Introduction

 

It was very sad news indeed last Sunday to hear of the death of David R Smith, former Provost and Convenor. Our sympathies go to David’s wife and family.

 

As many of you will know, Margot Russell arranged for me to meet with David at the start of the Dalkeith Burns Monument Campaign – a meeting that helped a great deal with the research on the monument and its history. Indeed, it was a paper of David’s published in 1980 that helped inspire that campaign at the outset. He was a great support and inspiration to me with the work that followed and, despite his deteriorating health, he wrote to me on a number of occasions with further information and photographs. On the day before the unveiling of the restored and repositioned Burns fountain, he called me and offered he some last-minute and very welcome advice and encouragement. I will always be grateful to him for that.

 

From the start of the Burns Campaign through to the subsequent establishment of Dalkeith: Historic Town, it is actually David’s work on the town’s history that we return to time and time again. Without David, much of Dalkeith’s history would have gone untold and, in many ways, the Dalkeith: Historic Town page stands as a tribute to him and his work.

However, from what I know, David’s life seems in large part characterised by a devotion to Dalkeith and its people. On that point, I am pleased to record his story on this page. In what follows, I have recorded the highlights of his life, as he himself recorded them in biographical notes which Margot has passed to me. To these notes, I have added some detail from my own research on his life and career. I think you’ll see that, like Dalkeith, he had a full, fascinating and rich history.

David R Smith, thank you for all that you’ve given to the town in so many different ways.

 

Some Biographical Details

He was born in a farm cottage at Borthwick Mains on 11 April 1930 but lived in Dalkeith from infancy. He was educated at Dalkeith High School. After school, he took up employment as an office boy in a leading Edinburgh firm of Charted Accountants and was soon to be promoted into the audit staff. Between 1948 and 1950, he did National Service in the Royal Air Force. In 1950, he joined the internal audit staff of the Regional Hospital Board where he remained until 1958. From there, he was employed by the National Coal Board; firstly, in the Finance Department and then with the Marketing Department where he had special responsibilities for the promotion of good relations with local authorities.

  

Political Development

 

At school, David took a keen interest in the Second World War. This led to an interest in politics. During the 1945 election campaign he attended mass rallies in Edinburgh addressed by leading Labour politicians. He assisted in the North Midlothian Labour committee rooms. At 16 years of age, he joined the Labour Party. By the age of 20, he was chairman of the Dalkeith branch. At this time, David could be found sitting in the public benches of meetings of the Town Council. Unexpectedly, a vacancy on the council occurred in 1951 when Baillie A K Wilson resigned for health reasons. David was asked to accept it. It was the custom to fill vacancies by co-option at this time but David insisted that there be an election. It was the first by-election in the history of the town and he went on to win it in February 1952. At just 21 years, he had become the youngest councillor in Scotland. He was appointed the chairman of the Health Committee and played a leading part in the closure of insanitary lodging houses as well as a sub-standard slaughter-house.

 

Outwith the Council, he joined the Leith section of the Labour League of Youth and took part in political debates and social events. A keen intellect, he had interests in biology, philosophy and astronomy but also contributed to Socialist periodicals and was on the Editorial Board of a left-wing newspaper. His awareness of global politics was sharp and in 1951 he was reported to have “floored his opponent” in a public debate on the Khrushchev ‘anti-Stalin’ disclosures.

On the Council, he had a number of key positions before 1965 when he became the Provost. He served in that capacity until 1975 when the re-organisation of local government took place. He was then appointed the Convenor of the Midlothian District Council, a position he held for six years.

 

During his time as Provost, the town made remarkable progress. The municipal housing programme was very much expanded with an improvement in the quality, the shopping centre was transformed to present new opportunities, new social facilities such as a community centre, library and arts centre were introduced and many community organisations were established. The Saltire Society awarded the town the title of being the most lively small burgh in Scotland. Before the new shopping centre was opened, the centre of the town was congested with unfit and derelict properties.

 

County Council Conflict & Labour Party Expulsion

 

In 1959, David and a colleague on the Town Council were expelled from the Labour Party for publicly condemning the Council’s policy for the placing of building contracts. They alleged that a particular building form was being favoured in dubious circumstances. The two councillors called for a public inquiry and a police investigation. Despite great pressure, they refused to withdraw their allegations and were willing to face a libel charge if need be. As it turned out, their campaign spread into other areas as it became clear that in many parts of Scotland the contractor was using irregular methods for the gaining of contracts.

 

In Dalkeith, the expulsions caused a major upheaval in the ranks of Labour. There was a mass resignation from the local branch which led to the formation of the Dalkeith Independent Labour Party. The official branch of the Party was reformed by the Scottish Office of Labour and the local elections over the following few years were fought between the two parties. The local electorate gave overwhelming support to the rebels. Official Labour came to recognise that there was no future for it without the re-admission of the Independents. The expelled councillors had stated at the outset that they would seek a return to the Labour Party but on no account would they retreat from their allegations. They contended that persons in high places obstructed the efforts to investigate.

 

The position was different in the North-East of England where similar contracts arrangements were in operations involving the same builder. The Ministry of Housing intervened to cancel a contract. A few years later the Chairman of the Dundee Housing Committee went to prison for accepting bribes from the contractor - the subject of the Dalkeith allegations – who was heavily fined and the Lord Provost was placed under suspicion. Arising from findings arising from a Royal Commission into the standards of public life, the authorities became much more inclined to probe into questionable building practices. The Dalkeith allegations were ahead of their time.

 

Following readmission to the Labour Party, David entered into new fields. He became the Chairman of the Midlothian Constituency Labour Party – a position which he occupied for a few years. He also moved up the ladder as a member of the County Council. He was one of five members that the Town Council had on the County Council. He had entered the County Council to better conduct his campaign against suspect building contracts. He forced open debates with the result that a number of the other councillors began to realise that there was something not right with contract arrangements. After his rehabilitation he became the Chairman of the Planning Committee. Working closely with the more progressive officers, he urged the Committee to make full use of its powers. Until then it had been mainly a negative force, confining its operations to dealing with planning applications from outside parties. It now began to exercise a programme for change. A Country Park at Almondell was designated, and a lesser one at Roslin. Walks were created along the Union Canal and disused railway lines were put to a similar purpose. The Chairman of the Planning Committee insisted that the Committee members try them out themselves before expecting the public to use them. As Chairman, he also provided a lead in creating conservation areas in some of the older communities. Before the County Council was abolished in 1975, he was elected by his colleagues as Vice-Convenor of that body.

 

Potential Parliamentary Candidate

In 1966, delegates of the Midlothian Constituency Labour party met to adopt a parliamentary candidate. There were six nominees, including David. The successful candidate, Alex Eadie, had been sponsored by the Scottish Miners’ Union which had considerable voting power amongst the delegates. David came a close second.

 

Work with Other Public Bodies

 

After becoming a town councillor, David was the means of setting up a Dalkeith Old People’s Welfare Committee with the primary object of building a centre for the exclusive use of the elderly. It was achieved within a new medical centre.

He was keen to promote an interest in the arts and thought that a building for that purpose should be erected. After the provision had been made, he played a leafing part in the formation of a lively Arts Guild.

 

He was a member of the Lothian Building Trust which saved a row of cottages on London Road from destruction.

He was also a founder-member of the St Nicholas Apse Trust which raised funds to enhance and protect part of the structure of the old parish church.

He was invited to serve on the Dalkeith Business Renewal Trust which assisted in the renovation of properties in the town’s conservation area.

 

For a period, he was Chairman of Voluntary Action which gave support to groups operating in the voluntary sector. A success story was its operation of the Woodburn Day Care Centre.

 

For some years he was also a Chairman of Midlothian Local Health Council which reviewed the quality and adequacy of local NHS services.

 

David was also a strong advocate of independent working-class education and was the driving force behind the formation of the Esk Valley branch of the Workers Education Association and was its chairman for the duration of its existence. The body ran a wide range of subjects such as foreign policy, economic issues, painting, music, the practice of government, the conservation of the countryside and threats to the environment.

 

In keeping with his thoughts on independent education, he became a Governor of Newbattle Abbey College and remained one for over 20 years, completing his service as chairman of the Finance Committee. He experienced the decision of the Secretary of State to withdraw funding, plunging the College into a critical situation. The Board was compelled to introduce many new ways to finance a continuation of study courses, made more difficult by the need to protect a building of outstanding historic importance. The College resumed its role with a new team of management personnel. In addition to his position as Governor, David did much to reveal the history of the building, giving many lectures to visitors.

 

Twinning

 

In 1960, the Town Council concluded a friendship agreement with Jarnac, a town in France. David supported the twinning arrangement from the outset and joined a Committee that was set up in order to further its aim of harmony between nations. As Provost in 1965, he presided over a ceremony to officially open Jarnac Court in the centre of Dalkeith. He took an active part in many subsequent activities.

 

The success of twinning between towns inspired in Midlothian County Council to consider the possibility of a similar union with counties in Europe. In due course, a charter of friendship was signed with a county of Germany and one in Hungary. As a means of promoting cultural exchanges, a Midlothian Twinning Association was formed. As chairman of the association for a number of years, David development many for the success of the partnerships, the principal one being the Festival of Friendship which every two years brought together the three counties in a display of music, dance and sport. In recognition of his personal contribution, Jarnac made him a Freeman of the town and the Hungarian county presented him with a special honour.

 

Dalkeith History Society

 

David founded the Dalkeith History Society in 1973 after enlisting the support of the Town Council. It was thought that the identity of the town would be weakened by its integration into a wider framework of local government. A Society would help to preserve Dalkeith’s historic background and character. The Council gave a substantial grant to the Society to encourage local research. A great deal has been done by the Society to justify its terms of reference.

 

In addition to municipal affairs, David devoted the bulk of his time to the research of the burgh’s past. Much of the Buccleuch papers had never been touched until David examined them. This enabled him to write various booklets on aspects of local history. He also produced numerous articles for the local newspaper and delivered lectures to local groups. In 2019, a selection of his articles originally published in the Advertiser was published entitled Dalkeith – Aspects of this history of a Scottish burgh.

 

Other Political Activities

 

David’s political involvement was not just confined to local government. In 1953, a freely elected government in British Guiana was overthrown by the British Government for wanting to nationalise the sugar industry. There was much protest and David became secretary of an Edinburgh Committee to present the facts. It arranged a public meeting which was addressed by the deposed Prime Minister and there was a large public attendance.

 

He was secretary of the Edinburgh branch of the Union of Democratic Control, a body set-up in the First World War to expose secret diplomacy and to campaign for an ethical foreign policy.

 

He was chairman of the Edinburgh branch of the Movement for Colonial Freedom which condemned colonial repression and injustice.

 

He was an active member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and Chairman of the Midlothian Peace Committee.

 

He also took part in the Anti-apartheid Group.

 

Honours

 

In 1976, Prime Minister James Callaghan proposed to David that he recommend him for an Order of the British Empire (OBE). David politely refused the offer. While agreeing that there be a method of recognising service, he did not approve of the current system. Nor did he want to be associated with any empire.

 

In 1996, he accepted a decision of Midlothian District Council that he, like Nelson Mandela shortly before, became a Freeman of Midlothian.

 

Family

 

David developed a keen interest in the Hungarian Revolution in 1956. That year, he met refugees who came to Middleton Camp after the country’s revolt against the government. One of the refugees was a young girl called Kornelia. Two years later, he was able to enter the country as a tourist although the visit was tightly organised. At some risk, he visited Kornelia’s parents. There he met Edit who was later to become his wife. He made return visits which resulted in marriage in 1961. It was very difficult to get all the consents from the Hungarian government, some of the residents thinking it impossible. Much effort had its success. Edit and David have a son and a daughter.

 

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN DALKEITH HISTORY AND WOULD LIKE TO JOIN A NEW FACEBOOK PAGE WHICH CELEBRATES IT, PLEASE FOLLOW THE LINK.

 

www.facebook.com/groups/398465947021162/?fref=ts

    

This photograph was published in the Illustrated Chronicle 23 Aug 1916 p11

 

During the Great War the Illustrated Chronicle published photographs of soldiers and sailors from Newcastle and the North East of England, which had been in the news. The photographs were sent in by relatives and give us a glimpse into the past.

 

The physical collection held by Newcastle Libraries comprises bound volumes of the newspaper from 1910 to 1925. We are keen to find out more about the people in the photographs. If you recognise anyone in the images and have any stories and information to add please comment below.

© sergione infuso - all rights reserved

follow me on www.sergione.info

 

You may not modify, publish or use any files on

this page without written permission and consent.

 

-----------------------------

 

La quinta edizione del festival organizzato da Wired Italia. Due lunghi fine settimana in cui vivere l’innovazione nell’economia, nella scienza, nella politica, nell’intrattenimento, nella cultura. Milano e Firenze si trasformano per un fine settimana nel luna park della scienza e della tecnologia. Oltre 150 relatori, performance artistiche, laboratori di stampa 3D, droni in volo, videogame, film, documentari, speed date sul lavoro, maratone di coding e workshop per tutte le età. A Milano da venerdì 26 a domenica 28 maggio ai Giardini Indro Montanelli.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 12:00

Quando la tecnologia diventa un linguaggio

Speaker

Federico Ferri - Direttore Responsabile Sky Sport

 

Federico Ferri è da fine 2016 Direttore Responsabile di Sky Sport. Torinese, 39 anni, Federico Ferri è stato autore di alcuni dei più importanti prodotti della rete, da Sky Sport Tech, che porta la sua firma, al rinnovato storytelling di programmi di punta come Sky Calcio Live, Sky Calcio Club e Sky Calcio Show, fino ad alcuni format di successo molto apprezzati dal nostro pubblico e dalla critica sportiva, come “Buffa Racconta” e “Mister Condò”.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 12:30

Sempre in prima linea

Speaker

Nadya Tolokonnikova - Fondatrice Pussy Riot

 

Nadežda Andreevna Tolokonnikova, anche nota come “Nadya Tolokno” è una artista e attivista politica russa. È tra le fondatrici del collettivo Pussy Riot, uno dei più importanti gruppi artisti degli ultimi anni che ha focalizzato la propria attività sulla violazione dei diritti umani in Russia e altrove. Nell’agosto 2012 è stata condannata a due anni di carcere in seguito alla performance anti Putin alla cattedrale di Cristo il Salvatore a Mosca. La protesta ha attirato l’attenzione e il supporto internazionale e l’adesione di personaggi quali Peter Gabriel, Sir Paul McCartney, Madonna, Bjork and Aung San Suu Kyi.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 13:00

Sempre più in alto

Speaker

Gianmarco Tamberi - Atleta

 

Gianmarco Tamberi (Civitanova Marche, 1º giugno 1992) è un atleta italiano specializzato nel salto in alto, disciplina di cui è campione mondiale indoor a Portland 2016 e campione europeo ad Amsterdam 2016, nonché detentore del record italiano sia outdoor che indoor. In carriera vanta anche una medaglia di bronzo agli Europei juniores di Tallinn 2011.

 

È figlio dell’ex saltatore in alto e primatista italiano Marco Tamberi, suo attuale allenatore, e fratello di Gianluca, primatista italiano juniores del lancio del giavellotto, modello e attore.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 13:30

10 cose da fare per fare prevenzione - In collaborazione con Airc

Speaker

Geppi Cucciari - Artista e Testimonial Airc

Ugo Pastorino -Dottore e Direttore Scientifico Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori

 

Geppi Cucciari (Cagliari, 18 agosto 1973) è un’attrice e comica italiana, nota sul piccolo schermo per la sua comicità e le capacità di recitazione.

 

Il dottor Ugo Pastorino nasce ad Albenga (SV) il 15 luglio 1954. Nel 1979 consegue la Laurea in Medicina e Chirurgia presso l’Università Statale di Milano (110/lode). Dall’ottobre 2014 è Direttore Scientifico della Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 14:30

Insta-star

Speaker

Beatrice Vendramin - Attrice

 

Attrice, cantante e modella sin da bambina Beatrice Vendramin è un vero e proprio punto di riferimento per la generazione Zeta. É una delle protagoniste di Alex&Co, la situation comedy di Disney dal successo strepitoso dove interpreta il ruolo di Emma. Nel 2016 debutta sul grande schermo a fianco di Giovanna Mezzogiorno e Margherita Buy in “Come Diventare grandi, nonostante i genitori” per la regia di Luca Lucini dove è un’adolescente alle prese con tutte le sfide che la sua giovane età porta con sè.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 15:00

Mediocrazia

Speaker

Alain Deneault - Docente e scrittore

 

Alain Deneault è un docente e filosofo canadese. Ha scritto saggi sulle politiche governative, sui paradisi fiscali e sulla crisi del pensiero critico. Insegna Scienze Politiche presso l’Università di Montréal e collabora con la rivista Liberté.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 15:30

EPCC@WNF

Speaker

Alessandro Cattelan - Conduttore Radio e Tv

 

Alessandro Cattelan (Tortona, 11 maggio 1980) è un conduttore televisivo, conduttore radiofonico, scrittore e attore e comico italiano. Presentatore di punta di Sky Italia, tra i suoi programmi di maggior successo vi sono X Factor ed E poi c’è Cattelan.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 16:30

Lo chiamavano cinema italiano

Speaker

Gabriele Mainetti - Attore e Regista

 

Nato a Roma nel 1976, è attore, regista e produttore cinematografico. Inizia come attore per cinema e fiction, è al contempo un compositore musicale e ha scritto le musiche per molti dei suoi lavori. Come regista inizia con il cortometraggio Basette. Nel 2011 fonda la Goon Films, che raggiunge il successo con Tiger Boy. Vince numerosi premi. Nel 2015 la sua casa di produzione realizza il suo primo cortometraggio: Lo chiamavano Jeeg Robot che, con un budget basso, ottiene grandi incassi e vince 7 statuette al David di Donatello, tra cui quella di miglior regista.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 17:30

Lo strano caso dei TheGiornalisti

Speaker

Tommaso Paradiso - Cantante Thegiornalisti

 

Tommaso Paradiso è autore e cantante della band Thegiornalisti, ha scritto numerosi testi per artisti italiani. Nato 33 anni fa a Roma, ha iniziato a suonare con alcune band della capitale. Nel 2009 nasce Thegiornalisti. Dopo il debutto nel 2011 col primo album, Vol. 1, seguito dal secondo disco Vecchio, il gruppo ha raggiunto la notorietà grazie all’album Fuoricampo, pubblicato nel 2014. In particolar modo, si sono fatti conoscere nel 2015 con il singolo Fine dell’estate.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 18:15

La critica del giornalismo

Speaker

Ilaria D’Amico - Conduttrice Tv e Giornalista

 

Ilaria D’Amico è una conduttrice televisiva, giornalista sportiva italiana. Dal 2003 lavora in Sky. Ha frequentato giurisprudenza all’Università La Sapienza di Roma senza conseguire la laurea. La D’Amico raccontò in tv nel 2006 a Fabio Fazio che esordì, grazie all’amico di famiglia Renzo Arbore, in televisione nel 1997 con La giostra dei goal su Rai International, programma che ha condotto per sei edizioni.

 

-----------------------------

 

ore 18:45

Tecnologici per caso

Speaker

Federico Russo - Conduttore radio e tv e Musicista

Francesco Mandelli - Attore, Comico e Musicista

 

Federico Russo nasce a Firenze il 22 dicembre 1980.

Negli anni del liceo, dopo aver abbandonato la “promettente” carriera calcistica, fonda con il suo compagno di banco gli “Scrabbles”, gruppo del quale è cantante, con cui si esibisce in giro per la Toscana sognando Smashing Pumpkins, Rolling Stones, Modern Lovers, Led Zeppelin e tutto ciò che c’è di irraggiungibile!

 

Francesco Mandelli (Erba, 3 aprile 1979) è un attore, presentatore, autore e musicista, noto per aver esordito nel 1998 nei panni del Nongiovane. Su MTV ha scritto e partecipato a programmi di successo quali Tokusho, Videoclash, BlackBox e Lazarus. Il grande successo è stato raggiunto, assieme al socio Biggio, con I soliti idioti, giunto alla quarta serie e trasformato successivamente in film e in un libro.

Published & distributed by www.cutinthefence.com

 

 

This photograph was published in an online article in LIVE SCIENCE MAGAZINE on January 8th 2024, titled:

  

'' How 10 animals evolved their iconic features - Why are whales so big? Why are giraffe's necks so long? Here are the origins of 10 iconic features in the animal kingdom ''.

  

By Elise Poore

  

Launched in 2004, Live Science received Webby Awards as an Honoree in the Science category in 2008 and 2010. t was acquired by TechMediaNetwork, later called Purch, in 2009. Future PLC acquired Purch in 2018 and is the current publisher of Live Science, operating out of New York City, London and Bath, England.

  

It was previously Selected for sale in the GETTY IMAGES COLLECTION on Friday 10th February 2023

  

CREATIVE RF gty.im/1455731360 MOMENT ROYALTY FREE COLLECTION** and became my 5,862nd frame to be selected for sale (I now have 7000+ images).

  

©All photographs on this site are copyright: ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams) 2011 – 2021 & GETTY IMAGES ®

  

No license is given nor granted in respect of the use of any copyrighted material on this site other than with the express written agreement of ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams). No image may be used as source material for paintings, drawings, sculptures, or any other art form without permission and/or compensation to ©DESPITE STRAIGHT LINES (Paul Williams)

 

.

.

  

.

.

  

Photograph taken at an altitude of Five metres, at 13:51pm on Monday 9th January 2023, off the Mall and Horse Guards Road within the grounds of St James's Park in Central London, one of the Royal parks of London situated in South West London.

  

Pelicans have existed at St James's Park for over four hundred years, originally a gift from the Russian Ambassador to King Charles II in 1664, (and subsequently referred to as 'Ambassadors Pelicans), nowadays six individuals including Louis, Vaclav and Gargi who are all Great White Pelicans (Pelecanus Onocrotalus), also known as Eastern Pelicans, White Pelicans or Rosy Pelicans, reside on Pelican Rock at one end of the lake.

  

They eat fish from the lake and are also hand fed, and are a much loved attraction. They have the largest wingspan after the Great Albatross of up to three metres, have a body length up to six feet and males can weigh up to 15kgs.

  

Nikon D850 Single-lens reflex digital camera F Mount with FX CMOS 35.9mm x 23.9mm Image sensor 46.89 Million total pixels Focal length 500mm Shutter speed: 1/500s Aperture f/6.4 iso100 Hand held with no Tamron vibration control set Image area Full Frame FX (36 x 24) NEF RAW L 45.4Million pixels (8256 x 5504) 14 bit uncompressed AF-C Priority Selection: Release Nikon Back button focusing enabled 3D Tracking watch area: Normal 55 Tracking points Exposure mode: Manual mode Metering mode: Matrix metering Active D-Lighting: Auto Vignette control: ON Normal White balance on: Auto1, 0, 0 Normal (5110k) Colour space: Adobe RGB Picture control: (SD) Standard (Sharpening +3) High ISO Noise Reduction NR: Normal

  

Tamron SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD G2. Nikon GP-1 GPS module. Lee SW150 MKII filter holder. Lee SW150 95mm screw in adapter ring. Lee SW150 circular polariser glass filter.Lee SW150 Filters field pouch. Hoodman HEYENRG round eyepiece oversized eyecup. Mcoplus professional MB-D850 multi function battery grip 6960.Two Nikon EN-EL15a batteries (Priority to battery in Battery grip). Black Rapid Curve Breathe strap. My Memory 128GB Class 10 SDXC 80MB/s card. Lowepro Flipside 400 AW camera bag.

  

LATITUDE: N 51d 30m 13.70s

LONGITUDE: W 0d 7m 46.80s

ALTITUDE: 5.0m

  

RAW (TIFF) FILE: 130.00MB NEF: 63.6MB

PROCESSED (JPeg) FILE: 16.60MB

      

PROCESSING POWER:

  

Nikon D850 Firmware versions C 1.21 (8/12/2022) LD Distortion Data 2.018 (16/01/20) LF 1.00 Nikon Codec Full version 1.31.2 (09/11/2021)

  

HP 110-352na Desktop PC with Windows 10 Home edition AMD Quad-Core A6-5200 APU 64Bit processor. Radeon HD8400 graphics. 8 GB DDR3 Memory with 1TB Data storage. 64-bit Windows 10. My Passport USB 3.0 2TB portable desktop hard drive. Nikon NX STUDIO 64bit Version 1.2.2 (08/12/2022). Nikon Capture NX-D 64bit Version 1.6.2 (18/02/2020). Nikon Picture Control Utility 2 (Version 2.4.5 (18/02/2020). Nikon Transfer 2 Version 2.16.0 (08/12/2022). Adobe photoshop Elements 8 Version 8.0 64bit.

  

The Postcard

 

A postcard published by Sunny South Photographers, D.&W.,B. They state on the back of the card: 'British Manufacture Throughout'.

 

The card was posted in Curry Rivel on Thursday the 6th. July 1933 to:

 

Mrs. Goozee,

152, Leighton Road,

Kentish Town,

London NW.

 

The message on the back of the card was as follows:

 

"Curry Rivel.

My Dear Blanche & All,

Thought you would like a

card from us.

We are having grand weather,

but it's soon getting to

Saturday now.

We have had two days at

Weymouth, and yesterday we

went to Burnham for the day.

Hope you are all well.

Love from us both,

Midge".

 

Dachau Concentration Camp

 

So what else happened on the day that Midge posted the card?

 

Well, on the 6th. July 1933, the German National People's Party was dissolved.

 

The coalition government of the German National People's Party and the the National Socialist German Worker's Party (Nazi Party) established the first concentration camp to be built by Nazi Germany - Dachau.

 

Dachau opened on the 22nd. March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents who consisted of communists, social democrats, and other dissidents.

 

The camp was located in the grounds of an abandoned munitions factory northeast of the medieval town of Dachau, about 16 km (10 mi) northwest of Munich in the state of Bavaria, in southern Germany.

 

After its opening by Heinrich Himmler, its purpose was enlarged to include forced labor, and, eventually, the imprisonment of Jews, Romani, German and Austrian criminals, and, finally, foreign nationals from countries that Germany occupied or invaded.

 

The Dachau camp system grew to include nearly 100 sub-camps, which were mostly work camps or Arbeitskommandos, and were located throughout southern Germany and Austria.

 

The main camp was liberated by U.S. forces on the 29th. April 1945.

 

Prisoners lived in constant fear of brutal treatment and terror detention, including standing cells, floggings, the so-called tree or pole hanging, and standing at attention for extremely long periods in very cold weather.

 

There were 32,000 documented deaths at the camp, and thousands that were never documented. Approximately 10,000 of the 30,000 remaining prisoners were sick at the time of liberation.

 

General Overview

 

Dachau served as a prototype and model for the other German concentration camps that followed. Almost every community in Germany had members taken away to these camps. Newspapers continually reported:

 

"The removal of the enemies of

the Reich to concentration camps."

 

As early as 1935, a jingle went around:

 

"Lieber Herr Gott,

Mach mich stumm,

Das ich nicht nach Dachau komm".

 

This translates as:

 

"Dear God,

Make me dumb,

That I may not to Dachau come".

 

('Dumb' means 'Silent' in this context.)

 

The camp's layout and building plans were developed by Commandant Theodor Eicke, and were applied to all later camps. He devised a separate, secure camp near the command center, which consisted of living quarters, administration and army camps.

 

Eicke became the chief inspector for all concentration camps, responsible for organizing others according to his model.

 

The Dachau complex included the prisoners' camp which occupied approximately 5 acres, and the much larger area of SS training school including barracks, factories plus other facilities of around 20 acres.

 

The entrance gate used by prisoners carries the phrase "Arbeit macht frei" which translates as "Work shall set you free". This phrase was also used in several other concentration camps such as Theresienstadt and Auschwitz.

 

Dachau was the concentration camp that was in operation the longest, from March 1933 to April 1945, nearly all twelve years of the Nazi regime. Dachau's close proximity to Munich, where Hitler came to power and where the Nazi Party had its official headquarters, made Dachau a convenient location.

 

From 1933 to 1938, the prisoners were mainly German nationals detained for political reasons. After Kristallnacht, 30,000 male Jewish citizens were deported to concentration camps. More than 10,000 of them were interned in Dachau.

 

As the German military occupied other European states, citizens from across Europe were sent to concentration camps. Subsequently, the camp was used for prisoners of all sorts, from every nation occupied by the forces of the Third Reich. 

 

In the postwar years, the camp continued in use. From 1945 through 1948, the camp was used by the Allies as a prison for SS officers awaiting trial.

 

After 1948, when hundreds of thousands of ethnic Germans were expelled from eastern Europe, it held Germans from Czechoslovakia until they could be resettled.

 

It also served as a military base for the United States, which maintained forces in the country. The camp finally closed in 1960. At the insistence of survivors, various memorials have been constructed and installed there. 

 

Statistics vary but they are in the same general range. It will never be known exactly how many people were interned or murdered there, due to periods of disruption.

 

One source gives a general estimate of over 200,000 prisoners from more than 30 countries during Nazi rule, of whom two-thirds were political prisoners, including many Catholic priests, and nearly one-third were Jews.

 

25,613 prisoners are believed to have been murdered in the camp and almost another 10,000 in its subcamps, primarily from disease, malnutrition and suicide.

 

In late 1944, a typhus epidemic occurred in the camp caused by poor sanitation and overcrowding, and this caused more than 15,000 deaths. It was followed by an evacuation, in which large numbers of the prisoners died.

 

Toward the end of the war, death marches to and from the camp caused the deaths of numerous unrecorded prisoners.

 

After liberation, prisoners weakened beyond recovery by starvation continued to die. Two thousand cases of "the dread black typhus" had already been identified by the 3rd. May, and the U.S. Seventh Army was:

 

"Working day and night to alleviate

the appalling conditions at the camp".

 

Prisoners with typhus, a louse-borne disease with an incubation period from 12 to 18 days, were treated by the 116th. Evacuation Hospital, while the 127th. was the general hospital for the other illnesses.

 

Over the 12 years of use as a concentration camp, the Dachau administration recorded the intake of 206,206 prisoners and deaths of 31,951.

 

Crematoria were constructed to dispose of the deceased. Visitors may now walk through the buildings and view the ovens used to cremate bodies, which hid the evidence of many deaths.

 

It is claimed that in 1942, more than 3,166 prisoners in weakened condition were transported to Hartheim Castle near Linz, and were executed by poison gas because they were deemed unfit.

 

The gas chamber at Dachau bore a "Brausebad" sign, meaning "Shower Bath".

 

Between January and April 1945 11,560 detainees died at Dachau according to a U.S. Army report of 1945, though the Dachau administration registered 12,596 deaths from typhus at the camp over the same period.

 

Dachau was the third concentration camp to be liberated by British or American Allied forces.

 

History of the Camp

 

After the takeover of Bavaria on the 9th. March 1933, Heinrich Himmler, then Chief of Police in Munich, began to speak with the managers of an unused gunpowder and munitions factory.

 

Himmler toured the site to see if it could be used for quartering protective-custody prisoners. The concentration camp at Dachau was opened on the 22nd. March 1933, with the arrival of about 200 prisoners from Stadelheim Prison in Munich and the Landsberg fortress (where Hitler had written Mein Kampf during his own imprisonment).

 

Himmler announced that the camp could hold up to 5,000 people, and described it as "the first concentration camp for political prisoners" to be used to restore calm to Germany.

 

The press statement given at the opening stated:

 

"On Wednesday the first concentration camp is to be

opened in Dachau with an accommodation for 5000

people. All Communists and—where necessary—

Reichsbanner and Social Democratic functionaries who

endanger state security are to be concentrated here,

as in the long run it is not possible to keep individual

functionaries in the state prisons without overburdening

these prisons, and on the other hand these people

cannot be released because attempts have shown that

they persist in their efforts to agitate and organize as

soon as they are released."

 

Whatever the publicly stated purpose of the camp, the SS men who arrived there on the 11th. May 1933 were left in no illusion as to its real purpose by the speech that was given on that day by Johann-Erasmus Freiherr von Malsen-Ponickau:

 

"Comrades of the SS!

You all know what the Fuehrer has called us to do.

We have not come here for human encounters with

those pigs in there. We do not consider them human

beings, as we are, but as second-class people.

For years they have been able to continue their criminal

existence. But now we are in power. If those pigs had

come to power, they would have cut off all our heads.

Therefore we have no room for sentimentalism.

If anyone here cannot bear to see the blood of

comrades, he does not belong and had better leave.

The more of these pig dogs we strike down, the fewer

we need to feed."

 

Jehovah's Witnesses, homosexuals and emigrants were also sent to Dachau after the 1935 passage of the Nuremberg Laws which institutionalized racial discrimination.

 

In early 1937, the SS, using prisoner labor, initiated the construction of a large complex capable of holding 6,000 prisoners. The construction was completed in August 1938.

 

More political opponents, and over 11,000 German and Austrian Jews were sent to the camp after the annexation of Austria and the Sudetenland in 1938.

 

Sinti and Roma in the hundreds were sent to the camp in 1939, and over 13,000 prisoners were sent to the camp from Poland in 1940.

 

Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross inspected the camp in 1935 and in 1938, and documented the harsh conditions.

 

Investigation of the First Deaths in 1933

 

Shortly after the SS was commissioned to supplement the Bavarian police overseeing the Dachau camp, the first reports of prisoner deaths at Dachau began to emerge.

 

In April 1933, Josef Hartinger, an official from the Bavarian Justice Ministry, and physician Moritz Flamm, a part-time medical examiner, arrived at the camp to investigate the deaths in accordance with the Bavarian penal code.

 

The two men noted many inconsistencies between the injuries on the corpses and the camp guards' accounts of the deaths.

 

Over a number of months, Hartinger and Flamm uncovered clear evidence of murder, and compiled a dossier of charges against Hilmar Wäckerle, the SS commandant of Dachau, Werner Nürnbergk the camp doctor, and Josef Mutzbauer, the camp's chief administrator (Kanzleiobersekretär).

 

In June 1933, Hartinger presented the case to his superior, Bavarian State Prosecutor, Karl Wintersberger. Initially supportive of the investigation, Wintersberger became reluctant to submit the resulting indictment to the Justice Ministry, increasingly under the influence of the SS.

 

Hartinger accordingly reduced the scope of the dossier to the four clearest cases, and Wintersberger signed it, after first notifying Himmler as a courtesy.

 

The killings at Dachau suddenly stopped (temporarily); Wäckerle was transferred to Stuttgart and replaced by Theodor Eicke.

 

The indictment and related evidence reached the office of Hans Frank, the Bavarian Justice Minister, but was intercepted by Gauleiter Adolf Wagner and locked away in a desk, only to be discovered by the US Army.

 

In 1934, both Hartinger and Wintersberger were transferred to provincial positions. Dr. Flamm was no longer employed as a medical examiner, and was to survive two attempts on his life before his suspicious death in the same year.

 

Flamm's thoroughly gathered and documented evidence within Hartinger's indictment ensured that it achieved convictions of senior Nazis at the Nuremberg trials in 1947. Wintersberger's complicit behaviour is documented in his own evidence to the Pohl Trial.

 

Forced Labor

 

The prisoners of Dachau concentration camp originally were to serve as forced labor for a munition factory, and to expand the camp. It was used as a training center for the SS-Totenkopfverbände guards, and was a model for other concentration camps.

 

The camp was about 300 m × 600 m (1,000 ft × 2,000 ft) in rectangular shape. The prisoners' entrance was secured by an iron gate with the motto "Arbeit macht frei" ("Work will make you free"). This reflected Nazi propaganda, which described concentration camps as labor and re-education camps.

 

This was their original purpose, but the focus was soon shifted to using forced labor as a method of torture and murder. The original slogan was left on the gates.

 

As of 1938, the procedure for new arrivals occurred at the Schubraum, where prisoners had to hand over their clothing and possessions.  One former Luxembourgian prisoner, Albert Theis, reflected about the room:

 

"There we were stripped of all our clothes.

Everything had to be handed over: money,

rings, watches. One was now stark naked".

 

The camp included an administration building that contained offices for the Gestapo trial commissioner, SS authorities, the camp leader and his deputies. These administration offices consisted of large storage rooms for the personal belongings of prisoners, the bunker, roll-call square where guards would also inflict punishment on prisoners (especially those who tried to escape).

 

There was also a canteen where prisoners served SS men with cigarettes and food, a museum containing plaster images of prisoners who suffered from bodily defects, the camp office, the library, the barracks, and the infirmary, which was staffed by prisoners who had previously held occupations such as physicians or army surgeons.

 

Operation Barbarossa

 

Over 4,000 Soviet prisoners of war were murdered by the Dachau commandant's guard at the SS shooting range located at Hebertshausen, two kilometers from the main camp, in the years 1941/1943. These murders were in clear violation of the provisions laid down in the Geneva Convention for prisoners of war.

 

The SS used the euphemism Sonderbehandlung ("Special Treatment") for these criminal executions. The first of these executions took place on the 25th. November 1941.

 

After 1942, the number of prisoners being held at the camp continued to exceed 12,000. Dachau originally held communists, leading socialists and other "enemies of the state", but over time, the Nazis began to send German Jews to the camp.

 

In the early years of imprisonment, Jews were offered permission to emigrate overseas if they "voluntarily" gave their property to enhance Hitler's public treasury.

 

Once Austria was annexed and Czechoslovakia was dissolved, the citizens of both countries became the next prisoners at Dachau.

 

In 1940, Dachau became filled with Polish prisoners, who continued to be the majority of the prisoner population until Dachau was officially liberated.

 

The prisoner enclosure at the camp was heavily guarded to ensure that no prisoners escaped. A 3-metre-wide (10 ft) no-man's land was the first marker of confinement for prisoners; an area which, upon entry, would elicit lethal gunfire from guard towers.

 

Guards tossed inmates' caps into this area, resulting in the death of the prisoners when they attempted to retrieve the caps. Despondent prisoners committed suicide by entering the zone.

 

A four-foot-deep and eight-foot-broad (1.2 × 2.4 m) creek, connected with the river Amper, lay on the west side between the "neutral-zone" and the electrically charged, and barbed wire fence which surrounded the entire prisoner enclosure.

 

In August 1944 a women's camp opened inside Dachau. The first shipment of women came from Auschwitz-Birkenau.

 

In the last months of the war, the conditions at Dachau deteriorated. As Allied forces advanced toward Germany, the Germans began to move prisoners from concentration camps near the front to more centrally located camps. They hoped to prevent the liberation of large numbers of prisoners.

 

Transports from the evacuated camps arrived continually at Dachau. After days of travel with little or no food or water, the prisoners arrived weak and exhausted, often near death. Typhus epidemics became a serious problem as a result of overcrowding, poor sanitary conditions, insufficient provisions, and the weakened state of the prisoners.

 

Owing to repeated transports from the front, the camp was constantly overcrowded, and the hygiene conditions were beneath human dignity. Starting from the end of 1944 up to the day of liberation, 15,000 people died, about half of all the prisoners held at Dachau.

 

Final Days of the Camp

 

As late as the 19th. April 1945, prisoners were sent to Dachau; on that date a freight train from Buchenwald with nearly 4,500 prisoners was diverted to Nammering.

 

SS troops and police confiscated food and water that local townspeople tried to give to the prisoners. Nearly three hundred dead bodies were ordered removed from the train, and carried to a ravine over 400 metres (1⁄4 mile) away.

 

The 524 prisoners who had been forced to carry the dead to this site were then shot by the guards, and buried along with those who had died on the train. Nearly 800 bodies went into this mass grave.

 

The train continued on to Dachau.

 

During April 1945, as U.S. troops drove deeper into Bavaria, the commander of Dachau suggested to Himmler that the camp be turned over to the Allies.

 

Himmler, in signed correspondence, prohibited such a move, adding that:

 

"No prisoners shall be allowed to

fall into the hands of the enemy

alive."

 

On the 24th. April 1945, just days before the U.S. troops arrived at the camp, the commandant and a strong guard forced between 6,000 and 7,000 surviving inmates on a death march from Dachau south to Eurasburg, then eastwards towards the Tegernsee. Any prisoners who could not keep up on the six-day march were shot. Many others died of exhaustion, hunger and exposure. Months later a mass grave containing 1,071 prisoners was found along the route.

 

Though at the time of liberation the death rate had peaked at 200 per day, after the liberation by U.S. forces the rate eventually fell to between 50 and 80 deaths per day.

 

In addition to the direct abuse of the SS and the harsh conditions, people died from typhus epidemics and starvation.

 

Between the years 1933 and 1945, more than 3.5 million Germans were imprisoned in such concentration camps or prison for political reasons.

 

Approximately 77,000 Germans were killed for one or another form of resistance by Special Courts, courts-martial, and the civil justice system. Many of these Germans had served in government, the military, or in civil positions, and these roles were thought to allow them to engage in subversion and conspiracy against the Nazis.

 

Organization of the Camp

 

Dachau was divided into two sections: the camp area and the crematorium. The crematorium was next to, but not directly accessible from within the camp, and was erected in 1942.

 

The camp area consisted of 32 barracks, including one for clergy imprisoned for opposing the Nazi regime, and one reserved for medical experiments.

 

The Dachau complex included other SS facilities beside the concentration camp—a leader school of the economic and civil service, the medical school of the SS, etc. The camp was originally called a "Protective Custody Camp," and occupied less than half of the area of the entire complex.

 

The courtyard between the prison and the central kitchen was used for the summary execution of prisoners. The camp was surrounded by an electrified barbed-wire fence, a ditch, and a wall with seven guard towers.

 

In early 1937, the SS, using prisoner labor, initiated construction of a large complex of buildings in the grounds of the original camp. The construction was completed in mid-August 1938, and the camp remained essentially unchanged and in operation until 1945. Dachau was therefore the longest running concentration camp of the Third Reich.

 

Medical Experimentation

 

Hundreds of prisoners suffered and died, or were executed in medical experiments conducted at Dachau, of which Sigmund Rascher was in charge.

 

Hypothermia experiments involved being immersed in vats of icy water, in some cases wearing Luftwaffe flying gear, or being strapped down naked outdoors in freezing temperatures.

 

Attempts at reviving the subjects included scalding baths, and forcing naked women to have sex with the unconscious victim.

 

There was extensive communication between the investigators and Heinrich Himmler, head of the SS, regarding the experiments, although the original records of the experiments were destroyed in an attempt to conceal the atrocities.

 

During 1942, "high altitude" experiments were conducted. Victims were subjected to rapid decompression to pressures found at 4,300 metres (14,100 ft), and experienced spasmodic convulsions, agonal breathing, and eventual death.

 

Agonal breathing is when someone who is not getting enough oxygen is gasping for air. It is not true breathing - it is a natural reflex that happens when your brain is not getting the oxygen it needs to survive. Agonal breathing is a sign that a person is near death.

 

A Camp of Many Colours

 

The camp was originally designed for holding German and Austrian political prisoners and Jews, but in 1935 it began to be used also for ordinary criminals. Inside the camp there was a sharp division between the two groups of prisoners; those who were there for political reasons, and the "professional" criminals, who has been sent there by the criminal courts.

 

The political prisoners who had been arrested by the Gestapo and were there because they disagreed with Nazi Party policies, or with Hitler, naturally did not consider themselves criminals.

 

Dachau was used as the chief camp for Christian (mainly Catholic) clergy who were imprisoned for not conforming with the Nazi Party line.

 

Poles constituted the largest ethnic group in the camp during the war, followed by Russians, French, Yugoslavs, Jews, and Czechs.

 

Many Poles met their deaths with the "invalid trains" sent out from the camp; others were liquidated in the camp and given bogus death certificates. Some died of cruel punishment for misdemeanors—beaten to death or run to exhaustion. 

 

The average number of Germans in the camp during the war was 3,000. Just before the liberation many German prisoners were evacuated, but 2,000 of these Germans died during the evacuation transport.

 

Prisoners were divided into categories. At first, they were classified by the nature of the crime for which they were accused, but eventually were classified by the specific authority-type under whose command a person was sent to camp. 

 

-- Those who were there for political reasons wore a red tag.

 

-- "Professional" criminals wore a green tag.

 

-- Cri-Po prisoners arrested by the criminal police wore a brown badge.

 

-- "Work-shy and asocial" people sent by the welfare authorities or the Gestapo wore a black badge.

 

-- Jehovah's Witnesses arrested by the Gestapo wore a violet badge.

 

-- Homosexuals sent by the criminal courts wore a pink badge.

 

-- Emigrants arrested by the Gestapo wore a blue badge.

 

-- "Race polluters" arrested by the criminal court or Gestapo wore badges with a black outline.

 

-- Second-termers arrested by the Gestapo wore a bar matching the color of their badge.

 

-- "Idiots" wore a white armband with the label Blöd (Stupid).

 

-- Romani wore a black triangle.

 

-- Jews, whose incarceration in the Dachau concentration camp dramatically increased after Kristallnacht, wore a yellow badge, combined with another color. 

 

The Priest Barracks of Dachau Concentration Camp

 

In an effort to counter the strength and influence of spiritual resistance, Nazi security services monitored clergy very closely.

 

Priests were frequently denounced, arrested and sent to concentration camps, often simply on the basis of being "Suspected of activities hostile to the State" or that there was "Reason to suppose that his dealings might harm society". 

 

Despite SS hostility to religious observance, the Vatican and German bishops successfully lobbied the regime to concentrate clergy in one camp, and obtained permission to build a chapel for the priests to live communally and for time to be allotted to them for their religious and intellectual activity.

 

Priest Barracks at Dachau were established in Blocks 26, 28 and 30, though only temporarily. 26 became the international block, and 28 was reserved for Poles – the most numerous group. 

 

Of a total of 2,720 clergy recorded as imprisoned at Dachau, the overwhelming majority, some 2,579 (or 95%) were Catholic. Among the other denominations, there were 109 Protestants, 22 Greek Orthodox, 8 Old Catholics and Mariavites and 2 Muslims.

 

R. Schnabel's 1966 investigation, 'Die Frommen in der Hölle' ("The Pious Ones in Hell") found an alternative total of 2,771, and included the fate all the clergy listed, with 692 noted as deceased and 336 sent out on "invalid trainloads" and therefore presumed dead. 

 

Over 400 German priests were sent to Dachau. Total numbers incarcerated are difficult to ascertain, for some clergy were not recognised as such by the camp authorities, and some—particularly Poles—did not wish to be identified as such, fearing they would be mistreated.

 

Priest Friedrich Hoffman testified at the trial of former camp personnel. He stated that hundreds of priests died at the camp after being exposed to malaria during Nazi medical experiments.

 

The Nazis introduced a racial hierarchy—keeping Poles in harsh conditions, while favoring German priests. Poles arrived in December 1941, and a further 500 of mainly elderly clergy arrived in October the following year. Inadequately clothed for the bitter cold, of this group, only 82 survived.

 

A large number of Polish priests were chosen for Nazi medical experiments. In November 1942, 20 were given phlegmons. A phlegmon is an inflammation of soft tissue that spreads under the skin or inside the body. It is usually caused by an infection, and generally produces pus.

 

120 priests were used by Dr. Schilling for malaria experiments between July 1942 and May 1944.

 

Dachau Staff

 

The camp staff consisted mostly of male SS, although 19 female guards served at Dachau as well, most of them until liberation. Female guards were also assigned to the Augsburg Michelwerke, Bureau, Kaufering, Mühldorf, and Munich Agfa Camera Werke subcamps.

 

Several Norwegians worked as guards at the Dachau camp.

 

In the major Dachau war crimes case (United States of America v. Martin Gottfried Weiss et. al.), forty-two officials of Dachau were tried from November to December 1945.

 

All 42 were found guilty – thirty-six of the defendants were sentenced to death on the 13th. December 1945, of whom 23 were hanged on the 28th.–29th. May 1946, including the commandant, SS-Obersturmbannführer Martin Gottfried Weiss, SS-Obersturmführer Freidrich Wilhelm Ruppert and camp doctors Karl Schilling and Fritz Hintermeyer.

 

Camp commandant Weiss admitted in affidavit testimony that:

 

"Most of the deaths at Dachau during my administration

were due to typhus, TB, dysentery, pneumonia, pleurisy,

and body weakness brought about by lack of food."

 

His testimony also admitted to deaths by shootings, hangings and medical experiments.

 

Ruppert ordered and supervised the deaths of innumerable prisoners at Dachau main and subcamps, according to the War Crimes Commission official trial transcript. He testified about hangings, shootings and lethal injections, but did not admit to direct responsibility for any individual deaths.

 

An anonymous Dutch prisoner contended that British Special Operations Executive (SOE) agent Noor Inayat Khan was cruelly beaten by SS officer Wilhelm Ruppert before being shot from behind; the beating may have been the actual cause of her death.

 

Satellite Camps and Sub-Camps of Dachau

 

Satellite camps under the authority of Dachau were established in the summer and autumn of 1944 near armaments factories throughout southern Germany to increase war production.

 

Dachau alone had more than 30 large subcamps, and hundreds of smaller ones, in which over 30,000 prisoners worked almost exclusively on armaments.

 

Overall, the Dachau concentration camp system included 123 sub-camps and Kommandos which were set up in 1943 when factories were built near the main camp to make use of forced labor of the Dachau prisoners.

 

Of the 123 sub-camps, eleven of them were called Kaufering. All Kaufering sub-camps were set up to specifically build three underground factories (Allied bombing raids made it necessary for them to be underground) for a project called Ringeltaube (wood pigeon). This was planned to be the location in which the German jet fighter plane, Messerschmitt Me 262, was to be built.

 

In the last days of war, in April 1945, the Kaufering camps were evacuated and around 15,000 prisoners were sent up to the main Dachau camp. Typhus alone was estimated to have caused 15,000 deaths between December 1944 and April 1945:

 

"Within the first month after the arrival of the American

troops, 10,000 prisoners were treated for malnutrition

and kindred diseases. In spite of this, one hundred

prisoners died each day during the first month from

typhus, dysentery or general weakness".

 

As U.S. Army troops neared the Dachau sub-camp at Landsberg on the 27th. April 1945, the SS officer in charge ordered that 4,000 prisoners be murdered. The windows and doors of their huts were nailed shut. The buildings were then doused with gasoline and set afire. Prisoners who were naked or nearly so were burned to death, while some managed to crawl out of the buildings before dying.

 

Earlier that day, as Wehrmacht troops withdrew from Landsberg am Lech, townspeople hung white sheets from their windows. Infuriated SS troops dragged German civilians from their homes and hanged them from trees.

 

The Winding-Down of the Camps

 

As the Allies began to advance on Nazi Germany, the SS began to evacuate the first concentration camps in the summer of 1944. Thousands of prisoners were killed before the evacuation due to illness or being unable to walk. At the end of 1944, the overcrowding, the unhygienic conditions and the lack of food rations became disastrous. In November a typhus fever epidemic broke out that took thousands of lives.

 

In the second phase of the evacuation, in April 1945, Himmler gave direct evacuation routes for the remaining camps. Prisoners who were from the northern part of Germany were to be directed to the Baltic and North Sea coasts to be drowned.

 

The prisoners from the southern part were to be gathered in the Alps, which was the location in which the SS wanted to resist the Allies. On the 28th. April 1945, an armed revolt took place in the town of Dachau. Both former and escaped concentration camp prisoners, and a renegade Volkssturm (civilian militia) company took part. At about 8:30 am the rebels occupied the Town Hall. The SS gruesomely suppressed the revolt within a few hours.

 

Being fully aware that Germany was about to be defeated in World War II, the SS invested its time in removing evidence of the crimes it had committed in the concentration camps. They began destroying incriminating evidence in April 1945, and planned on murdering the prisoners using codenames "Wolke A-I" (Cloud A-1) and "Wolkenbrand" (Cloud fire).

 

However, these plans were not carried out. In mid-April, plans to evacuate the camp started by sending prisoners toward Tyrol. On the 26th. April, over 10,000 prisoners were forced to leave the Dachau concentration camp on foot, in trains, or in trucks. The largest group of some 7,000 prisoners was driven southward on a foot-march lasting several days. More than 1,000 prisoners did not survive this march. The evacuation transports cost many thousands of prisoners their lives.

 

The Liberation of Dachau

 

On the 26th. April 1945, prisoner Karl Riemer fled the Dachau concentration camp to get help from American troops, and on the 28th. April Victor Maurer, a representative of the International Red Cross, negotiated an agreement to surrender the camp to U.S. troops.

 

That night a secretly formed International Prisoners Committee took over the control of the camp. American units commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Felix L. Sparks were ordered to secure the camp. On the 29th. April Sparks led part of his battalion as they entered the camp over a side wall.

 

At about the same time, Brigadier General Henning Linden led the 222nd. Infantry Regiment including his aide, Lieutenant William Cowling, to accept the formal surrender of the camp from German Lieutenant Heinrich Wicker at an entrance between the camp and the compound for the SS garrison.

 

Linden was traveling with Marguerite Higgins and other reporters; as a result, Linden's detachment generated international headlines by accepting the surrender of the camp.

 

More than 30,000 Jews and political prisoners were freed, and ever since 1945, adherents of the 42nd. and 45th. Division have argued over which unit was the first to liberate Dachau.

 

Satellite Camps Liberation

 

The first Dachau sub-camp to be discovered by advancing Allied forces was Kaufering IV, by the 12th. Armored Division on the 27th. April 1945. Sub-camps subsequently liberated by the 12th. Armored Division included: Erpting, Schrobenhausen, Schwabing, Langerringen, Türkheim, Lauingen, Schwabach, and Germering.

 

During the liberation of the sub-camps surrounding Dachau, advance scouts of the U.S. Army's 522nd. Field Artillery Battalion liberated the 3,000 prisoners of the "Kaufering IV Hurlach" slave labor camp:

 

"They found the camp afire and a stack of some four

hundred bodies burning ... American soldiers then

went into Landsberg and rounded up all the male

civilians they could find and marched them out to

the camp.

The former commandant was forced to lie amidst a

pile of corpses. The male population of Landsberg

was then ordered to walk by, and ordered to spit on

the commandant as they passed.

The commandant was then turned over to a group

of liberated camp survivors".

 

The 522nd's personnel later discovered the survivors of a death march headed generally southwards from the Dachau main camp to Eurasburg, then eastwards towards the Austrian border on the 2nd. May, just west of the town of Waakirchen.

 

Weather at the time of liberation was unseasonably cool; on the 2nd. May, the area received a snowstorm with 10 centimetres (4 in) of snow at nearby Munich. Proper clothing was still scarce, and film footage from the time (as seen in The World at War) shows naked, gaunt people either wandering on snow or dead under it.

 

Due to the number of sub-camps over a large area that comprised the Dachau concentration camp complex, many Allied units have been officially recognized by the United States Army Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum as liberating units of Dachau.

 

The Killing of Camp Guards at Dachau

 

A photograph taken by the U.S. Army on the 29th. April 1945 exists which appears to show an unauthorized execution of SS troops in a coal yard in the area of the Dachau concentration camp during its liberation—part of the Dachau liberation reprisals.

 

American troops killed some of the camp guards after they had surrendered. The number is disputed, as some were killed in combat, some while attempting to surrender, and others after their surrender was accepted. In 1989, Brigadier General Felix L. Sparks, the Colonel in command of a battalion that was present, stated:

 

"The total number of German guards killed at Dachau

during that day most certainly does not exceed fifty,

with thirty probably being a more accurate figure.

The regimental records of the 157th. Field Artillery

Regiment for that date indicate that over a thousand

German prisoners were brought to the regimental

collecting point.

Since my task force was leading the regimental attack,

almost all the prisoners were taken by the task force,

including several hundred from Dachau."

 

An Inspector General report resulting from a US Army investigation conducted between the 3rd. and 8th. May 1945 found that 21 plus "a number" of presumed SS men were killed, with others being wounded after their surrender had been accepted.

 

In addition, 25 to 50 SS guards were estimated to have been killed by the liberated prisoners. Lee Miller visited the camp just after liberation, and photographed several guards who were killed by soldiers or prisoners.

 

According to Sparks, court-martial charges were drawn up against him and several other men under his command, but General George S. Patton, who had recently been appointed military governor of Bavaria, chose to dismiss the charges.

 

Colonel Charles L. Decker, an acting deputy judge advocate, concluded in late 1945 that:

 

"While war crimes had been committed at Dachau

by Germany, certainly, there was no such systematic criminality among United States forces as pervaded

the Nazi groups in Germany."

 

American troops also forced local citizens to the camp to see for themselves the conditions there and to help bury the dead. Many local residents were shocked about the experience, and claimed no knowledge of the activities at the camp.

 

The Post-Liberation Easter

 

The 6th. May 1945 was the day of Pascha, Orthodox Easter. In a cell block used by Catholic priests to say daily Mass, several Greek, Serbian and Russian priests and one Serbian deacon, wearing makeshift vestments made from towels of the SS guard, gathered with several hundred Greek, Serbian and Russian prisoners to celebrate the Paschal Vigil. A prisoner described the scene:

 

"In the entire history of the Orthodox Church there

has probably never been an Easter service like the

one at Dachau in 1945.

Greek and Serbian priests together with a Serbian

deacon adorned the makeshift 'vestments' over their

blue and gray-striped prisoners' uniforms.

Then they began to chant, changing from Greek to

Slavic, and then back again to Greek.

The Easter Canon, the Easter Sticheras—everything

was recited from memory.

The Gospel—In the beginning was the Word—also

from memory. And finally, the Homily of Saint John—

also from memory.

A young Greek monk from the Holy Mountain stood

up in front of us and recited it with such infectious

enthusiasm that we shall never forget him as long as

we live. Saint John Chrysostomos himself seemed to

speak through him to us and to the rest of the world

as well!"

 

There is a Russian Orthodox chapel at the camp today, and it is well known for its icon of Christ leading the prisoners out of the camp gates.

 

After Liberation

 

Authorities worked night and day to alleviate conditions at the camp immediately following the liberation as an epidemic of black typhus swept through the prisoner population. Two thousand cases had already been reported by the 3rd. May.

 

By October of the same year the camp was being used by the U.S. Army as a place of confinement for war criminals, the SS and important witnesses. It was also the site of the Dachau Trials for German war criminals, a site chosen for its symbolism.

 

In 1948, the Bavarian government established housing for refugees on the site, and this remained for many years.

 

The Kaserne quarters and other buildings used by the guards were converted and served as the Eastman Barracks, an American military post. Since the closure of the Eastman Barracks in 1974, these areas are now occupied by the Bavarian Bereitschaftspolizei (rapid response police unit).

 

Deportation of Soviet Nationals

 

By January 1946, 18,000 members of the SS were being confined at the camp along with an additional 12,000 persons, including deserters from the Russian army and a number who had been captured in German Army uniform.

 

The occupants of two barracks rioted as 271 of the Russian deserters were to be loaded onto trains that would return them to Russian-controlled lands, as agreed at the Yalta Conference.

 

Inmates barricaded themselves inside two barracks. While the first was able to be cleared without too much trouble, those in the second building, set fire to it, tore off their clothing in an effort to frustrate the guards, and linked arms to resist being removed from the building.

 

Tear gas was used by the American soldiers before rushing the barrack, only for them to find that many had committed suicide. The American services newspaper Stars and Stripes reported:

 

“The GIs quickly cut down most of those who had

hanged themselves from the rafters. Those still

conscious were screaming in Russian, pointing first

at the guns of the guards, then at themselves,

begging to us to shoot.”

 

Ten of the soldiers were successful in their bid to commit suicide during the riot, while another 21 attempted suicide, apparently with razor blades. Many had "cracked heads" inflicted by 500 American guards, in the attempt to bring the situation under control.

 

Dachau in the Media

 

-- In his 2013 autobiography, 'Moose: Chapters from My Life', in the chapter entitled, "Dachau", author Robert B. Sherman chronicles his experiences as an American Army serviceman during the initial hours of Dachau's liberation.

 

-- In Lewis Black's first book, 'Nothing's Sacred', he mentions visiting the camp as part of his tour of Europe, and how it looked all cleaned up and spiffy, "like some delightful holiday camp", and only the crematorium building showed any sign of the horror that went on there.

 

-- In Maus, Vladek describes his time interned at Dachau, as well as other concentration camps. He describes the journey to Dachau in over-crowded trains, trading rations for other goods and favors to stay alive, and contracting typhus.

 

-- Frontline: "Memory of the Camps" (7 May 1985) is a 56-minute television documentary that addresses Dachau and other Nazi concentration camps.

published in daily times sunday

 

outfits: gulabo by maheen khan

model: ayyan & hira

hair & makeup: depilex

photography: fayyaz ahmed

 

Join on facebook: www.facebook.com/fayyazah

Published by Pela Livraria do Globo, Brazil 1937-1938

The Postcard

 

A Comic Series novelty card published by Bamforth & Co. Ltd. of Holmfirth, Yorkshire. The artwork was by Fitzpatrick.

 

The card was posted in Scarborough on Sunday the 12th. August 1973 to:

 

Miss H. Fisher,

84, Huddersfield Road,

Skelmanthorpe,

Nr. Huddersfield,

Yorkshire.

 

The message on the other side of the card was as follows:

 

"We haven't had much sun

so far, so unlike you I won't

get as brown as a berry!

We went to see Lulu last

week at the Futurist - she is

really exciting.

Hope you are enjoying your

holiday, the time's flying isn't

it?

We have spent a lot of time

in Peasholm Park and the

amusements.

We got chased by a rabbit

last week.

That sounds funny doesn't it?

Actually it was a fella dressed

up.

Love from Celia".

 

The Futurist Theatre

 

The Futurist Theatre was a theatre and cinema located on Foreshore Road in Scarborough. It closed its doors on the 6th. January 2014 after the operators' lease expired.

 

The Futurist was built as a cinema in 1921. It remained in this role until 1958 when the stage was extended to allow live performances at the venue which included The Black and White Minstrel Show, the Beatles, Morecambe & Wise, Shirley Bassey, Ken Dodd and the Bachelors. (And of course, Lulu!)

 

The Futurist had the twelfth largest seating capacity (2,155) for a theatre in the country, and the fifth largest capacity outside London.

 

The Futurist has the misfortune of being located in an area earmarked for redevelopment, therefore its future looks far from promising.

 

Richard Reid - The Shoe Bomber

 

So what else happened on the day that Celia posted the card?

 

Well, the 12th. August 1973 marked the birth of Richard Colvin Reid, also known as the 'Shoe Bomber'.

 

He is a British terrorist who attempted to detonate a shoe bomb while on American Airlines Flight 63 from Paris to Miami in 2001.

 

Born to a father who was a career criminal, Reid converted to Islam as a young man in prison after years as a petty criminal. Later he became radicalised and went to Pakistan and Afghanistan, where he trained and became a member of al-Qaeda.

 

On the 22nd. December 2001, he boarded American Airlines Flight 63 between Paris and Miami, wearing shoes packed with explosives, which he unsuccessfully tried to detonate. Passengers subdued him on the plane, which landed at Logan International Airport in Boston, Massachusetts, the closest US airport.

 

He was arrested, charged, and indicted. In 2002, Reid pleaded guilty in U.S. federal court to eight criminal counts of terrorism, based on his attempt to destroy a commercial aircraft in flight. He was sentenced to three life terms plus 110 years in prison without parole, and was transferred to ADX Florence, a super maximum security prison in Colorado, United States.

 

Richard Reid - Background

 

Reid was born in Bromley to Lesley Hughes, who was of native English descent, and Colvin Robin Reid, a man of mixed race whose father was a Jamaican immigrant. When Reid was born, his father, a career criminal, was in prison for stealing a car.

 

Reid attended Thomas Tallis School in Kidbrooke, leaving at 16 and becoming a graffiti writer who was in and out of detention. He accumulated more than 10 convictions for crimes against persons and property. He served sentences at Feltham Young Offenders Institution and at Maidstone Prison.

 

The next time Reid was imprisoned, in 1992 for three years, for various street robberies, he converted to Islam.

 

The Islamic Radicalisation of Richard Reid

 

Upon his release from prison in 1995, he joined the Brixton Mosque. He later began attending the Finsbury Park Mosque in North London, headed at that time by the anti-American cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri, who was described as 'The heart of the extremist Islamic culture' in Great Britain.

 

By 1998 Reid was voicing extremist views. At the Finsbury Park Mosque he fell under the sway of 'terrorist talent spotters and handlers' allied with al-Qaeda, including Djamal Beghal, one of the leaders of the foiled plan for a 2001 suicide bombing of the American Embassy in Paris.

 

Reid spent 1999 and 2000 in Pakistan, and trained at a terrorist camp in Afghanistan.

 

The Attempted Bombing

 

Reid and Saajid Badat, another British man preparing to be a terrorist, returned to Pakistan in November 2001, and travelled overland to Afghanistan.

 

They were both given 'shoe bombs', casual footwear adapted to be covertly smuggled onto aircraft before being used to destroy them. Later forensic analysis of both bombs showed that they contained the same plastic explosive, and that the detonator cords had come from the same batch: the cut mark on Badat's cord exactly matched that on Reid's.

 

On the 21st. December 2001, Reid attempted to board a flight from Paris to Miami, Florida. His boarding was delayed because his dishevelled physical appearance had aroused the suspicions of the airline passenger screeners.

 

In addition, Reid did not answer all of their questions, and had not checked in any luggage for the transatlantic flight.

 

Additional screening by the French National Police resulted in Reid being re-issued a ticket for a flight on the following day. He returned to the Paris airport on the 22nd. December 2001, and boarded American Airlines Flight 63 from Paris to Miami, wearing his special shoes packed with plastic explosives in their hollowed-out bottoms.

 

During the flight, a passenger on Flight 63 complained of the smell of smoke in the cabin shortly after a meal service.

 

One flight attendant, Hermis Moutardier, thinking she smelled a burnt match, walked along the aisles of the plane, trying to assess the source. A passenger pointed to Reid, who was sitting alone near a window and attempting to light a match. Moutardier warned him that smoking was not allowed on the airplane. Reid promised to stop.

 

The Actions of Other Passengers on the Flight

 

A few minutes later, Moutardier found Reid leaned over in his seat. After she asked him what he was doing, Reid grabbed at her, revealing one shoe in his lap, a fuse leading into the shoe, and a lit match. Several passengers worked together to subdue the 6 foot 4 inch (193 cm) tall Reid weighting more than 200 pounds (over 90 kg).

 

They restrained him using plastic handcuffs, seatbelt extensions, leather waist belts and headphone cords. A doctor on board administered a tranquilliser which was found in the emergency medical kit of the airliner. The flight was immediately diverted to Logan International Airport in Boston, Massachusetts, the closest US airport.

 

The explosive apparently did not detonate due to the delay in the take-off of Reid's flight. The rainy weather, perhaps along with Reid's foot perspiration, caused the fuse to be too damp to ignite.

 

Legal Proceedings and Sentencing

 

Reid was arrested at Logan International Airport after the incident. Two days later, he was charged before a federal court in Boston with 'Interfering with the performance of duties of flight crew members by assault or intimidation', a crime which carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Additional charges were added when he was formally indicted by a grand jury.

 

The judge ordered Reid to be held in jail without bail, pending trial due to the gravity of the crimes and the perceived high risk that he would try to flee. Officials at the time indicated that Reid's shoes contained 10 ounces (283 g) of explosive material characteristic of C-4, enough to blow a hole in the fuselage and cause the plane to crash.

 

During a preliminary hearing on the 28th. December, an FBI agent testified that forensic analysis had identified the chemicals as PETN, the primary explosive, and TATP (triacetone triperoxide), a chemical needed to detonate the bomb with a fuse and match.

 

The Charges

 

Reid was charged with nine criminal counts related to terrorism, namely:

 

- Attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction,

- Attempted homicide,

- Placing or transporting an explosive or incendiary device on an aircraft or public mass transportation vehicle,

- 2 counts of interference with flight crew members and attendants on an aircraft

- Attempted destruction of an aircraft or public mass transportation vehicle

- Using a destructive device during and in relation to a crime of violence, and

- Attempted destruction of an aircraft

- Attempted wrecking of a mass transportation vehicle.

 

The ninth charge, attempted wrecking of a mass transportation vehicle, was dismissed on the 11th. June 2002, because the Congressional definition of 'vehicle' did not include aircraft.

 

The Guilty Plea

 

Reid pleaded guilty to the remaining eight counts on the 4th. October 2002. On the 31st. January 2003, he was sentenced by Judge William Young to the maximum of three consecutive life sentences and 110 years with no possibility of parole. Reid was also fined the maximum of $250,000 on each count, a total of $2 million.

 

A Comment From the Judge

 

During the sentencing hearing, Reid said he was an enemy of the United States, and in league with al-Qaeda. When Reid said he was a Soldier of God under the command of Osama bin Laden, Judge Young responded:

 

"You are not an enemy combatant,

you are a terrorist. You are not a

soldier in any army, you are a terrorist.

To call you a soldier gives you far too

much stature. (Points to U.S. flag).

You see that flag, Mr Reid? That is the

flag of the United States of America.

That flag will be here long after you

are forgotten".

 

Changes in Airline Security Procedures

 

As a result of these events, airlines started to require passengers to pass through airport security in socks or bare feet while their shoes are scanned for bombs.

 

Scanners cannot find PETN in shoes or strapped to a person. A chemical test is needed. However, X-rays are an effective way to see if the shoe has been altered to hold a bomb.

Published by Ebal, Brazil 1951

In the old days, the mill would have been turned around to get optimal wind by a horse hitched up to the wheel behind the mill. Today, the mill was turned by car power and man power. This was the first time they had the mill working for the season. Inside they will milling corn.

  

NHA Home - Historic Nantucket Articles

 

Originally published in the Historic Nantucket, Vol 44, no. 1 (Spring 1996), p. 128-129

 

The Old Mill : What we know about it and what we don't....

Editorial commentary by Elizabeth Oldham

 

When was it built and who built it?

 

IT APPEARS THAT 1746 REALLY IS THE YEAR the Old Mill was erected, even though an account in the I&M on 15 September 1905 reads: "The old windmill is of very ancient origin, but the exact date cannot be given." We've found it harder to irrefutably confirm that Nathan Wilbur was the builder. His name appears in the 1913 Harry Turner article for the I&M, in which Wilbur is referred to as "a Nantucket sailor who had visited Holland . . . and gained a knowledge of the methods . . . of employing wind-power for grinding grain. ..." But an undated, unsigned manuscript fragment in the NHA collection states: "A company of gentlemen contracted with a man by the name of Wilbur to build the mill. Mr. Wilbur on leaving the island, with money obtained for the contract, and after reaching [the] mainland was waylaid robbed & murdered." Further to that incident, Jane G. Austin's Nantucket Scraps (Boston and New York, 1892) has a local character saying "They wanted a windmill and they didn't know how to make one, and they got an off-islander, name of Wilbur, to make it, and like fools gave him the money beforehand. He went back to the continent for something— nails maybe, or maybe idees—and carried the money with him; some pirate or other got wind of it, and the first they knew down here, the man was robbed and murdered there on Cape Cod...."

   

What was used to build it?

 

TURNER ALSO REPEATS THE PERHAPS APOCRYPHAL record of the materials used to build the mill: "Oaken beams, washed ashore from wrecked vessels, furnished the material for the framework of the mill, while deck planking of white oak, still tough and as firm as when pinned into the vessel, was available for the exterior." [In a file copy of the Turner article, a penciled note beside this passage, in Edouard Stackpole's hand, reads "not accurate."]

 

A notice on a card issued by John F. Sylvia, owner of the mill from 1866 until the NHA acquired it in 1897, reads: "This Old Mill was built in 1746; the oak timber used in its construction grew at a short distance from its site, across Dead Horse Valley, at the southward from the mill." The 7 August 1897 I&M states: "Mr. Gardner (owner of the mill 1828-55) found the timbers substantial, as they were of native oak. Edward K. Godfrey's The Island of Nantucket: What It Was and What It Is (Boston, 1882) has it that "Eliakim Swain . . . tended it for many years. ... It was built of oak which grew just across Dead Horse Valley, to the southward of it."

   

Who paid for it?

 

The French Connection

IT HAS LONG BEEN RECORDED IN PRINT AND anecdote that Miss Caroline L. W. French purchased the mill at auction on 4 August 1897 and presented it to the NHA. But confusion arises here, both in the Proceedings of the NHA for the annual meeting of 25 July 1898 and in a letter written by Mary E. Starbuck, recording secretary, which suggests that Miss French only made up the $135 necessary to arrive at the purchase price of $885, the remaining funds having been contributed over a period of years by other interested parties. The Proceedings read: "With some difficulty but admirable management, the society had raised $750, and Miss Caroline L. French, who together with others interested had promised to help us out, generously gave the $135 necessary to make up the full amount." Miss Starbuck's letter of 5 April 1898 reads: "Our chief triumph last summer was the purchase of the Old Mill. . . . We had scraped up over seven hundred dollars and friends made up the required amount, eight hundred and eighty-five."

 

The only published account of the actual auction found to date is in the 8 August 1897 edition of the New York Herald ["By telegraph to the Herald"]: "The entire bidding was between the society and a private individual, who desired the mill for an investment. The land was bid up to $105; the mill itself brought out bids to $450; then the final bidding, starting at $550, ran up to $885. As the battle of the bids wavered between the contesting parties anxious looks passed to and fro, and when finally Mr. James H. Gibbs secured it at $885 for the historical society the pent up anxiety of the crowd burst into cheers. ... Dr. Mitchell, president of the historical society, stated that the mill would be sacredly preserved."

 

The 30 July 1892 I&M included an article about the Nantucket Improvement Association, which owned Mill Hill Park and had expressed interest in acquiring the adjacent property on which the mill stood. The Improvement Association had convened a meeting on 22 July 1892 to "raise a purchasing fund"; the article continues: "How tame would be the view of the town from the incoming boat without the towers of the North and Unitarian churches and the Old Mill. Contributions can be sent to Roland B. Hussey, of the Inquirer and Mirror, to W. H. C. Lawrence, of the subscription committee, or to Mss H. B. W. Worth, secretary of the Nantucket Improvement Association." And the NHA treasurer's report for 23 July 1896 includes, under the rubric "SINKING FUND," this item: "By Nantucket Improvement Association (Mill Fund)....... $175.01."

 

It was not until 1899, when the Minutes of the NHA Council meeting of 5 August tell us: "President Barnard read a letter from Miss C. L. W. French, saying that at the solicitation of friends, she has consented to have it made known that she was the donor of the $750 given to the NHA in 1895." A letter to Miss French, framed at the same meeting, reads: "It gave the members of the Council much satisfaction to be able to identify this 'unknown friend,' who has been so frequently referred to ... and it was with great pleasure that we found the 'unknown' to be also the known friend to whose kindness and generosity we have already openly testified." And it was voted at the meeting "That the Mill comm. be instructed to place a suitable tablet in the mill, stating that the mill was saved to the Assn. by the generosity of Miss C.LW. French of Boston."

 

So, she did not bid for the mill at the auction on 4 August 1897, and it took two years for her generosity to be publicly acknowledged; but it was only in reading those Minutes that our doubts were dispelled.

   

Who built the first millon Nantucket, and where?

 

THE 7 AUGUST 1897 ISSUE OF THE I&M (three days after the auction) claims (as do other accounts) that "The first mill at Nantucket was owned by Tristram Coffin, who assumed a contract to construct a windmill for grinding grain for the inhabitants after the person to whom a contract was first awarded had failed to comply with its terms."[Nat Philbrick's statement about the possibly combined identities of Richard Macy and Nathan Wilbur is certainly a valid conjecture.]

 

The Obed Macy work Nat cites is an old (undated, unsigned) copy book in the NHA manuscript collection, which begins thus: " Copied [italics added] from a book of Obed Macy's writing when he was an old man. 'If ever my History of Nantucket is republished, in a second edition some of the following anecdotes may be found useful.'" Among the anecdotes is the one Nat refers to: "A Short Memorial of Richard Macy, Grandfather of Obed Macy. He was grandson to Thomas Macy the first settler of Nantucket. ... In 1723 he [Richard] built the first wharf that was made here, now called the Strait Wharf." There follows the tale of the windmill dreamed up by his grandfather recounted in Nat's article.

 

The map reproduced in the original edition of Crevecoeur's Letters shows a cluster of mills (of the "post" type) situated at the original settlement on the north shore. But the town had moved in from Sherburn[e] by 1720, so perhaps the mapmaker sited the four mills a little too far north.

 

We are persuaded that the answers to these questions—either to confirm or refute tradition—may be found here in the Stackpole Research Library, in other repositories on the island, on Cape Cod (was Wilbur's murder recorded there?), or somewhere.

 

We hope others will join us in experiencing what Jean Weber calls "the excitement and rigor attached to the validation of our past."

     

About the Author: Elizabeth Oldham is a freelance editor, member of the NHA Editorial Board, and NHA Research Library associate.

THE BIG PICTURE

MOON WATCHING

November's full moon is sometimes called "the beaver moon" - a name NASA suggests may allude to the practice of setting beaver traps at this time of year, when beavers are especially active. This year the annual event, November 19th, featured the longest partial lunar eclipse in centuries.

Published by GEP, Brazil 1968

OK, it's just in a Legal Journal's "Fiction Edition" (legal fiction?), but it's still pretty cool. Unfortunately, the printing process did a number on the photo itself. It looks better here than in reality, since I did some post processing.

 

website | blog | facebook | google+ | twitter | stocksy

more from the acropolis museum

Bain News Service,, publisher.

 

White House at night, 6/11

 

6/11 (date created or published later by Bain)

 

1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller.

 

Notes:

Title from unverified data provided by the Bain News Service on the negatives or caption cards.

Forms part of: George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress).

 

Format: Glass negatives.

 

Rights Info: No known restrictions on publication.

 

Repository: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print

 

General information about the Bain Collection is available at hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.ggbain

 

Higher resolution image is available (Persistent URL): hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ggbain.09352

 

Call Number: LC-B2- 2216-5

  

Yes I took this a few min. Ago! The 48 year old me and the artwork I soon will publish here…

 

My teeth are bright yellow these days!!!

 

Peace and Noise!

 

MushroomBrain the face of an artist maniac

first published in London, England, not reissued in the USA until 1976.

 

The full list of his Westerns are as follows (I've included the novels set in Alaska, but not the one set in Asia) :

 

1.Westward The Tide (1950) *

2.The Rustlers of West Fork (1951) H *

3.The Trail to Seven Pines (1951) H *

4.The Riders of High Rock (1951) H *

5.Trouble Shooter (1952) H *

6.Hondo (1953) *

7.Showdown at Yellow Butte (1953) *

8.Utah Blaine (1954) *

9.Crossfire Trail (1954) *

10. Kilkenny (1954) K

11. Guns of the Timberlands (1955) *

12. Heller With A Gun (1955) *

13. To Tame a Land (1955) *

14. The Burning Hills (1956) *

15. Silver Canyon (1956) *

16. Sitka (1957)

17. Last Stand at Papago Wells (1957) *

18. The Tall Stranger (1957) *

19. Radigan (1958) *

20. The First Fast Draw (1959) *

21. Taggart (1959)

22. The Daybreakers (1960) S *

23. Flint (1960) *

24. Sackett (1961) S *

25. Shalako (1962) *

26. Killoe (1962)

27. High Lonesome (1962) *

28. Lando (1962) S *

29. How the West WasWon (1962)

30. Fallon (1963)

31. Catlow (1963) *

32. Dark Canyon (1963) *

33. Mojave Crossing (1964) S *

34. Hanging Woman Creek (1964) *

35. Kiowa Trail (1964) *

36. The High Graders (1965)

37. The Sackett Brand (1965) S *

38. The Key-Lock Man (1965)

39. The Broken Gun (1966) *

40. Kid Rodelo (1966) *

41. Mustang Man (1966) S

42. Kilrone (1966)

43. The Sky-Liners (1967) S

44. Matagorda (1967) *

45. Down the Long Hills (1968)

46. Chancy (1968)

47. Brionne (1968) *

48. The Empty Land (1969) *

49. The Lonely Men (1969) S

50. Conagher (1969)

51. The Man Called Noon (1970) *

52. Galloway (1970) S *

53. Reilly’s Luck (1970)

54. North to the Rails (1971)

55. Under the Sweetwater Rim (1971)

56. Tucker (1971)

57. Callaghen (1972)

58. Ride the Dark Trail (1972) S

59. Treasure Mountain (1972) S

60. The Ferguson Rifle (1973)

61. The Man from Skibbereen (1973) *

62. The Quick and the Dead (1973)

63. The Californios (1974)

64. Sackett’s Land (1975) S

65. Rivers West (1975) *

66. The Man from the Broken Hills (1975)

67. Over on the Dry Side (1976) *

68. The Rider of Lost Creek (1976) K

69. Where the Long Grass Blows (1976)

70. To the Far Blue Mountains (1977) S

71. Borden Chantry (1977)

72. The Mountain Valley War (1978) K

73. Fair Blows the Wind (1978)

74. The Proving Trail (1979) *

75. The Iron Marshal (1979)

76. Bendigo Shafter (1979)

77. The Warrier’s Path (1980) S

78. Lonely on the Mountain (1980) S

79. Comstock Lode (1981)

80. Milo Talon (1981)

81. The Cherokee Trail (1982)

82. The Shadow Riders (1982)

83. The Lonesome Gods (1983) *

84. Ride the River (1983) S

85. Son of a Wanted Man (1984) *

86. Jubal Sackett (1985) S

87. Passin’ Through (1985)

88.The Haunted Mesa (1987) *

 

* = paperbacks I currently own

 

H = Hopalong Cassidy series

S=Sackett series

K=Kilkenny series

 

Published 1980 by Thames and Hudson

Published by The Valentine & Sons United Publishing Co., Ltd. Toronto. Printed in Great Britain.

A staple of children's literacy in New Zealand since 1963 are children’s books published by the Ministry of Education. A large number have been produced in te reo Māori for students (and their parents), and feature iconic New Zealand writers and artists. Archives New Zealand holds a number of these books, as well as their original artwork.

 

Te Tautoko 14 is from the Junior Journals series Te Tautoko, aimed at fluent readers. It features seven articles covering geography to creation stories, and was published in 1991. This spread features an essay by John Teepa (Ngāi Tūhoe) about Waikaremoana, with illustrations by Phillip Paea.

 

Title: Te Tautoko 14 - Phillip Paea, Donna McKenna

Archives New Zealand Reference:

collections.archives.govt.nz/en/web/arena/search#/?q=R188...

 

For further enquiries please email Research.Archives@dia.govt.nz

 

For updates on our On This Day series and news from Archives New Zealand, follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/ArchivesNZ

 

Material from Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga

 

This photograph was published in the Illustrated Chronicle on the 3rd of November 1915.

 

During the Great War the Illustrated Chronicle published photographs of soldiers and sailors from Newcastle and the North East of England, which had been in the news. The photographs were sent in by relatives and give us a glimpse into the past.

  

The physical collection held by Newcastle Libraries comprises bound volumes of the newspaper from 1910 to 1925. We are keen to find out more about the people in the photographs. If you recognise anyone in the images please comment below.

  

Copies of this photograph may be ordered from us, for more information see: www.newcastle.gov.uk/tlt Please make a note of the image reference number above to help speed up your order.

This photograph was published in the Illustrated Chronicle on the 23rd of September 1915.

 

During the Great War the Illustrated Chronicle published photographs of soldiers and sailors from Newcastle and the North East of England, which had been in the news. The photographs were sent in by relatives and give us a glimpse into the past.

 

The physical collection held by Newcastle Libraries comprises bound volumes of the newspaper from 1910 to 1925. We are keen to find out more about the people in the photographs. If you recognise anyone in the images and have any stories and information to add please comment below.

 

Copies of this photograph may be ordered from us, for more information see: www.newcastle.gov.uk/tlt Please make a note of the image reference number above to help speed up your order.

Photograph published in LA Medical Space (link below)

 

www.lamedicalspace.com/three-la-hospitals-make-list-of-to...

Published 1964. Full of all sorts of hints on making your own doll clothes.

Tasselled

 

Photographer: Shavonne Wong/Zhiffy Photography

Model: Diandra Forrest

Hair: Wade Lee

Makeup: Tatiana Ward

Assistant: Marcus Teo

 

www.facebook.com/zhiffyphotography

The Postcard

 

A postally unused postcard published prior to 1918 by J. Beagles & Co. of London E.C. The photography was by Ellis & Walery of Conduit Street and later Regent Street, London. The card, which has a divided back, was printed in England.

 

J. Beagles & Co.

 

The firm of J. Beagles & Co. was started by John Beagles (1844-1909). The company produced a variety of postcards including an extensive catalogue of celebrity (stage and screen) portrait postcards. After Beagle’s death, the business continued under its original name until it closed in 1939.

 

Mr. Lewis Waller

 

William Waller Lewis (3rd. November 1860 – 1st. November 1915), known on stage as Lewis Waller, was an English actor and theatre manager, well known on the London stage and in the English provinces.

 

After early stage experience with J. L. Toole's and Helena Modjeska's companies from 1883, Waller became known, by the late 1880's, for romantic leads, both in Shakespeare and in popular costume dramas of the Victorian and Edwardian eras.

 

He attracted a large number of female admirers, who formed themselves into a vocal and conspicuous fan club. He also tried his hand at management of tours in 1885 and 1893, and then became an actor-manager at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket in the mid-1890's.

 

Waller remained an actor-manager for the rest of his career, both in London and on tour.

 

Despite his commercial success in Booth Tarkington's 'Monsieur Beaucaire' and Arthur Conan Doyle's 'Brigadier Gerard', Waller greatly preferred acting in Shakespeare, in which his roles ranged from Romeo to Othello.

 

Among the roles he created was Sir Robert Chiltern in Oscar Wilde's 1895 comedy 'An Ideal Husband'.

 

The Early Years

 

Waller was born in Bilbao, Spain, the eldest son of an English civil engineer, William James Lewis, and his wife, Carlotta née Vyse. He was educated at King's College School in south west London, after which, intending to pursue a commercial career, he studied languages on the Continent. From 1879 to 1883 he was a clerk in a London firm owned by his uncle.

 

After acting in amateur performances, Waller decided to make a career on the stage, and was engaged by J. L. Toole in 1883. His first role was the Hon. Claude Lorrimer in H. J. Byron's 'Uncle Dick's Darling', in which he was billed as "Waller Lewis".

 

By May of the same year, he had adopted the stage name Lewis Waller. In that month he appeared at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, in a charity matinee for the Actors' Benevolent Fund with Toole's company and such contemporary stars as Rutland Barrington, Lionel Brough, Arthur Cecil, Nellie Farren, George Grossmith, Henry Irving and Ellen Terry.

 

He remained in Toole's company for a year, playing light comedy and juvenile parts. During this year, he married a young actress, Florence West (1862–1912).

 

He joined a touring company, playing the central role, the blind Gilbert Vaughan, in 'Called Back' by Hugh Conway.

 

Waller returned to London in March 1885 to play at the Lyceum Theatre in Helena Modjeska's company, as the Abbé in 'Adrienne Lecouvreur', and then toured with her, playing such roles as Mortimer in 'Mary Stuart', and Orlando in 'As You Like It'.

 

The Manchester Guardian said of the latter:

 

"He kept Orlando properly ingenuous,

and made him a taking and gallant

young wooer."

 

Towards the end of 1885, Waller ventured into management for the first time, touring a production of 'Called Back', taking the role of Dr. Basil North, in which The Manchester Guardian thought him:

 

"A trifle too melodramatic".

 

The tour was modestly successful, but not such as to lead Waller to mount further productions for some time.

 

Waller returned to the West End, working for a succession of managements. At the Strand Theatre in early 1887, he played Roy Carlton in 'Jack-in-the-Box', which his biographer describes as his first substantial success in London.

 

At the Opera Comique he played Ernest Vane in 'Masks and Faces', and Captain Absolute in 'The Rivals'. At the Gaiety Theatre he played Jacques Rosney in 'Civil War'.

 

Waller then joined William Hunter Kendal and John Hare at the St. James's Theatre, where he played the Duc de Bligny in 'The Ironmaster', Sir George Barclay in 'Lady Clancarty', and Lord Arden in 'The Wife's Secret'.

 

When Rutland Barrington took over the management of the St. James's in 1888, Waller played George Sabine in 'The Dean's Daughter', and Ralph Crampton in 'Brantinghame Hall'.

 

Rudolph de Cordova, in a 1909 biographical sketch noted:

 

"During this period, few theatres

played regular afternoon performances,

so that the actors were, for the most part,

engaged only in the evening. Many

matinees were, however, given to introduce

new plays and new players; and in this way

Mr. Waller acted a large number of new parts,

all of an ephemeral character."

 

In particular he played several Ibsen roles in these matinees in the early 1890's, bringing him to the attention of people of influence in the theatre such as William Archer, Jacob Grein and Bernard Shaw.

 

Waller played Oswald in 'Ghosts', Lovborg in 'Hedda Gabler', Rosmer in 'Rosmersholm' and Solness in 'The Master Builder'. The ODNB commented that:

 

"Archer was delighted that an established

West End actor had contributed to the Ibsen

revival, but was aware that Waller could

overcome neither the play's inadequate

rehearsal period nor his background of

florid West End performances."

 

The Later Years

 

In October 1893, Waller returned to management, mounting a tour of Wilde's 'A Woman of No Importance', in which he played Lord Illingworth. The Manchester Guardian called it:

 

"A tolerable travelling company in

which nobody gains great distinction."

 

Returning to London, Waller, in partnership with H. H. Morrell, leased the Theatre Royal, Haymarket while its regular tenant, Herbert Beerbohm Tree was on tour in the US. He began with the premiere of Wilde's 'An Ideal Husband', playing Sir Robert Chiltern in a cast that included his wife as Mrs. Cheveley, Julia Neilson as Lady Chiltern and Charles Hawtrey as Lord Goring.

 

Waller and Morrell remained in management until 1897, when Tree invited Waller to join his company at the newly rebuilt Her Majesty's Theatre.

 

Waller remained with Tree for three years, playing a wide range of roles, including romantic leads in popular costume dramas and, in Tree's lavish Shakespeare productions, Laertes in 'Hamlet', Brutus in 'Julius Caesar', Faulconbridge in 'King John' and Lysander in 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'.

 

After leaving Tree's company, Waller returned to management. Although he loved playing Shakespeare, adding the roles of Romeo, Othello and Henry V to his repertoire, for commercial reasons he was best known as the star of swashbuckling romances. He was particularly identified with the title roles in the stage versions of Booth Tarkington's 'Monsieur Beaucaire' and Arthur Conan Doyle's 'Brigadier Gerard'. He starred in a film of the latter in 1915.

 

The critic Hesketh Pearson praised Waller for:

 

"His good looks and virile acting,

and his vibrant voice which rang

through the theatre like a bell and

stirred like a trumpet".

 

Waller had a large following of enthusiastic women fans, who formed a club known as the K.O.W. [Keen On Waller] Brigade. Pearson lamented:

 

"The puerile nature of the plays he

usually put on, and the adolescent

behaviour of his female admirers,

prevented many people from

appreciating his superb gift as a

declaimer of Shakespeare's rhetoric,

and frequently exposed him to ridicule."

 

In 1911 and 1912, Waller made a tour of the US, Canada and Australia. In his absence his wife died. His last play was May Martindale's 'Gamblers All', which opened at Wyndham's Theatre, London in June 1915, with Gerald du Maurier and Madge Titheradge co-starring.

 

The Manchester Guardian called the production:

 

"A personal acting triumph

for Lewis Waller".

 

Death

 

After the West End run, Waller took the play on tour, during which he contracted pneumonia, from which he died in Nottingham two days short of his 55th. birthday.

Anne Heche with Ellen DeGeneres on the red carpet at the 49th Annual Emmy Awards, 9/14/97.

 

- Permission granted to copy, publish, broadcast or post but please credit "photo by Alan Light" if you can

Published in Poruba and Mol Por 2000, p. 58.

Published:

Spring Clean: The Greener Way

A Treser/Audi quattro Roadster at the Techno Classica Essen.

 

In the mid 80's Walter Treser built together with Audi 21 quattro Roadsters with a automatic hard top. One was a prototype the other 20 were sold. 6 of them are registered in germany.

 

This was also the first official Audi cabriolet after WWII.

  

© Dennis Matthies

My photographs are copyrighted and may not be altered, printed, published in any media and/or format, or re-posted in other websites/blogs.

© Sally Parsley.

 

Published by the International Centre for Eye Health www.iceh.org.uk, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

The Postcard

 

A view of Llandudno on a 'Carbo Colour' postcard which was published by Valentine & Sons Ltd. of Dundee and London.

 

The card was posted in Prestatyn to an address in Crawford Avenue Liverpool on the 22nd. June 1955, back in the days when car parking was free and plentiful.

 

Llandudno

 

Llandudno is a seaside resort in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. The town's name is derived from its patron saint, Saint Tudno.

 

Llandudno is the largest seaside resort in Wales, and as early as 1861 was being called 'the Queen of the Welsh Watering Places' (a phrase later also used in connection with Tenby and Aberystwyth; the word 'resort' came a little later).

 

History of Llandudno

 

The town of Llandudno developed from Stone Age, Bronze Age and Iron Age settlements over many hundreds of years on the slopes of the limestone headland, known to seafarers as the Great Orme and to landsmen as the Creuddyn Peninsula.

 

The origins in recorded history are with the Manor of Gogarth conveyed by King Edward I to Annan, Bishop of Bangor in 1284.

 

The Great Orme

 

Mostly owned by Mostyn Estates, the Great Orme is home to several large herds of wild Kashmiri goats originally descended from a pair given by Queen Victoria to Lord Mostyn.

 

The summit of the Great Orme stands at 679 feet (207 m). The Summit Hotel, now a tourist attraction, was once the home of world middleweight champion boxer Randolph Turpin.

 

The limestone headland is a haven for flora and fauna, with some rare species such as peregrine falcons and a species of wild cotoneaster (cambricus) which can only be found on the Great Orme.

 

The sheer limestone cliffs provide ideal nesting conditions for a wide variety of sea birds, including cormorants, shags, guillemots, razorbills, puffins, kittiwakes, fulmars and numerous gulls.

 

There are several attractions including the Great Orme Tramway and the Llandudno Cable Car that takes tourists to the summit. The Great Orme also has the longest toboggan run in Britain at 750m.

 

The Development of Llandudno

 

By 1847 the town had grown to a thousand people, served by the new church of St. George, built in 1840. The great majority of the men worked in the copper mines, with others employed in fishing and subsistence agriculture.

 

In 1848, Owen Williams, an architect and surveyor from Liverpool, presented Lord Mostyn with plans to develop the marshlands behind Llandudno Bay as a holiday resort. These were enthusiastically pursued by Lord Mostyn.

 

The influence of the Mostyn Estate and its agents over the years was paramount in the development of Llandudno, especially after the appointment of George Felton as surveyor and architect in 1857.

 

Between 1857 and 1877 much of central Llandudno was developed under Felton's supervision. Felton also undertook architectural design work, including the design and execution of the Holy Trinity Church in Mostyn Street.

 

The Llandudno and Colwyn Bay Electric Railway operated an electric tramway service between Llandudno and Rhos-on-Sea from 1907, this being extended to Colwyn Bay in 1908. The service closed in 1956.

 

Llandudno Attractions

 

The Beach and The Parade

 

A beach of sand, shingle and rock curves two miles between the headlands of the Great Orme and the Little Orme.

 

For most of the length of Llandudno's North Shore there is a wide curving Victorian promenade. The road, collectively known as The Parade, has a different name for each block, and it is on these parades and crescents that many of Llandudno's hotels are built.

 

Llandudno Pier

 

The pier is on the North Shore. Built in 1878, it is a Grade II listed building.

 

The pier was extended in 1884 in a landward direction along the side of what was the Baths Hotel (where the Grand Hotel now stands) to provide a new entrance with the Llandudno Pier Pavilion Theatre, thus increasing the pier's length to 2,295 feet (700 m); it is the longest pier in Wales.

 

Attractions on the pier include a bar, a cafe, amusement arcades, children's fairground rides and an assortment of shops & kiosks.

 

In the summer, Professor Codman's Punch and Judy show (established in 1860) can be found on the promenade near the entrance to the pier.

 

The Happy Valley

 

The Happy Valley, a former quarry, was the gift of Lord Mostyn to the town in celebration of the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887. The area was landscaped and developed as gardens, two miniature golf courses, a putting green, a popular open-air theatre and extensive lawns.

 

Ceremonies connected with the Welsh National Eisteddfod were held there in 1896, and again in 1963.

 

In June 1969, the Great Orme Cabin Lift, a modern alternative to the tramway, was opened with its base station adjacent to the open-air theatre. The distance to the summit is just over 1 mile (1.6 km), and the four-seater cabins travel at 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h) on a continuous steel cable over 2 miles (3.2 km) long.

 

It is the longest single-stage cabin lift in Great Britain, and the longest span between pylons is over 1,000 feet (300 m).

 

The popularity of the 'Happy Valley Entertainers' open-air theatre having declined, the theatre closed in 1985. Likewise the two miniature golf courses closed, and were converted in 1987 to create a 280-metre (920 ft) artificial ski slope and toboggan run. The gardens were extensively restored as part of the resort's millennium celebrations, and remain a major attraction.

 

Marine Drive

 

The first route round the perimeter of the Great Orme was a footpath constructed in 1858 by Reginald Cust, a trustee of the Mostyn Estate. In 1872 the Great Orme's Head Marine Drive Co. Ltd. was formed to turn the path into a carriage road.

 

Following bankruptcy, a second company completed the road in 1878. The contractors for the scheme were Messrs Hughes, Morris, Davies, a consortium led by Richard Hughes of Madoc Street, Llandudno.

 

The road was bought by Llandudno Urban District Council in 1897. The 4 mile (6.4 km) one-way drive starts at the foot of the Happy Valley. After about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) a side road leads to St. Tudno's Church, the Great Orme Bronze Age Copper Mine and the summit of the Great Orme.

 

Continuing on the Marine Drive the Great Orme Lighthouse (now a small hotel) is passed, and, shortly afterwards on the right, the Rest and Be Thankful Cafe and information centre.

 

Below the Marine Drive at its western end is the site of the wartime Coast Artillery School (1940–1945), now a scheduled ancient monument.

 

The West Shore

 

The West Shore is a quiet beach on the estuary of the River Conwy. It was here at Pen Morfa that Alice Liddell (of Alice in Wonderland fame) spent the long summer holidays of her childhood from 1862 to 1871.

 

There are a few hotels and quiet residential streets. The West Shore is linked to the North Shore by Gloddaeth Avenue and Gloddaeth Street, a wide dual carriageway.

 

Mostyn Street

 

Running behind the promenade is Mostyn Street, leading to Mostyn Broadway and then Mostyn Avenue. These are the main shopping streets of Llandudno. Mostyn Street accommodates the high street shops, the major high street banks and building societies, two churches, amusement arcades and the town's public library.

 

The last is the starting point for the Town Trail, a planned walk that facilitates viewing Llandudno in a historical perspective.

 

Victorian Extravaganza

 

Every year in May bank holiday weekend, Llandudno has a three-day Victorian Carnival, and Mostyn Street becomes a funfair.

 

Madoc Street and Gloddaeth Street and the Promenade become part of the route each day for a mid-day carnival parade. Also the Bodafon Farm fields become the location of a Festival of Transport for the weekend.

 

Venue Cymru

 

The North Wales Theatre, Arena and Conference Centre, built in 1994, and extended in 2006 and renamed "Venue Cymru", is located near the centre of the promenade on Penrhyn Crescent.

 

It is noted for its productions of opera, orchestral concerts, ballet, musical theatre, drama, circus, ice shows and pantomimes.

 

The Llandudno Lifeboat

 

Until 2017, Llandudno was unique within the United Kingdom in that its lifeboat station was located inland, allowing it to launch with equal facility from either the West Shore or the North Shore as needed.

 

In 2017, a new lifeboat station was completed, and new, high-speed, offshore and inshore lifeboats, and a modern launching system, were acquired. This station is close to the paddling pool on North Shore.

 

Llandudno's active volunteer crews are called out more than ever with the rapidly increasing numbers of small pleasure craft sailing in coastal waters. The Llandudno Lifeboat is normally on display on the promenade every Sunday and bank holiday Monday from May until October.

 

The Ancient Parish Church

 

The ancient parish church dedicated to Saint Tudno stands in a hollow near the northern point of the Great Orme, and is two miles (3 km) from the present town.

 

It was established as an oratory by Tudno, a 6th.-century monk, but the present church dates from the 12th. century and it is still used on summer Sunday mornings.

 

Llandudno's Links with Mametz and Wormhout

 

-- Mametz

 

The 1st. (North Wales) Brigade was headquartered in Llandudno in December 1914, and included a battalion of the Royal Welch Fusiliers, which had been raised and trained in Llandudno.

 

Skirting the Fricourt salient, the British 7th. Division took the village of Mametz in the afternoon of the 1st. July 1916. However Mametz Wood to the north-east of the village held great German resistance. This blocked all Allied progress in a northeasterly direction.

 

After eight days of fierce combat, with heavy losses, did the 38th. Welsh Division capture the wood on the 12th. July 1916.

 

A monument to the 38th. Welsh Division was inaugurated on the 11th. July 1987. The monument takes the form of a plinth surmounted by a red dragon, the emblem of Wales. With its wings held aloft, it carries in its claws pieces of barbed wire, attesting to the fierce nature of the fighting.

 

The hostilities brought about the total destruction of Mametz village by shelling. After the war, the people of Llandudno (including returning survivors) contributed generously to the fund for the reconstruction of the village of Mametz.

 

-- Wormhout

 

Llandudno is twinned with the Flemish town of Wormhout which is 10 miles (16 km) from Dunkirk. It was near there that many members of the Llandudno-based 69th. Territorial Regiment were ambushed and taken prisoner.

 

The Site Mémoire de la Plaine au Bois near Wormhout commemorates the massacre of these prisoners on the 28th. May 1940. The men had been retreating towards Dunkirk ahead of the advancing Germans.

 

About 100 troops, having run out of ammunition, surrendered to the Germans, assuming that they would be taken prisoner according to the Geneva Convention.

 

However they were all imprisoned in a small barn, and the SS threw stick-grenades into the building, killing many POW's.

 

However the grenades failed to kill everyone, largely due to the bravery of two British NCO's, Stanley Moore and Augustus Jennings, who hurled themselves on top of the grenades, using their bodies to shield their comrades from the blast.

 

In order to finish off the remaining soldiers, the SS fired into the barn with rifles and automatic weapons. A few survived to tell the tale, but no-one was ever indicted for war crimes because of insufficient evidence.

 

A replica of the barn can be seen at the site of the massacre.

 

Llandudno's Cultural Connections

 

Matthew Arnold gives a vivid and lengthy description of 1860's Llandudno - and of the ancient tales of Taliesin and Maelgwn Gwynedd that are associated with the local landscape - in the first sections of the preface to 'On the Study of Celtic Literature' (1867).

 

Llandudno is also used as a location for dramatic scenes in the stage play and film 'Hindle Wakes' by Stanley Houghton, and the 1911 novel, 'The Card', by Arnold Bennett, and its subsequent film version.

 

Elisabeth of Wied, the Queen Consort of Romania and also known as writer Carmen Sylva, stayed in Llandudno for five weeks in 1890.

 

On leaving, she described Wales as "A beautiful haven of peace". Translated into Welsh as "Hardd, hafan, hedd", it became the town's official motto.

 

Other famous people with links to Llandudno include the Victorian statesman John Bright and multi-capped Welsh international footballers Neville Southall, Neil Eardley, Chris Maxwell and Joey Jones.

 

Australian ex-Prime Minister Billy Hughes attended school in Llandudno. Gordon Borrie QC (Baron Borrie), Director General of the Office of Fair Trading from 1976 to 1992, was educated at the town's John Bright Grammar School when he lived there as a wartime evacuee.

 

The international art gallery Oriel Mostyn is in Vaughan Street next to the post office. It was built in 1901 to house the art collection of Lady Augusta Mostyn. It was requisitioned in 1914 for use as an army drill hall, and later became a warehouse, before being returned to use as an art gallery in 1979. Following a major revamp the gallery was renamed simply 'Mostyn' in 2010.

 

Llandudno has its own mini arts festival 'LLAWN' (Llandudno Arts Weekend). It is a mini festival that rediscovers and celebrates Llandudno’s past in rather a unique way; via art, architecture, artefact, sound, performance, and participation.

 

The festival takes place over three days of a weekend in late September, originally conceived as a way to promote what those in the hospitality sector refer to as the ‘shoulder season’, which means a lull in the tourist calendar.

 

In January 1984 Brookside character Petra Taylor (Alexandra Pigg) committed suicide in Llandudno.

 

In 1997, the English cookery programme "Two Fat Ladies" with Jennifer Patterson and Clarissa Dickson Wright filmed an episode in Llandudno.

 

'Lady and the Tramp'

 

So what else happened on the day that the card was posted?

 

Not a lot, but 6 days earlier, on Thursday the 16th. June 1955, 'Lady and the Tramp', which was Walt Disney Studios' 15th. animated film, premiered in Chicago, Illinois.

Published by ABC Verlag Zurich - 1982

 

First of all I am sorry for not uploading recently but my flickr was all messed but yahoo has fixed it know so I am back! Anyway I was published again this time with my toad shot this time in Digital SLR magazine!

Published by Vecchi, Brazil April 1980

Published by Harry H. Hamm, Toledo, Ohio

Curt Teich, C.T. American Art

1924

Jono Rotman

New Zealand (1974)

Mongrelism

 

Jono Rotman has published the result of his research focussing on an infamous New Zealand gang: the Mighty Mongrel Mob. Their mostly Maori members appropriate the nationalist symbols of the British empire and the Third Reich in order to question the notion of racial identity in this former colony. By playing on the tradition of ethnographic research, he produced close to 200 portraits of these warriors with their tattooed faces and emblems pinned to their clothes. Complemented by archives and interviews, his book, produced thanks to the Images Vevey Book Award, bears witness to the richness of this marginalised subculture. The installation displayed in Vevey’s covered market brings these men back into the heart of the city.

  

Published 2012 by Penguin Group NZ.

Written by Simon Sweetman.

ISBN: 978-0-143-56816-2

A fantastic addition to anyone with an interest in New Zealand music. Once I started this book I had difficulty in putting it down.

I learned a few things about how the songs came to fruition and it also sent me back to Youtube to revisit a couple of tracks which to be honest, were not songs I personally liked.

However, tastes are wide and varied and there is no doubting that all the tracks selected by Sweetman are worthy of being included.

The fact that these songs are still played on NZ radio, TV or through cult followings shows that quality can stand the test of time.

For foreigners looking for something outside the mainstream, there is plenty here to investigate with the likes of Darcy Clay, The Verlaines, The Clean to be checked out.

The format of this book lends to the possibility of a 2nd or even 3rd volume being produced sometime in the future and I'd be keen to see that happen.

To make it happen people need to get out and buy this book.

www.wheelers.co.nz/books/9780143568162-on-song-stories-be...

 

Published.

Thank you Birmingham Evening Mail.

Published by Chiodi, Brazil 1955

OK call me stupid, but i am happy to got my pictures published!

 

A photobook 'about the Dutch - by the Dutch', and out of the 4000 entries they picked 4 out of 4 entries of mine. And on the cover even!