, etc. Thanks for sharing. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, tterrapix)
Party of Four: 1956
... at the ready) bringing these images to us all day and all night. They ARE Shorpy. Regards, Deborah Charming I actually do ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/25/2021 - 5:10pm -

As a follow-up to yesterday's Pastel Princesses we present a retinue of possible Princes, or maybe court jesters, at what looks like the same event. Live it up while you can, boys. 35mm Kodachrome from the "Linda" slides. View full size. Ma!Have you seen my red socks? I'm late for the dance!!! The Cast of "Diner"The Early Years. The charm and uniquenessof Shorpy is, in my opinion, somewhat diminished by the inclusion of family Kodachrome snapshots. I still make my daily visits, but—as Billie used to sing—the thrill is gone. Am I alone in thinking so? A little dab'll do yaCheck out the hair tonic stain on the walls. You may not be aloneIn your finding your viewing pleasure diminished, but I'm sure that you are outnumbered 1000 to 1. I think these two last dance photos show the old saying to be true. Girls mature faster than boys. And not just physically. Wider visionI am one of the many who finds that "the charm and uniqueness of Shorpy" is in no way diminished by the inclusion of photos from family collections of the past 50 years. Considering Shorpy as the place of photos only a century old, or exclusively black and white, is an unnecessary limitation. It's much easier to see it as repository of so much more. Broaden the vision, Chris Albertson, and let yourself settle comfortably into the range and variety of what Shorpy has to offer. It won't hurt a bit. Pocket squareIf only we could see what those blue and white ticket/program things are in both of these pictures. At first I thought it was the same guy but they have different ties (and ears!). I love these candid snapshots. [He might be the boy with his back to the camera in the other photo. - Dave] Love It AllI love seeing these smiling boys who seemed to have left their dance dates to wonder where they went. I'm a fan of every genre of Shorpy pic. Yes, I'm partial to ones showing old houses because we're restoring a Victorian and become enthused over clapboard, millwork, and knob and tube wiring, but I like the other pictures, too. You're alone, ChrisViewing glimpses of the past, whether 100 years or 50, is fascinating. My wife would tan my hide!Red socks, especially with blue slacks? I would never live that down. As for the inclusion of family Kodachrome slides, I enjoy them. The reason I like Shorpy is because it gives a glimpse of times past. Sometimes the family photos do a better job than some of the sterile professional photos. The enrichment of ShorpyChris Albertson, a couple of years ago, I had the same opinion that you have now. I became annoyed by the postings of tterrance, but still maintained my daily visits. I am just 3 years younger than you, and have slowly realized that these more modern pictures are part of Shorpy's growth and our own past. Let's hope that some viewers will put names to some of these eBay finds. Respectfully, Urcunina Interesting comment Chris, Hi Chris, As a genealogist and family historian, I found over the last few years that Shorpy was an invaluable historic resource for my research. Sure, i would "surf" anonymously but that was that; got my info and off I went. But some days I would just look 'into' places. Literally, zoom up and into the lives of the residents of the cities and neighborhoods featured here. I just couldn't believe where these images would lead me. The most interesting stories and facts and especially the comments. Regular folks, not necessarily experts, just interesting folks. It was these "folks" who drew my attention more and more. I agree that historic and/or "slices in time or life" images seem to be the most engaging, but these Kodachromes are most definitely part of photographic history. They are indeed unique imagery. They are historic AND deteriorating very quickly in drawers, closet shelves, carousels buried in garages and scattered in boxes in attics around the world. When one of these gorgeous images is posted and you begin to read the story and see the real living color of a time gone-by and the comments pour in and you peek at the numbers and see thousands (!!) of "reads", well you gotta feel some excitement and thrill of the "get". Just figuring out the puzzle of a time and day just out of memory or reach for many of us, or the makeup of an interesting family from New England, well it's like a treasure hunt. And aren't those so much fun? It is admittedly a great and grand waste of time I suppose, but most certainly, the best fun since Facebook launched 9 years ago, and quite possibly new beginnings for these images and their owners. For me and my extended family, sharing our Kodachromes is a tribute to the family members (many already gone) who took the time to lug a bulky, clunky, camera around and set up and snap a pic for us all to enjoy just a couple of times on the dining room wall. Now we are really enjoying them again, along with a surprisingly large number of people. It just feels wonderful. I hope you will continue to enjoy the historic quality of these beautiful images as well as the amazing resources from the LOC and Detroit Publishing etc... But please most of all, I hope that you also appreciate the men and women that are working literally 24/7 on Shorpy.com (not to mention all those folks sitting at home, eyes glued to the screen, mouse at the ready) bringing these images to us all day and all night. They ARE Shorpy. Regards, Deborah CharmingI actually do enjoy the family snapshots. It's great fun to look at what people were doing in their everyday lives. Shorpy has it all! re: charm and uniquenessI have to disagree. I love the family pics. Sometimes I find the Dorothea Lange types depressing. Also, Did Billie Holiday sing "The Thrill Is Gone"? I always thought it was BB King's song, didn't realize it was a cover. Diminished? Not at all.I think these Kodachromes are as valuable to Shorpy as all the other historical pictures. Where else do you see unknown people, photographed by unknown photographers, in unknown places, and hope that there will be the one comment: "OMG that's me taken by my uncle Bill at our junior sock hop." It will happen. 100 years from nowthese sort of photos will be just as fascinating to people as any of the older, more "serious" examples on Shorpy. Every moment is history as soon as it passes. How lucky we are that occasionally, someone catches it on film, or video, even digitally. It's all wonderful and so is Shorpy! I can see what Chris is sayingI think the Kodachromes are either hit or miss. Some I enjoy while others (the majority) I could do without. But I don't run the site and I can't complain if I don't find a particular image interesting because there are more than enough images on here to keep my occupied. The site as a whole is really unique. And one should keep in mind that "beauty" is in the eye of the beholder. Ergo, an image that might delight one viewer is sure to bore another. No Smoking?But there appears to be a pack of smokes on the ledge of that little window. Also, count me in as one who really enjoys this type of photograph, then again I collect other peoples old home movies so I'm biased. These are every bit as interesting as the LOC type of photo and probably a more realistic slice of Vintage American life since many of the LOC pictures are staged to some extent. The overwhelming response to my postis appreciated, but it also made me sort of analyze my own expressed opinion. I think it boils down to the fact that I have so many family Kodachromes of my own and such snapshots are readily found on the internet. Shorpy's more regular fare, those wonderful old photos and the remarkable clarity achieved by tterrance and crew are not as easily Googled and rarely presented with such sharp details. Then, too, I am 81 and a jazz historian, jaded by having hundreds of photos around the apartment.candid shots from the 50s on up bring back memories to me, but not the discovery that makes Shorpy so speciale. So, I guess I have been spoiled by the delights of Shorpy. I still love this site and recommend it (one of my two blogs has had a Shorpy link for three years). Thank you all for the comments and thank you tterrance for the site and this forum. I hope I haven't been too disruptive. P.S. Yes, AuntieVi, BB King certainly made "The Thrill is Gone" his own and turned it into a hit. I heard Billie sing it in person, but I don't think she recorded it. RegardlessOf the photo, black and white or superb color, recent or ancient, they are glimpses into our past and help us visualize, if only for a moment, what life was like back then. And in some cases, see ourselves as we were. Love to know where those stairs went up to, obviously some sort of service stair based on appearance, why was the access open to them. This band of merry makers look like they'd be just the ones to sneak up and create a ruckus. AshtrayUnderneath guy on right, with smoldering cigarette. (Hey, they're not in the main hall but in the shenanigans room. There's one in every building when you're a teenager.) Charming and uniqueThat's what the guy third from left believes about his choice in socks. Is That a Ceiling on the Wall?I guess the tin fits everywhere kind of like this mix of photos fits throughout Shorpy. I enjoy all the ages presented especially if you can see that other generations were just as squirrelly as mine no matter what the social norm. Re: Lincrusta. Thanks Mattie, that's interesting and makes sense. Cheaper than wood molding and less fragile than formed plaster. I think it does need a paint adhesion inspection if possible. As per Chris AlbertsonNot to jump on the wagon or anything, but I have just now joined the site after a year or so of browsing to offer the following comment: not all of your viewers are camera aficionados steeped in the history of photography or, dare I say it, of an older generation. I am no spring chicken, having been born in the late 1970s, but almost every single photograph on here predates me and I learn from and enjoy seeing all of them, family Kodachrome snapshots included. Not diminished at allI love this site and don't see the inclusion of Kodachromes as diminishing it at all! Keep up the great work! No spring chicken?Orange56, I sincerely hope you don't feel "over the hill" at mid-30's! Chris Albertson has a little fewer years on me, than I do on you; you've got a long way to go, youngster! Everybody and their uncles"The thrill is gone" was recorded by mostly every pop and jazz singer in that era. Julie London, Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Mel Torme and on and on. (I don't think Michael Bolton has recorded it yet but he probably will...I'm kidding about M.B.) Critics like to give him a hard time, so I'm piling on too. These old KodachromesI like that they've been included. My parents would have been approximately this age in the early fifties and I enjoy seeing what life was like in a unrehearsed kind of way. Ceiling on the wallIt's a heavily-textured wallpaper known as Lincrusta or Anaglypta. It's sturdy stuff and can hold up well under layers of paint. If we knew where this building is located, we might learn how well it holds up under layers of hair tonic. More color Kodachromes!!!I love the 100 year old b/w photos, but the color Kodachromes make Shorpy a much more "thrilling" site for so many more people. Keep them coming...even up to the 70's & 80's. They are necessary to keep Shorpy relevant to a larger population of internet users. Fuggedaboutit!My first (and second) thought on this photo is that it looks like some of the gang from "The Sopranos". It's a little before their time, but I still see it every time I look at this photo. Farked!https://www.fark.com/comments/11937855 (Farked, Linda Kodachromes)
An American Family: 1942
... a child I listened to many "scare" programs on it late at night. My dad kept it in the living room of his house well into the seventies, ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/28/2017 - 11:55pm -

September 1942. Rochester, New York. "The Babcocks, an American family, tuning in for war news. Mr. and Mrs. Babcock with children Shirley, Howard and Earl, the youngest." Photo by Ralph Amdursky, Office of War Information. View full size. Warm GlowI, too, recall the golden glow from the tuner of our upright radio. Especially after an air raid warden thumped on our door during a blackout drill and told my mother that he could see it from the street. Fast-forward to 1949Just think how delighted these people will be when television comes along. Wake me after the commercialsThese kids certainly favor both parents. Looks like Dad's having a catnap. Love love love Shirley's lace collar, and that embossed planter thing. Love the radioMy father bought a similar radio for my mother sometime in the forties. I think it was a Motorola. It worked flawlessly for decades. As a child I listened to many "scare" programs on it late at night. My dad kept it in the living room of his house well into the seventies, as a conversation piece. On one of my trips back home to South Carolina I was determined to find a way to bring it back to ND where I live. I planned to stash it under the bed in our motor home. When we got there, the radio was missing. Dad, not knowing I wanted it, had hauled it out to the dumps a few weeks before. He felt pretty bad, but it was my fault I guess. Alternate takeFather is speaking! Click to enlarge. RadioFunny how we would sit and watch the radio like that. I'm not sure what we expected it to do. I guess multitasking hadn't been born yet. I miss that. Watching the radioI only have a couple snapshot memories of Radio Days; I was six when TV came to the house in 1952 and changed everything, relegating our c.1940 Zenith radio/phono to the upstairs not-quite attic cubbyhole off my sister's bedroom. There it saw additional service when she got a 45rpm turntable that could be hooked up to it. Later it helped expand my classical music appreciation with 78s I scrounged from family friends, and opened up the world to me a bit by means of its short-wave band. Later we transplanted the 3-speed turntable from our portable into it and it saw a few more years of life before ignominious banishment to the basement. Now it's an inert, but highly-retro decorative adornment in my living room. If I lost all reason and plugged it in, it would almost certainly immolate itself. Those snapshot memories: The Whistler whistling his Whistler theme; "Inner Sanctum's" creaking door; Tallulah Bankhead and company singing "May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You" at the signoff of each Sunday's "The Big Show." Also a hazy impression of sitting - or more likely, lying on the floor - staring at it while listening. So yes, some people did that. All goneEarl Babcock died in 2011 at the age of 76, and the oldest girl, Shirley, in 1986 (I think), while middle-child Howard died just two weeks ago on January 16, 2013. http://www.pinesfunerals.com/new_view.php?id=67901 Anti-Dorian GrayWhen I saw the first one, I thought maybe it was just that particular picture, but now I'm convinced that that boy in the suit is the oldest-looking young kid I've ever seen. It doesn't make sense,but staring at the radio's speaker somehow made it easier to listen. I was 12 when that photo was taken and I spent much time staring at a piece of cloth behind a wood cut-out. I later spent many years as a broadcaster—in TV as well as radio—and I feel post-WWII kids missed out on a lot whenTV became the main medium. Radio fed the imagination like that tube never can. Of course we still have radio, but rarely is it used to conjure up images in our minds. Sartorially SpeakingI will assume a girlfriend eventually told Howard that he shouldn't wear striped socks with plaid trousers, it's obvious his Mother didn't. Love Old-Time Radio!Funny how on our gee-whiz auto satellite radios, 90% of what my wife and I listen to is the XM old-time radio channel hosted by Greg Bell. In addition to the favorites mentioned by tterrace, we particularly enjoy Dragnet, Yours Truly Johnny Dollar, the Jack Benny Show, Boston Blackie, Casey Crime Photographer and Phil Harris and Alice Faye's show. Other favorites I've found online and listened to for hours are Superman, I Love a Mystery and my all-time favorite, Speed Gibson of the International Secret Police, which featured Mayberry's Howard McNair. Wonderful entertainment! I believe those old sets had some great speakers and/or circuitry, because they sound super to my ear compared to more modern units. Staring at the RadioIt was only polite to look at someone who was speaking to you - it showed you were paying attention. That's basically what's going on here: good manners told us that facing the voice was part of paying attention to what it was saying. Hair TonicI can't remember the name of the insidious boys' hair oil, sold in barber shops, that hardened the hair into whatever arrangement it was combed into. I used it for years. Even cow-licks were defeated for half the day. Hair tonic could have doubled as shirt starchCould that long forgotten hair tonic be Odell Hair Trainer? Hair Tonic NameI think "Vitalis" is the name you are thinking of. It came in a bottle and you poured some in your hands and then rubbed it into your hair. Hair goopI was a Brilliantine kid, myself. Age Range of KidsI'm fascinated by the apparent wide range of ages of the children. Big sister Shirley looks to be a good ten years older than middle-child Howard, and Earl another four or five years younger still. Was that typical of families before WWII? Or am I just bad at guessing ages? RE: It doesn't make senseActually, it does. When you stare directly at where the sound is coming from, you gain the benefit of both ears picking up the sounds simultaneously; it improves the quality of what you hear. Today, people just pop on headphones, and it doesn't matter. Or maybe they're waiting to catch a glimpse of the little guy that lives in the radio and shouts out the news to everyone. You know the guy; he's the brother of the little guy that lives in the refrigerator, and turns out the light when you shut the door. And with regards to the comment about range of ages; I'm the youngest of 9, and my oldest sister is 18 years older than me. Her oldest (my nephew) is 3 years younger than me, and was more like a little brother than a nephew. BrioleneBriolene was the name of the emerald green viscous hair goo that quickly hardened and held my perpetually unruly hair in place. Great stuff, once available from barber shops only, it's been gone for years. Come to think of it so too have a lot of barber shops, but my unruly hair still lingers on. War News Nothin'I'll bet they're listening to "Fibber McGee & Molly" or maybe "The Great Gildersleeve". Or if it is war news it's the ongoing war between Jack Benny and Fred Allen. Ulysses Everett McGill Was RIght!Having fine and unruly hair, I've used Vitalis for years, though I have buy it online nowadays; most stores don't carry it anymore. It has a distinctive smell. The combination of Vitalis and Old Spice after-shave prompted one lovely young woman to tell me, "I look forward to being in the elevator with you because you smell just like my dad!" Well! As U.E. McGill said, "The pleasing aroma is half the point!" Re: Hair TonicI used to use Wildroot Creme Oil, then discovered Brylcreem. Talk about the greasy kids' stuff. I guess I was a greasy kid. Brief Notice of Howard's PassingClick on Howard's picture for a larger view. Teddy Bears' PicnicI too grew up with radio. But my memories are of the kids shows. I used to wake up early on Saturday mornings, scramble to the living room and turn on the radio first thing. I loved the deep orange glow of the vacuum tubes and the faint static as it warmed up. No instant-on back then. And then came a morning of adventure and transport far beyond anywhere I'd ever been. Anybody remember Big John and Sparky? (and their theme song about teddy bears)? Sgt Preston of the Yukon and his faithful dog. The Green Hornet (with that great great buzzing theme song)? Any number of other kids shows were on post WWII and before TV gained any traction. All dressed upBy the way everyone is dressed up, you would think the President was speaking. Came in pink and greenI somehow feel embarrassed confessing this, but my hair gloop was Dippity Do. And, currently, so is my son’s. So sadThat they are all gone. Somehow when we're young we think of our families as forever and unchanging but it's not the case. Umbrellas and AshtraysI love the substantial ashtrays on the table behind the family group. We always had similar ones in our house growing up. But what are those tiny, upside down umbrella shaped vessels on the radio? Drinking glasses? Candy dishes? It's a mystery to me. So many detailsI have a 1941 Zenith console radio, with 10 tubes, that I had restored a few years ago. I found a low power AM transmitter (called the SSTran AMT-3000, if anybody's interested), that I can plug into my computer, or a CD player, or whatever, and it sends an AM signal to my radio. So I can listen to the old time music and radio programs that are now available on the Web. I enjoy it a whole lot. My radio, like so many of the era, is a beautiful object, full of Art Deco details, some real wood veneers, and some phoney wood surfacing as well. I just enjoy looking at the radio and its big black Zenith dial when I listen. This picture really shows what a great job the producers of A Christmas Story and Radio Days and a number of others did in capturing that era. Details I love: the lace doily on the radio, the "moderne" ottoman, what looks to be a bible on the radio, and first and foremost, dad's shoes! Snazzy spectators! Toothpick holdersI know this is an older thread but I've been steadily working my way backwards through the posts. As a child I remember my grandmother having some of those little umbrella toothpick holders. She had some in silver and a few in translucent plastic, pink and blue - cute. (The Gallery, Ralph Amdursky, WW2)
From All of Us: 1921
... Shorpy on TV I did a double-take during last night's Daily Show with Jon Stewart. An altered version of this photo appeared ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/29/2014 - 1:44pm -

Washington, D.C. "Dickey Christmas tree, 1921." Our annual holiday card featuring the family of lawyer Raymond Dickey, who has a decade's worth of Christmases preserved in the archives of the National Photo Co. View full size. Different treesWow. It never ceases to amaze me how different Christmas trees looked back in the day. I don't mean the decorations, I mean the actual shape of the tree. Is it because they were just chopped from somewhere by the homeowners? Or maybe there is a species that has been developed for mass consumption today? I don't mean any disparagement on Mr. Dickey's tree because it looks like it was lovingly decorated, which is the whole idea. It's just that the shape is so strange to me and I've seen it in other pictures of that era that have been posted here that I'm curious. Conical ChristmasThis photo makes me wonder - When did the current "pointy triangle" Christmas tree become popular? Did a bill collector just enter the room?Again, a scrawny tree with no lights. Doesn't look like a happy family, and what could they be staring at? [Look again. There are lights all over this tree. - Dave] Perfection is relativeI've observed that in old photos of plain and poorly shaped women as well as poorly shaped Christmas trees, many viewers raise the subject of appearance. We had trees like this when I was young, usually because Dad always got one that was way too tall and we had to cut off to fit it in the room. We had one as recently as about 20 years ago that looked like a giant tumbleweed, rather shapeless and sparse. However, in defense of such trees, my son pointed out that such spareness of greenery made the ornaments much more important, visible and spotlighted the outstanding beauty of decorations such as these, while the lush, bushy trees often obscure the ornaments. I notice that this year there is a "Charlie Brown Tree" for sale which is basically a very sparse branch on a thin, wispy trunk with only one ornament on the single branch, as in the cartoon. As kids, we loved our skimpy, roundish, scanty Christmas tree (just as God made it) and found it magically beautiful. Perhaps growing up and becoming "sophisticated" makes us see faults instead of beauty? Just look at these magnificent ornaments. May your best ever Christmas holiday be exceeded this year. May Shorpy continue to gain fans and prosper. TriangularIt's spruces that are conical. This looks like pine. The smell of ChristmasAh, what wonderful holiday memories; the aroma of evergreen needles and Daddy's cigar smoke in my face. Reflections on an OrnamentDo you have a bigger version of the bauble above the girl's head? I'd love to see the rest of this room (and maybe the photographer?). Ornaments of days gone byChristmas tree shots like this always throw me into a temporal disconnect; these are the exact kind of ornaments I grew up with in the 1950s. And I'll bet this tree looked fantastic in color and in normal, rather than exploding flash powder light. Christmas VacationThis is definitely a Clark Griswold tree. I only wonder where cousin Eddie is. Modern Tree TastesThat tree is fabulous. I think back in the day, especially if you didn't live somewhere fairly close to a supply of ideal, cone-shaped firs or cedars, you pretty much settled for whatever healthy-looking pine or cedar-like tree you could find. Also, keep in mind that today's Christmas tree farms prune the trees every year to make sure they maintain the ideal cone shape. Let 'em run wild and they wouldn't be so perfect, and probably more sparsely limbed. When I was a kid ('70's), before there were any tree farms around, we would just go out in some of our or a relative's woods & find a young juniper & pull it out of the woods. Love this treeThis is more than a Christmas tree. This is Christmas tree as art installation. I love the fact that it nearly takes over the room and that there is room to breathe between the branches that allows the ornaments and ropes of glass balls to be draped and displayed in all their glory. This is the kind of tree my grandparents always had--very big and wide and decorated with the exact same ornaments. The only thing missing is Angel Hair (was it actually fiber glass?). My grandmother went through a big angel hair period before she moved on to tinsel. Too bad all the trees nowadays look exactly the same-perfectly shaped and boring, and too thick to truly decorate and dress to the nines. Alice Dickey ThompsonIts a bit hard to believe from this photo, but the teenager on the right, young Miss Alice Dickey, is destined to be the Editor and Publisher of Seventeen Magazine and Executive Editor of Glamour Magazine. I'm still hunting for a later photo of her. Some Links from the web: Time Magazine, 1949 Time Magazine, 1950 Women's periodicals in the United States: consumer magazines Washington Post, Apr 2, 1940 Rites for Raymond B. Dickey, Lawyer, to Be Held Tomorrow Funeral rites for Raymond B. Dickey, 62, dean of faculty of the Washington Chapter of the American Institute of Banking and a prominent attorney, will be at 2 p.m. tomorrow at Deal funeral home, 4812 Georgia avenue northwest. Burial will be in Cedar Hill Cemetery ... A native of Harpers Ferry, W. Va., Mr. Dickey was educated at Georgetown University where he was awarded an LL.D. degree in 1899 and his LL.M. the following year. At the time of his death he was general counsel for the Civilian Conservation Corps. For many years he taught the bills and notes course at the banking institute. With his son, J. Maxwell Dickey, he maintained offices in the National Press Building. He made his home at 1702 Kilbourne street northwest. ... Besides his son, J. Maxwell Dickey, he leaves his wife, Mrs. Rose M. Dickey; two other sons, Granville E., chief statistician of the Civilian Conservation Corps, and Raymond D. Dickey, of Arlington County, a public relations counsel; and a daughter Mrs. Alice D. Thompson, of California and New York City, the editor of Glamour Magazine. According to the 1920 Census, those pictured here are: Raymond B., 43 Rose M., 40 Alice E., 13 John M., 9 Raymond R., 3 The census also lists an older son, Granville E., 18. [Note: ages are based on those listed in 1920 census plus one.] Boat Ornaments!I love the viking boat ornaments! I feel inspired to make some for my own tree. Charlie Brown Christmas treeI still get flack over this straggly tree, but it remains my favorite, because I took my three-year-old son into the woods and he helped me select cut, haul, erect and decorate it. Beautiful photo!I love this picture. The Christmas tree looks as though it's been lovingly decorated by everybody in the family without notions of "the perfect tree." As someone who is (not by choice) alone on Christmas, I wish I could join them! OrnamentalismI recognize quite a few of these glass ornaments from our own trees of my childhood. We had some of the Santa ones and quite a number of the various balls. As well as birds with the spun glass tails. My favorite was always the crane with the long neck and beak. They clipped onto the branch on a spring. Over the years we lost many of them and the last went when a friend, well known for his clumsiness) was helping put up the tree and sat on the box of ornaments. Who is that man in the ornament?Look at the silver ball over Alice's head. Looks like a man seated with a dog. Clouded PupilsWhy are the pupils of the two bottom kids clouded? Maybe the shutter speed was just slow enough to get a blink in there? [The "clouded" or "zombie" look is a characteristic of flash powder photography, where there was usually no mechanism for synchronizing the exposure and flash. The photo catches the subjects' eyes both open and closed because the exposure is slightly longer than it needs to be. With the advent of flashbulbs and electrical synchronization of shutter and flash, the exposure generally ends before the flash triggers the blink reflex. In the early days of "flashlight" photography, shutter speed wasn't a factor because there was no shutter, or the shutter wasn't used. The lens cap was removed from the camera, the flash was ignited, then the lens cap was replaced. - Dave] Beginning to See the LightsI think the "Viking boat ornament" may have been a balloon with a sail, as in a Jules Verne illustration. Thanks, Dave, I now see the lights—how could I have missed them? Buety is In the eye of the beholderI don't think there is such a thing as a bad looking Christmas tree. I am often amazed by comments made to the contrary. Nowadays so many times the word "tradition" leaves little to the imagination. Some of the most memorable Christmas trees of my past looked a lot less ornate than this tree by far but they were perfect on our eyes. Back in the early 60's we used to string cranberries and popcorn to put on our tree. [Something tells me you haven't seen Buety lately. - Dave] Good Luck!I think I've spotted the Christmas Pickle! "Village of the Damned," anyone?Even with an explanation, those kids are pretty creepy. Tree Full of HeirloomsLet's hope the kids of these kids are still putting the same beautiful ornamants on their trees this Christmas. Connections, connections...Alice probably edited the Glamour magazine seen hanging in the newsstand in last week's "Zines": https://www.shorpy.com/node/7233 It's amazing how things here are connected. I'll be darned. After reading the tip about Alice growing up to be an editor, I pulled out my trusty copy of Seventeen Magazine from November 1946 from my desk drawer (doesn't everyone have one stored there?)...and sure enough, there she was! What a cool connection. Tree FarmingI'm not sure how long Christmas tree farming has been a business, but I suspect it wasn't during this family's lifetime. These days it can be profitable business, but while it isn't exactly regulated, with rules as to the sort of trees that can be grown, there are preferred types. According to the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the preferred types are White Pine, White Spruce, Scots Pine, Balsam Fir, Blue Spruce and Fraser Fir. The trees are pruned for shape and to increase foliage density. I suspect that none of this happened to this tree. Someone probably just went out into the woods and cut down the scraggly runt trees that didn't look like they'd ever amount to anything went it came to lumbering. Then they shipped them off to the city where they'd cost a pretty penny to the buyers and supplement the lumber company's bottom line. I'm guessing these folks got the best of what was available and were damned pleased to get it. Not only does he smoke in the house,but he can't put it down for the Christmas photo. I am assuming that the Dickey family had these made but didn't send them out in Christmas cards ...after all the invention of the refrigerator magnet was decades in the future. Old Clothes?This is one of those photos you can look at in hi-def and notice more and more. This family is obviously prosperous -- it's a huge tree and elaborately decorated, if not in the current shape fashion,also note the train set-so WTH- Mom's in her oldest skirt with stuff crammed in her pocket,junior has holes in his stockings and something safety-pinned to the front of his shirt and the future glamour editor looks decidedly unglamorous. Even given the limitations of flash photography at the time, these people don't look happy,and even in 1921 people had plenty of experience with Kodaks and snapshots and knew how to smile for a picture. Here Mom looks deranged, Dad looks like he's threatening the terrified looking child on his knee, and the two older kids look like they can't wait to get out of there. Merry Christmas! Shorpy on TVI did a double-take during last night's Daily Show with Jon Stewart. An altered version of this photo appeared during a segment entitled Obama's Socialist Christmas Ornament Program. Either it's a remarkable coincidence or someone at the Daily Show is reading Shorpy. (The Gallery, Christmas, D.C., Kids, Natl Photo, The Dickeys)
Sausalito: 1958
... California tag #PVD 799. Summer nights? Hot summer night in Sausalito Can't stand the heat another mile Let's drop a quarter ... And hit the sidewalk for a while --"Sausalito Summer Night" Diesel, c. 1981 It's a Crosley A Crosley Panel Truck ... 
 
Posted by Rute Boye - 07/25/2012 - 8:30pm -

The yacht harbor in Sausalito, California, shot on Anscochrome circa 1958. I believe this is on Richardson Bay, with Belvedere Point in the background. There are some pretty interesting cars in in this shot, including the mysterious little European-looking thing on the far right. View full size. SausalitoI believe the "European-looking thing" is an American-made Crosley van. The near ridge is indeed Belvedere Island; beyond that, Tiburon Peninsula. I looked for our 1956 Rambler wagon, but no such luck. [Edited to reflect correction of reversed image.] Re: BabushkaSo did my Mom's side, all first or second generation California-Italian, despite "Babushka" being Grandmother in Russian... DaveB Many, many more boatsA contemporary view of the same parking lot (courtesy of Google Earth) reveals the 1958 photo was taken at approximately 517 Bridgeway in Sausalito. Landscaping has softened the edges of the dirt parking lot (originally a train yard for Northwestern Pacific Railroad) and the number of pleasure craft has exploded, but the small sheds lining the pier have remained pretty much unchanged. Impala, SchmimpalaDustyrider said: "Super Sport Chevrolets until 1961." Ummm, no. The Impala was introduced, as the top of the line Chevrolet, in 1958. [Confusion arises because he split his sentence between the title and the body of the comment. He was attempting to say "There were no Impala Super Sport Chevrolets until 1961." - tterrace] Bob Bourke MasterpieceAlthough the pictured Studebaker design came out of the Raymond Loewy studio, it was created by Bob Bourke, with help from several other guys. Loewy normally gets the credit for this landmark Studie, but the design was not his. Regarding Babushka Lady, does anyone else see a hint of 58 Mercury in the image? Notice that the wing configuration fits a full panoramic windshield, something none of the Chrysler products ever had. The bodywork on the humble 51 Nash is definitely not the work of George Barris. First girlfriend's carThat Chevrolet in the third row on the right side looks like the 53 model that my older woman (17) girlfriend picked me up in. English FordI recognized the green import center front as an English Ford. I remember seeing them back when my mother drove me around in our black 1959 Chevy Impala Super Sport. Sausalito TodayI decided to take a quick ride down to Sausalito and see if I could replicate the image from 1958. I think I got pretty close, and the changes can be seen. Another European beautyI'm pretty sure the rightmost car on the third row is a Citroen DS. Not an Anglia?Not sure if its an Anglia looks more like this a 1952 Consul love the cars!I see a Willys-Overland Jeep Station Sedan! Changing face of the US auto marketIn addition to that green Ford Consul and yellow Crosley, I see a blue-green Renault Dauphine next to a Cadillac in the second row, and a VW Beetle and Karmann Ghia in the back row, facing away from the viewer. Still a number of US independents to be seen, in the form of Nash/Ramblers and that lovely black '55 Studebaker hardtop in front of the Consul. Negative flippedNo one has mentioned that the negative has been flipped here. Notice all the steering wheels are on the wrong side. I want that black Studebaker! [Wow, extreme blushes from a Marin County native here! It's been fixed, thanks! - tterrace] Hey! Look for me in the Bay area, 1958I'll be in the VW Bus, California tag #PVD 799. Summer nights?Hot summer night in Sausalito Can't stand the heat another mile Let's drop a quarter in the meter And hit the sidewalk for a while --"Sausalito Summer Night" Diesel, c. 1981 It's a CrosleyA Crosley Panel Truck 1959 or 1960 perhapsI believe I see a 1959 Chevy in the last row, facing the gent walking on the dock. Little European thingsQuite a few of 'em, actually. Above the Crosley is a Citroen; right in the middle (above the1955 Studebaker Commander Coupe with its, ahem,"European Styling") is a Renault Dauphine; to the left is a black VW Beetle, and above it a black-over-red VW Karmann Ghia. There's also some convertible in the middle of the far row that look vaguely English next to another Bug and to its left, something I'd almost swear was a Volvo PV544. Yep, there's also a '59 Chevy, but it's no Impala. P.S. I'm told the translation for Reanault Dauphine is, "I rust." Bound for TahitiAll this talk of cars overlooks a much more significant element to this photo. The large, two-masted schooner at the outermost dock is Sterling Hayden's Wanderer. Hayden was a major Hollywood heartthrob at the time, but in 1958 he got fed up with the system and walked out on it all. In violation of studio contracts and a court-ordered divorce decree, he sailed off to Tahiti with his four kids on Wanderer. The voyage formed the central thread of the autobiography he published five years later, titled "Wanderer." This photo must have been taken very shortly before he left. He was not some impulsive pleasure boater though. Hayden had been a sea captain for a long time before falling into Hollywood in the first place. He was frequently canonized as an independent man who didn't care what anybody else thought of him and did not get along with the Hollywood system. But his autobiography paints a much deeper, somewhat sadder picture of a man who never seemed to quite find what he was looking for. He continued to live in Sausalito for a long time later in life. It's quite likely one of the cars in the foreground of the photo was his, but I don't know what he drove. Re Hayden, Studebakers, and Precious Bodily FluidsSterling Hayden had an exceedingly interesting life (actor, author, sailor, model, Marine, OSS agent) and I urge everyone to read the Wiki on him. As General Jack Ripper in "Dr. Strangelove", his character's concern for precious bodily fluids helped set the tone for that film's zany atmosphere. Regarding Studebakers, I sure can relate to the one in this photo because half a century ago the one below (a '54 Starliner) was mine, properly dechromed, lowered and with the anemic stock engine replaced with a Chevy V-8. I was only two years old, of course, so reaching the pedals was a chore. More carsA red '53(?) Ford F100 in the row nearest the camera, behind it a '58 or '59 Lincoln, to the left is a '58 Chrysler Imperial. In the row near the water, on the right, a '53 Buick Roadmaster parked at an angle. One row closer and a bit left, a '56 Plymouth. Now my eyes are tired. So many cars!Thanks to Shorpy viewers, the only three vehicles I couldn't make out were identified (the Crosley Van, English Ford, and the Volvo convertible). I was proud to be able to name all of the rest of them, but I won't bore everyone with a recitation of their makes here, unless someone wants to twist my arm! The English Ford was truly a California carMy Dad was a Ford employee for years, so when I began to drive in the early 1960's he bought me a used Ford Anglia for a few hundred dollars. When I started college in 1965, I purchased a used Anglia station wagon with real wood trim. They were great little cars as long as the temperature was above 28 degrees. Unfortunately Michigan gets much colder in the winter. The starting system didn't have the snap at lower temperatures to start the engine. AAA finally cut me off from road service on the car because of too many push starts. Push it up to 10 mph and pop the clutch and it would start no matter what the temperature. Both had manifold vacuum operated windshield wipers which slowed down when you went up a hill or did a hard acceleration. Both also had the old vacuum tube radios which used a vibrator power supply to boost the 12 volts to the necessary higher voltages. The radio took about 25 seconds to warm up. I still can remember the buzz the vibrator made. I still wonder today what possessed me to buy the second Anglia. Hayden the WandererCarl H's identification of Sterling Hayden's yacht has to earn the noticing prize for July, even among the Shorpy eagle eyes. Hayden's unhappiness circa 1958 had another source: in 1951 he "named names" before the House Un-American Activities Committee. Ever after he expressed "contempt for myself since the day I did that." Tahiti turned out not to be far enough away. Happily, over the last quarter century of his life, he regularly allowed himself to be lured out of "retirement" to make movies. This gave us General Jack Ripper in "Dr. Strangelove" and the crooked Captain McCluskey in "The Godfather." Miles and Miles of Memories HereThere are lots of childhood memories amid that parking lot. When my dad tired of waiting six weeks for penny ante parts from Coventry, England for our Jaguar Mark VII, he bought a '55 Studebaker coupe in two-tone blue. He loved it. I preferred the Jaguar and called our new main driver the "Stupidbaker". But looking at the one here, I can see why my father remained forever fond of it. And why he was annoyed when at age four, I let the air out of all the tires. We also had a '57 Chevy coupe and a '59 Impala station wagon that was our favorite family vacation car for many years, so much so that we bought another, identical in every detail and had two for many years. Our neighbor on one side had a Rambler like the one in the front row, but in metallic kelly green, and another neighbor had a Citreon, in white. Rode in them often enough. Interesting story about Hayden. I'd like to read that book. Thank you for mentioning it. There were no ImpalaSuper Sport Chevrolets until 1961. BabushkaAll the females in my household called the scarf the lady is wearing as she is getting in/out of the Dodge Wagon a babushka. Volvo ConvertibleAs a long time Volvo owner, not sure if Volvo ever sold a convertible in the US back then; the P1900 was built during this time period [67 built], but it was more of an experiment to test market reaction, it led to the P1800 of 1962. And a Volvo dealer, Volvoville on Long Island, NY, later converted a few P1800 coupes into convertibles, but without Factory blessing. That PV-544 might be a PV-444; if it's the car I think it is, you can't tell if the windshield is two piece [444] or one piece [544]. Great picture and interesting info about Hayden. The UK Ford......is in fact a 'Zephyr', the 6 cylinder big brother to the Consul. The Zephyr has a different front grill and hood and, unlike the Consul, has the chrome hood ornament that can just be seen in the photo. Also evident is the small chrome trim on the side fender just above the front wheel that was also not fitted to the Consul. I spent many an hour back in the day under the various products from Mr Ford, including these models. Thanks again Shorpy for my daily 'fix'! Punch Bug, Light BluePunch Bug, Light Blue! or is that Slug Bug? I never remember. LuxuryI love seeing the front of the Lincoln Continental and the rear of the Imperial. Both cars are showing off their most distinctive features. Sterling Hayden's addressSome are saying that Hayden lived in Sausalito. He had a magnificent old house on the very top of Belvedere Island south, a block away from my parents' after 1958. I remember our dogs didn't get along with his, not that he noticed. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery)
Appleton: 1962
... Kodachrome from the Shorpy archives that I scanned last night. Where are we, and when? See the comments for your answers. View full ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/04/2017 - 5:11pm -

UPDATE: It took only a few minutes for you to pinpoint the location to Appleton, Wisconsin. Well done! This is one of the Janet & Kermy Kodachromes, labeled "Wisconsin plane trip 1962." The slide was processed in October 1962. A 35mm Kodachrome from the Shorpy archives that I scanned last night. Where are we, and when? See the comments for your answers. View full size. Why are downtowns desolate nowadays?Comparing the photo from 1962 to Google Street View, it is jarring how desolate the downtown feels. The older photo seemed to pack in SO MANY more stores, so much more texture, and of course, so many more people and cars. Lots of photos on this site, when compared to modern day, feel the same. I suppose I know some of the answers, but it still jumps out at me. [Shopping centers, for one. - tterrace] Iroquois beerSo we're probably somewhere in New York. Buffalo? [I could really go for a six-pack of Pontiacs right about now. - Dave] Amarica's Dairyland@bobstothfang- You would be correct. The phrase America's Dairyland has been on all Wisconsin standard automobile plates since 1940. TuslerI think there was a Tusler Pontiac in Appleton, WI. 1960Newest car in the photo is the 1960 Chevy parked on right foreground. Just a guessI'd say early 1960s Atlanta. AppletonThat is Appleton, Wisconsin. That's cool!No comment in particular other than I love these photos that capture a place in time. Love it. Appleton, WisconsinAt back, the H.C. Prange Department Store was at 126 West College Avenue Appleton, Wisconsin. It opened in 1946. View Larger Map Is this the place?Might this be Appleton, Wisconsin? Downtown AppletonDowntown Appleton, WI; looking west along College Avenue between Morrison and Oneida. View Larger Map Lightning-quickI am impressed! Appleton, Wisconsin, is correct. This is one of the Janet & Kermy Kodachromes, labeled "Wisconsin plane trip 1962." The slide was processed in October 1962. Appleton200 block of East College, Appleton, Wisconsin I'll take an educated guessI am betting that we are looking south on the main street in Appleton, WI in the very early '60s. Based on the following clues -- Tusler Pontiac sign Tusler Motor Company (Google) Burton Tusler (Google) The vintage of the cars Jimos Hat Cleaners (Google) "Andy Jimos, who had a hat cleaning business on the main street for 65 years…from 1927 to 1982"... The license plates are tough to see, but they might say "America's Dairyland" on the bottom. [Other clews below. - Dave] 217 east college Appleton WIGreenen dry goods is pretty conclusive. There are a lot of changes but the red brick building with beige points is still there. But here's the most perplexing question of allWhy does Jimos Hat Cleaners have a Coca-Cola logo on its sign? Far CarsFrom the left: 1961 Chevy, 1955 Chevy Nomad, yellow 1959 Ford, 1962 Ford, another 1959 Ford, blue 1962 Ford, 1960 Mercury. AALThe large building on the far right with the "A.A.L" on it is the headquarters of the Aid Association for Lutherans (now Thrivent). I've had a life insurance policy with them since my parents bought it when I was two months old (March 1962). Dave:aren't clews the lower part of a sail? [Maybe you need to get out more! - Dave] Iroquois BeerI spent an hour or more looking for Iroquois Beer but only found Schlitz on top of Dick's Tavern. Where the heck is it? Iroquois beer was brewed in Buffalo & Dunkirk NY and also in Ohio at various times but not in Wisconsin, "diloretta" anything further to add? Thanks for the reason to hunt this pic. [I think Diloretta was confusing Chief Pontiac with the Iroquois mascot. - Dave] Desolate DowntownsThis looks to be one of those towns that tried to buck the trend by putting the shopping center/mall downtown. These almost always failed. Nowadays malls are becoming ghost towns, and the new trend is toward "town centers" combining stores, housing and office buildings in order to try to recreate the downtown experience. The circle of life. Things that pass; things that remainThe things that have passed: Pontiac, Mercury, Oldsmobile, F.W.Woolworth. The things that have remained (so far): Chevrolet, Ford, Singer, Coca-Cola, Dutch Boy, Smirnoff, Sears (although who would have guessed Sears would be owned by K-Mart?). Others that have passedTo add to mpcdsp's list, H.C. Prange (department stores) and AAL (Aid Association for Lutherans), the two tall buildings on the right. Both Appleton mainstays were bought out or merged and renamed. Clue about clewIn Greek Mythology "clew" refers to the ball of thread used by Theseus to find his way out of the labyrinth to escape the Minotaur - becomes clue in American usage. 1957 Olds From IllinoisCheck out the robin's egg blue 1957 Oldsmobile sitting under the MARX clock. He's a visitor from Illinois. I distinctly remember the dark orange plates with white numerals, even though I was 12 years old at the time. Ahhhh, good times. No cell phones, no computers, kids got exercise outdoors playing and we were the most prosperous nation in the world. The only thing we had to worry about was the Russians! Grandpa following DadA nostalgia trip for me,as my grandfather had a purple '59 Olds and my Dad a red '59 Chevy Bel Air at the time this photo was taken. My brother and I would stand on the floor behind the old man and watch him drive (no car seats, or even seatbelts, then). The cars are all as familiar to me as today's cars, except for that Nomad (good eye, Dave). I don't remember ever seeing one till later when they were big with street rodders and surfers. Blue carThe blue car under the MARX clock is a '55-'56 Buick, not a '57 Oldsmobile. I owned a '57 Olds back in 1962. They have a 3 piece rear window and oval tailights. My hometownI lived in Appleton from 1969 to 1995. You can see the AAL building and Zuelke building. Gibson Motors used to be here on College Avenue also. My father bought his brand new 1974 Chevy Malibu here. Up the street a little farther was the movie theater where I first saw Star Wars in 1977. I was 9 years old. When I got my drivers license, in the mid-'80s, I used to "cruise the ave" as they used to say, looking for girls. What memories. Thank you for the post. (ShorpyBlog, The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Kermy Kodachromes)
Pharm Noir: 1921
... D.C., circa 1921. "People's Drug Store, Seventh & K, night." With a lurid display of "trusses and rubber goods." National Photo Co. ... the feet warmer in polished cotton sheets on a winter night! Rubber Goods Hot water bottles were used to provide heat such as ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/17/2012 - 10:25pm -

Washington, D.C., circa 1921. "People's Drug Store, Seventh & K, night." With a lurid display of "trusses and rubber goods." National Photo Co. View full size. The pharmacy that time forgotIn the late 1960s some friends and I found an ancient Latino pharmacy in the oldest commercial section of Oakland, CA, the Botica Mundial. It still looked very much like this branch of People's Drug, and half of its street windows permanently featured an unusually lurid assortment of trusses, abdominal belts, braces, supports, and other items too mysterious or scary to mention. Many of these were displayed on painted plaster mannequin sections, torsos with groins, arms and legs, and a couple of heads. The dimly lit pharmacy interior smelled wonderful, as all real compounding pharmacies once did, and was jammed with dark wood cabinets and racks filled with both familiar products and others that seemed quite exotic. One whole section seemed to be devoted to Mexican magical potions and paraphernalia, and featured a rack of intensely floral perfumes with names like Noche de Pasión. A year or two after we found this place, it and its entire 1880s neighborhood were swept away by an especially harsh "urban renewal" project. Sham-Wow ChamoisADVERTISING BLURBS ABOVE SECOND STORY WINDOWS: "Shoulder Braces, Rubber Goods, Hospital Supplies . . " "Sponges, Chamois, Perfumes . . ." How often does one purchase a chamois today?? Looks like the dentist shared space with Der Komrades People's #1 Store. Considering he only has a second floor office, he merits a huge anonymous "DENTIST" sign. Next to the second floor window a lesser sign advertises "Advice Free. Gas used for Painless Extractions." And now it's...NPR? [Exactly. One-stop shopping for hot-water bottles, abdominal trusses and Nina Totenberg. - Dave] View Larger Map Complete Line of TrussesNot being personally familiar with trusses, I have no idea how to interpret the following graphic: Complete Line of Trusses at one-half what others charge. PEOPLE'S DRUG STORE, 7th and K Ruptures II"Joe, the counterman, encouraged customers to spill their guts." Oh, Dave, you've outdone yourself. (It does make me wonder now about the mystery novels that had the victim trussed up in a chair, though.) RupturesJust the kind of thing you want on your mind when you go in for a burger and a Coke. [Joe, the counterman, encouraged customers to spill their guts. - Dave] Chamois are greatfor drying your car! I use one when I dry my car (I am very, VERY picky about my baby). I LOVE the lights on this shop. What a great shot! Thanks, Dave. The Wonderful World of RubberThat display on the right is a riot -- paper streamers decorating a window full of ... hot water bottles?!? Where is the sales appeal there? What did people even use hot water bottles for? America was evidently full of aches and pains and ruptures that required elastic fortification and heating. Such was life, perhaps, without booze, Prozac and painkillers. Am I that old?I bought a new chamois just the other day -- your newfangled "cham-wow" just doesn't cut it drying off my 1953 MG TD! And as for what hot water bottles are used for, nothing keeps the feet warmer in polished cotton sheets on a winter night! Rubber GoodsHot water bottles were used to provide heat such as in bed on a cold night or heat to a particular area of the body: sore shoulder, toothache, etc. They were also used along with a "fountain syringe" to administer enemas. They have been replaced by heating pads, electric blankets and other heat generating devices, none of which are any good for giving enemas. Trusses (as well as supportive underwear, belts and God only knows what else) provided support to herniated areas of the lower abdomen or other nether areas. The support ideally would prevent the hernia from becoming larger and prevent the necessity of surgery, which no one wanted to undergo in those days. These sorts of products are still sold, but perhaps not marketed quite as openly. Many buyers for trussesBefore the advent of antibiotics, many physical injuries that are now easily repaired by surgery were more safely left untreated, and the hard physical labors of working class people caused many to endure lifelong pain from chronic hernias, torn ligaments, compressed vertebrae and other painful conditions that were at least somewhat alleviated by trusses, supportive braces and wrappings. This might also explain the vast number of pain-relieving patent medicines and tonics. An elderly second-generation compounding pharmacist once told me that more than half of the proprietary products sold in his father's drugstore between 1912 and 1950 were either painkillers or laxatives, which were needed for another bad aspect of the Good Old Days, the overcooked and barely digestible food on many American tables. Throughout the day...I drive through the city searching out these gems posted here in hopes of them still standing. Too bad this wonderful architecture is now gone. This is a great night shot! TrussesIt seems that in every vintage photo of a drug store trusses were a major item. I never even hear about these things now. Why was there so much need for them back then? PlurinalOkay, so if I have one chamois, I say shammy. If I have two chamois, do I say shammys, or is it still shammy? Also, does that sign say "Urinals"? Is that like a bedpan, or what? Not NPR, BlackboardIt's not at the NPR location. I kept thinking that the NPR location was oh so not the right angle. In this other image I found of the building, you can clearly see past it. It's on the other corner where the Blackboard building is. You can even see the tower down the street in both images. (The Gallery, D.C., Natl Photo, PDS, Stores & Markets)
Italian Wedding: 1921
... were represented at a family reunion which closed last night at the home of Salvatore Scalco, at 637 Otis place northwest. ... ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/25/2012 - 12:20pm -

Washington, D.C., circa 1921. "Scalco, National Fruit Co." Salvatore Scalco, the groom, was company president. National Photo glass negative. View full size. Maid of honorI think that's what she is -- next to the bride, the girl with the knotted string of pearls? I love her expression, dreamlike and yet focused, perhaps gazing into the future -- perhaps at some young man who's standing behind the photographer. Not just fruitThe year before, Salvatore beat the District of Columbia in court over the question of whether the Reed Amendment allowed the seizure of booze unlawfully brought into "dry" Washington. In one of two test cases on that issue, the D.C. Court of Appeals held that, if Congress had wanted the Reed Amendment to allow a forfeiture, it should have said so. Tables & TotsI wonder if the table itself is a wedding gift, and that's how come it's got a tag. I love that the girl who seems to have the most makeup on also has the dirtiest shoes. That combination of coquette and tomboy spells Flapper-in-Training! WowAll the changes of life gone by as WE know it, coming at these folks like a runaway train. ShoesI'm taken aback at how filthy the little girls' shoes are. Perhaps it was an outdoor wedding and they came in for the picture. I'm not sure the girls' headbands are being worn quite the way they intended. As a professional cake decorator, I must say I am very impressed with the details in the cake. Ribbons and bows ... and tagsThe little girls' hair ribbons remind me of orthodontic headgear. Not a very pretty look, unfortunately. And what's with the tags on the corner of the tablecloth? Was it a rental? 40 Year Old VirginOK, I admit to having been biased against believing there were any 40 year old Italian bachelors in the early 20th century. But after consulting the census records I found Salvatore Scalco in the 1920 census: age 38, single. Perhaps Salvatore was too busy a man to marry early: running the family business and serving on the Chamber of Commerce. I haven't been able to find any announcements regarding marriage. In 1924 there was a birth announcement: Dora and Salvador Scalco had a baby girl. [Or maybe he was a widower. There also seems to have been a boy, Nick. In 1944, there's a memorial service notice for Dorothy Marie Scalco. Salvatore died in 1958. - Dave] Update: Though not positive, I believe the census would have distinguished between marital status of widower and single. "You talkin' to me?"Mr. Scalco and the best man are keeping a close eye on the photographer...just in case. Matrimonio, Non!Not a wedding cake: note only one figure on top of cake. Washington Post, Jan 3, 1921 4 Generations at Reunion 37 Members of Scalco Family Pay Great-Grandmother Honors Four generations were represented at a family reunion which closed last night at the home of Salvatore Scalco, at 637 Otis place northwest. ... Washington Post, Aug 8, 1921 Celebrate 40th Birthday Friends of Salvatore Scalco Have Party at His Home Salvatore Scalco, well-known produce merchant, yesterday celebrated the fortieth anniversary of his birth. A large party of relatives and friends gathered at Mr. Scalco's home, 705 Otis place northwest, in honor of the occasion. ... What's the tag?There's a tag attached to the corner of the table cloth (and wrapped around the leg of the table?). What's that about? Linen rented for the party? Could be My ParentsMy parents were both Italian immigrants. They were married in Boston around this time. This picture is uncannily similar to ones that I have, right down to the ribbons across the foreheads. You have set me about to go looking for them. Quite a gathering of the clanI'm loving the dirty shoes of the little girl on the left. Whether it is or isn't, it looks like the wedding picture of my forebears, also Italian. Party BoyThere's no way that's not a wedding judging by the dress of all present. The cake seems to be adorned by a female figure being caressed from behind by a male figure. One can only wonder if Salvatore stopped or started partying with his wedding. Short MoveIf the news clippings are correct, then Salvatore Scalco must have moved to the next block of Otis place over the course of the summer. Dave can you zoom in on the lower left corner and tell us what is tied around the table leg/table cloth? [It's too blurry to read. - Dave] This group needs some boys, so..."And may their first child be a masculine child." TinselWhat is with the strips on tinsel on the ceiling? I guess it's festive, but it seems like there are so few pieces on each strip it's hardly worth it! Brrrr!The photographer forgot to say "cheese". That is not a very happy-looking couple. Also, is there someone out there who might be able to explain the strange assortment of edibles placed around the table? Or why that tag is attached to the tablecloth and tied around the table leg. How about who belongs to the shoe under the table on the right. An altogether strange picture. No disrespect to the Scalco Familybut 1921 must have been awfully thin on news! I'm aware of the small town "social columns" which reported gushing details of anniversary parties, birthday celebrations, out of town visitors, and such, but The Washington Post? Lovely cakeThat is some lovely piping on the wedding cake, and I believe there are pizelle on the table along with those ginormous pears. Not so sureAside from the single clue of the thingy on the cake, everything else in this picture says "Wedding." The doodad on the cake may be an angel or something, but note, there's a bell over it. What else than a wedding bell? The bride and groom (especially the groom) have that shellshocked wedding look. The folks on the left all look related, as do the folks on the right. Gotta be a wedding. Also noteworthy, the men all have tux jackets (not tailcoats, it looks to me) but are wearing white ties. Maybe Obama wasn't breaking precedent at the Inaugural Ball. [It's Cupid ringing a wedding bell. A motif used on President Wilson and Edith Galt's wedding cake in 1915. - Dave] Just off to the rightis a formal settee usually covered in plastic, removed for this very special occasion, a bowl of ribbon candy on a fancy coffee-type table, and military pictures of all the sons in service on top of the piano. I come from Italian grandparents too. Those noses...I'm surprised no one has commented on the family nose. What honkers! Another Scalco granddaughterIn response to some of the comments, the looks on their faces were typical of that of photos of people taken in that era. They were not used to being photographed and the flash was rather strange to them. This was my grandfather's first and only marriage. As for the dirty shoes, many of the streets in Washington were not paved at that time, everybody had dirty shoes. The tablecloth was rented. I have the table and a matching buffet piece in my home. We have had many family dinners on that table. On August 1, 2009, 60 members of the Scalco family gathered at the home of one of Salvatore and Dorothea Scalco's grandsons on Kent Island in Maryland. These are my Grandparents. To the person who thought these people were related to their family, read on to the articles on Salvatore Scalco. See the Uneeda Banana photo. We have many other photos of the family at that time. My father was one of their 5 children. Four of whom are still alive and active. Good genes I guess! I want that family as my own!This is the most elegant celebration of understated quality. The guests have beautiful eyes, beautiful complexions and obvious grace. That cake is extravagant – prettier than I’ve seen in my lifetime. The photo is of a time when a wedding was the celebration of a life commitment. Instead of today, when a wedding is an excuse to get drunk, get gifts, give the 2-year-old a surname. (The Gallery, D.C., Natl Photo, Weddings)
The Wolverine: 1922
... northwest, was thrown into a state of excitement last night just as the shows were discharging their crowds by a fight in the Port ... to my Dad - the hottest place to go to on a Saturday night in the late 30's and early 40's. Drinking, dancing to a band and exotic ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/18/2012 - 5:52pm -

Washington, D.C., circa 1922. "Leader Theater, front." Sidney Lust's movie house on Ninth Street N.W. National Photo Company glass negative. View full size. Into the MixWow. Interesting mix of dancehall cafe, Greek restaurant, vaudeville/burlesque house and cinema. Even in black-and-white, certainly more colorful than the mall multiplex. Breathtaking ArchitecturePlease tell me this magnificent building is still standing. Built in 1910, it could be . . .please! The gigantic statuary flanking the marquee---dwarfed by the HUGE roofline finial statues---is simply stunning. All the buildings along this block have unique architecture with intricate detail. Was this an "entertainment block"? I see a cafe/dance hall, burlesque house, the Leader theater, and a Greek restaurant. I wager to say even the "Washington Shoe Shine and Hat Cleaning Parlor" was probably an entertaining place to visit! The Tarzan die cut advertising tucked around the marquee would be worth a small fortune on today's antique market! The Port ArthurStarting from the left... Washington Post, Oct 20, 1914 Fight in Chinese Cafe Three Men Arrested Following Row in Port Arthur Restaurant The moving-picture district on Ninth, between E and F streets northwest, was thrown into a state of excitement last night just as the shows were discharging their crowds by a fight in the Port Arthur Chinese restaurant, in which three young men are alleged to have attempted to smash everything in the shape of furnishings and the head of every Chinese employee in the place. The trouble attracted a crowd that blockaded the street from curb to curb. Cries and curses and the breaking of glass and tableware added to the situation. Policeman Miller alone grappled with the fighters and emerged from the place brining three of the principles with him. They were taken to the first precinct. Morris Sing, proprieteor of the restaurant, told the police that the party came into his place and ordered food. Then for some reason unknown one of the men picked up the dishes, smashed them, and then started a general assault principally against the Chinese employes of the place. Several of the Chinese waiters were injured, but refused hospital treatment. A one-sex audienceAll boys, I notice. Apparently girls stayed home on Saturday afternoons. All in knickers, scratchy woolen stockings and high leather shoes. And every single one of them wearing a cap except the half-dozen or so who are holding them in their hands. Helen Gibson in "The Wolverine." Not much information, I'm afraid. Elmo Lincoln in "The Adventures of Tarzan." (Lots.) The WolverineI had no idea Hugh Jackman was so old! "The Wolverine"Plot Synopsis by Hans J. Wollstein Based on a novel by the prolific B.M. Bower (pseudonym for novelist Bertha "Muzzy" Sinclair), The Wolverine starred former serial queen and stunt-woman Helen Gibson as a rancher who stands up for an employee (Jack Connolly) unjustly accused of cattle rustling. Ward Warren (Connolly) had come West after serving a prison sentence for a crime he didn't commit. History repeats itself for Ward when a couple of bandits he had chased off the land, accuses him of being a rustler himself. The former common-law wife of Hoot Gibson, Gibson (née Rose Wenger) had gained stardom replacing Helen Holmes in the long-running The Hazards of Helen. By no means a traditional screen beauty -- but spirited -- Gibson's starring career was brief, and she returned to stunt-doubling in talkies. http://www.allmovie.com/work/wolverine-117381 Around the World in a BlockThe architectural walking tour here is pretty wild. There's the Belle Epoque excesses of the Gayety and Leader theaters, crowned by their zinc copies of sculptures from the Petit Palais at the Exposition Universelle in Paris. Then there's the Gothic church facade of the Port Arthur Restaurant. And then there's the Acropolis (Greek) restaurant housed behind a Chinese balcony, left over from the Port Arthur's old location on the other side of the Gayety (the stairwell entrance to the "gothic" Port Arthur at 515-17 has a matching Chinese carved wood awning). But just when I was getting an urge for some nice spanakopita, I noticed that the Acropolis seems to have been replaced by the all-American Rowland's Buffet. Cable cars?Is that a cable slot between the streetcar tracks? [It's access to the underground electrical supply that powered Washington's streetcars. - Dave] "Fastest Northwestern Picture Ever Screened"What the heck does that mean? ["The Wolverine" was a train. Which is shown in the sign. - Dave] Coming AttractionView Larger Map The location today. The J. Edgar Hoover Building is right behind you. The GayetyThis is right around the corner from the original 9:30 Club. I remember parking across the street from the Gayety in the early 80's. Creepy place, they showed "adult" movies. Lots of drug addicts and perverts. Wilbur Mills and the GayetyThe Gayety lasted into the 1970s. That's where House Ways and Means Chairman Wilbur Mills first met "Argentine Firecracker" Fanne Fox, who later jumped from his car into the Tidal Basin and sank Mill's career. Gorgeous photograph!And also a revelation for me. Was The Port Arthur a Chinese food chain? There was also one by that name in downtown Providence. I don't know when it opened there, but I do know that it lasted well into the 1940's and was - according to my Dad - the hottest place to go to on a Saturday night in the late 30's and early 40's. Drinking, dancing to a band and exotic, for its time, Chinese food. My Aunt Mary and another female relative sang there, as well. What an eye-opener! And what a thrill this photo is to drink in! I'd throw down my nickel to see that movie in a second - if only for the pleasure of getting to see what the inside of the theater looked like! This is one of the very best postings this year. [Below: The Port Arthur Chinese restaurant in New York. Click to enlarge. - Dave] Helen GibsonThat picture is awesome. Thanks for sharing it. I have been researching Helen Gibson for many years and have many of her personal ephemera pieces. Including her copy of the Wolverine lobby card with the image enlarged as a poster on the left of the entrance. Thanks for your site, I always see something exciting. Newsboy MatineeGiven all the young boys and the fact that that whatever is going on here it merited a photograph, I am guessing this is another gathering of newsboys for a Saturday matinee. Shorpy viewers have previously seen a similar event in this 1925 photo of the Leader Theater. Alas, no sign of Bo-Bo, "the monkey with the human brain," in the photo. Washington Post, Feb 12, 1922 Carriers' Theater Party Many Post newsboys yesterday had the time of their lives at the showings of the latest installment of the Adventures of Tarzan at Sidney B. Lust's Leader and Truxton theaters as the guests of Mr. Lust and the circulation department of the Post. The boys found the day an even greater event than they had expected, for in the morning at their homes, each had received letters from W.C. Shelton, circulation manager of The Post, thanking them for their efforts delivering The Post on time during the storm and enclosing $1 as a bonus. Mr. Lust, who was host to a number of the carriers yesterday, will entertain as many more today, for tickets good for either day were sent out. As a special inducement to efficient service, the boys who rank among the best carriers in the city will receive free movie tickets for the next 15 weeks. The boys had been particularly interested in the Tarzan film, which features Elmo Lincoln. Bo-Bo, the monkey with the human brain, was on hand to meet the boys when they reached the Theater, and on leaving every boy was given a bag of peanuts. Bo-Bo plays an important part in the Tarzan serial, and his antics created much amusement. Elmo!Where else but in America could a guy named Elmo with a 52-inch chest become a movie star? In addition to his rightful claim to fame as the first film Tarzan (in 1918), Elmo Lincoln was also in the silent classics "Birth of a Nation," "Intolerance" and "That Fatal Glass of Beer." He came back in the late 1930s in bit roles in talkies, including "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." "The Adventures of Tarzan" was Lincoln's third and final foray in the role of the vine-swinger, which was probably just as well, as he was afraid of heights. Released as a 15-part serial, it was one of the smash hits of the year, taking in more than Valentino's "The Sheik." Sugar Plums at the GayetyWhen this photo was taken, burlesque had not yet begun its long slide from musical comedies and revues into adults-only sleaze. The Washington Gayety was one in a large chain of theaters, with shows rotating among them on a circuit, as in vaudeville. Gayety shows featured such stars as Al Jolson, Fanny Brice, Sophie Tucker and Will Rogers. Harry Coleman, starring in the Washington Gayety's "Sugar Plums," was a comedian who began receiving favorable reviews around 1915, and appeared in a few silent films as early as 1910 (his last film credit is as a bit player in the dance hall scenes in Chaplin's "The Gold Rush"). On Nov. 8, 1918, the Toronto World ran a notice for the Toronto Gayety's new show "The Roseland Girls," beginning with this lead: "The Roseland Girls" is a show that may always be relied upon to furnish the sort of entertainment that the patrons of the Gayety Theatre will like and will be enjoyed by all classes of theatregoers. The company is headed by Harry Coleman, Bert Lahr, Kitty Mitchell" [and others]. Absolutely wonderful. What a civilization we once had! The adult on the far right appears to be halting traffic with his blurry arms so as to give the photog a clear view of the newsboys. Elmo of the ApesElmo Lincoln was in the first Tarzan feature, "Tarzan of the Apes," which was filmed in Morgan City, La. (I suppose if you took the Southern Pacific east out of LA that would be the first quasi-jungle swamp you would come to.) Morgan City is a real pit, an oilfield blue collar town with not much going for it. In 1986 I was staying overnight there and read in some chamber of commerce brochure an invitation to come back in 1988, for the 70th anniversary of the release of the film and Morgan City's Tarzan fest. Two years later the Wall St. Journal had an article in its humorous-story corner about how in the midst of all the planning the Edgar Rice Burroughs estate prevented Morgan City from going forward with the festival. The poor town was stuck with all of the preliminary costs of their big event in the city's history. What a shame. Good thing there was a captionI couldn't see the name of the theatre anywhere on it. I suppose it could be covered by a banner for the movie. You'd never see a business today allowing its identity to be obscured. Elmo Is My HomeboyElmo Lincoln is the only movie star from my hometown of Rochester, Indiana! That's all I've got to say. Some 4-digit population towns can't claim ANY movie stars. What is next door?Does anyone read Greek? I wonder what the upstairs of the building on the theater's left houses? [The name is there in both Greek and English: Acropolis Cafe. - Dave] Dressed to the NinesI can't imagine a group of that many boys wearing ties to a movie today. (The Gallery, D.C., Movies, Natl Photo)
Our Darling: 1914
... and penicillin and only four lived to adulthood. Good night sweet prince. R.I.P. Heartbreaking My ex and I often ride our ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/03/2011 - 1:09pm -

Washington, D.C. "J.J. Eaglen." A death notice in the May 18, 1914, Washington Post records the passing of one "John A. Eaglen, 3 years, 1000 8th st. nw." National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size. Sad LossThere have been a few hard hitting photos posted but this one hit the hardest. Very sad. In the weeds>> Then in 1943, for whatever reason, an application was filed to reinter the remains in Woodlawn Cemetery in Washington. Woodlawn went into decline in the 1970s and was a ruin for many years - it's still in terrible shape (many stones down and broken, sections totally overgrown, etc.) but some efforts have been made to restore it in the last five years by a small nonprofit. WonderingI wonder what carried off the poor child? The open casket is compelling, somehow, sharing the loss the parents must have suffered. Melancholy PrinceAnother of those pictures that speak volumes. Inconsolable GriefThere is nothing sadder or more heartbreaking than losing a blameless young child. His loved ones can never be the same people they were in the past as they are permanently, irreparably injured. This photo reminds me of a sweet male cousin of mine, an only child and grandchild who was fatally hit by a car at age 7. Anyone who has been touched by such a loss will never understand it or get over it. This viewing appears to be in the boy's own home, which was the custom when I was young. Even today, my heart aches for the people involved here. My mom's mom had eight children but it was before vaccinations and penicillin and only four lived to adulthood. Good night sweet prince. R.I.P. HeartbreakingMy ex and I often ride our bicycles past a cemetery out in the local Texas countryside. When we stopped to have a look around we were shocked to see how many graves (circa late 1800s) were the final resting place of small children. I guess today we just take for granted that our children will have a long life. Rest in peace little J.J. Eaglen. Viewings at homeThe father of a close friend died about 1961 when my friend was about 12 years old. There was an open-casket wake held in the parlor of the family's farmhouse in Galena, Illinois, the local custom of the time. My friend said that after that profoundly sad experience, he never passed through the room again without recalling that final view of his beloved father. Escape HatchI am glad to see there is a drop-down egress provided: just in case. The Way It WasIt was the common practice to "wake the deceased" at home in the parlor. The advent of funeral "homes" or "parlors" gave rise to the term "living room" in houses. [The notion that the dead were laid out in parlors while the bereaved congregated in the "living room" is a sort of etymological urban legend debunked here and here and many other places. - Dave] My son is 3This makes me cry. John Alphonse Eaglen, son of J.J. Eaglen The Familysearch database returns records for the death certificate, permit for disinterment and reinterment of one John Alphonse (Alphonso) Eaglen. Like puzzle pieces, these records tell the story of a child born in 1911 that succumbed on May 16, 1914, at the age of 3 years, 5 months and 16 days. The cause of death was measles, complicated by a heart condition. He was buried in Sligo, Maryland. Then in 1943, for whatever reason, an application was filed to reinter the remains in Woodlawn Cemetery in Washington. One of the records describes a John Alphonse Eaglen that seemed to fit the scenario described here in every way, except for his being labeled as "black." Then I found the Census record for his father, J.J. Eaglen, which lists him as Mulatto. Color lines, even in deathWoodlawn is an African-American cemetery established in 1892. For whatever reason, that could explain the boy's 1943 disinterment and re-interment. It would be nice if a Shorpyite living in the DC area could locate his grave there, to see if he is buried among other Eaglens. Who knows, maybe some of his African-American relatives wanted his remains moved there, to be close to family. Postmortem PhotographyIt seems that taking pictures of deceased children was a common practice in years past. Vintage photo collections show many such photos. It is perhaps less common a practice today now that most of us have and use cameras frequently and have taken pictures of the children before their now less frequent early death. That tiny sprigIn little John's right hand, the slightly wilting flowers suggest he had been placed there probably that morning. His mother very likely brushed his hair one last time. Did she say, "My Johnny, my dear sweet Johnny"? Although I hate to imagine it, his final days could not have been without suffering, made all the sadder by his total innocence. In some way the fact that we, strangers all, have gathered here to talk about him, with respect, is a memorial in some sense to his existence, a century later. Thank you, Dave, for making it possible. Home FuneralMy mom died six weeks ago of complications from Alzheimer's disease after living with my husband and me for three years. With the help of a home funeral guide, we washed Mom's body and prepared it for visitation. She died on a Wednesday, and visitation was at our home one Thursday and Friday. Mom was in her bed in her bedroom. We used dry ice to keep the body cool. On Saturday morning the funeral director came to take Mom's body away for cremation. Now that we have "done" one home funeral, I wouldn't want it any other way. All the yearsIt's especially sad to think that this child we see deceased here in 1914 could conceivably still be alive if he'd been fortunate enough to live into old age. All those years he did not get to see. Childhood MortalityIt's sobering to remember that the average American lifespan at that time was under 50 years. That didn't mean that people didn't live to ripe old age, they did. It means that many many more infants and children died then. Measles was often fatal, so was whooping cough, diphtheria, and a myriad of other "childhood diseases." Thank goodness for sanitation, clean water, and immunization. On dying youngIn 1913 a typhoid fever epidemic in Central Pennsylvania took the lives of my mother's sister, Rose, at age 6, and their mother, age 29. Rose died 10 days after their mother. My Mom was four. Her father and stepbrother contracted the disease but survived. In any photo of my Mom before that, she appeared quite happy, but in every subsequent photo throughout her childhood, she looked very sad. Here she is at about 15, looking reflective but ready for adulthood. The "good old days" weren't that greatWhenever we feel inclined to gripe about how hard life is, we should take a look at pictures like this. This is a poignant reminder of how good we have things today. In 1914, there were no immunizations for many of the childhood diseases that we seldom think about now. Even when I was a child in the 1950s, the risk of death from measles, smallpox, polio and other diseases was still a big concern for parents. The flu outbreak of 1918 claimed millions of people around the world. Now, you can get a flu shot just by walking into your local Walgreen's. Adequate sanitary systems were not in place in many communities, either, resulting in cholera and typhus outbreaks. From a purely technological perspective, this photo reminds us of the wealth of technology we have at our fingertips. Back then, most people did not have cameras and could not afford to go to a portrait studio. This may be one of the few photos this family had of their child. Post-mortem photography was not uncommon in the Victorian Age through the first part of the 20th century, even to the point of posing parents and siblings with the deceased. On a side note, judging by the unusual construction of the casket--it looks to be made of plaster or plaster-covered wood--I am wondering if this was a display casket provided by the funeral home just for wakes. Thanks to all the contributors to Shorpy that help to provide interesting--and sometimes sobering--glimpses into the past. HeartbreakingI can't imagine the grief that comes with losing a child; this one spent over 3 years on earth. He had already developed a personality, had likes and dislikes, and his parents no doubt had visions of what he would be when he was older. There is no sense to be found in such a loss. His manner of death make me so grateful for public health and vaccines. "Living room" vs. "parlour"Thanks, Dave, for debunking a common urban legend. So many American urban legends about language are based on the assumption that every phrase in English arose in the US. Object LessonI hope that this ineffably sad photograph might serve as an object lesson for those fringe elements of our society who are opposed to vaccination. I have visited and photographed 19th Century children's graves in the West. One can notice evidence on the headstones of typhus epidemics and other preventable diseases, all within a short range of death dates. "Sanitation, clean water, and immunization"Careful, Gary. Your triad of benefits that have ensured healthier living conditions could be viewed by many as "creeping nanny-state big government." Right up there with child labor laws, meat quality inspections, and railroad safety. Measles and vaccinationI nearly died as a child from either German or red measles (I had both in one year). I recently had occasion to face off against one of these "childhood diseases don't kill" people. They can. they can also cause deafness and blindness in the unborn and in infants. In the case of chickenpox, which despite this idiot's assertion to the contrary, does not render you immune to shingles but is the direct cause of it. The anti-immunization zealots have had no personal experience with these disease and fail to realize that they were eradicated for a reason. Because epidemics killed thousands of children (and many adults) and were the cause of subsidiary medical conditions like deafness. It is because of them that we are seeing a resurgence of measles again. [Part of this stems from the erroneous notion that vaccinations somehow lead to autism. - Dave] A darling boyI can feel the parents' grief all these years later. God bless, darling John. Rest in peace, precious one. The Times They Are a-Changin'The type of casket seen here is a full couch model, meaning the entire body is seen, as opposed to just the upper portion. It also has a drop front, which could be positioned to allow more of the body to be seen. The casket itself would be made of metal or wood, and is covered with a textured or flocked fabric. Some families would remove the plaque (in this case inscribed, “Our Darling”) as a keepsake from the funeral. It is interesting to read children’s poetry from this era and note the number of references to death they include. At this time, as ironic as it may sound, death was a part of living. Today, for the most part, we have institutionalized death with people dying away from home, hooked up to numerous machines, and in a drug-induced state. Rare, indeed, are the last words of the dying. In this age of online communication and impersonalization, it is intriguing that a resurgence in home funerals is occurring, as noted by contributor Crystal’s own personal experience. Before the advent of embalming – which was a by-product of the Civil War – it was normal for the family to be deeply involved in the preparation and burial of their loved ones. Today we look at it as a morbid, perhaps even backwards or bizarre thing to do, but who to better care for a family member than the ones who love them the most? And what better place to lie in state than the home they were so much a part of? MeaslesOne of my aunts had German measles when pregnant in 1941. The doc told her the baby would be blind or deaf, and thank God he was born "only" with diminished hearing. He died in 2006. He was probably the best person I ever knew. RIP (The Gallery, D.C., Kids, Natl Photo)
Slaves Reunion: 1916
... the delegates were appointed at a mass meeting held last night at Cosmopolitan Church. Washington Post, Sep 23, 1916 ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/27/2012 - 2:42pm -

Washington, D.C., circa 1916. "Slaves reunion. Lewis Martin, age 100; Martha Elizabeth Banks, age 104; Amy Ware, age 103; Rev. Simon P. Drew, born free." Cosmopolitan Baptist Church, 921 N Street N.W. View full size. A Peculiar InstitutionI find it so strange that a reunion would include both former slaves as well as former owners. Peculiar indeed. Local News Briefs The fifty-fourth annual convention of "Ex-Slaves" will be held October 22 to October 30, at the Cosmopolitan Baptist Church, this city. The arrangements for the gathering are being made by the White Cross National Colored Old Folks Home Association, which has promised a free dinner to the former slaves, each day of the convention. The Rev. S.P.W. Drew, president and founder of the White Cross organization, is taking an active part in the completion of arrangements. Committees to look after the deails of the convention and to make arrangements for housing the delegates were appointed at a mass meeting held last night at Cosmopolitan Church. Washington Post, Sep 23, 1916 Former Slaves' Reunion Closes Today The fifty-fourth national reunion convention of ex-slaves and former owners will close today. Special services have been held in Cosmopolitan Baptist Church since October 22. It is stated that besides the friendly greetings at the church and the universal hospitality of the Washington colored people in their homes, 7.000 free dinner tickets have been distributed among the poor. Washington Post, Nov 6, 1916 A Colorful Gene PoolThese are some tough customers! When I view this image I see the manifestation of robust, beautiful genes ... along with the intention to endure, no matter what. Bravo Lewis, Martha, Amy and Simon. Dave, today is a good choice for posting this. Tom - SoCal Generation gapI've often wondered about the generation gap in families where the parents had been born slaves, but the children had been born free. I can't wrap my head around it. Slaves and ownersI guess maybe it's a bit like the people who fought each other on different sides in wars having reunions, which I have heard of happening. Beyond imaginingI can't help but pause and wonder what these folks would say, if they knew what was happening in the country tomorrow. Lost historiesI wonder if anyone ever interviewed and recorded the innermost thoughts and opinions of these men and women after Emancipation to find out how they felt about everything they had experienced. It is too bad that young people are not very interested in their factual histories, but I am speaking for myself here. Even though my grandfather from Poland had lived a very colorful and adventurous life, both there and in the USA, I never wanted to listen to his tales and had hipper, cooler things to do with my time. Now I look at the old pictures he had stored away and wonder what was going on and where it was. Anyone who has a living link to the past is missing an opportunity if they do not talk with and record what their elders have to say. Nobody knows the troubles they've seen... Voices of SlaveryMuch like the attempts to document life through photography undertaken by the WPA and the FSA, attempts were made to record audio interviews for inclusion at the American Folklife Center (with copied deposited at the Library of Congress). Voices from the Days of Slavery: http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/voices/ "Twenty-three interviewees, born between 1823 and the early 1860s, discuss how they felt about slavery, slaveholders, coercion of slaves, their families, and freedom." (I believe the other three interviews are unintelligible and have not been transcribed or digitized). Not so peculiarThe problem with any "general" discussion of slavery is that most of what people "know" is wrong. Try Googling "Irish Slaves" and the first hit, from the Kavanaugh family, does a decent job of tracing the beginnings of North American slavery. Try the "Politically Incorrect Guide to the South" for more reasonably accurate information. Mix a little from other history books, including the fact that most African slaves went to South and Central America - and many of the mixed race slaves from the collapse of the "Barbadoes Plantation" wound up in North America. And you might begin to have a clue to the peculiar institution. Now, I'm old enough to have known both black men born slaves and whites born to slave holders. There was far more respect and affection between these men who were raised together than anyone today seems to want to admit. So I can easily believe that when Jefferson Davis made a speech in Vicksburg, his former slaves made what was then an arduous trip to shake his hand. Slaves and Slave Owners In the 1950s, I grew up in a strictly segregated community in Maryland. Some of the teachers in my school (the white school) poured out plenty of propaganda and revisionist history about slave owners being good to their slaves, that it was not as bad as it was made out to be. Undoubtedly, there were some slave owners who were kinder than others, and some who had something approaching a respectful, even affectionate relationship with their slaves. But no matter the quality of that relationship, it was one that was forced upon the slaves. They had no choice in the matter. Nothing can change that fact. Work relatedKnowing how hard these folks must have had to work all their lives, one wonders how they reached the century mark. Or is that how they did it? Church still thereThere's still a church in that location, but the doorway looks somewhat different. [This is not the same church. Cosmopolitan Baptist was torn down in 1925. - Dave] View Larger Map How excited they would be!These dignified and long-suffering people from so long ago would be excited beyond belief by the news that a black man will be inaugurated as President of the United States this week. How, they might ask, could such a wondrous thing come to pass? It's the same question being asked by the aging leaders of the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s. The knowledge we have of that amazing event to come makes this photo all the more compelling, all the more important. The EldersJoe, I grew up with one of "The Elders" around the family being a daughter of a slave (even though it was the 1970s and 1980s, she was quite elderly, having been born in the 1890s). She had nothing but GOOD things to say about the "White Folk" who had her as a part of our extended family; not because we were white, but because we treated her with grace and dignity. I once asked her, as a child, during the height of the "Black Power" movement, what she thought about the whole issue, and she harked back to something her mother had told her about her life as a slave (her mother had been born in the mid 1850s). She said that some white folks treated "colored" (her word) as inferiors; others treated them as trusted friends and even as family. When she found folks who treated her poorly, she simply remembered those who treated her well, and moved along. Most slave owners weren't big plantation owners; they were small farmers, with one or two slaves at most. As such, when the slave was toiling doing work, the slave owner was normally working beside the slave, doing the same work. When it came time for dinner, there was one meal that was made for everyone, and in some families, there was one meal SERVED, as well, meaning the slave ate with the family as one of them. Those who grew up in those relationships frequently had FOND memories of their former owners. Sure, they wanted to be free... just like a teenager eventually wants to be free from his family. That's one of the reasons that in the immediate aftermath of the Civil War, so many former slaves never left the family they had always been with; they were treated as one of the family to begin with, so why would they leave now, when the choice was now THEIRS to make, and not someone elses? That said, sure, there are plenty of horror stories about slavery, too... but it's perfectly understandable, to me, that some of the slaves would appreciate a reunion with their former owners, especially with free food. Born in 1810The thing that amazes me as well as everyone else's musings is that we're looking at a "modern" photo of someone born in 1812. The changes that person would have seen are simply mind-boggling. Even from a technology standpoint. James Madison was president when they were born, and America was only 36 years old. And here they are in a relatively "modern" photo. Totally amazing. [That is so very true. Over the span of a lifetime, they saw the introduction of: electricity, instant communication first by telegraph, then telephone, then wireless telegraph; travel by train, motorcar and airplane. All pretty big compared to what we think might think of as the changes that have affected our lives -- cellphones, the Internet, GPS navigation. - Dave] Not that long ago at allIndeed, not that long ago. My great-grandfather fought for the Confederacy. He married a 15 year old girl in Appalachia when he was 64. Their youngest son -- my grandfather -- is still alive. WPA interviewsThe text of the interviews is available at www.gutenberg.org . The interviewers preserved the spoken dialect of the person interviewed. Not so lostDuring the Great Depression, one of the government works projects (I want to say as part of the WPA) sent people out to interview and record the life stories of former slaves. So no... not all of that history... thank God... has been lost. My MamieI was raised for a good part of my young formative years by a Black Mamie born of slaves. To her though she was a paid part of our household I was indeed her daughter. We laughed together, cried together, fought and played together. She talked often of her early years and I listened often to the stories of her parents and the tales they had to tell of being freed slaves on farms. My Mamie herself recounted stories not only of her parents trials but her own, having to sit in the back of a bus or only use public restrooms marked for colored use or restaurants that would and would not serve coloreds. My Mamie was always my best friend and her wisdom still followes me down through the years. I will always take it as an honor that she thought of me as her white daughter...my beautiful kind and wise Mamie. [Her name was Mamie? Like Mamie Eisenhower? Or do you mean mammy. - Dave] Slave narrativesFor more first-person accounts, read "The Slaves' War: The Civil War in the Words of Former Slaves" by Andrew Ward. My great-great grandfather was an 18-year-old Confederate soldier at the end of the war (as a Quaker he drew guard duty) who died when my grandfather, now 93, was about 14. These stories aren't that removed from current generations! Looking good...They all look great despite the presence of canes, and Mr. Martin in particular does not at all look his 100 years! In fact he looks downright jaunty in his bibbed-shirt and casual, tie-less rumpeledness ... on the subject of not-that-far-removed-from, my late grandfather fought in the Boer War (1899-1902), and I am only 39! [Interesting. I'm not that much older than you, and my maternal grandfather was born in 1876. - Dave] (The Gallery, D.C., Harris + Ewing)
Dr. Buzzkill: 1925
... such a good time that she fell in love with him. One night, Williams asked her to buy some liquor for him and took her to a place ... from June 28 to July 28. The girl, he said, on the night of July 27, sold him a pint of liquor for $3. It was then that he made ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/13/2011 - 6:30pm -

September 5, 1925. Washington, D.C. "W.A. Green, Chief Prohibition Inspector." National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size. Major GreenThis is Maj. Walton Atwater Green, former Army officer who seems to have had some role in the formation of the military police in France during World War I. You can find quite a few references to him in the news and society pages of the mid-20s and 1930s. The male MedusaA formidable gaze, to be sure. Who knows? He might have been a real sweetheart, but I'm not sure I would get close enough to find out. The Double Stink-Eye!Snidely Whiplash believed he had gotten away with his little ruse with a simple mustache trim. Not for long. Serious, yesBut the bowtie says "party!" Marty Feldman EyesCould they both be glass? "Hey Wally, you've got some snew there on your right shoulder." "What's snew?" "Not too much Wally, what's snew with you?" A little off the top, Andy?Floyd the Barber. Bling Bling!Call me a cynic, but that watch looks very gold, very thin, very stylish and very expensive to be on the wrist of a humble public servant in 1925. I confess! I confess! Just stop staring at me!He can smash an entire roomful of bootleg hootch WITH HIS MIND. Emulsion gremlins telling us the truthI think some smart mold spores tagged this plate. The first few dots across the desk spell in Morse: DTs Eh, he ain't so badjust the way his face is put together, everybody has to make a living. Great title, Dave, you've set the bar high for Twenty Ten. Previous jobAuditor for the I.R.S. This guybeats out the Franciscan brothers from eighth grade as scaring me the most! What? What did I do?As I looked at this photo, I had an immediate and overwhelming sense of guilt - like I must have done something very wrong, and Mr. Green knows about it. Those eyes... burning ... my ... soul! (slump) Hey Lucy!We've found the Anti-Gale Gordon! I WonderIf the good Doctor could be a distant relative of Tom Selleck; or the inspiration for that mustache (but with a smile!) He does look like the perfect man for the perfect job! The Evils of the Demon RumHe looks like he could use a drink! This guylooks like he needs a beer. Seriously. Now. Before something bad happens. There's a man who could use a good stiff drink!Good thing he can get into the evidence locker! Future father-in-lawImagine dating this mans daughter... VERY serious, strict, about as fun as a funeral. Oh, and no liquid sunshine either. This man needs... a drink. ScaryTalk about a look that could kill at a thousand paces. A toastI hope Mr. Green will join me in saluting the XXI Amendment to the Constitution. Cheers! The G-ManIf looks could kill! Mean looking dudeYou would have to be to take charge of that agency. The most corrupt US government department ever. Looks like he's got a bear of a hangoverHand so unsteady he got ink all over his paper. "Seen the papers today, Williams?"I wonder whether Mr. Green had been reading articles in the nation's papers the day before the photo was taken, regarding an extraordinary case. These three extracts are lengthy, but worth reading because of the story itself, and for the editorial comment on prohibition laws. * * * WON LOVE OF GIRL AND THEN ARRESTED HER Dry Officer Is Rebuked For Securing Evidence in Such a Manner Washington, Sept. 4. - Should dry agents woo and win the love of pretty daughters to get evidence against their mothers? Lincoln C. Andrews, prohibition generalissimo, today puckered his brow over that perplexing problem. He gave no information of his decision. The question grew out of the case of John T. Williams, married rum sleuth, who won the love of Miss Sally Canada, 19, daughter of the postmistress at Glen Echo, Md., then arrested her and raided her mother's store. U. S. Commissioner Supplee in Baltimore yesterday dismissed the case against Miss Canada with a withering denunciation of Williams and his methods of enforcing prohibition. Harry M. Luckett, chief of Washington dry agents, came to the defense of Williams today, but did not defend his novel scheme for securing evidence. He denied that he told Williams to get evidence "at any cost." Prohibition Commissioner Haynes declined to make any verbal comment on the case, but his gestures were eloquent. Asked if he were interested in love-making methods to get evidence, Haynes threw up his arms and walked away. "It was the dirtiest trick a man ever played on a girl," was the comment of Sally Canada. The pretty girl then described how Williams dropped into the little store and finally succeeded in making a date. He was a fast worked and gave Sally such a good time that she fell in love with him. One night, Williams asked her to buy some liquor for him and took her to a place near her home, she said. Williams drank most of the liquor on the spot, she added. Later, she added, he asked her to get more liquor which she did and hid it in her ward. Williams called for the liquor with his wife and when it was delivered arrested the girl and raided her store. In flaying Williams, Commissioner Supplee said it cost $500 to get a $3 pint of liquor. * * * A MODERN INSTANCE A story of real life down in Baltimore is worth telling in tabloid form. Told with the usual circumstantiality in a 1925 novel, it would bld mark the utmost extreme of fantasticality. Flashed on the cinema screen it would be called the grotesque hallucination of some poor scenario writer. But it is a true story none the less, and the essential part of it appears in the records of a United States Commissioner's office. Our readers can draw from the narrative what moral they please. At any rate, it is worth repeated as—well, as a modern instance. Down in a Maryland town bearing the romantic name of Glen Echo lives a nineteen-year-old girl and a High School graduate, one Sally Canada, with ehr mother, who keeps a country store and the post office. For some reason not fully disclosed, Mrs. Canada's little store incurred the suspicions of the Prohibition agent in the district. He accordingly summoned an official trysty on his staff whose name is John T. Williams. It is Williams who figures as the hero of the story, for want of a better one - a melancholy want in this romance. The regional Prohibition chief, as it appears from the records, ordered Williams "to go the limit on making a case against the Canadas," mother and daughter. How well Williams obeyed this injunction will appear below, though we may anticipate by saying that he must have had in mind this passage from the "Merchant of Venice": "The villainy you teach me I will execute, and it shall go hard, but I will better the instruction." We shall see that even the "limit" may be paradoxically exceeded. To make a long story short, let it be stated at once that Williams, after introducing himself as an acquaintance of a friend of the Canada family, began courting the girl, motoring with her to various summer resorts and entertaining her in the customary ways. We continue this narrative by slicing the following extract from the special Baltimore despatch: "I told her I loved her and asked her to marry me," testified Williams, who said the courtship lasted from June 28 to July 28. The girl, he said, on the night of July 27, sold him a pint of liquor for $3. It was then that he made the complaint and caused the postoffice to be raided. After hearing the stories of Williams, Miss Canada, and her mother, Commissioner Supplee declared: "This girl was taken on automobile trips and taken to dinner and parties. Williams made love to her and won his way into her confidence. I consider this a plain case of trapping. If the Volstead act depends on such methods as this for enforcement, I think it is a pity that we have it and similar laws on the statute books. "I do not believe Miss Canada or her mother ever sold liquor or possessed liquor. The pint used as evidence was secured by Miss Canada for Williams after he won her confidence." The story, though not occupying very much space, is a pretty complete one as it stands. On the whole, it does not call for extended comment in any decent community, even in this new and wonderful era of Volsteadian enterprise. It seems necessary, however, after repeating the main details, to substitute for Williams, as the hero of the story, that United States Commissioner with the unromantic name of Supplee. More power to his strong elbow and his honorable manhood! This example of rascality and treachery in the name of law enforcement is exceptional only in the almost unbelievable measure of its turpitude. Less shameful methods of the same general stamp are employed every day. The effect of the new dispensation is to put a sort of official premium upon practices which every right-minded man and woman detested before the Eighteenth Amendment was adopted. One can imagine nothing more contemptible than officers of the law who, not content with snooping and spying, glory in their successful stratagems to tempt people to violate the law. We do not believe that the decent public opinion of the United States, which is still presumably predominant, will permanently endure that particular kind of official knavery. * * * ... "It was the dirtiest trick a man ever played on a girl," she said. And it is. And Williams should be forced to pay some sort of a penalty for that trick, and if it was a man "higher up" in the dry force, he, too, should pay. A girl's love should not be tampered with. The trouble with divorce courts today lies in the fact that love is being taken entirely too lightly, not always by the man, of course, because both are to blame in many cases. But for the mere matter of adding a few hundred dollars to the United States treasury, no man should be permitted to mask a misdemeanor of the sort committed by this dry agent under the cloak of his official duties. In the first place, the daughter was not committing the crime. It was her mother. Yet she was the subject of an unjust farce, the unhappy medium of an unscrupulous man's deception and trickery. Possibly her entire life has been blighted for the sake of procuring a little bootleg liquor. Is that justice? The sooner all justice is carried out for the sake of justice, the better the citizens of this nation will come to regard the countless number of statutes which have been enacted. But it should always be remembered, that the happiness and rights of every man and every woman and every child should not be tampered with or distorted in order to gain some petty objective. Best Kicker EVER!This kicker "Dr. Buzzkill" is one of the funniest things I have EVER read! Thanks for the laugh. Also, does anyone else think actor Hugh Laurie ('House') is *made* for this role? Inspector Hard StareOne would probably need a couple of drinks after being inspected by this guy. Mr. NiceguyUnasked-for advice: Lighten up. Shoveling against the tideNothing like trying to put a Genie back in the bottle! 8 more years of trying... Tough audience hereI wonder how many of them would survive being exhibited in 85 years time in today's environment and fashions. I certainly know my family has some pictures of me from the 1970s tucked away which would result in instant retribution if they were publicly shown. Walton Atwater GreenThis is indeed Maj. Walton Atwater Green, an Army officer in WWI who subsequently had several interesting careers -- publisher of the Boston Journal, a novelist, and for a time Chief Prohibition Inspector. He was also my grandfather, though we never met. Nice to see his face here. (The Gallery, D.C., Natl Photo, Portraits)
Marvel Rea: 1919
... in a red truck in south Los Angeles, subjected to a "night of terror" in a eucalyptus grove where she was "repeatedly mistreated," ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/05/2009 - 4:09am -

"Mack Sennett Girl," circa 1919. Actress Marvel Rea, one of film producer Mack Sennett's well-rounded "bathing girls," in somewhat moldy National Photo glass negative. From a series of pictures using cars and tires as props. View full size. Bathing BeautyThey were called Mack Sennett Bathing Beauties. Several famous actresses got their start with Mack. I don't know which I like better......the name "Marvel" or those wickedly cool shoes! Marvel Mystery GirlSo what ever happened to Marvel? I only find the films she was in and a short blurb about her being kidnapped and assaulted in L.A. near her home. Any further details about this lovely lady? More MarvelRegarding Marvel's alleged 1903 birth date, we might take that with a grain of salt. It seems to have been calculated from the age given for her at the time of the 1936 assault trial. Age-fudging was pretty common for movie stars back then. (Although at least one news account did call her the "baby star" of silent films.) It would be nice to know what eventually became of her.                         Marvel's lifeHer page in Internet Movie Database lists 27 films, all between 1917 and 1921, and most with "come hither" titles (such as "Why Beaches are Popular"). Her marriage to Henry Page Wells in 1918 was eventful, according to the divorce petition she filed in 1922, which accused him of standing her on her head two weeks after the wedding, spending his salary on narcotics, and certain acts of impulsiveness and violence. Fast forward to September 1936, when the newspapers reported that the "33-year old blue-eyed blonde" was kidnapped by three youths in a red truck in south Los Angeles, subjected to a "night of terror" in a eucalyptus grove where she was "repeatedly mistreated," then released in Compton. Three suspects were quickly caught, then convicted by a jury that November and sent to San Quentin in January 1937. After that event, her name disappears from the papers. Marvel in the CensusA Marvel Rea appears in the 1910, 1920 and 1930 censuses, which all show her living in Los Angeles. In 1910, she is 9 years old and living with grandparents David and Mary, daughter Grace Conlin and daughter-in-law Nellie Rea. David's occupation is at City Hall and Marvel is listed as being born in Nebraska. There are four children in the house - Gay, Lramas (maybe Thomas?), Marvel and Clyde. In the 1920 census, she is still in Los Angeles living with her parents at age 19, and listed as married. Parents are John and Nellie. John works as a building contractor. Siblings are Eva, Clyde and Thomas, plus two lodgers. Eva and Marvel's occupations are given as "actress, film industry" and Thomas's is "photographer, film industry." In 1930 Marvel is still in Los Angeles, living in in a house valued at $3,000, which she owns. Listed as widowed and born in Nebraska and living with mother Mae (also listed as widowed) and brother Clyde (age 22), who works as a plasterer. She is listed as unemployed. They are not listed as having a radio set. The address is 134 West 117th Street, Los Angeles. [Fascinating, thank you. So is her mother Nellie or Mae? [The answer: Nellie Mae.] If she was 9 in 1910 that means she was born in 1900 or 1901. - Dave] Marvel's MomThe 1920 census has a Nellie. The 1930 has Mae. They are about the same age but are listed with different birthplaces. Could one be a stepmother? Or a mistake by the census taker? Or maybe her name was Nellie Mae. In 1920 Nellie is the wife of John Rea, so we don't know for sure she is Marvel's mother. In the 1910 census Nellie Rea is listed as the householders' daughter-in-law. Where John is we don't know. I'm on a roll!Here's a biography of what appears to be Marvel's brother Thomas Rea: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0713775/bio The bio was written by Kevin Scott Rea. Might be able to find out about Marvel from him. Nellie May ReaI found Thomas's draft registration card from WWI. His occupation is listed as "film industry" and next of kin is Nellie May Rea -- so Marvel's mom went by the name Nellie May (Mae). Runnin' Wild!Marvel Rea appears to have had a complicated life after she left Sennett. The lurid news details of her divorce and the later abduction reminded me of an antique saying used in my family to describe a girl who had Been Around: "She's seen more lighthouses than I've seen streetlamps!" Go Clyde!If Clyde died in 1943, it would be quite a trick for him to have had a daughter in 1949. Pretty sad though. Lots of early deaths there -- and pretty close together too. 1937According to a family tree I found Marvel died in 1937 and is buried in California. I have contacted the author to try and get more information. Marvel Luciel Rea 1901-1937Pacific Crest Cemetery, Redondo Beach, California Eva Gay Rea 1895-1936 Clyde D.W. Rea 1907-1943 Marvel Luciel Rea 1901-1937 There is also an infant Mary Rea, 1949-1950, perhaps Clyde's daughter? California was not kind to this Midwestern family. [Thank you, Anonymous Tipster! (How could Mary be Clyde's daughter if he died in 1943?) In any case now I'm really curious as to what happened to Marvel. I can think of all kinds of sad scenarios relating to that assault. - Dave] 134 West 117thI wonder if her house is still there. I had a look and perhaps it still is. Thanks so much all for supplying information on Marvel she certainly did not have a happy life which is very sad indeed. Up too lateObviously up too late. Tom Rea lived until 1956. Or it could be another relative. Marvel Rea Wilkinson, 1901-1937This is a great site, and I'm glad to see that other people remember Marvel Rea! I've done a bit of research on her over the last few years, along with other Mack Sennett alumni, for my upcoming book "Mack Sennett's Fun Factory" (for McFarland), and I can provide a few more details about Marvel. She was born on November 9, 1901 in Ainsworth, Nebraska, and came to California with her family by 1910. A couple of years ago I looked up her death certificate, which is under her last married name (no mention of Rea). In August 1936, just a few weeks before the unfortunate events involving her being assaulted, she became engaged to an Edwin J. Wilkinson. Apparently they did marry, though I don't have the date. However, sadly, Marvel L. Wilkinson died on June 17, 1937, at age 35 in Los Angeles. The cause of death on her death certificate is suicide by poison (ingestion of ant paste). Its hard to fathom what torment she must have gone through to lead to that end. Her death certificate lists her occupation as actress, and that her last work in that profession was for the Fox Film Company in 1932. In 1939, the three men convicted of Marvel's assault were released from San Quentin because of technicalities regarding their trial. Brent Walker New Shorpy addict here...The almost exact same bathing suit was seen here https://www.shorpy.com/node/4470 a couple of months before, but no one deemed it worthy of comment. Perhaps it isn't? Both are 1919 bathing beauties, but while Miss Rea is identified as a Sennett girl, the other is one of Sidney Lust's chorus girls. Is the similarity just a coincidence? Great Aunt MarvelHeard lots of stories about Marvel from my aunts and grandmother. She was one of Mack's bathing beauties and a mermaid. One of her marriages was not listed. Wells was a banker. The missing husband was a very famous world class violinist. Do recall his name but she traveled with him on tour. The Wilkinson listed as her last husband Eddie was the brother of Dorothy Wilkinson. Who was married to her brother Tom. Marvel and Clyde where both drinking together at her time of death. Made a suicide pact together. She carried it out. He passed out. She had a trail of bad marriages. She thought she had nothing to live for. She could not have kids. She had a miscarriage while filming with a real Gorilla in a cage. She could not get pregnant after that. Researching Marvel ReaI'm researching her life and death for an upcoming book of mine. If anyone has new info or a way I could contact living relatives, please let me know at my email: olivethomasproject@aol.com (The Gallery, Natl Photo, Pretty Girls, Swimming)
Mermaid Queen: 1899
... Hot Rod Lincoln Pulled out of San Pedro late one night The moon and the stars was shinin' bright We was drivin' up Grapevine ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/28/2012 - 7:30pm -

Los Angeles, California, circa 1899. "The Harbor at San Pedro." A panoramic view made from two Detroit Publishing glass negatives. View full size. Straight, forward!Thanks for this and the thousands of other wonderful photos you have shared with us over the years. I have seen some of the LOC versions of shots Shorpy has posted, and I truly appreciate the work that has been done to present them in better format here. Our history comes alive on these pages. The watermark is well-earned and a fine testimony of your care and talent. Carry on! Los Angeles Soap CompanyFrom the USC archives: http://digitallibrary.usc.edu/assetserver/controller/view/CHS-14109 I also want to say thank you for the images and the work you put into them to present them here, it gives people an opportunity to see scenes from past days that would otherwise be buried in an archive somewhere. Merry Christmas! SteamyI believe that the third hunk of equipment from the right on the dock (with the vertical cylinder and inverted funnel) is a stationary steam engine, used to power the jib crane a little farther to its left. The item at the extreme right looks like another steam engine with a horizontal boiler, powering some off-camera machine. I say, keep on stitchin', and keep on watermarkin', and keep on includin' the credits with each image for people to ignore and then question, gripe or contradict. Thanks for an enjoyable part of my daily routine! What's with the petty criticism recently?I don't understand these people coming out of the woodwork and castigating this site for some imagined sins. Don't they get the concept of "value added"? The LOC isn't putting these exact images online, and the fact that Shorpy is free for anyone to view doesn't exactly imply that someone's being robbed here. The attributions are clearly posted for anyone with a mouse to see. Sheesh. There has to be some better place to vent the snide zeitgeist than this website, which is a happy reminder of times when civility mattered a bit more than it does now. All done without stitching!This is a really wonderful panorama with superb detail. Created before digital photography was even thought about, let alone stitching software. Magnificent! [The two images were stitched together by me, using Photoshop. Took an hour and a half! - Dave] Hot Rod LincolnPulled out of San Pedro late one night The moon and the stars was shinin' bright We was drivin' up Grapevine Hill Passing cars like they was standing still Lone dog looseOn the street upper left. And for an obvious reason. No automobiles yet to run them over. You could let Fido out the back door to enjoy his day. Now the World Cruise CenterThis was taken close to the current location of Fire Station #112, the home of Los Angeles Fireboat #2. Nob Hill, where the Hotel Clarence sat, is gone. The hotel was around 1st, 2nd or 3rd street. I think that's Beacon Street running up the hill, past the water tank and windmill. Today that scene would be dominated by the cruise terminal and the Vincent Thomas Bridge. I photographed the Queen Mary 2 there on her first trip to Los Angeles. Instapundit gives Shorpy some loveNice coincidence that Shorpy has been featuring LA and then Instapundit today has a link to the Shulman house from the 1960s. Twofer Tuesday, perhaps? Trains to TrolleysRed Cars run there now. A close relative is a restorer/mechanic for the line. http://sanpedro.com/spcom/redcar.htm On watermarks...Nice photo, but why do you watermark each one like it's yours? Shouldn't the watermark read "Shorpy/LOC"? After all, they're the ones who've done all the hard work. And please, give proper credit to the folks working at the LOC and move your "about the photos" disclaimer to the top right column of your front page where it can be seen, instead of hiding it down at the bottom (where statistics show most folks don't navigate to). You can mock others all you want but the fact remains - your practices are deceptive. [The purpose of the watermark is to publicize Shorpy. The images here go out in "feeds" to hundreds of other web sites as soon as they're published. There are also numerous "scraper" sites that copy the jpegs here en masse for republication elsewhere without us ever knowing about it. People are of course free to use the jpegs from the LOC database, but they are not the same as the images seen here. This image being a special case in point. The caption info under the photos already credits the people who did the "hard work" -- the creators of the images; the Library of Congress is their repository. The digitization was done by subcontractors. You, whoever you are, have a poor grasp of what this is all about. - Dave] "Mermaid Queen"It took me a minute or two to figure out your title for this image, but it's in there! Nice Pshop work, Dave. I sure hope somebody can get an updated view of this harbor from the same angle. dave www.heritagefilm.net 5... 6... 7... Oswald was a...Unless I miss my guess (I'm not from this area, and welcome correction), this is where the dockside shootout in "The Usual Suspects" was set and shot. "The strangest thing..." Best part of my day!What a joy to see this fabulous panoramic action picture, which would make an intriguing model village for an electric train setup or a conversation starter for a restaurant wall. The three men in the boat remind me of the legend of the Blue Willow (an old China pattern) and the industriousness and daily activities shown are both fascinating and stimulating. There's a lot going on here and great food for thought and inspiration. It is by far the most interesting thing I've seen all day (so far). Thank you for the pleasure. I know I'm going to keep coming back to it. Harbor ShotReverse angle. Same spot. Portable steamThe steam engines sitting on the Wharf weighed several thousand pounds, but were on movable bases that allowed them to be called "portable." People were apparently stronger back then! My home townI grew up in San Pedro. My grand father was a sea captain for Klaveness line. His ship was sunk by a German u-boat off the East coast of the US and Bermuda in 1942. (Interesting read= http://warsailors.com/singleships/pleasantville.html ) anyways..... afterward, the company gave him a desk job in the San Pedro municipal building (City hall) at this location until his retirement in the 1950s. He took the ferry (down the street from here) each day back and forth from Long Beach where he lived with my grandmother and my dad. The Norwegian (Swedish) Seaman's Church is still here too, has a long sentimental history with the locals and a haven for Scandinavian sailors far from home. Although we didn't attend, we went there when I was a kid for some of the functions (what-up Norwegian waffles with strawberry jam and coffee!!....sigh) San Pedro was simply the west side of the L.A. harbor (and a part of L.A.). Lots of Europeans. Slavics, Hispanics, Greeks, Italians and Norwegians (and Swedes). When I was a kid I remember one of the older folks say, to live here you had to have an "ia" an "itch" an "ez" a "kos"or a "son" at the end of your name. And its true. All of my friends did. (Panoramas, Boats & Bridges, DPC, Los Angeles, Railroads)
Red Widow: 1911
New York circa 1911. "Times Square at night." Now playing at the Astor: Raymond Hitchcock as Cicero Hannibal Butts in ... contrast to today! Chiropodist It's almost seven at night. Must be autumn? I'm wondering what a Chiropodist was? Someone who ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/29/2012 - 1:28pm -

New York circa 1911. "Times Square at night." Now playing at the Astor: Raymond Hitchcock as Cicero Hannibal Butts in the musical comedy "Red Widow." 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Pity the poor commaAbused here in the Evans' Pastilles sign: FOR COLD'S COUGH'S HOARSENESS. Some things never change! [Pity the poor apostrophe -- so often confused with the comma! - Dave] Why Every Citizen Should Read the ChiefUpper right hand corner has a billboard for New York's Civil Service newspaper, still published today, with the same masthead. Only in the bizarro Shorpy worldWould it were possible that the character Cicero Hannibal Butts was the great-grandfather of today's real-life stage actor Norbert Leo Butts! Hail to The ChiefThe Independent Voice of New York City Civil Service Since 1897, so they say. Still publishing once a week, it was the place to check for info on government jobs in the NYC area before the Internets started laying down their tubes. Same View--Seven Years laterThis is the same view as found in this post but several years later. Looks like the Packard dealer didn't make it. https://www.shorpy.com/node/7407 IncredibleCompared to the non-stop intense sounds of Times Square today, that region looks to have been quiet, even peaceful during the time this picture was taken. Well, peaceful might be a stretch unless you closed your eyes to shield from the already dominant presence of light displays. I love both New Yorks. +99Below is the same view south from 45th Street taken in April of 2010. A Daunting ChallengeMaking a silent movie that's a musical comedy would be quite a challenge, I'd expect. [It would be, and it's not a movie. - Dave] Historical Photos Moments caught on camera that will never be seen again. I love old photos~ Wow! This I really like.What a fantastic and almost unbelievable contrast to today! ChiropodistIt's almost seven at night. Must be autumn? I'm wondering what a Chiropodist was? Someone who cracks your spine with his feet? Someone who handles feet? Endearing Times SquareFrom the halo glow of the Hotel sign atop the building to the plethora of illuminated signs, what a treat this magical place is. The automobiles look almost 3D like and so in focus. It's only 9:35 and the night is still young. How about those cool lanterns on their standards. Oh New York, New York. Two cabs, no waitingIdle taxis waiting for customers at the hack stand. And the chiropodist -- my mom went to one in the 1950s to get her aching feet checked. Great picture. Match Game '11Amazing to see how quickly electric lighting became commonplace, and how things looked in the era before neon, although if Wikipedia is correct neon lighting was demonstrated in Paris shortly before this photo was taken. I see the Match Game is on at the billiard parlor. Probably where Brett Somers made her debut. Louis MartinsVisible on 42nd Street are signs for both the Broadway and Seventh Avenue entrances for this 5,000 seat restaurant and lobster palace. It was the reincarnation of the elaborate but ill-fated Cafe de l'Opera, which failed when it required evening wear, and served food that cooled during the long trip from the kitchen. The Great White WayWas bright as it ever was in 1910. Times Square: The PaintingThe remains of a Chancellor Cigar poster from a drugstore. It took me years to find it depicted Times Square. There's a subway entrance depicted in the right half. I couldn't discern whether there is a similar structure in the photo. ChiropodyThe Chiropodist treated both hand and foot. Chiropody, and emptinessYes, a chiropodist is someone who handles feet - specifically, treats things like bunions, corns etc. They're still known as such in the UK (I think they're podiatrists now in the US but I might be wrong!) I love the cars/taxis! And how empty it looks. I've never seen it like that. Was it realyl short exposure so all the people are blurred and not really visible? (The Gallery, DPC, NYC)
The Steel Pier: 1904
... in Chicago, people (whole families) slept in the parks at night if it was hot. In a time when illness was spread from living in close ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/20/2012 - 11:08am -

The Jersey shore circa 1904. "Steel Pier, Atlantic City." Can anything compare to Atlantic City in the summer, and the feel of sand in your bathing-socks? 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Sand MosaicWow. At least three black families here. Great picture!There is a guy lying on the other guy's hip as a pillow -- now that's not something you would see today! Everyone is very appropriately dressed, not a inch of elbow or knee showing. How strange the Victorian era must of been. I suspect there is enough cloth in this one picture to dress the entire East Coast of beach-going folks today. What would they think?Suppose these folks woke up on a beach in Brazil and saw how the sunbathers looked nowadays. Misery Loves CompanyAnother miserable day at the beach according to these poor vacationers. Not a smile to be seen! An odd photoI'll give an internets for every smiling face you can find. Bathing Socks?I see exactly one pair of unsocked feet. Virtually everyone has enough clothes on to weather a Noreaster in November. Why go to the beach at all? Hot? Cold?I'd like to know what time of year this was taken. No shadows. Body LanguageFor the young couple by the black umbrella, there is nobody else on the beach. True GritIt always strikes me how REALLY well-dressed beach-goers could be in the early 1900s. They aren't just fully-dressed -- they're wearing suits and hats and white dresses for a day in the hot sun and gritty sand! What never ceases to amaze me is that few (if any) people bring a blanket or towel to lie on. There they are, in their nice clothes just sitting and lying directly on the sand. Many of the men (and some of the women) are sitting on suit jackets, getting them all mashed up and sandy. Way more surprising than that, though, is the number of women in white dresses and/or white blouses lying partially on newspapers (possibly because the sand is so hot). All I can think when I see THAT is that they must have newsprint ink smeared all over their nice white clothes! Got a laundress?The privileged classes employed a washerwoman to launder all of these clothes. Otherwise, you stoked up the fire on Monday morning and boiled and stirred all day long. Good old bluing kept the whites white. I, too, am always astounded at how heavily dressed our ancestors were in the heat of the East Coast summers. Prior to this time period, in the latter half of the 19th century, bathing machines were on the beaches in the UK. They looked like little sheds, and you went into them, disrobed, put on your heavy-duty bathing costume, and ejected yourself into the waves. No witnesses. So this photo represents a gradual pull away from that Victorian commodity. Peppermint TwistJoey Dee and the Starlighters did this song, not Chubby Checker. In the age of wiki and google, I kind of feel foolish pointing this out, but then I am also in an age where most people aren't old enough to remember this. Castles in the sandI like seeing "flip bucket" castles here and there. Some things never change! Back to SchoolThe Steel Pier. Atlantic City. This is where Thornton Melon (Rodney Dangerfield) developed and practiced his now famous "Triple Lindy" dive. Why go to the beach......if you aren't going in the water?? The people up on the pier must be enjoying the cool breezes without the hot sun shining on them! The view is just as nice above as below - so what is the attraction for the hot sand? More space maybe?? AND does anybody know what those big elaborate buildings house? Great pic - thanks again!!! No action?"How strange the Victorian era must of been." Well, Edwardian, to be precise. And all folks are doing is sitting, standing, or lying around. No activities of any kind. Isn't watching waves come in kind of like watching grass grow? Summer of '62Forty eight years ago, I watched Chubby Checker perform on the Steel Pier as he unveiled his second "twist" record, "The Peppermint Twist".. The "Pier" has an interesting history of storm damage, rebuilding, fires, rebuilding, diminishment, rebuilding, Miss America contest runways, cut-offs and add-ons. Seems like right now Donald Trump has made it an entertainment center once again. In 1904 when this photo was taken, my grandfather had just arrived at Ellis Island from Poland and in WW2, my uncle was stationed there, as Atlantic City was an Army training camp. A fascinating location, thanks Shorpy for the long trip down Memory Lane. Intergrated Too Couple hundred miles south and there would be a Blacks Only and a Whites Only beach sections. Good to see this intergration. [Yers. - Dave] What a coincidenceJust earlier today I was reading an older book entitled "Discovering America's Past," and looking at the section on Atlantic City's Boardwalk. The book also mentioned the Steel Pier, which is the first time I had heard of it. They didn't have a photo so I was glad to see one today. Seven inchesOf exposed skin in the whole field of view. I'm afraid I'll be underdressedHoney, where's my tie, vest, socks and garters and celluloid collar and second best coat? I'm going to the beach! Why go to the beach? Fresh air is the reason.We forget that most people lived in apartment buildings or rooming houses with few fans and obviously no A/C. It was common for people to leave their rooms for the day just to get out to where the air was fresh and a breeze might blow. In the summer months (at this time) in Chicago, people (whole families) slept in the parks at night if it was hot. In a time when illness was spread from living in close quarters people were encouraged to take the air to stay healthy. Given there was no TV or radio and few recordings in peoples homes - why not head out rather than sit in your stuffy rooms? Massacre!All those fully clothed bodies lying about on the beach remind me of corpses. Perhaps I have been watching too many cop shows. Oh Look! A ShorpyShooter!At least there's a camera on a tripod toward the front left, and who knows how much insight the cameraman has about future venues for his pictures! Steel AppearI watched Al Hirt's Steel Pier dance show on our black-and-white TV in the early '60s. It was like American Bandstand next to the ocean. I had no idea what a pier was, so I thought the show was called Steel Appear because it "appeared" on TV. (And I had no idea why the word "steel" was in the name, either.) Bathing suitsMy mother was telling me today my grandmother was scandalized by the appearance of men's bathing shorts. She felt that my grandfather's bathing suit, which in the 1920s consisted of a one-piece outfit with t-shirt length sleeves and cut mid-thigh, bordered on impropriety. My grandfather, a Presbyterian minister, wasn't the least concerned. Chicken Bone BeachThis is another in a series of images from Atlantic City. Last year Shorpy published a view that included a well dressed black family in the foreground. Now we find, in the photographic evidence, black families on the beach again. However, an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the beaches were restricted in most Jersey coastal towns, including Atlantic City. The story says that these beaches, presumably including "Chicken Bone Beach" in Atlantic City, were staffed with black lifeguards. A person quoted in the article says that "there were no signs saying colored-only beach ... you just knew your place." I think that the photographic evidence to the contrary is an inconvenient problem for some histories. The Diving HorseI was a young lad of about 6 when my parents took my younger brother and I to the Steel Pier in AC to see the famous Diving Horse. This was about 55 years ago. The horse didn't actually dive into the water; the front half of the platform the horse was standing on collapsed and forced the horse and rider to slide into the water from about five stories high. I felt sorry for the horse and worse later in life when I read that a few of the horses they used died of heart attacks from the experience. I also had to sit through a Vaughn Monroe performance and I'm not sure which was worse for a 6 year old. (The Gallery, Atlantic City, DPC, Swimming)
Meet the Fokker: 1929
... for thirty passengers in day flights and for night flying can be converted into an aerial Pullman with berths for sixteen. ... 40 gallons of oil, giving it a range of 480 miles. As a night plane, the fuel capacity is 700 gallons, with the increased range to 850 ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/06/2013 - 1:57pm -

Sept. 29, 1929. Washington, D.C. "Fokker F-32 transport plane at Bolling Field." Note unusual back-to-back engine arrangement (and mechanic stationed aft to keep people from being pureed). National Photo glass negative. View full size. Bolling Field Everything you wanted to know about Bolling Field: http://www.airfields-freeman.com/DC/Airfields_DC.htm Also note the building across the river is very near what is now Nationals Park and part of the Navy Yard . StreamlinedHow about that aerodynamic windshield?! Good thing speed and fuel consumption weren't an issue then. 124MThis aircraft was the first of the type built, constructor number 1201. It was also the first to crash, on 27 Nov 1929, just two months after this photo was taken. It crashed at Roosevelt Field while demonstrating a 3-engine takeoff. The second engine on the same side failed making it uncontrollable. There were only two injuries, no fatalities, but the craft was destroyed in the ensuing fire. This photo was taken only 16 days after the plane's first flight. Not the only design bugApart from the poor cooling on the rear engines, their props would also loose efficiency as they would turn in the wake of the forward prop and of all those struts. They would be quite noisy, too, for the same reason. And propellers turning undernath a wing (rather than in front of one) also tend to decrease overall lift, especially at low speed. Not to mention that they skew the spanwise lift distribution, which would increase drag again. But every design is a compromise. The designers had good reasons for what they did. - They needed four engines for their power and for redundancy. - Installing the 2 by 2 reduced adverse yaw if one engine failed. - The nacelles could be suspended close to the struts. - The engines were better accessible for maintenance. - A high wing gets the fuselage closer to the ground overall - a boon when airport facilities consist only of a stool or pedestal. - And so on. Look how close they get to the turning(!) prop. Eeeek!!! That's asking for trouble (of the spattering sort), even with the watchdog in the white overall. The Boeing 747 of its dayAlthough only ten were built and just two made it into scheduled service, the Fokker F-32 was the era’s largest successful passenger plane, with seats for 32 (including two under the cockpit). For 1930 it was quite advanced with two-way radio and two toilets. The push-me pull-me engine design (as such configurations were called later) was chosen to reduce drag from four engine nacelles to two. The rear engines however, as was mentioned, did not cool adequately and their propellers’ efficiency was affected seriously by the two up front. I said "successful" because in 1929 the Germans rolled out the massive, 12-engined Dornier DO-X, with the same push-me pull-me arrangement. Too many problems, however, kept it from the market. Universal Air LinesStill lives on, in a manner of speaking, as a predecessor of American Airlines. A four engine aircraftbuilt in Teterboro N.J. by Fokker America, not very successful from the engine placement, the rear engine could not be cooled properly, 10 were built, they cost $110,000 in 1929. Standard Fokker ConstructionNeat tandem rudder. You can see the cables for the rear control surfaces piercing the fuselage just behind the 'Universal Air Lines System' logo. The Baltimore Sun, September 22, 1929. Largest U.S. Land Plane Is Tested Thirty-Passenger Fokker One of the Five Ordered For Transcontinental Air Service. The largest commercial airplane ever built in American and the largest land plane in the world was tested publicly last week, with results highly gratifying to its designer, Anthony H.G. Fokker. This huge plane is the first of a group of five ordered by the Universal Aviation Corporation for use in its transcontinental services. It has accommodations for thirty passengers in day flights and for night flying can be converted into an aerial Pullman with berths for sixteen. Adequate facilities for the comfort of passengers in the way of lavatories, serving pantries and the like have been provided. From tip to tip of the wind the span is 99 feet, giving a wing area of 1,350 square feet. Its length is 69 feet 10 inches and its height is 16½ feet. The weight empty is 13,800 pounds; fully loaded, 22,500 pounds. The power plant consists of four air-cooled engines, each developing 525 horse power. The engines are arranged in tandem, fore and aft on each side of the cabin. For day flying the plane carries 400 gallons of fuel and 40 gallons of oil, giving it a range of 480 miles. As a night plane, the fuel capacity is 700 gallons, with the increased range to 850 miles. The crew consists of two pilots, a radio operator, one day steward and two night stewards. … In its general form of construction this plane, called the F-32, follows the standard Fokker methods. It has an all-wood veneer covered wing of the cantilever type, and all other structural parts of steel tubing. Windshields plus French FarmansThe forward-slanted windshield was fashionable for passenger aircraft in this era. The slanted winshield helped solve the problem of lighted control panel instruments reflecting off the normally backward-sloping windshield at night, but it turned out that the forward-sloping windshield would reflect ground lights instead, especially during landings. Eventually the drag factor and the introduction of tinted plexigas in the 1930s put paid to this idea of forward sloping windshields. As for the odd four-engine arrangement, the French were still using it with their massive Farman 220 series of airliners and bombers in the 1930s. One of them, the converted airliner "Jules Verne", was the first Allied bomber to bomb Berlin in 1940! When planes had mudflapsThose were the days! Seriously, though, some people thought it worth walking across a muddy field and through a prop wash (must have been fun in cold weather or rain), then putting up with what must have been an incredible vibration and din and a roller coaster ride for several hours. Big Boy!Here’s a look at how massive the F-32 was. In 1931, an earlier Fokker model, an F-10 Trimotor, crashed near Kansas City, Kansas, killing all eight people on board including Notre Dame football coach Knute Rockne. One lucky Fokker...was the centerpiece of a Los Angeles filling station through the '30s. The F-32 was purchased from Western Air Express and painted in Mobilgas colors. Fuel islands were put under the broad wings. The ship lit up at night, and the gas monkeys could fire up the forward engines, to the delight of customers. Bob's Air Mail Service Station Tony Fokker's personal F-32, which he'd had kitted out as a plush flying home and office, wasn't so lucky. His business and the country's went to hell at about the same time, and he had to sell the plane. The fuselage ended up in West Virginia as a house trailer, and in the great Ohio Valley floods of 1937, even that was swept away. It's anybody's guess how long Bob's Air Mail plane could have lasted in the elements. The F-32s were all wood except for their chrome-moly fuselage framing. (edit: The plane was scrapped in 1939.) (The Gallery, Aviation, D.C., Natl Photo)
The Smoking Dog: 1927
... her a summons to appear in the mayor's court Saturday night to answer charges of making unnecessary noise, in violation of the town ... Chewning. The summons was accepted - and on Saturday night Mrs. Chewning must face Mayor L.P. Daniel of the hick town, who presides ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/13/2011 - 11:53pm -

March 18, 1927. Washington, D.C. "Margo Couzens, daughter of Senator Couzens." An heiress whose early life might be outlined thusly: aspiring artiste; leadfoot horn-honker; teenage bride (eloped); hothead horn-honker; divorcee. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size. PowerThis young woman is an explosion of talent and passion. Self Portrait with Hat and Bow TieShe earned extra money on weekends fighting pitbulls. Why so serious?It's the deadpan look on her face that makes this so funny. I love it. A graduate ofthe C.M. Coolidge School of Anthropomorphized Dog Art. A quick courtshipFrom the Feb. 17, 1930 Time Magazine "People" section: Senator James Couzens of Michigan, meeting William Jeffries Chewning Jr., his son-in-law [and first husband of daughter Margo], for the first time at lunch in Washington, told reporters: "He seems a very nice chap." Five years later, the same column would report the couple's separation. Haughty HonkerA simple tale to remind us that inflated self-importance is hardly a new phenomenon. Washington Post, Sep 21, 1933 Mrs. Chewning to Face Court for Horn Honk A prolonged blast from automobile. Town Sergt. Alton Shumate, of Falls Church, Va., holding traffic at an intersection for the first apparatus answering an alarm, sends boy to request the motorist to cease blowing the horn because there is a fire. The impatient lady motorist refuses to cease. Up steps a courteous man, who explains traffic is being held for the fire equipment. "You'll be delayed only a minute," he says, "Please quit blowing your horn." "The idea of holding us," she says. "This is some hick town." "This may be a hick town, but I happen to be the mayor here and also the town judge," he returned. Unimpressed, the lady continues to express voluminous and forceful opinion of the town and its officials. Then the sergeant comes up and orders the lady to the curb. "You know who I am?" the lady demands. "I don't know, and I don't care." the sergeant replies, handing her a summons to appear in the mayor's court Saturday night to answer charges of making unnecessary noise, in violation of the town ordinance. The lady was Mrs. Margo Couzens Chewning, daughter of Senator James Couzens. She was accompanied by her husband, William Jeffries Chewning. The summons was accepted - and on Saturday night Mrs. Chewning must face Mayor L.P. Daniel of the hick town, who presides as judge in said hick town. P.S. - the fire proved to be near Cabin John, Md., on the other side of the river. Washington Post, Sep 23, 1933 Couzens' Daughter Abandons Battle in Horn-Honking Horn-honking at Falls Church won't get Mrs. Margo Couzens Chewning, daughter of Senator James Couzens, Michigan, into the town court tonight after all. She decided it was worth $2 to let the incident drop. Her attorney, John C. Mackall, announced he was posting that amount as collateral on Mrs. Chewing's summons and would forfeit it. Previously her husband, William Jeffries Chewning, said he would fight the case because he believed she was being persecuted. The trouble started with Mrs. Chewning got into a controversy with Mayor L.P. Daniel, of Falls Church, about blowing her horn when traffic was halted by fire apparatus. In ResidenceIt appears that in 1930 William and Margaret Chewning were in residence in the 2400 block of Massachusetts Avenue, NW. They apparently lived in a large apartment house, but it is not clear which one. You clearly don't understandthe mind and delicate emotional needs of an arteeste. Did the cops not understand she can't bear to wait for such plebeian events like buildings that are ablaze. Great shoes though. Get a job!The Mayflower Hotel in Washington announced that William Jeffries Chewning Jr., young bank clerk who eloped with Margo, daughter of millionaire Senator James Couzens of Michigan, would become one of its assistant managers, would report for work daily at 8 a.m. in frock coat and grey trousers, would take up "a receptive post in the main lobby." Time Magazine, Oct. 13, 1930 Guilty!Put her behind bars for pretending to paint in a dress, stockings and heels. Ms MargoThe Paris Hilton of the last century's DC elite. So she's the one!I always wondered who the inspiration for this fine piece of art was. A real handful, true,but what adventures taming that fiery beast! Fast livingEarly life indeed -- Margo was born in 1910, so she's just a teenager here, and some Googling around shows she separated from her second husband (the persecuted Mr. Chewning, of course) in 1935. One hopes things eventually calmed down a bit. Honk, HonkI see, she is a graduate of "DON'T YOU KNOW WHO I AM" school of social interaction. Being in a political family she must of been granted her a full scholarship. Margo, the PrequelMiss Entitlement's first horn-honking incident. The roadster is the car she would elope in the following year. Washington Post, May 5, 1929. DAUGHTER OF SENATOR RUNS AUTO INTO TWO MEN Margo Couzens and Her Friends Take Pair to Hospital Dressed in her riding togs and driving her new roadster with three persons whom she was giving a lift from the Riding and Hunt Club to the Wardman Park Saddle Club horse show, Miss Margo Couzens, 18-year-old daughter of Senator James Couzens, of Michigan, knocked down and critically injured George Brown, colored, 53 years old, 1912 Thirteenth street northwest, a mason, on Massachusetts avenue northwest, at the Rock Creek Park entrance. Brown, physicians at Emergency Hospital believe, has a fractured skull as a result. His companion, Henry Watkins, colored, 114 L street southwest, escaped unharmed when the automobile bore down on them. The accident, according to police of the Eighth Precinct, occurred at 12:40 o'clock yesterday afternoon. Both men were walking across the intersection as the roadster approached them, Miss Couzens said last night. Miss Couzens sounded her horn to warn them, and the two colored men stepped apart, startled by the signal, she said. Then Watkins turned and shouted to his companion to join him, and Brown ran toward him across the path of the automobile. Miss Couzens said she applied her brakes instantly after sounding the warning and seeing the confused actions of the two men. The automobile, she said, came to a quick stop, the wheels being locked by the brakes. Brown was knocked down and dragged a short distance by the automobile. According to miss Couzens, he was carried only several feet. With the aid of her companions, Miss Couzens placed the injured man in the automobile and took him to Emergency Hospital. ... At the hospital Miss Couzens was visibly excited and nervous over the accident, according to police. ... Driver's Ed, 1929"When 'colored' persons are encountered crossing the road, stopping (or even slowing) is hardly necessary. Simply sound the horn until they scatter like chickens, and proceed apace." 1911-1976Margo Couzens Chewning Bryant died July 5, 1976, at Fauquier Hospital in Warrenton, Virginia, aged 64 or 65. I Hope You're Sitting DownI am compelled to show the odd similarities between this and the cover of my former band's first album, Lambchop's "I Hope You're Sitting Down", as painted by our lead guy, Kurt Wagner. Finally, someone who knew who she was.From UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE, INC. FOR RELEASE MONDAY. JANUARY 14, 1935 AND THEREAFTER. THE DAILY WASHINGTON MERRY-GO-ROUND SENATORS' DAUGHTERS In Washington, it's never safe to assume a superior attitude, regardless of who you may be, or to whom you may think you're talking. Mrs. William Jeffries Chewning Jr., erstwhile Margot Couzens, daughter of Croesan Senator James Couzens of Michigan, went shopping recently at a fashionable Washington department store. She made a small purchase, and in payment presented a very large check, Explaining that the banks were closed and she needed some cash over the weekend. The salesgirl, very pleasantly, replied that she could not cash so large a check, as much as she would like to. Retorted Margot: "But I've got to get it cashed, I've been dealing here for years. It's perfectly good. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Chewning," reiterated the salesgirl. "We have strict orders not to cash checks above a certain figure." Mrs. Chewning, not accustomed to having her checks rejected, was keenly annoyed. "That's all very well," she replied, "but do you know who I am? I'm Senator Couzens' daughter." The salesgirl nodded pleasantly, "Oh, yes; I know quite well. You see, I'm Senator Nye's daughter." Born too lateMiss Thing is probably miffed that she was only eleven years old when all the cool artists were hanging out at the Krazy Kat Club. That's it!The crazy kind of yard sale art I love to chance upon. (The Gallery, D.C., Natl Photo, Portraits)
Michigan Avenue: 1962
... Dr. Strangelove (1964); The Graduate (1967); A Hard Day's Night (1964); Mary Poppins (1964) etc etc etc They never saw a roofed sports ... 
 
Posted by shawnv - 12/04/2008 - 12:05pm -

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. What they didn't knowJust think of all the things these drivers and pedestrians didn't know... They didn't know there was going to be a band called the Beatles which would have such an impact on the culture They didn't know that Vietnam would dominate the news and effect huge cultural change They didn't know Kennedy would be killed within a year or so... They didn't know that in 7 years the impossible would come true, men on the moon They didn't know we'd become so dependent on some weird electronic device called a home computer They hadn't heard of or seen: Doctor Zhivago (1965); Dr. Strangelove (1964); The Graduate (1967); A Hard Day's Night (1964); Mary Poppins (1964) etc etc etc They never saw a roofed sports stadium (Astrodome 1965) I love to ponder these things and try and get into the head of people in old photos... What are they thinking? What's important to them this day while they are turning left? Do they have a doctor's appointment? A first date? Cheers! Wow.A pink Edsel in turn lane. Wish I had one today. [Not quite. That's a Mercury. - Dave] Car SpotterPart of me wishes I was 20 years old in 1962. I love the 1957 to 1962 cars. From left to right, 1959 Ford, looks like a 1956 Plymouth grille behind it, the photographer is following a 1957 Olds, and yes that is a pink 1957 Mercury. In front of that looks like a Checker Cab. Next to the Mercury is a 1962 Oldsmobile, and behind it is a 1955 Chevrolet. Behind the 55 Chevy is a 1960 Chevrolet. The PrudentialWas the tallest building in Chicago at that time I believe. Also, my dad works there. Good view of Grant Park! They also didn't know...... that the little black kid with the white mother would one day be President. Michigan and Adams 2008Seems to be a new high-rise next to the Art Institute. View Larger Map Car StylingIf this picture were taken today, one wouldn't see much difference in car details. Most vehicles for the past 10 years have looked about the same. But in this picture, such amazing variety in just a seven-year span of models! Somehow, uniformity makes our society poorer. So much has changed...... But one thing hasn't - THE TRAFFIC! Chicago ..."My Kind of Town," so sayeth the chairman of the board. MusicThis photo is best viewed while listening to The Thrashmens classic "Surfin' Bird" Eerie how that happened to be playing here precisely when I saw this photo. Changed?Honestly, this intersection really hasn't changed much. I recognized it right away. Go a few blocks in either direction, and there will be plenty of new stuff, but not at this intersection. On a weekend with a car show, you could probably take nearly the same picture. Car Styling I agree with you on that. It wasn't until recently that cars went through another design revolution. The minivans in the '90s and early '00s. At least now there are some differences between them. They all had the same shape and looked exactly the same from a distance back then. Same thing with mid-sized sedans. It was only in the last year or two that the cars gained some new distinguishing styles. Nothing beats the old cars though. Palmolive Building mastThe tall silver mast on the Palmolive Building was the WGN-TV antenna back in those days. I believe it's used by an FM station now. PrudentialThat's the Prudential Building with the mast. The Palmolive (a.k.a. Playboy) building is farther north and not visible in this photo. That one modern buildingI walk by that spot all the time. The modern Prudential building dominating the photo was the first big Chicago skyscraper after a 20-year Depression/WWII hiatus. Compare to all the buildings lining Michigan Ave which date from the 1910s and 1920s. Most are still there. CarsAs for me and my family we would rather be in one these old big safe cars than the Tinkertoy cars of today. [I'd rather be surrounded by six airbags and two crumple zones. The death rate per passenger-mile circa 1960 was pretty horrific. Those big old cars (and their passengers) did not do especially well in collisions. Roofs in the era of the wraparound windshield did a poor job of supporting the weight of the car in a rollover. - Dave] No squabbleI was half as tall as my sister so the hump was my pillow. I loved to hear the rush and rumble of the road through the floor and, if my dad stopped too fast, I couldn't roll off. ExactlyFeel the same way AJ, I can spend hours watching and analyzing every bit of these photos. Wish I had a time machine. Old CarsThose old heavy cars used to have a lot of decapitations. The hood was solid and heavy and in a collision would release from the hinges and go back through the passenger compartment and slice off heads. As Dave stated, today's cars have crumple zones so the hood now just crumples up on impact... Much safer. [Cars now are generally heavier than their counterparts 50 years ago, or at least denser. A 1959 Ford and 2009 Honda Accord both tip the scales at around 3,500 pounds. My Japanese car weighs a little over 4,100 pounds. - Dave] Backseat SquabblersThe first car I remember was the family's green and white 1959 Ford Galaxie. My sisters and I used to fight over who got to sleep in the back window ledge on the way home when we would visit relatives in South Dakota. Winner got the package-shelf perch, second place got the back seat, loser ended up on the floor on hump. Actually we traded off, but the window shelf was prized. Riding like that with a Dad that smoked, it's a wonder we survived! Yikes. 1961It could have been taken in 1961, since the center green car is sporting a 1961 Michigan tag, which is the 59 yellow on green with a silver 1961 metal tab. Illinois had white on red plates in 1961, white on orange in 1962 - colors too similar to identify in the photo. Could also have been early 1962, but I think we’d notice both orange and red IL plates. As a kid in Chicago, I loved to see new plates appear each winter. Route 66The white sign on the lamppost (in front of the lion) marks the beginning of Route 66. Clues from the U.S. FlagWe featured this picture as our quiz #188 photo for the week of 14 Dec 2008. We essentially asked readers to identify the location and to tell us how they recognized it. See www.forensicgenealogy.info/contest_188_results.html We received many responses - one from regular reader Mike Dalton was worth writing to Shorpy about. Mike dated the picture to after July 4, 1960 based on the admission of Hawaii and Alaska to the Union in 1959. As Mike wrote: Timeline referencing 50 star American flag in photo: Alaska entered Union on January 3, 1959 - rank 49th state; Hawai'i entered Union on August 21, 1959 - rank 50th state. President Dwight David Eisenhower signed Executive Order 10834 on August 21,1959, regarding design and implementation of 50 star American Flag. 50 star American Flag raised officially for the first time at Fort McHenry National Monument in Baltimore, Maryland on July 4, 1960. Since the flag on the front of the Art Institute of Chicago has 50 stars on it, the photo had to have been taken after July 4, 1960. ===================================== [The earliest this could be is late 1961 -- that's a 1962 Oldsmobile under the Prudential tower. - Dave] I am amazedDave. Your knowledge amazes me. Not many folks can identify a 1962 Olds. Ferris BuellerIf you ever saw Ferris Bueller's Day Off, you could see this is the Art museum from that movie. It shows the lions at the beginning of the museum montage played to the instrumental version of "Please Please Please Let Me get what I Want" by Dream Academy. Great movie. Some things never changeThe spectacular "Lions of Michigan Avenue" in front of the Art Institute, placed there in 1894, are considered the best work of artist Edward Kemeys. They're not identical; the lion on the north pedestal is "on the prowl" while the one on the south pedestal is "in an attitude of defiance." I have pictures of my family in front of the south lion when our children were small. We used to eat at Bennigan's (no longer there) directly across the street, gazing (if we were lucky enough to get a window table) out at the Art Institute and the southern end of the Magnificent Mile. I took a picture looking west down Adams Street towards the Sears Tower (it has another name now but I never use it) from this very spot in late September of 2019. Then there's that lovely peek of the Wrigley Building glowing in the distance to the north -- Michigan Avenue at Wacker Drive, where the Chicago River flows beneath the DuSable Bridge. (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses)
Boho Wedding: 1922
... In 1935 the Washington Post called it "the first real night club of the so-called 'night club era.' " The article continues: "It was started by Charles W. Smith, ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/27/2012 - 4:46pm -

"Better 'Ole Wedding." Informal nuptials circa 1922 at the Better 'Ole, a Greenwich Villagey "bohemian" nightspot in Washington, D.C., that, while short-lived, made its mark. In 1935 the Washington Post called it "the first real night club of the so-called 'night club era.' " The article continues: "It was started by Charles W. Smith, now the noted black-and-white artist, had a membership charge of $1 and was located on the second floor of a three-story building at 1515 U Street. A hot colored dance orchestra held forth in a room decorated with drapes in a sort of cubist style." More here. National Photo Co. glass negative. View full size. Couple In the BoothHer expression is most likely due to her being caught in mid-word and blinking her eyes just as the flash powder went off. Sort of like those photos of celebrities that make them look like blithering, drooling imbeciles that certain periodicals like to publish under screaming headlines such as "BRAD BEBOP GOES BERSERK!" Also, notice that she seems to have another one of those massive floral memorials growing from her midriff, so maybe she's a bridesmaid or maid of honor. Boyfriend, who I bet she's holding hands with under the table, has a big carnation, so maybe he was best man or other wedding functionary. An Odd ReligionIt's an odd religion that will marry a man to a unicorn with a flower garden growing up her front. The two in the booth at the right have already passed out, and they haven't even started serving the liquor yet! Bridal BouquetThat's the bride's bouquet, composed of rosebuds and ferns, which she has tucked into her belt. Check out the wonderful cut-work on her sleeves. This is some boho bunch. I hope they had a long and happy life together. LiquorThis was 1922. The Great Experiment (Prohibition to us) had begun a couple of years before. No booze to be found here - nudge nudge, wink wink, say no more. What a beautiful group!What is the bride wearing?? These people look marvelous and immediately reminded me of all the Krazy Kat Klub pictures seen here, here, and here. The Better 'OleLines from the 1919 play based on the cartoons 12 "Let's get out of this damn 'ole!" 13 "If you knows of a better 'ole - go to it." http://www.geocities.com/emruf5/betterole.html the IMDB entry for the 1926 film of the play http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0016643/ Shave and a haircutThe groom looks like he had a recent shave and haircut but he should have shined his shoes! Bride and GroomThis was no shotgun wedding. The couple appear to be in their 40s. That would put the parents in another world or in a distant place in this world. It would be interesting to find out who the couple were and what happened to them. Good WoodSorry for a 2nd comment, but I just noticed the wood that the booth seats and tables are made from. Another nice example of how cool wood was back then. The tabletop looks like one solid piece (which probably tried to warp up at each side as it dried out due to its position of the rings). The sides of the booth is what gets me. It's huge! Even if it's joined with another board at the centerline, it's still big compared to what we can get these days at a standard lumberyard. Hell, it's hard to even find plywood that straight any more. Reefer MadnessThe couple in the booth on the right look like they have already started their (no turning back) descent into the perils of the evil weed. Beware when two people are both keeping their hands under the table. There is a Walter Mondale lookalike, but taller, about third or fourth from the left of the photo (just to the right of the ceiling lantern) who may have been an ancestor to W.M. And last, but not least, notice there are no old people there, even the clergyman cannot be more than 55 or 60. Obviously these kids were smart Alec whippersnappers, as no parents were invited. Still, its a smart looking, well-dressed and very happy crowd, even though the bride and groom should be holding hands. All in all, F. Scott Fitzgerald would be proud. FlowersAre the bride's flowers a huge corsage, or a bouquet tucked into her belt? I've never seen such a large corsage and I just wondered if it was the style at the time. "Better 'Ole""The Better 'Ole" was a comedy about World War I (unlikely though that may seem) based on a British cartoon series. The 'Ole in the title is a Cockney-fied version of Hole, i.e., Trench. But in this case, it's referring to a nightclub in DC that the Post described on 10/7/21: "the city's latest acquisition in the line of places for Bohemians to gather." The story story goes on to say that the dishwasher absconded with the opening night's take--65 bucks. [Ooh. Fantastic. Thanks! - Dave] Wedding PartyWow. This is one of the best photos ever. People gathered for a festive occasion in a rustic setting. I love the women's clothes and hats and jewelry. The men all look dashing. Everyone seems to be in a happy frame of mind. On other posts people have commented on how "dressed up" people were for ordinary occasions in this era. Of course this is a special occasion, but it seems we have lost something in our clothing fashions of today. I have been to weddings where young people and not so young have attended in jeans with bare midriffs. In a church. It is nice to see photos of an era, where looking nice and acting nice was not considered putting on airs. The Better 'Ole, Cont'd.A 1923 Washington Post column ("After the Curfew") recalls that "the Bohemian atmosphere was first obtained by locating the club in an alley over a garage. Here one dined, and drank, with the smell of gasoline and the noise of cars. The popularity of the place was instantaneous, all of the younger set flocked there. They danced in a two by-four space with great delight, and endured the million and one other discomforts of the place for the sake of the so called Bohemian touch, which for some unknown reason is considered very romantic. The owners of the club seemed to thrive financially and they decided that the club should have better quarters, so they moved into a better building, and a better part of town. They attempted to take the Bohemian touch, which had been so successful, to the new place. To do this they had an elaborate decorative scheme carried out. Stripes, awnings, pictures and rough wooden tables, and all. The real atmosphere was lost, however, and while the young Washingtonians still frequent the place, it is now merely another place to go to dine and dance. There is not much of the Bohemian in the hours of opening or closing, both being the regular times. And there is nothing unusual about the conduct of the guests while there. That is, nothing unusual for this day and age. If some of the original Bohemians could really see what the modern youth does in their names they would probably be horribly shocked." Hair HornsCan someone tell me what the woman thats standing behind the groom is wearing on her forehead? Is that a hairstyle? Special Guest AppearanceFeaturing a special guest appearance by Woodrow Wilson, as the man in the frock. HairstyleThe lady behind the groom is wearing what, in a time with less elevated sensitivities, were called "spit curls." Some ladies with longish bangs found it convenient to moisten their hair with saliva before they curled the hair around a finger. A bobby pin kept things in order until they dried. At times my mother wore her bangs in a similar arrangement, although she preferred a single curl over the left side of her forehead to the double style. My congratulations to the photographer. There is a possibility he used the new fangled photoflash bulbs that were just coming in, but this picture was probably taken on a Graphic, or Graflex, with flash powder. How it looks todayI work on U St. and had to go out and grab a few photos. Here's the composite: Wedding of Dutch Whelan and Mary McCaffreyThe photo was taken on November 17, 1921 by the National Photo Co. news agency in Washington. They captioned it: "A Bohemian wedding in true Washington Square style was staged in Washington today when Frederick (Dutch) Whelan and Mary McCaffray were married at the “Better Ole” an Alley Coffee House much frequented by the intelligentsia, by the Rev. Dr. J. J. Simon of St. Andrews Church. The couple met a few weeks ago at the “Ole” and wooed to the music of the wild ukelala, hence the wedding at the unconventional place selected. The next day the DC paper ran the picture with the headline "Dutch Whalen, DC Tom-tom Beater Weds Artists Model" with the accompanying story: “Who said romance lies unconscious in the hospital, disarmed and dehydrated? Dutch Whelan, popular tom-tom beater for Washington folks who shuffle was off the glazing floor, wasn’t worrying about proving romance was still showing a good pulse yesterday afternoon when his wedding xylophone sounded at the Better Ole. Though he proved it right, Dutch’s interest was centered in his bride, Miss Mary E. McCaffrey, whom he met one night two weeks ago as he was on the job playing ”The Rose of Washington Square.” Two weeks, a Greenwich Village background, music and a model’s platform for an altar – certainly romance is still deadly even if tucked away in an alley at the rear of the Burlington Hotel. (The Gallery, D.C., Eateries & Bars, Natl Photo, Weddings)
The Jolly Market: 1965
... stamp or a sticker gun. And we closed promptly at 6 every night, an hour later than the downtown shops - except on Thursdays, when every ... state. By my time, the two grocery stores were open every night until 8:00 (except Sundays), but the rest of the downtown stores continue ... 
 
Posted by tterrace - 09/29/2011 - 6:15pm -

My father makes change for a couple of my acquaintances in the Jolly Market in Fairfax, California. A year later he retired from full-time employment, but took on part-time work at a couple Marin County supermarkets for a few years thereafter. This being the days before scanners, you'll note the market's latest weekly newspaper ad hanging there for reference. The triangular-shaped gizmo at the upper right corner of it is a trading stamp dispenser, probably Blue Chip. A few years later we were using them at the post office counter to sell postage stamps. Also of interest, conveniently located on the counter adjacent to the razor blades, is a dispenser of do-it-yourself last will & testament forms, thus providing a complete impulse buy solution for the customers. Finally, at no extra charge, hilarity-inducing facial expressions. A somewhat underexposed, fluorescent-illuminated available light Kodachrome that I boosted and color-corrected. Smoking In The StoreMy first "real" job was bagging groceries at the local supermarket in the early '70s. At least in small town Nebraska, smoking was certainly permitted inside the store. We had ashtray stands at the end of every aisle, and a couple times per shift someone had to go up & down the aisles and sweep up cigarette butts. No scanners - each item was individually priced, either with a rubber stamp or a sticker gun. And we closed promptly at 6 every night, an hour later than the downtown shops - except on Thursdays, when every store in town stayed open till 9 and the farmers came to town to shop. It really was a different world. Bar codesEvery packaged product in the late '70s had a bar code, but few people seemed to have any idea what for, since scanners were not yet in evidence. They were the perennial butt of jokes in Mad Magazine; one cover had Alfred E. Neuman cutting a line of them with a lawnmower. I don't actually remember seeing anyone smoke in a supermarket, but one of my earliest memories is of reaching down to pick up a butt in the aisle, out of curiosity, since no one in my family smoked, and I wasn't sure what it was. Of course my mother told me to put it down because it was dirty. This would have been in the early '70s. I do remember seeing ashtrays atop the posts that held the velvet ropes in the bank, well into the '80s. Indoor smoking was of course verboten by that time, but the accoutrements remained. Double TakeWow! I had to do a double take with this photo. Though your dad appears to be shorter in height than my dad, your father looks just like my dad in this photo. Maybe it is his expression, or the shape of his face and nose, and the glasses, but your father, in this picture, could almost pass for my dad. I have not seen such a similarity to my dad in other pictures of your father though. I'm with the BillsBdgBill is right that a photo you probably barely noticed at the time has aged very well, and RGMBill is right that the man wouldn't look out of place 45 years later, while the woman's dress is, well, severely retro. There is so much going on in this photo. Why is the older man with the younger woman? Why does she have a flower behind her ear? Why is she looking at your father so intently? A great slice of life photo that is thought-provoking nearly a half-century later. A Trip to the StoreThis was during my formative years, and I always liked going to the grocery store (Food Fair). The gumball machines, the electric door at entrance, the big Toledo scale, the Coke machine, and the candy racks at the register (Life Savers, Wrigley's Spearmint, Doublemint) were highlights. If I was really lucky, there would also be a stop at the gas station (Cities Service). Did your dad ever have to deal with shoplifters, drunks or robbers? I'm sure he encountered his share of characters. Ordinary Photos Age Well You probably barely gave this shot a look when it was first processed. Almost nobody would have found this to be an interesting photo when it was first shot but as images like this age, they get more and more interesting. I really enjoy these occasional mid to late 20th century photos here on Shorpy. Keep them coming. Do you remember if customers were allowed to smoke in grocery stores back in the day? I seem to remember my mother smoking while walking the aisles of our local Stop n Shop back in the early '70s but she strenuously denies this. Cute CoupleI bet those two were fun beyond belief. Service With A SmileI must admit that although we enjoy amazing conveniences and ease of living these days, the old time personal service could not be beat. If you have tried to use those "self-checkout" lanes in most big markets these days, you will see that in almost every instance a manager/cashier must be called over anyway (with further delays) because the sale price did not scan or coupons could not be used or for any other number of glitches that were wrongly programmed. As for "impulse item space" at the checkout, that was always a hot property for manufacturers to win for their product. I worked for Bic Pen in the 60's and they would do anything for that point of sale display as did Gillette Blue blades. Years later, when I had kids, they would desperately want to spend their entire allowance before we left any store and were buying TV Guides, gum, nail clippers, etc. just anything to use up their $2. This photo is wonderful and totally realistic, a blast from the past, I love it. Thank you Shorpy and tterrace. 8:24 pmHugging by your dad's watch. The man could have stepped into the supermarket here today and no one would look twice. The girl -- well, fashions have changed, although folks might still look at her twice. ["Hugging"? If you say so. - Dave] Dad seems to be thinkingEverywhere I go that kid of mine is taking my picture. Great photo, something about old Supermarkets gives me a very nostalgic feeling. I can remember going to the Safeway back around 1963-64 and being fascinated by the Coffee aisle, they had a grinder then and you ground your own beans, great stuff for a four year old boy. I can remember the music too, or maybe it was Muzak, dreary instrumental stuff with lots of muted horns. Butts in the fruits and veggiesYeah, people could smoke in the grocery. I remember, as a kid in Southern California around 1970, going to the store to get an orange or apple for a snack. While picking one out I noticed that unthinking individuals used to toss their butts right into the fruit and veggie bins. I guess the produce folks had to do the butt removal as well as restacking the fruit. Yuck! Introduction to ItalianTterrace, I don't know how you wound up with the nickname "termite." Especially with your family's Italian heritage, I'm surprised your friends and family didn't call you "Paparazzi." At First GlanceIf I didn't know better, it looks like the customer feels he's been short changed. Speaking of scannersI get a kick out of looking through Reader's Digests that came out around the time I graduated high school (1979). Just for giggles, I pulled a 20 cent off coupon for soup out of one a few weeks back and took it to Safeway, mostly to see the cashier's reaction upon realizing it expired 10 years before she was born. The lack of a barcode didn't even OCCUR to me but she must've turned it over and back 20 times looking for it. It completely overwhelmed the poor kid's sense of How Things are Supposed to Work and that ended up making me feel terrible. She never did notice the expiration date. Dad !!!As another reader noted, your dad resembles his dad in this photo. Your dad looks like my dad in every photo you print so much so that my first thought on seeing him would be "A second family! Not working out of town, like he said!" My dad's face was fuller, but otherwise a ringer. I thought the resemblance might be the same region in Italy, but subsequently you named his town and it was not the same as my dad. You and I however, look nothing remotely alike. Was this dad's store where he had been a pharmacist? [my apology. Dad was never a pharmacist] Enjoying the momentYour dad looks like a true gentleman tterrace and this image begs the question, what are they buying? They look slightly embarrassed and amused at the same time. Your dad has that "Not now son" look. The stories of times past are also very interesting. Thanks Shorpians. Smoking in the 1960sDo you remember if customers were allowed to smoke in grocery stores back in the day? I can't speak for the USA but being a teenager (in Australia) in the 1960s (I was born in 1945) I can tell you that the only places in which smoking was forbidden (not by law but my social standards) were churches. So seeing someone light up in a bank/grocery store/milkbar/cafe/ etcetera was common and not even deserving of a second glance. After all, back then smoking only stunted your growth if you were a youngster. Some Jolly AnswersTo my knowledge, Father never had to deal with robbers, and while I don't recall him talking about drunks or shoplifters, he undoubtedly had experiences with both in his 40+-year grocery career. When he worked at another Jolly store that was located adjacent to one of Marin County's most upscale neighborhoods, he sometimes came home speaking of being riled and having to bite his tongue when dealing with some of that area's more imperious clientele. But he was an old-school pro all the way; I can't imagine him ever losing his cool with a customer, any more than he would have with anybody at any time for that matter. He did, however, sometimes express disappointment when others he worked with, both in management and labor, did not exhibit the kind of professionalism he had always brought to the job, both as a store owner and employee. You know, the younger generation and all that. In answer to ImpressionsInWatercolor's question, he never was a pharmacist. As for my two acquaintances, they were themselves merely acquaintances, not a couple. Finally, let's credit Dave with some further tweaking that brought more oomph to my scan. Going down to Jolly's. I know of the second "Jolly's" that you speak. It was the store we would shop at, unless you decided to head for that new Safeway store the was in San Anselmo, and now a post office. Actually, back then, it was hard to tell the difference between where anyone was from in the surrounding communities. There were enclaves of very wealthy, and the no so well to do. However, the well to do never really flaunted their wealth, and drove cars and dressed their children like most everyone did. Compare that to today's situation and attitudes in the same locale, and I'd wager ever your father would have a hard time holding his tongue. I know I do. Smoking in the grocery storeOne of my earliest memories is of being brushed by a man's burner in the grocery store aisle. This must have been 1971 or 72. "Hugging"Sorry, Dave, that was because Swype couldn't understand the word "Going".... trouble with using a cellphone to send comments. Looks to me like Eugene Levy checking out Winona Ryder and Arnold Palmer. LikeI love most of the "Tterrace Collection," but this is one of my favorites in awhile. Great candid and a slice of life. I don't know why you thought to take shots like this at the time, but I'm glad you did. And also glad that you're scanning and sharing them now. DanV, it's nice to see another Nebraskan on here. I also grew up in a small, rural town in that lovely state. By my time, the two grocery stores were open every night until 8:00 (except Sundays), but the rest of the downtown stores continue the practice of staying open late on Thursday night to this day. I wonder how Thursday got to be the "late night." Finally, the comments on smoking in stores and banks blow my mind. Growing up in the '90s (yes, I know, please let me stay anyway), smoking had already been banned from most places except for restaurants and bars. In fact, strange as it sounds, it has never before occurred to me that people might have smoked in grocery stores or banks! Many of these pictures make me wish I could see what life was like in earlier eras (if only for a little bit), but this is one area I think undoubtedly improved! Suburb of MinneapolisIn the 50s we shopped not in the city but suburbs and I know you could smoke there (don't know if the city was different}. But it was nice because my parents knew the owners of the grocery store, drug store and hardware store. Probably the liquor store also. Small town values. You know everyone. Different world now. Another great pic from tterrace and Shorpy!!!!! (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, Stores & Markets, tterrapix)
Chevy Men: 1972
... of a target. It won't really be cooling off that much at night in the summer. I suppose in our bug-spray crazed society we forget ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/02/2010 - 2:19pm -

"Cornett family. Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1972. Men and boys without shirts sitting and standing around two cars." Willie Cornett (seated, right) and some of his 12 children. 35mm negative by William Gedney (1932-1989). From Duke University's Gedney Collection, encompassing some 5,000 pictures taken from the 1950s through the early '70s. Do we want to see more? View full size. 1964 was OKSeems all of us boys did the same from 1964 to ?? I am not sure but those seem to be a 1964 Impala and yes we need and want to see more!! Circa 1979My buddy Whit had a '63 Impala. We spent hundreds of hours in that car on the back roads of Pennsylvania. Toking and listening to Led Zep, we ruled the world. Yes, we want to see moreMore Chevys, that is. Got any '58s? Junior's thought balloonIn jes' a few more years ah'll be able to afford: 1. Ciggies! 2. Shoes! 3. My own craptastic car! Ancient HistoryYes, would love to see them. The older we get the more the '70s seem like ancient history. This is so coolIt's a new twist on the Shorpy formula for success. A different era, still black-and-white, and nice insight into how people lived at another time. I like it. More, please! SpellboundThe young boy on the left is totally fascinated by the collective wisdom of the big guys whether the subject be cars or girls, and I guarantee it's one or the other. I know because that's me 10 years earlier. 1963 Impala hardtop on the right, and a 1964 Impala convertible on the left (owned one in '69). A few more, anyway. That's a good pic - very well composed and with excellent tonal range. Lurkin'Back at the right is a 1957 210 wagon. Chevy's forever in this group. Cigarettes, succotash and hard workWill keep you thin! My Kentucky HomeI was about this kid's age growing up in Eastern Kentucky in 1972. We lived a simple life but probably a little better off than these folks, although in the mid '60s my father was a sharecropper and we had running water only in our kitchen sink (no bathroom in the house). Sure made for some cold trips to the outhouse as a tot. Thank God my sister helped me. Times have surely changed but I'm still in Kentucky, and there's no place I'd rather be. You Betcha!You know the Bull City Boy wants to see more from this Duke University collection. I could probably do without the condescending comments, but that seems to part and parcel of the Shorpy experience. The One in ChargeIt seems clear from the dynamics captured in this picture that the boy in the middle, leaning on the trunk lid of the Chevy, with his right hand with the cigarette up on his left shoulder, is in command of this scene. The younger guys to his right hang on his every word, and the old guys on his left are afraid of him. Look at how the one older man shields his soft body, and the other holds his hand to his head. The middle boy is the only one not shielding himself in some way. Look how the third boy from the left has his legs crossed to protect his family jewels. [The "older one" with the "soft body" is Dad -- Willie Cornett. The others are his sons. - Dave] Yes, pleaseI'd very much like to see more of this collection. As a Hatfield I have a lot of history and interest in Eastern Kentucky and having spent quite a bit of time there I'd love to see more. Do we want to see more?Yes ChoiceHaving occupied that time and nearly that place, I understand the texture and tone of the choices that brought those men and boys to that spot. Though there is an escape, it does not require a change of place but a change of action and perspective; poverty does not by itself produce poor vehicle maintenance, nor poor hygiene or self loathing, but it does place a heavy air in one's lungs and a blur in the eyes. But I could be wrong: Maybe they were happy and had optimism, dreams, and plans for a prosperous future and I am the one who made poor choices. Minus the carsThis could be a shot right out of the Depression. Shields UpI have lived in Kentucky and I still work there and I can assure you that these young men aren't shielding soft spots or anything else except from gnats, flies, and mosquitoes. These guys are in a woods environment in the mountains of eastern Kentucky. They are shirtless because they are at home and among family so no modesty is needed. If the this image was captured in the late afternoon then the bugs are starting to come out and all three on the right hand side of the image seem to be swatting at the same time. If that is the case then they'll all be putting on shirts soon to give mosquitoes less of a target. It won't really be cooling off that much at night in the summer. I suppose in our bug-spray crazed society we forget that once upon a time in America people spending time outside dressed to ward off biting insects as much as to protect their modesty and to prevent exposure to the elements. RidezFor cars one model year apart, the difference in condition is striking. Neither car is ten years old in this image. I believe the better one is Dad's, since he's the only one sitting on it. I'd also believe that one of the boys picked up the battered convertible secondhand (or he had a drinking problem). My own father, an Arkansas native, was posted to Fort Knox around this time, so the Gadney scenes resonate. Family ReunionThis shot could easily be my grandfather and his five sons (as the eldest, my father would likely be the one in the center, sans cigarette). The age differences are spot-on, as is the time that they were these ages. The location is the only detail to indicate these aren't my kinfolk, as the family has resided in East Texas since the late 1950s. Interesting, though, because like lawgrl, I also have Hatfield roots in Eastern Kentucky. Thanks for the photo that strikes close to home on several different levels. No Money but Hearts of GoldJust think that with 12 kids, the Cornetts had at least 14 people living in their very humble dwelling but still voluntarily "took in" photographer Gedney who was not even kin. Can't hardly find people like that anymore. [There were indeed 12 children when William Gedney met the family in 1964, but by 1972 but they weren't all living with Mom and Dad. Some of them had married and had kids of their own. - Dave] Biding their time by the river... just waiting for Ned Beatty to glide by in his canoe. BuggedHey, remember "6-12", available in the yellow tube or can? How about "Flit", Real-Kill, Hot Shot, and Black Flag? Back then, every service station had their company's own brand of spray, probably DDT suspended in "petroleum distillates", a polite way of saying kerosene. They were also happy to sell you their pump spray atomizer. Us kids soon discovered what a wonderful experience could be had from spraying them at a lit candle. The thing hanging from the families kitchen ceiling might have been a "Shell No-Pest Strip". It was about this time that the miracle product, "OFF!" appeared, and put 6-12 out of business with its new technology: "They don't BITE, they don't even LIGHT!" More, more, more!Dave, you always pick great images. I would love to expand the time-line offering. Just keep the fantastic older ones coming too! Then and NowNo jeans. No shorts. No running shoes. No long hair. And no caps. Classic A classic southern photograph I recognize until this day. The men still take their shirts off and feel comfortable in doing so. The joy of looking at old photographs like this is the great conversation it brings up like above. I agree with Anonymous Tipster about the subject matter, it looks about right to me. Photographs are awesome in a way a video is not. You can notice all the fine detail in a photograph and to me black and whites are the best. As some of the other Hatfield descendants above have noted, our lines go way back in the south, so we know the good stuff is in the details. (Cars, Trucks, Buses, Cornett Family, William Gedney)
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