View allAll Photos Tagged PRIMITIVE
Primitive folk art Mrs. Snowman doll handmade by Stephanie Baker of Old World Primitives using a Veena's Mercantile design. Created using muslin, stuffing, homespun, vintage buttons, and craft greens + a cotton snowball covered in mica flakes filling her bag.
I was going through boxes behind my walls the other day, and found these. Fond memories of simpler days as a child! 😊
Happy Slider Sunday!!
“Ah, I see. You don't know much about us and the unknown equals the barbaric, the primitive. Although it is you lot who are ignorant.”
--Andrew Ashling, The Invisible Chains - Part 2: Bonds of Fear
The colorful primitive art paintings at the Casa Taller Víctor Delfin in the Barranco district of Lima, Perú, are bold and dramatic.
This is the first time in a while I have had the chance to get out and do what I love doing.
8 image pan
Canon 50d
Focal length: 25mm
Iso 100
F/22@ 1/8 second
GND 8
Not so much a new years resolution, but more of "Pull it back, your getting off track"
As all can see I'm a pano head...It's my thing! almost an obsession!
The putting of a camera on an expensive pan setup is only the means to an end which to be honest is wearing a bit thin.
I have no trouble at all filling an 8 gig card in twenty mins..because I can, it is usually the case! I only carry one card so as not to go crazy just snapping away.
I shoot large Raw and small Jpeg, stitch the jpegs so I can determine what to use for a pan...(if any) ...20 pans can take up to 3 hours to put together, before I even start on the selected image!
The drawbacks of panning can be many
especially if long exposures are used.
For my landscape photography which is about 90% of what I do, the needs are simple: crystal sharp glass, the slower the better! F/22 - F/11 Iso as high as 200 hahaha, and a system that tells me to slow down, think, and tell it what to do, a system that is state of the art digital, although primitive in all other respects...something that will see me through all the amazing developments we have had and are going through...something that I never have to update!
Introducing my new baby..coming soon!
The Alhambra (Arabic: الحمراء = Al-Ħamrā; literally "the red one"; the complete name is "Qal'at al-Hambra", which means "The red fortress") is a palace and fortress complex of the Moorish rulers of Granada in southern Spain (known as Al-Andalus when the fortress was constructed), occupying a hilly terrace on the southeastern border of the city of Granada. 37°10′37″N 3°35′24″W37.17686, -3.589901
Once the residence of the Muslim rulers of Granada and their court, the Alhambra is now one of Spain's major tourist attractions exhibiting the country's most famous Islamic architecture, together with Christian 16th century and later interventions in buildings and gardens that marked its image as it can be seen today. Within the Alhambra, the Palace of Charles V was erected by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor in 1527. Coordinates: 37°10′36.81″N 3°35′23.95″W
The terrace or plateau where the Alhambra sits measures about 740 m (2430 ft) in length by 205 m (674 ft) at its greatest width. It extends from WNW to ESE and covers an area of about 142,000 m².
Its most westerly feature is the alcazaba (citadel); a strongly fortified position. The rest of the plateau comprises a number of palaces, enclosed by a relatively weak fortified wall, with thirteen towers, some defensive and some providing vistas for the inhabitants.
The river Darro passes through a ravine on the north and divides the plateau from the Albaicín district of Granada. Similarly, the Assabica valley, containing the Alhambra Park on the west and south, and, beyond this valley, the almost parallel ridge of Monte Mauror, separate it from the Antequeruela district.
Completed towards the end of Muslim rule in Spain by Yusuf I (1333-1353) and Muhammed V, Sultan of Granada (1353-1391), the Alhambra is a reflection of the culture of the last days of the Nasrid emirate of Granada. It is a place where artists and intellectuals had taken refuge as Christian Spain won victories over Al Andalus. The Alhambra mixes natural elements with man-made ones, and is a testament to the skill of Muslim craftsmen of that time.
The literal translation of Alhambra "red fortress" derives from the colour of the red clay of the surroundings of which the fort is made. The buildings of the Alhambra were originally whitewashed; however, the buildings now seen today are reddish.
The first reference to the Qal’at al Hamra was during the battles between the Arabs and the Muladies during the rule of the ‘Abdullah ibn Muhammad (r. 888-912). In one particularly fierce and bloody skirmish, the Muladies soundly defeated the Arabs, who were then forced to take shelter in a primitive red castle located in the province of Elvira, presently located in Granada. According to surviving documents from the era, the red castle was quite small, and its walls were not capable of deterring an army intent on conquering. The castle was then largely ignored until the eleventh century, when its ruins were renovated and rebuilt by Samuel ibn Naghralla, vizier to the King Bādīs of the Zirid Dynasty, in an attempt to preserve the small Jewish settlement also located on the Sabikah hill. However, evidence from Arab texts indicates that the fortress was easily penetrated and that the actual Alhambra that survives today was built during the Nasrid Dynasty.
Ibn Nasr, the founder of the Nasrid Dynasty, was forced to flee to Jaén in order to avoid persecution by King Ferdinand and his supporters during attempts to rid Spain of Moorish Dominion. After retreating to Granada, Ibn-Nasr took up residence at the Palace of Bādis in the Alhambra. A few months later, he embarked on the construction of a new Alhambra fit for the residence of a king. According to an Arab manuscript published as the Anónimo de Granada y Copenhague, "This year 1238 Abdallah ibn al-Ahmar climbed to the place called "the Alhambra" inspected it, laid out the foundations of a castle and left someone in charge of its construction…" The design included plans for six palaces, five of which were grouped in the northeast quadrant forming a royal quarter, two circuit towers, and numerous bathhouses. During the reign of the Nasrid Dynasty, the Alhambra was transformed into a palatine city complete with an irrigation system composed of acequias for the gardens of the Generalife located outside the fortress. Previously, the old Alhambra structure had been dependent upon rainwater collected from a cistern and from what could be brought up from the Albaicín. The creation of the Sultan's Canal solidified the identity of the Alhambra as a palace-city rather than a defensive and ascetic structure.
The Muslim rulers lost Granada and Alhambra in 1492 without the fortress itself being attacked when King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella of Castile took the surrounding region with overwhelming numbers.
The decorations within the palaces typified the remains of Moorish dominion within Spain and ushered in the last great period of Andalusian art in Granada. With little influence from the Islamic mainland[citation needed], artists endlessly reproduced the same forms and trends, creating a new style that developed over the course of the Nasrid Dynasty. The Nasrids used freely all the display of stylistical resorts that had been created and developed during eight centuries of Muslim rule in the Peninsula as the Calliphal horse-shoe arch, the Almohad sebka or the Almoravid palm, and unused combinations of them, beside novelties as the stilted arches and the capitals of muqarnas, among others. The isolation with the rest of the Islam, and the commercial and political relationship with the Christian kingdoms also influenced in the space concepts. Columns, muqarnas and stalactite-like ceiling decorations, appear in several chambers, and the interiors of numerous palaces are decorated with arabesques and calligraphy. The arabesques of the interior are ascribed, among other kings, to Yusef I, Mohammed V, and Ismail I.
Damage produced in Later Era After the Christian conquest of the city in 1492, the conquerors began to alter the Alhambra. The open work was filled up with whitewash, the painting and gilding effaced, and the furniture soiled[citation needed], torn, or removed. Charles V (1516–1556) rebuilt portions in the Renaissance style of the period and destroyed the greater part of the winter palace to make room for a Renaissance-style structure which has never been completed. Philip V (1700–1746) Italianised the rooms and completed his palace in the middle of what had been the Moorish building; he had partitions constructed which blocked up whole apartments.
Over subsequent centuries the Moorish art was further damaged, and, in 1812, some of the towers were destroyed by the French under Count Sebastiani, while the whole building narrowly escaped the same fate. Napoleon had tried to blow up the whole complex. Just before his plan was carried out, a soldier who secretly wanted the plan of Napoleon — his commander — to fail, defused the explosives and thus saved the Alhambra for posterity.[citation needed] In 1821, an earthquake caused further damage. The work of restoration undertaken in 1828 by the architect José Contreras was endowed in 1830 by Ferdinand VII; and after the death of Contreras in 1847, it was continued with fair success by his son Rafael (d. 1890) and his grandson. Designed to reflect the very beauty of Paradise itself, the Alhambra is made up of gardens, fountains, streams, a palace, and a mosque, all within an imposing fortress wall, flanked by 13 massive towers. [1]
Moorish poets[who?] described it as "a pearl set in emeralds," in allusion to the colour of its buildings and the woods around them. The palace complex was designed with the mountainous site in mind and many forms of technology were considered. The park (Alameda de la Alhambra), which is overgrown with wildflowers and grass in the spring, was planted by the Moors with roses, oranges and myrtles; its most characteristic feature, however, is the dense wood of English elms brought by the Duke of Wellington in 1812. The park has a multitude nightingales and is usually filled with the sound of running water from several fountains and cascades. These are supplied through a conduit 8 km (5 miles) long, which is connected with the Darro at the monastery of Jesus del Valle, above Granada.
In spite of the long neglect, willful vandalism and sometimes ill-judged restoration which the Alhambra has endured, it remains an atypical example of Muslim art in its final European stages, relatively uninfluenced by the direct Byzantine influences found in the Mezquita of Córdoba. The majority of the palace buildings are, in ground-plan, quadrangular, with all the rooms opening on to a central court; and the whole reached its present size simply by the gradual addition of new quadrangles, designed on the same principle, though varying in dimensions, and connected with each other by smaller rooms and passages. Alhambra was added onto by the different Muslim rulers who lived in the complex. However, each new section that was added followed the consistent theme of "paradise on earth." Column arcades, fountains with running water, and reflecting pools were used to make add to the aesthetic and functional complexity. In every case, the exterior is left plain and austere. Sun and wind are freely admitted. Blue, red, and a golden yellow, all somewhat faded through lapse of time and exposure, are the colours chiefly employed.
The decoration consists, as a rule, of stiff, conventional foliage, Arabic inscriptions, and geometrical patterns wrought into arabesques. Painted tiles are largely used as panelling for the walls. The palace complex is designed in the Mudéjar style which is characteristic of western elements reinterpreted into Islamic forms and largely popular during the Reconquista, a period of history in which the Christian kings reconquered Spain from the Muslims.
The Alhambra resembles many medieval Christian strongholds in its threefold arrangement as a castle, a palace and a residential annex for subordinates. The alcazaba or citadel, its oldest part, is built on the isolated and precipitous foreland which terminates the plateau on the northwest. That is all massive outer walls, towers and ramparts are left. On its watchtower, the Torre de la Vela, 25 m (85 ft) high, the flag of Ferdinand and Isabella was first raised, in token of the Spanish conquest of Granada on January 2, 1492. A turret containing a large bell was added in the 18th century and restored after being damaged by lightning in 1881. Beyond the Alcazaba is the palace of the Moorish rulers, or Alhambra properly so-called; and beyond this, again, is the Alhambra Alta (Upper Alhambra), originally tenanted by officials and courtiers.
Access from the city to the Alhambra Park is afforded by the Puerta de las Granadas (Gate of Pomegranates), a triumphal arch dating from the 15th century. A steep ascent leads past the Pillar of Charles V, a fountain erected in 1554, to the main entrance of the Alhambra. This is the Puerta Judiciaria (Gate of Judgment), a massive horseshoe archway surmounted by a square tower and used by the Moors as an informal court of justice. The hand of Fatima, with fingers outstretched as a talisman against the evil eye, is carved above this gate on the exterior; a key, the symbol of authority, occupies the corresponding place on the interior. A narrow passage leads inward to the Plaza de los Aljibes (Place of the Cisterns), a broad open space which divides the Alcazaba from the Moorish palace. To the left of the passage rises the Torre del Vino (Wine Tower), built in 1345 and used in the 16th century as a cellar. On the right is the palace of Charles V, a smaller Renaissance building.
The Royal Complex consists of three main parts: Mexuar, Serallo, and the Harem. The Mexuar is modest in decor and houses the functional areas for conducting business and administration. Strapwork is used to decorate the surfaces in Mexuar. The ceilings, floors, and trim are made of dark wood and are in sharp contrast to white, plaster walls. Serallo, built during the reign of Yusef I in the 14th century, contains the Patio de los Arrayanes. Brightly colored interiors featured dado panels, yesería, azulejo, cedar, and artesonado. Artesonado are highly decorative ceilings and other woodwork. Lastly, the Harem is also elaborately decorated and contains the living quarters for the wives and mistresses of the Arabic monarchs. This area contains a bathroom with running, hot and cold water, baths, and pressurized water for showering. The bathrooms were open to the elements in order to allow in light and air. The Harem also features representations of human forms, which is forbidden under Islamic law. The Christian artisans were most likely commissioned to design artwork that would be placed in the palace and the tolerant Muslim rulers allowed the work to stay.
The present entrance to the Palacio Árabe, or Casa Real (Moorish palace), is by a small door from which a corridor connects to the Patio de los Arrayanes (Court of the Myrtles), also called the Patio de la Alberca (Court of the Blessing or Court of the Pond), from the Arabic birka, "pool". The birka helped to cool the palace and acted as a symbol of power. Because water was usually in short supply, the technology required to keep these pools full was expensive and difficult. The aim of the pools was to give the impression that the pool had mystical powers because it never evaporated, making them form a good opinion of their leader.[citation needed] This court is 42 m (140 ft) long by 22 m (74 ft) broad; and in the centre, there is a large pond set in the marble pavement, full of goldfish, and with myrtles growing along its sides. There are galleries on the north and south sides; that on the south is 7 m (27 ft) high and supported by a marble colonnade. Underneath it, to the right, was the principal entrance, and over it are three windows with arches and miniature pillars. From this court, the walls of the Torre de Comares are seen rising over the roof to the north and reflected in the pond.
The Salón de los Embajadores (Hall of the Ambassadors) is the largest in the Alhambra and occupies all the Torre de Comares. It is a square room, the sides being 12 m (37 ft) in length, while the centre of the dome is 23 m (75 ft) high. This was the grand reception room, and the throne of the sultan was placed opposite the entrance. It was in this setting that Christopher Columbus received Isabel and Ferdinand's support to sail to the New World. The tiles are nearly 4 ft (1.2 m) high all round, and the colours vary at intervals. Over them is a series of oval medallions with inscriptions, interwoven with flowers and leaves. There are nine windows, three on each facade, and the ceiling is decorated with inlaid-work of white, blue and gold, in the shape of circles, crowns and stars. The walls are covered with varied stucco works, surrounding many ancient escutcheons.
The Patio de los Leones (Court of the Lions) is an oblong court, 116 ft (35 m) in length by 66 ft (20 m) in width, surrounded by a low gallery supported on 124 white marble columns. A pavilion projects into the court at each extremity, with filigree walls and light domed roof. The square is paved with coloured tiles, and the colonnade with white marble; while the walls are covered 5 ft (1.5 m) up from the ground with blue and yellow tiles, with a border above and below enamelled blue and gold. The columns supporting the roof and gallery are irregularly placed. They are adorned by varieties of foliage, etc.; about each arch there is a large square of arabesques; and over the pillars is another square of filigree work. In the centre of the court is the Fountain of Lions, an alabaster basin supported by the figures of twelve lions in white marble, not designed with sculptural accuracy, but as symbols of strength and courage.[citation needed]
The Sala de los Abencerrajes (Hall of the Abencerrages) derives its name from a legend according to which the father of Boabdil, last king of Granada, having invited the chiefs of that line to a banquet, massacred them here.[citation needed] This room is a perfect square, with a lofty dome and trellised windows at its base. The roof is decorated in blue, brown, red and gold, and the columns supporting it spring out into the arch form in a remarkably beautiful manner. Opposite to this hall is the Sala de las dos Hermanas (Hall of the two Sisters), so-called from two white marble slabs laid as part of the pavement. These slabs measure 50 by 22 cm (15 by 7½ in). There is a fountain in the middle of this hall, and the roof —a dome honeycombed with tiny cells, all different, and said to number 5000— is an example of the so-called "stalactite vaulting" of the Moors.
Among the other features of the Alhambra are the Sala de la Justicia (Hall of Justice), the Patio del Mexuar (Court of the Council Chamber), the Patio de Daraxa (Court of the Vestibule), and the Peinador de la Reina (Queen's Robing Room), in which there is similar architecture and decoration. The palace and the Upper Alhambra also contain baths, ranges of bedrooms and summer-rooms, a whispering gallery and labyrinth, and vaulted sepulchres.
The original furniture of the palace is represented by the vase of the Alhambra, a specimen of Moorish ceramic art, dating from 1320 and belonging to the first period of Moorish porcelain. It is 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) high; the ground is white, and the enamelling is blue, white and gold.
Of the outlying buildings in connection with the Alhambra, the foremost in interest is the Palacio de Generalife or Gineralife (the Muslim Jennat al Arif, "Garden of Arif," or "Garden of the Architect"). This villa probably dates from the end of the 13th century but has been restored several times. Its gardens, however, with their clipped hedges, grottos, fountains, and cypress avenues, are said to retain their original Moorish character.[who?] The Villa de los Martires (Martyrs' Villa), on the summit of Monte Mauror, commemorates by its name the Christian slaves who were forced to build the Alhambra and confined here in subterranean cells. The Torres Bermejas (Vermilion Towers), also on Monte Mauror, are a well-preserved Moorish fortification, with underground cisterns, stables, and accommodation for a garrison of 200 men. Several Roman tombs were discovered in 1829 and 1857 at the base of Monte Mauror.
The Alhambra, Generalife and Albayzín of Granada are listed as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.
Alhambra in literature
Parts of the following novels are set in the Alhambra:
•Washington Irving's Tales of the Alhambra. It is a collection of essays, verbal sketches, and stories. Irving lived in the palace while writing the book and was instrumental in reintroducing the site to Western audiences.
•Salman Rushdie's The Moor's Last Sigh
•Amin Maalouf's Leon L'Africain, depicting the reconquest of Granada by the Catholic kings.
•Philippa Gregory's The Constant Princess.
•Langston Hughes's poem "Movies" in his collection Montage of a Dream Deferred (1951)
•Federico Garcia Lorca's play Dona Rosita the Spinster, mentioned by title character Dona Rosita in her song/speech to the Manola sisters.
•Paulo Coelho's novel The Alchemist
•Ali Smith's The Accidental
Alhambra in music
Alhambra has directly inspired musical compositions as Francisco Tárrega's famous tremolo study for guitar Recuerdos de la Alhambra (Memories of the Alhambra)[1], Claude Debussy's piece for 2 pianos Lindaraja (composed in 1901) and the prelude La Puerta del Vino (in the 2nd book of preludes, composed 1912-13).[2].
"En los Jardines del Generalife", first movement of Manuel de Falla's Noches en los Jardines de España, and other pieces by composers such as Ruperto Chapí (Los Gnomos de la Alhambra,1891) Tomás Bretón [2] and many others are included in a stream called by scholars "Alhambrismo".[3] [4]
In pop and folk music, Alhambra is the subject of the Ghymes song of the same name.[citation needed] The rock band, The Grateful Dead, released a song called Terrapin Station on the 1977 album of the same name. The song itself was a series of small compositions penned by Robert Hunter and put to music by Jerry Garcia, a lyrical section of this Terrapin Station "suite" was called Alhambra.
In September 2006, Canadian singer/composer Loreena McKennitt performed live at the Alhambra. The resulting footage premiered on PBS and was later released as a three-disc DVD/CD set entitled Nights from the Alhambra.
Alhambra is the title of an EP by Canadian rock band The Tea Party, containing acoustic versions of a few of their songs.[citation needed]
British composer Julian Anderson's Alhambra Fantasy (1999–2000), commissioned by the London Sinfonietta, was influenced by the architecture of the Alhambra Palace. In two sharply contrasting sections the work relates different facets of the Alhambra – the first, rough and energetic, is related to the building of the Palace itself[citation needed], dominated by the sounds of hammering and banging on percussion. Short counterpointed and juxtaposed motifs create, for some, the impression of a mosaic[citation needed]. The second section evokes the beautiful landscape of the Vega[citation needed]. The composer is careful to point out[citation needed] that he has not written programmatic music, although his concern is with the splendour of the palace itself, its place in the landscape and its relevance to the complex and turbulent history of the region.
In 1976, filmmaker Christopher Nupen filmed "The Song of the Guitar" at the Alhambra. It was an hour long program featuring the legendary Spanish guitarist Andres Segovia. It is now available on DVD.
M. C. Escher's visit in 1922 inspired his following work on regular divisions of the plane after studying the Moorish use of symmetry in the Alhambra tiles.
Influence in 19th- and 20th-century architecture
From 19th-century Romantic interpretations until the present day, many buildings and portions of buildings worldwide have been inspired by the Alhambra: there is a Moorish Revival house in Stillwater, Minnesota which was created and named after the Alhambra. Also, the main portion of the Irvine Spectrum Center in Irvine, California, is a postmodern version of the Court of the Lions.
One also recalls the Alhambra Theatre in central Bradford, England [3].
He was sitting on the steps of the catedral de habana vieja. Got this partial shot, with zoom, but when I moved around to get another shot face-on, he saw me and put the magazine over his face. Perhaps he resented the intrusion, though seems to me decorating his face like that he's asking for it. Perhaps he's there to solicit payment for pics from tourists and understandably wasn't going to give me one for free. But finding his demeanour a little intimidating, I balked at approaching him. I was quite shocked at the excessiveness of his face piercings. Could hardly imagine the pain he had inflicted upon himself for his 'face-art'. The degree of scarring looks most severe. What motivates such extreme action? A form of exhibitionism designed to set oneself apart from the conformity & anonymity of today's society or, in this particular man's life- conditions, from the inflicted oppression of Cuba's dictatorial government......his way of circumventing his loss of freedom of speech? I see young people in Toronto, 'goths', dressed in black, with multiple piercings, in the lips, the eyebrows, cheeks, but they are most often seen in groups so it feels tribal. This man seemed very much alone. Wonder if he ever has regrets about what he's done? I hope he has a mother who loves him!
Found the term 'modern primitive' in a google link on body piercing.
107/365
Using this pointillism painted dots method again :) There really is something just so freeing about spending so much time editing a photo then at the end just going crazy and painting freaking colored dots everywhere. Feels good to let loose and be painterly every once in a while!
Come connect with me over on www.facebook.com/katelinkinneyphotography
A Metra scoot passes a heavily vandalized van west of downtown Chicago on a wonderful gloomy evening.
One last look at this small plane before entering airport terminal gate.
Hamilton Island, Australia (Wednesday 29 August 2018)
From Primitive Futurism webitorial in JUTE magazine
Model: Iris / eneas
Style, MUAH & body: Jannica Stelander
The medic helps out one of the wounded.
For my upcoming show with Doktor A, Chris Ryniak, and Lana Crooks, at OhNoDOOM gallery. Opens July 9 2011!
Found at La Selva Biological Station, near Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí. Heredia Province, Costa Rica.
Found on fallen tree.
Single exposure, uncropped, handheld, in situ. Canon MT-24EX flash unit, Ian McConnachie diffuser.
The Primitive Dance. (Linoleum Cut).
Its one of the most expressionist ways to express one self there is.
Many places throughout the world.
People that have never heard of the popular dances of our times,
or the past,
Still dance in very primitive ways for various reasons.
Some for celebration purposes , sorrow,or religious.
You name it people dance in a primitive manner.
It a way to express yourself in the most basic form,
Only when you give a dance a name does it become restrictive,
and almost unexpressionistic.
So throw off the names of a dances,
stop being so uptight,
and free yourselfs!
Truly expression yourself without worry if you look cool or hip.
Do what ever feels right to express yourselfs to the utmost.
Do the dance without really a name.
Call it what you will,
but if you give it a name does it then become restrictive?
O well it must be called something,
Right?
So for now I call it,
(The Primitive Dance).
Steve.D.Hammond
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
On Mother's Day, the Primitive Baptist Church was added to my stops around the loop of Cades Cove in the GSMNP.
The 11 mile loop offers the widest variety of historic buildings of any area in this national park.
20th biennial Finnish-American Festival, Naselle, Washington.
July 2022
Below are entries chock-full of information having to do with each of the plates shown above.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Left: "Compliments of FORSMAN & COMPANY, Naselle"
This would be a useful plate to have around now, 102 years after it was made, because I've never had a good grip on the year the Great War (WWI) ended. The plate would reinforce the year the war began and ended. Or would it?
The prominence of the date 1920 might confuse matters further. However, with the war having ended in November, 1919, it makes sense that 1920 was when commemorative objects such as plates were produced.
While the passage of years appears to have erased all traces of Deep River's Forsman & Company, history has not forgotten the community of Deep River, not even a little bit!
=======================================================
Many Finnish immigrants settled in Deep River and the surrounding areas of Washington. There were striking similarities between life in Finland and life in this area, including an economic life that depended largely on timber and salmon, both of which were plentiful in the Deep River area. The Pacific Northwest was an ideal destination for Finnish immigrants. There was free land that was covered with timber for them to claim.
Seasonal work opportunities were available all year. There was salmon fishing in the spring and summer. Work was available at logging camps the rest of the year.
The daughter of a Finnish immigrant described the early settlement of Deep River:
When asked how the area was settled, an elderly, buxom woman replied, "First the Finns came to fish. Then when Olsons opened the logging camp, they went to Sweden and brought back men to work in the woods. The Swedes married the Finn girls. Later a few Irishmen and Poles drifted in." (Appelo, 1986, p. 110)
This woman also related that her protective Finnish father had built the family’s house in the center of their property to prevent his daughters from seeing and associating with the railroad workers. In spite of his precautions, she waved at one of the railroad brakemen, a handsome Swede. She noted that this Swedish railroad worker later became her husband.
Carlton Appelo (1978, p. 12) listed the names of some of the early Finnish settlers in the Deep River area who arrived before Washington became a state in 1889: Erik Hanson; Henrik Denson (Deep River Cemetery land donor); Isak Herajarvi; Johan Pakanen; Antti Jakob Kantola (Kandoll); Henrik Harrison (Pirila); Mikael Homstrom; Lars Loukkanen (father of August and Chas. Larson); Johan Lueeni; Johan S. Nelson (Ahola); Antti Pirila (father of Albert and Gust Pirila); Johan Erik Rull; Johan Vilmi; Erik Johnson; Karl Forsman; Erik Melin; Antti Rippa (Andrew Rinell); Simon Keko (father of Ed Simmons); Johan Parpala; Johan Salmi (Santalahti); Johan Lamppa (Johnson); Matt, Fredricka, Matti, Joseph, Rosa, and Kalle (Charles) Riippa; Matt Hakala; Matti Harpet (Haapakangas); John Haapakangas; Antti Penttila; Gust Gustafson; Peter Maata; John Ehrlund Rantala; Erik Maunula; Andrew and August Eskola; Antti Johnson (Salmi); John Laakso; Matt Puskala; Abraham Wirkkala; Matt Mathison; and John Warra (Autiovarra).
The prevalence of Finnish immigrants in the Deep River area is evidenced by the many Finnish names that are listed in a cemetery transcription that was recorded for the Deep River Cemetery, and listed on a website that is maintained by the Genealogical Society of Finland. Many Scandinavian names are also found at a Wahkiakum County cemetery transcription site maintained by the "RootsWeb" genealogy organization that lists the names of persons buried in several cemeteries in the county.
The Early Deep River Community
The two major early industries of the Washington territory, particularly in Deep River, were the timber and salmon-fishing industries.
The Timber Industry.
An article in a special section of the Ilwaco, Washington Tribune in 1970 celebrated 100 years of logging at Deep River. The author, Larry Maxim, described the life of the men who worked in the timber industry and felled the gigantic trees as men who were "giants with muscles of laced steel cable and the stamina of an Olympic athlete." The men worked hard for extended periods of time and lived at the logging camps, which usually consisted of a bull barn, a cook shack, and a bunkhouse.
The bunkhouse was crude, just enough to keep out the rain. The bunks were just as crude, a few rough boards spread with straw. The logger had to do his own laundry. His laundry machine–each logger had one–was a five-gallon kerosene can in which he boiled his socks and underwear and sometimes took a sponge bath. (Maxim, 1970)
II. THE LASTING LEGACY OF THE DEEP RIVER FINNS
by Sandra Johnson Witt *
References
I. C. Arthur Appelö and Carlton Appelo: The contributions of two Swedish-Finns to Deep River, Washington and America
An important center of activity at the logging camps was the recreation hall, which the logging companies provided for their workers. The loggers and their families often gathered for dances that lasted until the early morning hours. Children came along too, and slept on mattresses that their parents brought.
Jessie Hindman, an Astorian Budget columnist, wrote an article about the history of the Deep River Timber Company in 1956.
This company owned 4,000 acres of land located above Deep River, one of the shortest and deepest rivers in the world. The logging area contained some of the best timber in the country, including top-grade fir, spruce, hemlock, and cedar.
She described how the local people and logging workers, mostly Finns and Swedes who had begun their lives here as fishermen, became the pioneers of the logging industry in this area. These early families lived together in close association with each other.
The early families along Deep River lived together in such a closely knit life that it was almost as if they had been hurled back into some clannish age. Travel was done entirely by boat as there were no roads except private ones. Towns just 50 miles away were spoken of as "The Outside." Yet, when talking to the older inhabitants of the valley, one is immediately impressed with the full realization that theirs was a happy, satisfying life. (Appelo, 1986, p. 103)
Early home life among the settlers in Deep River was simple. Kerosene lamps provided light and wood stoves provided heat. Most of the houses were made from rough unpainted boards. The women made the clothes and quilts for their families, which they washed by hand. They also planted the gardens and flower beds in addition to planning the recreational activities for their families, which included dances, picnics, boat rides, water carnivals, and playing cards. Playing cards was especially popular during the winter months when steady rainfall forced the families to stay inside. At times, the men would animate their poker games with the hard liquor or beer that they had purchased in Astoria.
Salmon Fishing.
The other major early industry in Deep River was fishing. Astoria had become a major salmon-fishing area by 1870. Because of its location on the Columbia River near the Pacific Ocean, riverboats provided access to the transcontinental railroad. Astoria’s facilities had access to the Pacific Ocean on the west.
Their experiences in Finland made many of the Finnish immigrants ideally suited for successful careers in the salmon-fishing industry.
The Columbia River Fishermen’s Protective Union was incorporated in 1884 and is one of the oldest conservation unions on the West Coast.
In 2003, an article in the Columbia River Gillnetter, the union’s official publication, outlined its early history. "The Story of Two Hundred Fishermen" describes how a group of fishermen successfully established the Union Fishermen’s Cooperative Packing Company in 1896 during troubled economic times, when the salmon industry’s future was uncertain because of some unethical practices that had taken place for 30 years.
The founders, many of whom were from Finland, risked their savings and worked hard to establish this company. They were convinced that their efforts to offer the consumers superior canned salmon would succeed. The cooperative was incorporated by Sofus Jensen, Anton Christ, Ole B. Olsen, J. W. Angberg, and Matt Raistakka:
With their savings for capital, our founders entered into the highly competitive and well-financed salmon packing industry of the Columbia…
Building of the net racks, except for pile driving, was done without charge by stockholders. They received $1.50 a day working on the cannery. They were eager and capable craftsmen. Many had been brought up in Scandinavia and Finland where they had learned trades under masters.
All were imbued with the cooperative movement then taking root in Western Europe. They had acquired a practical understanding of what it means to run a cooperative business successfully. (p. 19)
Community Life, Schools, and Churches.
Many of the immigrants’ children did not learn English until they attended school. The early rural schools in the area were small. The elementary schools were usually one-room buildings that served as many as 80 pupils. It was common for one female teacher to be responsible for teaching the children in all eight grades. Teachers were generally brought into the area from the "Outside," but often married the local farmers, loggers, or fisherman and stayed in Deep River to raise their families.
Church activities were an integral part of community life. The Finnish settlers of Deep River, Naselle, and Salmon Creek organized into a congregation in 1894 as the Finnish Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. They shared a pastor with the Astoria Finnish Church. The Deep River Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church was built in 1898 near the Deep River Cemetery. The church was the first organized Evangelical Lutheran Church in the area and has been officially proclaimed a National Historical Site.
Women were deeply involved in community life. In 1906, the female members of Naselle Church formed the Nasellin Ompelu Seura (Naselle Sewing Circle), which functioned for 71 years to support missions and hospitals, with an emphasis on salvation and benevolence.
Athletic Activities and Music.
Finnish immigrants knew how to work hard, but they also knew how to play hard. They actively participated in all aspects of Deep River community life, including athletic activities. Baseball was especially popular. Most of the members of the official Deep River team, the "Coyotes," were Finnish loggers and fishermen. The team had a very successful pitcher, Arvo Davis, and catcher, Arthur Anderson.
Athletic activities, including footraces and baseball, were often held on the boardwalk road from the Deep River landing to Pentti’s Pool Hall. When the weather was good, Fred Pentti was often observed sitting on a bench in front of the pool hall to view the athletic events.
The Swedes used to sit on the railing on one side and the Finns on the other–hurling insults at one another. When things got too rough, Pentti would wind up his phonograph and play some nice accordion music. Even the kids were allowed to come down and listen to the music. (Appelo, 1997, p.1)
The Finns have always enjoyed music. Many of the Finnish settlers were accomplished musicians. Axel Larson, a well-known fiddler from the Olson’s Logging Camp, played for hundreds of dances with his wife Matilda, who played the piano, and his brother Ernest on the accordion. Charles Hertzen, a talented violinist, and Fred George, who played the guitar, later joined their band. Axel liked to relate their experience of leaving the logging camp by pump cars (also known as hand speeders, operated on railroad tracks) with their musical instruments, and pumping their way four miles to Deep River:
They transferred to row boats and rowed two miles to Svenson’s Landing, then walked nearly six miles by road (carrying their dress shoes in the pocket of their coats) wearing boots. Arriving at Meserve’s store they climbed the stairs to the large hall on the second floor to play for a local crowd plus the ten dancers they brought with them. This lasted until 3 a.m. and they retraced their route only to find that the railroad rails had become frosted. The hand speeders had to be pushed rather than pumped over the slippery areas. They arrived back at Olson’s camp in time to hear the breakfast bell at the cook house. Some of the men had to go to work for a full day in falling timber. (Appelo, 1978, p. 41)
Axel Larson, long-time employee of Deep River Logging Company, playing his fiddle as he did for countless local dances in southwest Washington.
World War I.
Twenty five years after the Washington territory became a state, the young Finnish immigrant men were asked to defend their new country in World War I. Carlton Appelo (1978) cites an article from the June 1917 edition of the Deep River newspaper:
A party of well known young men residing in Deep River were en route to Cathlamet to take physical exams for the selective service under which they were recently called to colors.
363 Arthur C. Appelo
368 Henry J. Johnson
373 Henry W. Lassila
379 Jacob W. Matta
383 Charles L. Eskola
388 Charles Koski
390 Arvo Davis
All seven are fine specimens of physical manhood and will no doubt pass the required examinations enabling them to enter the military service with the national army which is to be mobilized in the near future. (p. 78)
Accomplishments of Early Finnish Immigrants.
Many of the children of the Finnish immigrants were able to move into professional careers through hard work and steadfast personal dedication to education. At times they pursued adult education programs at night while they worked during the day to make a living for themselves and their families.
In a brief history of Finnish settlements along the Columbia River that Carlton Appelo prepared for the 1999 FinnFest USA, he listed the accomplishments of several Finnish immigrants to the Deep River area, B. S. Sjoborg, Erikki Maunula, and Oscar Wirkkala. B. S. Sjoborg (1841-1923) immigrated from Kristinestad. He was the cannery foreman at Astoria in 1875. After changing his name to Seaborg, he founded the Aberdeen Packing Company at Ilwaco and Aberdeen. He was Washington’s first senator when it became a state in 1889.
Erikki Maunula–who invented numerous devices that were used in the salmon-canning industry–donated land for the Deep River Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. The church has been designated a National Historical Site.
Oscar Wirkkala (1881-1959) was an extremely successful inventor of items used in the logging industry. He held more than 20 patents, including the Wirkkala choker hook, the Wirkkala propeller, and the widely-used skyline logging system.
In addition to the considerable professional accomplishments of many of the Finnish immigrants, certain aspects of the Finnish culture that the immigrants brought with them contributed to the culture of Deep River and the surrounding area. In addition to the immigrants’ willingness to work hard to improve the future lives of their families, there was a pervasive sense of community and mutual respect among the Finnish immigrants. This sense of community could be observed in all types of activities, including those related to the area schools, churches, athletics, and social events.
Many immigrant Finns became prominent entrepreneurs in business in industry as well as professional fields, but it was the rural Finnish immigrant who created a sense of community. Neighbors came to the rescue when misfortune hit, and food was shared at school gatherings or social events.
Attendance at Cottage Church Services was done without worrying about denominational sponsors. It is that same familial spirit uniting entire communities that survives today. We care about each other. (Appelo, 1999, p. 1)
The Finnish immigrants supported each other through difficult times. In 1918, when Fred Pentti–an immigrant from Kannus, Finland–was severely injured while working as a brakeman on the logging train, Deep River residents and businesses readily assisted him. The logging camp workers donated $5 each to him, the Deep River Land and Wharf Company donated a piece of land to him, the Olson brothers gave him lumber from their mill, and the community joined together to build a pool hall for Fred.
His business became the focal point for all types of sport including his favorite, baseball. It was the social club for many young men of the area…It was commonly called "Pentti’s College" (pronounced collitch). No one would say that moonshine didn’t change hands out front during those days of prohibition. When 3.2 beer became legal, it was Pentti’s tavern. (Appelo, 1978, p. 41)
In order to successfully farm the land, much of which was wetland, the settlers had to install dikes and extensive drainage systems. Because of the primitive roads that were generally limited to use in the summer, almost all travel was by water.
The riverboat "General Washington" made daily round trips to nearby Astoria–the source of supplies, mail, and medical services to Deep River–and provided the residents with transportation to and contact with the outside world.
This riverboat was built in 1909 by the North Shore Transportation Company. It served Deep River, Knappton, and Frankfort until the early 1930s, when the newly built area highway became more competitive for passenger and freight travel.
The General Washington steamship approaching Deep River Landing, circa 1915
II. THE LASTING LEGACY OF THE DEEP RIVER FINNS
by Sandra Johnson Witt *
The labor of immigrants was essential in order to build the infrastructure of North America. The immigrants cut timber and cleared land to build their homes and farms. Because there were no roads (only rivers) in the early Deep River area, travel was usually by foot or boat. The immigrants (and their horses) worked hard to build the roads in their new country.
Immigrant road builders
Ironically, the advent of the better roads that the Deep River citizens had worked so hard to construct resulted in a decline in the town. Construction of the bridge one mile downstream from the Deep River landing diverted traffic away from the main part of town. The railroad that had provided economic resources and brought people to the town was doomed by the use of trucks to transport lumber.
Although the improved roads relieved the isolation of the area, they brought an end to the riverboat era. Trucks replaced the boats as the main means of transporting various types of cargo to and from the community. The Deep River Timber Company ceased operating in 1956.
The elementary school was consolidated with other schools.
The movie house and Pentti’s Tavern closed. The Shamrock Hotel had depended on the loggers as boarders, and was forced to close.
Only local residences, the post office, and Appelo’s General Merchandise and Insurance Agency remained in Deep River.
sydaby.eget.net/emig/deep_river.htm
RIGHT: CHARLES A. NIEMI (ca. 1884-1961)
1930 Federal Census
Birth Year: abt 1894
Gender: Male
Race: White
Age in 1930: 36
Birthplace: Washington
Marital Status: Married
Relation to Head of House: Head
Home in 1930: Naselle, Pacific, Washington, USA
Home Owned or Rented: Owned
Home Value: 3000
Radio Set: Yes
Lives on Farm: No
Age at First Marriage: 26
Attended School: No
Able to Read and Write: Yes
Father's Birthplace: Finland
Mother's Birthplace: Finland
Able to Speak English: Yes
Occupation: Retail Merchant
Industry: General Merchandise
Class of Worker: Employer
Veteran: Yes
War: WW
Household Members Age Relationship
Charles A Niemi 36 Head
Esther E Niemi 35 Wife
C Albert Niemi 9 Son
Henry W Niemi 7 Son
Hilda M Nasi 27 Servant
31 August 1917: Charles A. Neimi was accepted by the local draft board, presumably in connection with military service in WWI.
The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, p. 6.
26 April 1928: Niemi sues the state road contractor for $5,031.44 for materials and merchandise furnished in connection with the contractor's work in Wahkiakum and Pacific Counties in Washington.
The Olympian, Olympia, Washington, p. 14.
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