Happy Earth Day! (OK, I am a little late, but better late than never).
Here is a link to a New York Times article about an innovative way of recycling old subway cars. I found it very interesting and accompanying photos are spectacular. Enjoy!
April 26, 2008
March 19, 2008
Red Square, New York
The picture below was taken in the spring of 2001 in New York. If you will study the high resolution image carefully, you will notice something that you would never expect to find in New York.
If you have not noticed anything so far and if my pose in the picture does not give a hint, then I will tell you that if you look directly to the right of the traffic light, you will notice that there is something resembling a Lenin statue on one of the buildings, as shown below. That was actually the reason for taking the picture in the first place.
I had that image in the back of my mind for a while and promised myself to return to that neighborhood and investigate further what is going on. Gradually, however, that resolution washed away from my memory, until past Sunday when my my friend and I went to explore Anshe Chesed historic synagogue on Norfolk Street (which would be a subject of a future post). After taking picture of the facade of the synagoge, I glanced to the left in the direction of East Houston Street and right before my eyes I once again saw the Lenin statue and the building on which it stands, although this time they where right in front of me.
The building was constructed in 1989, offering “hip” luxury apartments, and so it incorporates many strange features in its decor. The easiest one to notice is the giant clock covering the water tower with the numbers in completely random order.
The name “Red Square” might come from the fact that the building is red and is of squarish shape, although most likely the name was adopted to slightly “shock” the public and create a sense of controversy.
As for the Lenin statue, it was installed in 1994. According to New York Times, the work is by Yuri Gerasimov, and “it was found by an associate of [one of the building's owners] in the backyard of a dacha outside Moscow.”
Furthermore, “the developers have made a postcard that reads 'Greetings From Red Square,' depicting Lenin with his right arm raised victoriously over the downtown skyline. [He] faces Wall Street, capitalism's emblem, and the Lower East Side, 'the home of the socialist movement.'”
Red Square building is located at 250 E Houston Street.
Sources and Further Reading
- A compilation of on-line writings about the building
- 1997 note in the New York Times
- An article by Frederique Kruppa (1992) discussing the impact of this building on the neighborhood
July 14, 2007
Logging Railroad
All Pictures (And GPS coordinates of all the objects found)
A week ago, my friends and I went backpacking to Dolly Sods, West Virginia. Its natural beauty is unsurpassed, and it is one of the most spectacular natural landmarks on the East Coast. But even though it is officially considered a "wilderness", it has become so only relatively recently.
Before the late 1880s, the mountains were covered by the virgin forest of red spruce and hemlock with some trees as large as California sequoias. But then the logging railroads finally reached the area, and by 1913 virtually all trees in this highland valley were cut. This environmental disaster left behind a "lunar " landscape of bare rocks, since all the soil has dried up and was blown off by the winds, and the fires took what the loggers left behind. This is, in essence, was the flip side of industrialization: subjugating the nature to squeeze every penny out of it. Looking back, we should appreciate how far did we go in caring for the environment today. Still, these events should be an important lesson for the future.
Remarkably, many old railroad grades have survived and carried with them a bit of history. The Big Stonecoal Run Trail, for example, follows for the most part an old railroad grade, and in many places the ballast is still visible, as you can see in a picture below.
Also, there are a lot of metal objects in a few places around the trail, which perhaps were parts of various logging implements.
However, this is only my conjecture that these metal objects are indeed remnants of early 20th century logging industry. I am not sure how long can steel survive before it is totally rusts and falls apart, especially in such a damp and boggy area as Dolly Sods. However, after logging ended, the only other major human activities were replanting efforts by the CCC in the 1930s and artillery firing practice in 1943-1944. I am not sure whether CCC used the existing railroads , but these rusty things could have been deposited then. However, the use of railroads at that is probably unlikely, since one of their projects was to build an access road to the highlands. Furthermore, the rails could have been removed and recycled as soon as they were not needed. Also, the only reminders of the military era are unexploded shells which are still being found, however, since I could not find any reference of heavy equipment use I think it would be safe to assume that these parts were not deposited then, either. Also, the possibility of this being trash from later time can also be dismissed , as I wonder why would somebody haul these heavy things to an altitude of 3,500 feet.
My theory is that they were unearthed a decade ago during the efforts to clear the area from the unexploded shells, since they would definitely set off magnetometers. Indeed, US Army Corps of Engineers website confirms it, saying that along with the unexploded shells, "railroad debris and spikes, artifacts such as axes, hammers, picks, and stove parts" were found.
That said, I would appreciate any information on dating these objects or identifying their original purposes.
References
An excellent overview of logging in West Virginia is available from the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club. Among other things, it features very impressive pictures form the old days. The website of the US Army Corps of Engineers Defense Environment Restoration Program for Formerly Used Defense Sites for West Virginia Maneuver Area also has some information on the area and its military use (See, for example, section 8, Dolly Sods Region Project).
A week ago, my friends and I went backpacking to Dolly Sods, West Virginia. Its natural beauty is unsurpassed, and it is one of the most spectacular natural landmarks on the East Coast. But even though it is officially considered a "wilderness", it has become so only relatively recently.
Before the late 1880s, the mountains were covered by the virgin forest of red spruce and hemlock with some trees as large as California sequoias. But then the logging railroads finally reached the area, and by 1913 virtually all trees in this highland valley were cut. This environmental disaster left behind a "lunar " landscape of bare rocks, since all the soil has dried up and was blown off by the winds, and the fires took what the loggers left behind. This is, in essence, was the flip side of industrialization: subjugating the nature to squeeze every penny out of it. Looking back, we should appreciate how far did we go in caring for the environment today. Still, these events should be an important lesson for the future.
Remarkably, many old railroad grades have survived and carried with them a bit of history. The Big Stonecoal Run Trail, for example, follows for the most part an old railroad grade, and in many places the ballast is still visible, as you can see in a picture below.
Also, there are a lot of metal objects in a few places around the trail, which perhaps were parts of various logging implements.
However, this is only my conjecture that these metal objects are indeed remnants of early 20th century logging industry. I am not sure how long can steel survive before it is totally rusts and falls apart, especially in such a damp and boggy area as Dolly Sods. However, after logging ended, the only other major human activities were replanting efforts by the CCC in the 1930s and artillery firing practice in 1943-1944. I am not sure whether CCC used the existing railroads , but these rusty things could have been deposited then. However, the use of railroads at that is probably unlikely, since one of their projects was to build an access road to the highlands. Furthermore, the rails could have been removed and recycled as soon as they were not needed. Also, the only reminders of the military era are unexploded shells which are still being found, however, since I could not find any reference of heavy equipment use I think it would be safe to assume that these parts were not deposited then, either. Also, the possibility of this being trash from later time can also be dismissed , as I wonder why would somebody haul these heavy things to an altitude of 3,500 feet.
My theory is that they were unearthed a decade ago during the efforts to clear the area from the unexploded shells, since they would definitely set off magnetometers. Indeed, US Army Corps of Engineers website confirms it, saying that along with the unexploded shells, "railroad debris and spikes, artifacts such as axes, hammers, picks, and stove parts" were found.
That said, I would appreciate any information on dating these objects or identifying their original purposes.
References
An excellent overview of logging in West Virginia is available from the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club. Among other things, it features very impressive pictures form the old days. The website of the US Army Corps of Engineers Defense Environment Restoration Program for Formerly Used Defense Sites for West Virginia Maneuver Area also has some information on the area and its military use (See, for example, section 8, Dolly Sods Region Project).
June 30, 2007
RFK Stadium
High-Resolution Picture
This is a turnstile at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, D. C. It probably dates back to 1961 when the stadium was opened. It is not clear what would happen to this stadium once Washington Nationals and D. C. United move to a new stadium (currently under construction), so this antique treasure may be lost forever.
This is a turnstile at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Washington, D. C. It probably dates back to 1961 when the stadium was opened. It is not clear what would happen to this stadium once Washington Nationals and D. C. United move to a new stadium (currently under construction), so this antique treasure may be lost forever.
Cole Field House, Art Deco Reliefs, 1955
All Pictures - I strongly recommend to visit the link and enjoy the images in high resolution
These reliefs are embedded in the facade of Cole Field House (an indoor stadium with almost 14,596 seats) at the University of Maryland, and according with the purpose of the building depict various sports activities. This may be a rather late example of art deco, but the geometric rendering of the figures and the ancient goddess figure clearly define the style. The "heroic" representation of sports is also reminiscent with works of art from the New Deal era (and even with Social Realism). Could these reliefs be a relic of an early design for the building which was approved before World War II but was not implemented until early 1950s?
Basketball. The figures are disproportionate, so the goddess looks more like a mother watching kids playing.
Boxing. In terms of proportions, boxers would be taller than basketball players!
Swimming. Notice the proportions again, how tall would the swimmers be if they stood up straight?
Wrestling. Interestingly, this is one of the two "classical" sports depicted here (boxing is the other). The other two are modern.
Even the Maryland coat of arms have been stylized in Art Deco. This is especially evident in the face of the fisherman (right figure).
Unfortunately, I cannot recollect the original location of the reliefs on the facade, except that Maryland coat of arms is in the center.
These reliefs are embedded in the facade of Cole Field House (an indoor stadium with almost 14,596 seats) at the University of Maryland, and according with the purpose of the building depict various sports activities. This may be a rather late example of art deco, but the geometric rendering of the figures and the ancient goddess figure clearly define the style. The "heroic" representation of sports is also reminiscent with works of art from the New Deal era (and even with Social Realism). Could these reliefs be a relic of an early design for the building which was approved before World War II but was not implemented until early 1950s?
Basketball. The figures are disproportionate, so the goddess looks more like a mother watching kids playing.
Boxing. In terms of proportions, boxers would be taller than basketball players!
Swimming. Notice the proportions again, how tall would the swimmers be if they stood up straight?
Wrestling. Interestingly, this is one of the two "classical" sports depicted here (boxing is the other). The other two are modern.
Even the Maryland coat of arms have been stylized in Art Deco. This is especially evident in the face of the fisherman (right figure).
Unfortunately, I cannot recollect the original location of the reliefs on the facade, except that Maryland coat of arms is in the center.
June 16, 2007
Baltimore: An Industrial City
All Pictures
Note: I decided not to provide links to individual pictures. The link above has them all. It is much easier for me, and, I think, for you, too.
Today I for the first time realized what an interesting place Baltimore is. The city is almost three hundred year old, and its history is quite rich. After being the site of a major battle in the War of 1812 that inspired the American Anthem, it became one of the major ports on US East coast. Thus it developed as one of the commercial, manufacturing, and transportation centers of the industrial revolution. To this day, it is very much a working-class city, and it would probably be fair to call it the southernmost tip of the Rust Belt. in 1904, a fire destroyed most of the historical part of the city, but in a few years the city was rebuilt. After 1950s, the city started to decline, as did the manufacturing sector in general, but with revival of the Inner Harbor area (by then consisting of mostly abandoned warehouses and other similar structures) started in the late 1970s, the city gained a new life.
The industrial decay, however, led to accidental preservation of many historical structures, which otherwise might have been demolished. Here are a few things I photographed today.
Phoenix Shot Tower
This chimney-like structure is a shot tower. It has been to to make lead shots that are heavily used in hunting. Lead was melted at the top of the tower, then poured through a sieve which made it into little droplets. As they descended, the droplets solidified and gained spherical shape, and then fell into the water reservoir below. The pellets were then sorted and polished largely by mechanical means.
This particular Shot Tower was built in 1828 and was in operation until 1892. It is 215 feet (65.5 meters) tall, and until 1864 it was the tallest structure in the US.
Historic Ships in the Inner Harbor
A few historic vessels are on display at the Inner Harbor. I cannot say much about them now, as they are a subject for my future visits. Below is a picture of USS Torsk, a submarine built in 1944, which is well camouflaged against the National Aquarium Building.
Power Plant
Another landmark of the glorious industrial past is the Power Plant in the Inner Harbor. Unfortunately, it is hard to find information about that industrial past, it has been completely overshadowed by its commercial present.
Luckily, some of its interior is preserved, such as the smokestacks at Barnes & Noble bookstore.
Rails on Light Street
There are rails right in the middle of the Southbound lane of Light Street. After some research, I realized this is not an uncommon sight in Baltimore, as there were many railroad lines around the port and many streetcar lines throughout the city. Unfortunately, with the development boom, many of them disappear. This particular spur branching to the right was leading to the McCormick company plant (producing condiments), that was on Light Street until 1988.
Heritage Walk
Apparently, this is a trail connecting some of the city's attractions. It has plaques in many languages embedded in the pavement. I just find this Russian translation very funny, especially since Baltimore has a huge Russian population.
To those of you who do not know the language, the only sensible interpretation of those two words that I could think of would mean something like, "They spend their inheritance away." Or maybe even "They drink their inheritance away."
Sources
A lot of the dates and general information on this page come from Wikipedia (articles on Baltimore and Phoenix Shot Tower). In addition, an article on shot towers has pictures of shot towers from around the world. Also, special thanks to the tower historian, who introduced himself as Henry, and told us a lot of interesting things about the tower and the city.
The story behind the railroad spur comes form the site called Baltimore Ghosts and is verified by chronology on McCormick website.
Note: I decided not to provide links to individual pictures. The link above has them all. It is much easier for me, and, I think, for you, too.
Today I for the first time realized what an interesting place Baltimore is. The city is almost three hundred year old, and its history is quite rich. After being the site of a major battle in the War of 1812 that inspired the American Anthem, it became one of the major ports on US East coast. Thus it developed as one of the commercial, manufacturing, and transportation centers of the industrial revolution. To this day, it is very much a working-class city, and it would probably be fair to call it the southernmost tip of the Rust Belt. in 1904, a fire destroyed most of the historical part of the city, but in a few years the city was rebuilt. After 1950s, the city started to decline, as did the manufacturing sector in general, but with revival of the Inner Harbor area (by then consisting of mostly abandoned warehouses and other similar structures) started in the late 1970s, the city gained a new life.
The industrial decay, however, led to accidental preservation of many historical structures, which otherwise might have been demolished. Here are a few things I photographed today.
Phoenix Shot Tower
This chimney-like structure is a shot tower. It has been to to make lead shots that are heavily used in hunting. Lead was melted at the top of the tower, then poured through a sieve which made it into little droplets. As they descended, the droplets solidified and gained spherical shape, and then fell into the water reservoir below. The pellets were then sorted and polished largely by mechanical means.
This particular Shot Tower was built in 1828 and was in operation until 1892. It is 215 feet (65.5 meters) tall, and until 1864 it was the tallest structure in the US.
Historic Ships in the Inner Harbor
A few historic vessels are on display at the Inner Harbor. I cannot say much about them now, as they are a subject for my future visits. Below is a picture of USS Torsk, a submarine built in 1944, which is well camouflaged against the National Aquarium Building.
Power Plant
Another landmark of the glorious industrial past is the Power Plant in the Inner Harbor. Unfortunately, it is hard to find information about that industrial past, it has been completely overshadowed by its commercial present.
Luckily, some of its interior is preserved, such as the smokestacks at Barnes & Noble bookstore.
Rails on Light Street
There are rails right in the middle of the Southbound lane of Light Street. After some research, I realized this is not an uncommon sight in Baltimore, as there were many railroad lines around the port and many streetcar lines throughout the city. Unfortunately, with the development boom, many of them disappear. This particular spur branching to the right was leading to the McCormick company plant (producing condiments), that was on Light Street until 1988.
Heritage Walk
Apparently, this is a trail connecting some of the city's attractions. It has plaques in many languages embedded in the pavement. I just find this Russian translation very funny, especially since Baltimore has a huge Russian population.
To those of you who do not know the language, the only sensible interpretation of those two words that I could think of would mean something like, "They spend their inheritance away." Or maybe even "They drink their inheritance away."
Sources
A lot of the dates and general information on this page come from Wikipedia (articles on Baltimore and Phoenix Shot Tower). In addition, an article on shot towers has pictures of shot towers from around the world. Also, special thanks to the tower historian, who introduced himself as Henry, and told us a lot of interesting things about the tower and the city.
The story behind the railroad spur comes form the site called Baltimore Ghosts and is verified by chronology on McCormick website.
Sailships in Baltimore
All Pictures
Two foreign ships have docked in Baltimore this weekend and were open to the public. Both of the ships are modern , yet still it have a plenty of charm of the good old sailing days.
The first one was Brazilian Navy Vessel Cisne Branco, from Rio de Janeiro. This is the fourth visit to Baltimore for this ship. One thing missing from the images is the the Brazilian music that was playing on board.
There are five US midshipmen from the Naval Academy in Annapolis on board this vessel, on a month long exchange program. According to them, the greatest difficulty was the language barrier: neither crew spoke the language of the other, except for a few basic phrases. It would be really interesting to find out how did they manage to communicate and bring this ship all the way from Rio.
The second vessel was INS Tarangini, from Kochi, India (INS stands fro Indian Navy Ship). It was built in 1997 in Goa, India.
The crew of this ship has challenged American Navy for a soccer match. I wonder if US sailors play baseball with their counterparts when they visit different parts of the world.
This article has more information about these ships.
Two foreign ships have docked in Baltimore this weekend and were open to the public. Both of the ships are modern , yet still it have a plenty of charm of the good old sailing days.
The first one was Brazilian Navy Vessel Cisne Branco, from Rio de Janeiro. This is the fourth visit to Baltimore for this ship. One thing missing from the images is the the Brazilian music that was playing on board.
There are five US midshipmen from the Naval Academy in Annapolis on board this vessel, on a month long exchange program. According to them, the greatest difficulty was the language barrier: neither crew spoke the language of the other, except for a few basic phrases. It would be really interesting to find out how did they manage to communicate and bring this ship all the way from Rio.
The second vessel was INS Tarangini, from Kochi, India (INS stands fro Indian Navy Ship). It was built in 1997 in Goa, India.
The crew of this ship has challenged American Navy for a soccer match. I wonder if US sailors play baseball with their counterparts when they visit different parts of the world.
This article has more information about these ships.
December 17, 2006
Russian Tea Room, New York City
All Pictures
During my recent trip to New York City, I accidentally found this little art-deco treasure at 150 W 57th street. The facade dates back to 1927 but was altered in 2002. The interior is absolutely gorgeous, with Tiffany stained glasses and the like. Unfortunately, I had neither time nor money to go in, so this will be a topic of a future post.
Three dancing bears (Well, it is a Russian Tea Room...)
Who came up with the idea of putting this ugly flag pole through the exquisite balcony grille?
The building is squeezed between two high-rises...
During my recent trip to New York City, I accidentally found this little art-deco treasure at 150 W 57th street. The facade dates back to 1927 but was altered in 2002. The interior is absolutely gorgeous, with Tiffany stained glasses and the like. Unfortunately, I had neither time nor money to go in, so this will be a topic of a future post.
Three dancing bears (Well, it is a Russian Tea Room...)
Who came up with the idea of putting this ugly flag pole through the exquisite balcony grille?
The building is squeezed between two high-rises...
October 21, 2006
Mifflinburg, PA
All pictures
We stopped in this town for a few minutes after spending a couple of days backpacking in Bald Eagle State Forest. Today it is just another small town, but its architecture tells a story of a former glory. It’s a pity we did not have much time to explore the town more.
It was founded in 1827 after two smaller villages merged. The town was named after the first governor of
The text is mostly based on Wikipedia article (which also has some other information about the town) and from mifflinburgpa.com, a site for the town created by Mifflinburg Heritage and Revitalization Association.
Special thanks to SR for suggesting to make a stop in this town :)
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