In een verleden vond je ze langs bijna iedere spoorlijnen: fraaie houten telegraafmasten met de nodige verbindingen voor het blokstelsel en telefonie tussen twee stations. Ondertussen mag je al goed op zoek naar spoorlijnen die nog zijn uitgerust met deze getuigen uit vervlogen tijden. In Slovakije zijn er nog enkele trajecten waar je ze terugvindt, maar ook daar worden ze stelselmatig verwijderd, o.a. vanwege houtrot in de palen.

 

Een spoorlijn die origineel geen deel uitmaakte van mijn planning van de voorbije reis is de lijn van Strážske naar Medzilaborce. Er doken her en der immers foto’s op van de elektrificatie van deze lijn en het was duidelijk dat er daardoor een tijdlang geen treinen reden. Blijkbaar stopt de elektrificatie echter in Humenné en is het treinverkeer ook op dat traject alweer (vooralsnog met dieseltractie) hervat, waardoor ook de bedieningstreinen naar Medzilaborce weer kunnen rijden. Op 16 mei 2025 kon zo’n trein worden achtervolgd. Hoewel de wolken regelmatig roet in het eten strooiden, maakte deze spoorlijn veel indruk op me en zal dit hopelijk niet de laatste keer zijn dat ik er kan gaan fotograferen. De lijn ligt erg fraai en voert dwars door dorpjes in een heuvelachtig landschap. De knappe telegraafmasten maken het helemaal af.

 

Het was wel een zoektocht naar de ideale manier om de lange trajecten met telegraafmasten optimaal in beeld te krijgen. Op deze plek in de buurt van Hrabovec nad Laborcom lijkt dat te zijn gelukt. Je ziet de 751 056-3 met een beladen houttrein van Medzilaborce naar Strážske. Onderweg bedient deze trein ook de stations van Radvaň nad Laborcom en Koškovce, waardoor op den duur een aanzienlijke lengte wordt bereikt. Dat het ook hier weer nipt was met de wolken zie je o.a. aan de kerktoren van Radvaň nad Laborcom op de achtergrond die zich alweer in de schaduw van de zoveelste wolk bevindt.

 

De foto’s van deze reis werden in twee reportages gebundeld:

Positieve tunnelvisie

en

Een typische sequel?

  

© Alle rechten voorbehouden.

 

Op deze foto berust copyright. Downloaden of gebruik of sociale media is niet toegelaten behalve na expliciete toestemming van de maker van deze foto.

 

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In a past era, you would find them along almost every railway line: wooden telegraph poles with the necessary connections for the block system and telephony between two stations. Meanwhile, you may already be well on the lookout for railway lines still equipped with these witnesses of days gone by. In Slovakia, there are still some sections where you can find them, but even there they are systematically removed, partly because of wood rot in the poles.

 

One railway line that was not originally part of my planning for the past trip is the line from Strážske to Medzilaborce. Indeed, photos surfaced here and there of the electrification of this line and it was clear that no trains ran there for a while as a result. Apparently, however, the electrification stops in Humenné and train traffic has already resumed on that route too (with diesel traction for the time being), allowing service trains to Medzilaborce to run again as well. On 16 May 2025, such a train could be chased. Although the clouds regularly caused difficulties for decent photography, this railway line impressed me a lot and hopefully this will not be the last time I will be able to photograph there. The line is very nicely situated and passes through villages in a hilly landscape. The telegraph masts complete the scenery.

 

However, it was quite a search for an ideal way to optimally capture a long set of telegraph masts in the picture. At this location near Hrabovec nad Laborcom, this seems to have been achieved. You can see the 751 056-3 with a loaded timber train from Medzilaborce to Strážske. On the way, this train also serves the stations of Radvaň nad Laborcom and Koškovce, which eventually results in a considerable length. That it was close with the clouds here too, can be seen from the church tower of Radvaň nad Laborcom in the background, which is in the shadow of yet another cloud.

 

The photos from this trip were compiled into two reports:

Positive tunnel vision

and

A typical sequel?

 

© All rights reserved.

 

This photo is copyrighted. Downloading or use or social media is not allowed except with explicit permission from the creator of this photo.

 

Nikola Tesla (Никола Тесла; 10 July 1856 – 7 January 1943) was a Serbian-American inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, physicist, and futurist who is best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current (AC) electricity supply system.

 

Tesla gained experience in telephony and electrical engineering before emigrating to the United States in 1884 to work for Thomas Edison in New York City. He soon struck out on his own with financial backers, setting up laboratories and companies to develop a range of electrical devices. His patented AC induction motor and transformer were licensed by George Westinghouse, who also hired Tesla for a short time as a consultant. His work in the formative years of electric-power development was involved in a corporate alternating current/direct current "War of Currents" as well as various patent battles. He became a naturalized US citizen in 1891.

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla

 

Photo: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikola_Tesla#/media/File:Tesla_circ...

 

Artwork: TudioJepegii

Mmmm, well, someone must 'a liked it!

It flips open and has a push-button dial.

Radio Kootwijk Netherlands series: image # 1

Radio Kootwijk is a small town in the Dutch municipality of Apeldoorn, with ca. 120 inhabitants. It is situated in a heather- and forest-rich territory in the Veluwe region, east of the sandhills of the Kootwijkerzand and the town of Kootwijk.

 

The housing accommodations of Radio Kootwijk arose as a result of the building of a shortwave transmitter site with the same name, starting in 1918. The transmitters played an important role in the 20th century as a communication facility between the Netherlands and its then colony of Dutch East Indies. In 1923 Dutch PTT started trans-oceanic telegraphy using a longwave transmitter (a 400KW high frequency alternator) from the German Telefunken company under the callsign PCG, in the 24 kHz and 48 kHz. By 1925 the longwave transmitter was changed by a shortwave tube based, electronic transmitter which had a much better performance due to the better propagation of shortwaves. With this new technology, in 1928 a radio-telephonic connection was established. At the end of World War II, the German occupying forces blew up the transmitter. Afterward some of the radio towers were rebuilt.[1]

 

Due to the development of new technologies like satellite communication, Radio Kootwijk lost its position as main overseas wireless connection point of the Netherlands. In 1980, the last transmission mast was blown up. In 2004 the park lost its last transmitter functions, and was transferred from the KPN company (successor to PTT) to the State Forestry Commission, which started attracting new buyers. The main building of the former transmitter park, designed by Dutch architect Jules Maria Luthmann and named 'Building A' or 'The Sfynx' (journalist refer to it as a cathedral, which it is not), was officially appointed as a monument. It was used as scenery for the American film Mindhunters in 2004.

 

Technical info:

 

B+W ND110 - 10 stops

B+W ND106 - 6 stops

total 16 stops

f/8

ISO100

10 mm

300 (5min00s) exposure

Software:

Lightroom 3.0

PS CS5

Nik Software Silver Efex Pro 2

Nik Software Dfine 2.0

And I'm sure I've used that as a title before, too. But it deserves another outing if I did.

 

The power of music, eh?... god. I was annoyed as all hell after automated telephonic lucifer-operated hell and having to do work over again which should have been done properly the first time by someone else. And then you stick something like this or this or this on as loud as you can through the headphones and aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....

 

I couldn't decide what to upload so asked for the dino's advice between this 'un and another 'un . She chose. As you can see.

 

Same settings as those used to process the one I upped earlier (and yesterday's shot, and sad little teddy the day before that). Available as a free download. You can find the 'Everything was beautiful and nothing hurt' preset available for Lightroom and ACR / Photomoshop if you click right here (scroll to the bottom or download all six presets at once).

 

Wave of mutilation.

A Turkana man in Kenya uses his phone to communicate, Turkana's are found on the upper part of Kenya near Lake Turkana which is remote area with no infrastructure such as Roads and Telephony.

Steam yacht Thelma, photographed in 1904. My colorization of an image in the Library of Congress archive (Detroit Publishin Co. collection).

Three years later Thelma made made history. The world´s first ship-to-shore broadcast was made from the yacht.

Electrical World reported on August 10, 1907:

"The first actual application of radio-telephony to practical work anywhere in the world was made at Put-in-Bay, in Lake Erie, during the week of July 15 to 20, in reporting the regatta of the Interlake Association. The Radio Telephone Company installed the De Forest wireless telephone on board of the cruiser yacht "Thelma," and also equipped a shore station at the Fox Dock at Put-in-Bay.

The "Thelma" followed the competing yachts around the course through most of the races and full and graphic accounts were telephoned into the shore station.

The greatest distance at which the reports from the yachts were heard and recorded was four miles, considered remarkable in view of the height of "Thelma's" spars and the power of the transmitter on board. Her equipment comprised a 220-volt generator of 1 kilowatt capacity, the DeForest oscillator and transmitter, and for the receiving apparatus an audion detector and "pan cake" form of syntonizer or tuner. Her aerial wires led through the roof of the wheelhouse to a small crossarm on top of the foremast and thence to a similar arm on the mainmast. Ground connection was at first made to the propeller shafts of her twin screws, but as this was found insufficient, more area was added by fastening two sheets of zinc to the yacht's hull at the bow.

The telephone dynamo was belted direct to the flywheel of her starboard engines, aft, and the rest of the radio apparatus was mounted on a small table in her main cabin convenient to all.

On shore 110-volt direct-current was available and this was transformed to 220 volts by a motor generator. The current was led through a rheostat and choke coils to the oscillator. Connected to this oscillator is a shunt circuit consisting of a condenser of peculiar construction and a primary coil, the exact number of turns of which could be varied at will to alter the tune or wave length of the electrical waves which were generated. A second coil within this primary had its upper end connected direct with the antennae or aerial wire, while its lower end led first through the microphone transmitter and thence to the earth plate. In this way the changes in resistance in the microphone produced by the modulations of the human voice directly affect the intensity of the high-frequency currents which are continually passing from the air wire to the ground plate. Inasmuch as the receiver instrument is affected exactly in proportion with the strength of the received electric waves, it is evident that every variation in the microphone resistance by the voice will be reproduced to the listening ear at the distant station by the vibration of the telephone diaphragm there. The microphone transmitter and the telephone receiver are exactly the same as used in the wire telephone, with which all are familiar. The "oscillator" and the "responder" are the only new and additional features, and the ether takes the place of the connecting wire.

Upon the finish of the regatta the telephone apparatus from the "Thelma" and the Put-in-Bay shore station was shipped to Toledo, where it is the intention of the Radio Telephone Company to install it permanently, where it can be in communication with other wireless telephone sets to be installed on vessels sailing Lake Erie. The Great Lakes offer, perhaps, the most promising field anywhere in the world for the first general application of this new invention to the needs of a merchant marine, and it is the intention of the company to at once enter this promising field."

Electrical World, August 10, 1907

Rising 195 metres above the summit of Black Mountain, the Telstra Tower presents 360 degree views of the city and the Brindabella Ranges. Visitors taking advantage of he two open viewing platforms or the enclosed viewing gallery are presented with striking views of the city by day. From every angle at night the theatrics of the city's lights under the darkened sky provide a spectacular show of natural beauty and entertainment.

 

As well as offering visitors education, entertainment and spectacular views, the Telstra Tower has a functional role. The Telstra Tower provides essential communications facilities for the National Capital, including major trunk line radio telephony facilities, television transmitters for national and commercial services, FM radio transmitters, mobile radio telephone, and cellular phone base stations.

 

This elegant Tower on the summit of Black Mountain has won two awards for outstanding design. The first in 1979, for imaginative and effective use of concrete in a building. The Tower won its second award, the 1980 Civic Design Award of the ACT Chapter of the Royal Australian Institute of Architects.

 

The Tower incorporates a theatrette, cafe and gift shop and the Executive Briefing Centre; meeting rooms with state of the art AV, spectacular views and free parking.

 

Since opening in 1980, Telstra Tower has continually created an attraction of immense fascination and appeal, marking it one of the National Capital's most popular tourist and local attractions.

 

Source: Telstra.

I had no idea that my dad kept a collection of his old cellphones and was surprised to see him bring out his stash. I don't think any of them are in working condition and if they did, there was no way to find out as their original chargers are no longer around. 😊

 

What surprised me was that he also kept my old Ericsson GH 688, which I used between 1997 and 2000. This Ericsson unit traveled with me to Malawi, Africa where I was posted for three months in June 1998. It continued to serve me faithfully until I upgraded to the unreliable Ericsson T28s flip phone in mid 2000.

 

I can however identify the earliest cellphone in this picture - the grey Nokia 101 (ETACS), which my father had back in 1992. It operated exclusively on the local Celcom ART 900 analog network and provided only basic telephony service.

 

That's right, neither the Nokia 101 phone nor the network had SMS texting or Caller ID feature! If you had a missed call, you wouldn't know who called you! The redial button was only meant for redialing the last outgoing call - not for incoming ones.

 

Its monochrome LCD display only showed the network ID, contact names, numbers, remaining battery power and signal strength, that's it.

 

I remember borrowing that Nokia 101 and stashing it in the back of my jeans pocket going to the mall. Since it was fairly long, the top part and the antenna showed above my pocket line in clear view of the public.

 

In 1992 cellphones were expensive, status symbol devices and anyone seen carrying one must be someone important like a businessman or a VIP! People often stared at me whenever I received a call on that brick, lol. 😃

 

BTW, you know you're that old if you've actually used an analog cellphone in your late twenties! 😸

  

Thanks everyone for the views and the faves, much appreciated! 😊

Algarve

Fujifilm X-Pro 1

Please post this mid-twentieth century telephonic advice in your office and heed the instructions. Watch your lips, use them to form words, and speak directly into the transmitter.

 

When Telephoning, Speak Directly into Transmitter

 

Your Lips Should Be Half an Inch from the Mouthpiece and Should Be Used Freely to Form Your Words.

 

'Phone as You Would Be 'Phoned To

 

Poor - 1/20 as good

Fair - 1/4 as good

Best - Correct Position

Building Radio Kootwijk, Veluwe NL - 1922 - architect Julius Maria Luthmann.

The housing accommodations of Radio Kootwijk arose as a result of the building of a shortwave transmitter site with the same name, starting in 1918. The transmitters played an important role in the 20th century as a communication facility between the Netherlands and its colony of Dutch East Indies. In 1923 Dutch PTT (Post, Telegraph and Telephone Company) started trans-oceanic telegraphy using a longwave transmitter, a 400 KW high frequency alternator, from the German Telefunken company under the call sign PCG, in the 24 kHz and 48 kHz. By 1925 the longwave transmitter was changed by a shortwave tube based, electronic transmitter which had a much better performance due to the better propagation of short waves. With this new technology, in 1928 a radio-telephonic connection was established. At the end of World War II, the German occupying forces blew up the transmitter. Afterward some of the radio towers were rebuilt. Due to the development of new technologies like satellite communication, Radio Kootwijk lost its position as main overseas wireless connection point of the Netherlands. In 1980, the last transmission mast was blown up. In 2004 the park lost its last transmitter functions, and was transferred from the telephone company to the State Forestry Commission, which started attracting new buyers. The main building of the former transmitter park and named 'Building A', 'The Cathedral' or sometimes 'The Sphinx', was officially appointed as a monument. It is used as venue and scenery for several cultural events and productions, including the American film Mind Hunters in 2004.

The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), whose members were invariably referred to as WAAFs /ˈwæfs/, was the female auxiliary of the Royal Air Force during World War II, established in 1939. At its peak strength, in 1943, WAAF numbers exceeded 180,000, with over 2,000 women enlisting per week.

A Women's Royal Air Force had existed from 1918 to 1920. The WAAF was created on 28 June 1939, absorbing the forty-eight RAF companies of the Auxiliary Territorial Service which had been formed since 1938. Conscription of women did not begin until 1941. It only applied to those between 20 and 30 years of age and they had the choice of the auxiliary services or factory work.

WAAFs did not serve as aircrew. The use of women pilots was limited to the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA), which was civilian. Although they didn't participate in active combat, they were exposed to the same dangers as any on the "home front" working at military installations. They were active in parachute packing and the crewing of barrage balloons in addition to performing catering, meteorology, radar, aircraft maintenance, transport, communications duties including wireless telephonic and telegraphic operation. They worked with codes and ciphers, analysed reconnaissance photographs, and performed intelligence operations. WAAFs were a vital presence in the control of aircraft, both in radar stations and iconically as plotters in operation rooms, most notably during the Battle of Britain. These operation rooms directed fighter aircraft against the Luftwaffe, mapping both home and enemy aircraft positions.

Air Force nurses belonged to Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service instead. Female medical and dental officers were commissioned into the Royal Air Force and held RAF ranks.

WAAFs were paid two-thirds of the pay of male counterparts in RAF ranks.

By the end of World War II, WAAF enrollment had declined and the effect of demobilisation was to take thousands out of the service. The remainder, now only several hundred strong, was renamed the Women's Royal Air Force on 1 February 1949.

Candid street shot, St George, Grenada.

 

A call centre or call center is a centralised office used for the purpose of receiving or transmitting a large volume of requests by telephone. An inbound call centre is operated by a company to administer incoming product support or information inquiries from consumers. Outbound call centers are operated for telemarketing, solicitation of charitable or political donations, debt collection and market research. In addition to a call centre, collective handling of letter, fax, live support software, social media and e-mail at one location is known as a contact centre.

 

A call centre is operated through an extensive open workspace for call centre agents, with work stations that include a computer for each agent, a telephone set/headset connected to a telecom switch, and one or more supervisor stations. It can be independently operated or networked with additional centres, often linked to a corporate computer network, including mainframes, microcomputers and LANs. Increasingly, the voice and data pathways into the centre are linked through a set of new technologies called computer telephony integration (CTI).

U.S.Navy RF power amplifier and oscillator - 400 RF watts max output in Class C telephony operation

www.radiomuseum.org/tubes/tube_cwl861.html

www.facebook.com/groups/412132722310930/posts/54131475272...

americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object/nmah_705256

----

Location on map - this tube may have been made in Bloomfield, NJ

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westinghouse_Lamp_Plant

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Nikon D3200 + Nikon Nikkor 18-135mm 1:3.5-5.6 G ED-IF AF-S DX

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikon_D3200

www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/d3200.htm

www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/18-135.htm

www.opticallimits.com/nikon--nikkor-aps-c-lens-tests/241-...

 

DSC_4627 Anx2 1400h Q90 f25

Avenue de Flandre 12/05/2023 08h37

Beautiful or awfull? The brutalist apartment buildings along the Avenue de Flandre. The German-born architect Martin Schulz Van Treeck, a student of Jean Ginsberg, designed in the 1970s the “Orgues de Flandre”, a group of social housing buildings in the Villette district in the heart of Paris.

The Orgues de Flandre buildings were built between 1973 and 1980 on the “Riquet block”, a space of about 6 hectares.

Built in reinforced concrete, a large part of their facades were originally covered with white ceramic tiles in order to reflect the light.

For the residential part, the Orgues de Flandre have 1950 apartments in 4 towers of 26 to 40 floors and two buildings of 16 floors.

 

Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era but commonly known for its presence in post-war communist nations. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the bare building materials and structural elements over decorative design. The style commonly makes use of exposed, unpainted concrete or brick, angular geometric shapes and a predominantly monochrome colour palette; other materials, such as steel, timber, and glass, are also featured.

[ Wikipedia - Brutalisme ]

 

Avenue de Flandre

Avenue de Flandre (formely « rue de Flandre ») is one of the main thoroughfares in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, 1,500 m long.

It connects Place de la Bataille-de-Stalingrad to Avenue Corentin-Cariou and provides access to the Paris ring road via Porte de la Villette.

Traffic is organized around a central parterre lined with trees.

Before 2019, the avenue was composed, in each direction, of 2 traffic lanes (including a lane reserved for public transport and bicycles on only part of the avenue) bordered by 2 parking lanes (one on each side) .

Since 2019, a cycle path has been created in each direction in place of the parking lot on the central side.

The avenue is bordered on most of its length by various shops, practically all services being available: general food, cafes, catering (fast, traditional and foreign), mass distribution (traditional and hard-discount), DIY, services banks, pharmacies, sale and repair of automobiles, bicycles and mopeds, optics, bookstores, telephony, libraries, real estate agencies, etc.

There are 4 métro stations under the Avenue de Flandre:

Corentin Cariou (M) (7)

Crimée (M) (7)

Riquet (M) (7)

Stalingrad (M) (2) (5) (7)

[ Wikipedia - Avenue de Flandre ]

100/365

Considering I managed to do something pertaining to the day number yesterday, 100 could not be that difficult. But I was not really planning on it until Dad said: "So, what are you doing for 100?"

After thinking about it for a couple of hours, asking for ideas from Dad, my best friend and her mum, I tried photographing some coins - 100 Icelandic Kroner, 1 cent, etc. but none of them really worked - I could not get any definition on the coins and they did not work how I wanted them to.

 

And so, you ask, what do two tin cans and a piece of string have to do with anything, let alone 100?

Well, the string is just there to make the two tin cans slightly more relevant to non-chemists, and a slightly more interesting image.

The atomic number of the element tin is 50, ergo, two tins make 100.

Many governmental organisations in the post-WW2 years published a popular and accessible history of wartime endeavours and service and this, written by Ian Hay, is the story of the Post Office. The Post Office was responsible for a multitude of public services ranging from the operation of Post Offices, the collection and delivery of the mail, the telegram and telephone services. These were all vital infrastructure in wartime conditions where the growth in demand for services was enormous - both at home and, in the theatres of war, abroad. The sacrifice of staff is covered as they often worked in the most trying of circumstances. The record of development and repair, such as of exchanges and cables due to damage, is described and some of the work of the vitally important Research Station at Dollis Hill is described.

 

The cover, that includes this wrapped round letter of thanks from the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in Europe, is a bold graphic showing the various methods of transport used by the Post Office and is signed 'AMC'. This is, I am sure, the 'Coombs' who signs the two rather fine endpaper illustrations that show Post Office staff going about their varied duties. In pre-war years the Post Office had an often adventurous style of publicity and these illustrations are redolent of that period in their style.

"Hello Operator? I'd like to make a call, Enterprise 5-4120 please"

 

In the early days of telephony, companies used manual telephone switchboards, and switchboard operators connected calls by inserting a pair of phone plugs into the appropriate jacks.

 

They were gradually phased out and replaced by automated systems, first those allowing direct dialing within a local area, then for long-distance and international direct dialing.

 

In January 1878 George Willard Croy became the world's first telephone operator when he started working for the Boston Telephone Dispatch company.

 

United States phone operator in 1911. Emma Nutt became the first female telephone operator on 1 September 1878 when she started working for the Boston Telephone Dispatch company, because the attitude and behaviour of the teenage boys previously employed as operators was unacceptable.

 

Emma was hired by Alexander Graham Bell, and reportedly, could remember every number in the telephone directory of the New England Telephone Company.

 

More women began to replace men within this sector of the workforce for several reasons. The companies observed that women were generally more courteous to callers, and women's labor was cheap in comparison to men's.

 

I shot this picture a few years ago with my cell phone from my University's communication museum.

Visit my new web page: www.wix.com/davidcucalon/photography

 

or

 

Follow me in my blog: davidcucalon.wordpress.com/

Queensland State Archives Item ID3014596, Aerial photographs

 

Roma Street Railway Station occupies a 0.55ha site within the extensive Roma Street Station transit complex, located on the western side of the Brisbane central business district. The substantial masonry station building (1875) is set back from and faces Roma Street (although partially obscured by later development), and has a prominent centred entrance to the front (south) and a platform along the rear (north). A later platform and awning to the south is associated with the former Country Station development (1939/40).

 

Features of Roma Street Railway Station of state-level cultural heritage significance are:

 

Station building (1875)

Platform (1875)

Country Station platform and awning (1939)

Views

The state-level periods of significance of the place are layered and relate to its origins and use as a passenger station (1875-1940) and railway design, traffic and management offices (1875-1974), and the establishment of the former Country Station (1939/40).

 

A large iron-roofed shelter (c1980) to the east of the station, small buildings to the west, and a lift, stairs and escalators accessing the modern subway below, are not of state-level cultural heritage significance.

 

The Roma Street Railway Station was opened in 1875 as the first Brisbane Terminal Station for use on the Brisbane end of the Southern and Western Railway Line from Ipswich. The two-storey station building was designed by Francis Drummond Greville (FDG) Stanley, the Colonial Architect and Superintendent of Public Buildings, in 1873 and built over the next two years by Brisbane builder, John Petrie. The station operated as the Brisbane terminal station until 1889, as a major passenger and administration station until 1940, and Brisbane’s primary railway goods facility until 1991. It served as offices for the Queensland Railway Department (later Queensland Railways, later Queensland Rail) staff for over 100 years, and is the one of the oldest surviving railway buildings in Queensland.

 

In the Australian colonies, governments fostered the development of railways as a means of developing the country and encouraging settlement. It was argued that rail would reduce freight costs and save travel time for passengers.[1] Queensland’s first railway survey was undertaken by the New South Wales Government in 1856, and following separation, Queensland Parliament passed the Railway Act in 1863, enabling railways to be constructed in the colony. The railway network developed along decentralised lines extending from ports to pastoral and mining centres. The first line, between Ipswich and Bigge's Camp, 34km west of Ipswich (later Grandchester, QHR600729), was opened in 1865. This was the first stage of the four-stage Southern and Western Railway project which linked Ipswich to Toowoomba in 1867, Warwick in 1871, and Dalby in 1878. New railways opened west from Rockhampton in 1867 (the Northern Line, later renamed the Central Railway), west from Townsville in 1880 (the Great Northern Line), Cairns in 1887, and south from Normanton in 1891.

 

The Southern and Western Railway served the pastoralists and industrialists of Ipswich and the Darling Downs, and was primarily for goods, rather than passengers. With the railhead at Ipswich, a railway to Brisbane was not initially considered essential, as goods could be shipped from Ipswich to Brisbane’s port for export. However, the Bremer and upper Brisbane rivers could not cope with large shipping, and lobbying began for an extension to Brisbane. A preliminary survey of possible lines was completed in 1865,[4] but concerns over the extension’s financial viability put work on hold. A Royal Commission on Railway Construction was called in the 1870s, and recommended the extension: the business generated by it was likely to be profitable, and the colony’s economy, which had collapsed in the mid-1860s, had been bolstered by the Gympie gold rush and was better able to afford new infrastructure.

 

The extension between Ipswich and Oxley was approved in August 1872,[6] and, the first sod on the extension was turned at Goodna in January 1873. From Oxley, two lines had been surveyed, terminating either at North or South Brisbane. After extensive debate, the route to North Brisbane, via a bridge at Oxley Point (Indooroopilly), was chosen as more cost-effective. The terminus of this route, selected by Railway Department Chief Engineer HC Stanley, was located within the Grammar School reserve at the base of the ‘Green Hills’ (Petrie Terrace). The site was unused by the school and was large enough for a major passenger station and goods yard.

 

The section between Oxley and Brisbane was approved in October 1873,[9] and the Government called for tenders for the construction of the railway terminus station in Brisbane. FDG Stanley, the recently-appointed Colonial Architect and Superintendent of Buildings within the Public Works Department, was the designer of the building. Stanley had commenced with the Public Works Department in 1863, serving as Superintendent of Buildings after Charles Tiffin vacated the Colonial Architect’s position. He was the official Colonial Architect from 1873-1883, when the colony, recovering from the economic collapse of the 1860s, began to invest in public buildings. Stanley’s designs, balancing classical styles and stylistic features with climate-appropriate adaptations and economic restraint, helped define public architecture in Queensland. Extant examples of major works, designed while he was Colonial Architect, include the original State Library (1876-9, QHR600177); Toowoomba Court House (1876-8, QHR600848); Townsville Magistrates Court (1876-7, QHR600929); Townsville Gaol (now part of Townsville Central State School, 1877, QHR601162); Brisbane’s Port Office (1880, QHR600088); Toowoomba Hospital (surviving kitchen wing 1880, QHR601296); post offices at Gympie (1878-80, QHR600534), South Brisbane (1881, QHR600302) and Toowoomba (1880, QHR600847); as well as the Brisbane Supreme Court (no longer extant). As Superintendent of Buildings he designed the Toowoomba Railway Station (1874, QHR600872), Government Printing Office (1873, QHR600114) and Lady Elliott Island Lighthouse (1872-3).

 

The Brisbane Courier provided a detailed description of the proposed Terminus Passenger Station in October 1873:

 

The general style of the building will be that known as the Italian Gothic order of architecture. The material used...will be pressed brick with cut stone facings, this being chosen on account of its durability and as also affording the greatest consonant with economy. The station will consist of a main building, two storeys high, flanked at each end by a single storey wing.

 

The building was designed to house both a passenger station and railway administrative offices. Passengers would access the station from Roma Street via a carriageway, disembarking at the station’s central carriage porch. The porch fronted a 10ft (3m) wide arcade running the length of the main building. From the arcade, passengers would enter either the first-class booking office on the east or the second-class booking office on the west, both served by a semi-circular ticket office on the rear (northern) wall. Female passengers travelling on second-class tickets could wait in a small room located along a western passage, while separate waiting rooms for first-class male and female passengers were east of the first-class booking office. Doorways in the rear wall of the booking offices and waiting rooms led directly onto the 190-foot (58m) long departure platform. Arriving passengers exited the station via a second platform across the rail line. Luggage was loaded onto trains via the luggage passage, on the eastern end of the building. The guards and porters room, staff facilities, a lamp room and stairs to the upper floor were situated in the eastern wing. The western side of the building held public services, including the telegraph office, station master’s office, and parcel and book office, accessible via a public lobby at the end of the arcade. A private staircase to the traffic managers’ office, a staircase to the traffic department, and toilet facilities were located in the western wing. An office or book stall space, in the northwestern side of the building, was accessible from the platform.

 

Upstairs, the offices of the traffic department, clerks, accountant, draughtsmen, Railways Engineer, Resident Engineer and contractors were accessed from a central passageway which ran almost the length of the building; with a small S-bend in the western end. An arch in the centre of the corridor marked the separation of the traffic department from the Chief Engineer’s office. Both wings hosted staircases.

 

The building included adaptations for the climate. The arcade sheltered the ground floor rooms from the sun, while skylights in the ceiling and a ventilated lantern provided light and ventilation to the upper floor. All public rooms and most of the offices were fitted with fireplaces. A platform shade, installed on the northern wall of the building over the platform, sheltered passengers from the weather, and was composed of material from an iron station building imported from England for use at Toowoomba. It was supported by brick buttresses at both ends of the building (extant) and on the arrivals platform (no longer extant).

 

Commensurate with Stanley’s design approach, materials used for the station reflected elegance but economy. Apart from the recycled iron roof trusses and columns, the building was constructed of machine-pressed bricks made from locally-sourced clay, more affordable than stone, and praised as ‘cleaner, sharper [and] finer’ than Brisbane bricks used in earlier buildings. Freestone for the building dressings and columns was sourced from Murphy’s Creek.

 

Construction work took place over two years, after contractor John Petrie’s tender of £11,845 was accepted in December 1873. Progress was slow, with the stonework foundations underway in June 1874, and the building only ten foot above the ground by September. The line from Ipswich to Brisbane was opened without ceremony on 14 June 1875. The platform at Brisbane Terminus Passenger Station was half-paved, the rooms and corridors incomplete, the roofing over the platform in progress and there was no permanent lighting. Nonetheless, an interested crowd gathered to watch the first outbound services leave the station. The building was sufficiently complete by August 1875 for the Brisbane Courier to describe it as ‘in all respects convenient, handsome, and well-designed’. The station’s arcade was later highlighted as one of Brisbane’s valued architectural features.

 

The Brisbane to Ipswich route quickly became the busiest section of line in Queensland. Merchandise and imported goods from the ports were despatched along the line, while produce from the Darling Downs and surrounds – including coal, flour, wool, hay, maize, livestock, vegetable and dairy produce – was brought to Brisbane. A central goods handling facility was opened at the Terminal Station, including a large (64m long) goods shed and two sidings, erected in 1875-6 (no longer extant), while railway produce markets opened outside the station, along George and Roma streets. A maintenance yard also operated at Roma Street, including locomotive and carriage sheds. By 1882 the Terminal Station platforms had been extended to cope with the traffic and trade. Traffic reduced slightly after some export goods were diverted to South Brisbane in 1884,[32] but expanded again.[33] Cattle yards, produce sheds, carriage sheds, gas works, goods sheds, coal stages, cold stores, additional locomotive sheds and siding extensions were all added to Roma Street’s goods yard. None of these structures survive in 2020.

 

Passengers also used the line. Residential occupation of Toowong and Indooroopilly boomed as middle-class city workers took advantage of the four daily train services. In 1882 rail lines were opened from the Terminal Station to Sandgate and the Racecourse, taking day-trippers to the seaside and races, and bringing northern suburbs passengers into Brisbane. In January 1888, the first through-service to Sydney departed from the Terminal Station. However, travellers criticised the lack of direct access from the Terminal Station to the central business district, and in 1889, the Brisbane Central Railway Station was opened. Central Railway Station (QHR 600073) – located closer to the General Post Office and city office buildings – became Brisbane’s main passenger station, and the original Terminal Station was renamed Roma Street Railway Station.

 

Despite its diminished status, Roma Street remained a major centre for passengers and travellers. Through the 19th and early 20th centuries, guards of honour lined Roma Street to greet and farewell significant visitors and figures, including premiers Morehead and Griffith, governors Norman and Lamington; Governor-General Munro-Ferguson; the late politician JM Macrossan, who had died in Sydney; singer Nellie Melba; Lord Kitchener; and Salvation Army General Booth. Roma Street continued to operate as the Sydney Mail terminus until 1931, when the service shifted to South Brisbane. Crowds thronged to Roma Street Station as soldiers departed for the South African War and World War I. Travelling circuses performed in the Roma Street yards, and an historic parade in 1936 included a ‘Puffing Billy’ locomotive, which was displayed at the yards until 1959. Roma Street also continued as the city’s primary goods terminus.

 

The station building played an important role as office accommodation for Queensland railway staff. Internal rearrangements were made to the building to accommodate growing staff numbers, and improve their working conditions. It was one of the first buildings in Queensland to feature electric light, installed in 1884.[50] The Chief Engineer vacated the building in 1901 and was replaced by the general traffic manager’s department, with a telephonic system of communication installed the same year. Bunker, lumber and message rooms were added to the wings by 1907; a traffic collector’s office and new strongroom were installed in 1911; and parcels, printing offices and machine rooms replaced the first-class waiting rooms, guards’ room and lamp room by 1920. In 1915, an additional storey was constructed atop the central carriage porch, providing more accommodation for the Traffic Branch on the first floor. A traffic control system, coordinating trains between Brisbane and Gympie, was installed and operated from the additional storey in 1927.

 

Queensland’s railway network extended dramatically in the 20th century. The North Coast line connected Brisbane to Gladstone in 1898, Rockhampton in 1904, and Cairns in 1924, providing a direct rail link between Brisbane and Mackay, Townsville, Winton, Forsayth, Cloncurry and Blackall. Southern and western trains reached Dirranbandi, Surat, Cunnamulla and Quilpie. Central Station initially hosted ‘country’ services, but it lacked room for expansion, and Roma Street’s larger site was earmarked for a new country station. Roma Street’s locomotive, carriage and marshalling yard facilities were transferred to the Mayne Rail Yards between 1911 and 1927, and work began on the new station. A 350ft (106m) reinforced concrete, tiled passenger subway was constructed from Roma Street to the platforms in 1936-7, replacing an overhead walkway. A new steel awning was installed above the southern platform (Platform 3 in 2020), in approximately 1939. It was used in conjunction with two platforms at the new country station (no longer extant) for country and other passenger services.

 

On 30 November 1940 the Country Station was opened at Roma Street Station. This low-lying face brick building and its additional platform sat directly between the 1873-5 building and Roma Street. The new passenger station relieved congestion at Brisbane Central Station and made Roma Street the chief station for long distance travel north. The original station was refurbished, its roof re-clad with corrugated fibrous sheeting; and its brick walls painted red and lined in cream to match the new station building. The southwest pediment was removed and replaced by a new storey on the western end of the building. A covered area was added east of the building where the subway stairs emerged. The original station building was turned over to the General Manager, with offices for clerks, traffic-, livestock-, coach- and wagon staff, maintenance and locomotive staff, telephone and telegraph exchanges, and the train control section.

 

Further plans to upgrade and alter the building were postponed by World War II, during which time troop trains departed from Roma Street, and the pedestrian subway served as an air-raid shelter.[66] In 1945, plans were drawn to alter doors, windows and stairs in the wings, and partitions on the first floor. A second storey was added over the west wing in 1953 (later removed), and the General Manager’s staircase was repositioned in 1961. Externally, the iron carriage shed platform shade over the northern platform was removed in 1959.

 

Extensive change was undertaken at Roma Street around the original station building in the late 20th century. The southern and northern Brisbane railway systems were directly connected in the 1970s, with the opening of the Merivale Bridge in 1978. In 1985, the country railway station (1940 building) was demolished and replaced by a multi-storey centre incorporating new railway and bus facilities, a hotel, offices and function centre. The original station building was left intact, and two new interstate platforms with standard gauge rails were built on its southern side. The pedestrian subway was refurbished in 1986, with a broom finish concrete and expansion joints, and grated drains were laid on the floor, and a ceramic tile finish on the wall faces to match the subway tiles at Central Station. Roma Street’s rail freight facility was moved to Acacia Ridge in 1991. During the mid-1990s the platforms north and south of the early station building were re-arranged and extended. A bricked waiting area and new roof were added east of the station. Underground, a new concourse was constructed to replace the pedestrian subway, and a 19m section of the original subway converted to a storage room.

 

The station building remained the General Manager’s Office until 1974. The station master, staff workers and archive storage occupied the building in the 1990s. By 1993, Roma Street was acknowledged as the oldest surviving railway station building in an Australian capital city, and one of the oldest surviving railway buildings in Queensland. A new office fitout was installed on the ground floor for Queensland Rail and the Queensland Police Rail Squad in 1999. Stabilisation, waterproofing and reconstruction works commenced in 2012, including restoration of the brick, plaster, lead flashings, window joinery and stone works. Replacement bricks were custom made in England; Welsh slate was imported from the UK; replacement stone came from Helidon; and rolled lead from England was installed. In 2015, a new steel beams and suspension system was installed between the two storeys, to lift a 65mm bow in the timber floor beams fit amongst the existing timber structures. The second storey of the west wing was removed and the roofline reconstructed to its original configuration. The restoration received an Australian Institute of Architects Queensland award in 2015.

 

In 2020 the building is vacant, pending further repairs.

 

apps.des.qld.gov.au/heritage-register/detail/?id=601208

 

January 01, 2026

How could we build a liveable space habitat?

In the not-too-distant future, humanity will be faced with the challenge of building permanent homes in space. For this to happen, space habitats will need to closely replicate Earth’s gravity, while dealing with the threat of radiation and meteorites from outer space. Through his research, Werner Grandl at Space Renaissance International in Italy considers how these challenges could be overcome. Through a series of recent studies, he conceives a feasible design for a rotating space habitat, shielded from outer space by a mined‑out asteroid.

 

The idea of human settlers establishing permanent homes in space is a staple of our favourite sci-fi. Over the past century, countless films, books, TV shows, and video games have found creative, often elaborate ways to convey the threats and motivations which would force humanity to leave Earth behind and explain how they might survive in the harsh environment of space.

 

Yet today, many of these fictional threats look all too familiar in the real world. Werner Grandl at Space Renaissance International explains, ‘Besides man-made disasters like global warming or nuclear war, there are a number of serious natural threats to planet Earth such as asteroid impacts, super-volcanoes, and ice ages.’

 

For Grandl, the ever-looming presence of these threats creates a pressing need for us to think about what realistic extra-terrestrial habitats could look like and consider how they could be constructed in the not-too-distant future. ‘The construction of self-sustaining colonies in space using lunar and asteroid resources will be the next step of human evolution,’ he says.

 

Accommodating the human body

Beyond the staggering feats of engineering required to build these habitats, some of the most important challenges to consider in their design are related to the limitations of our own bodies. Having evolved on Earth, the physical attributes of our muscles, bones, and many other vital biological systems are finely tuned to functioning in the gravitational field of our home planet. If we leave this familiar environment for extended periods, medical problems will inevitably start to emerge before long. ‘A lack of gravity can cause danger for human health such as bone demineralisation, muscle atrophy, and orthostatic intolerance,’ Grandl explains.

  

Artificial Gravity Orbital Station AGOS: a spinning space station, built in three stages.

Just like generations of sci-fi writers – although with far higher stakes – this challenge will be one of the first things we will need to consider when conceiving future space colonies. To provide a suitable home for the human body, habitats will need to generate their own artificial gravity, which matches Earth’s field as closely as possible.

 

A familiar grounding force

To simulate gravity, future space habitats will need to spin. ’Rotating space habitats can provide simulated gravity and a comfortable environment for astronauts and space settlers,’ says Grandl. The effect is achieved through the effect of centrifugal forces – you have probably experienced this effect yourself when driving a car around a tight curve or riding the loop-the-loop on a rollercoaster.

  

Prototype Asteroid Habitat for 2,000 people: the rotating torus is driven by magnetic levitation bearings; sunlight is beamed into the cave and distributed by a central mirror cone.

Here, the idea is that the manned part of a space habitat will constantly circle around the centre of the station. In this way, a person standing on the inner rim of the circle would feel like they are being pulled downwards by gravity, when in fact the floor is pushing them upwards, towards the centre of the habitat’s rotation.

 

Designing a rotating station

In one recent study, Grandl took this concept a step further. In his paper, he envisages a habitat built from interconnected cylindrical modules, which spin around the axis of a central cylinder – powered by a non-rotating framework of solar panels.

  

Grandl then shows how such a habitat could be enlarged in stages: eventually reaching a diameter of 102 metres, incorporating some 32 living quarter modules, which could comfortably house up to 180 people long term. He also considers how an agricultural sphere could be attached, providing food for these inhabitants.

 

A home inside an asteroid

Low-gravity environments aren’t the only challenge. In the harsh environment of space, without any atmosphere to protect them, future space habitats would face a constant threat of bombarded with radiation from the Sun, as well as tiny meteorites hurtling through space. Building further on his earlier concept, Grandl next considered how rotating habitats could be made safer by housing them inside hollowed-out asteroids – shielding them from outer space.

 

‘Near-Earth asteroids can be mined and the remaining cave would be a natural shelter against cosmic rays, solar flares, micrometeorites,’ he describes. ‘Inside excavated asteroids we can build self-sustaining human outposts in space providing artificial gravity.’

 

To reach this point, Grandl has conceived a multi-step process. It starts with a pair of unmanned space tugs, docked to either side of a near-Earth asteroid using anchors drilled firmly into the rock. Using advanced propulsion systems, the tugs could then pull the asteroid into a stable orbit around Earth, beyond the Moon.

  

From here, mining can begin along the axis of the asteroid’s rotation. At this point, the asteroid is connected to a manned space station – with the space and equipment required for digging, as well as carrying, processing, and storing mined materials.

 

After boring a straight tunnel into the centre of the asteroid, a larger spherical cave could then be excavated, taking up around half of the asteroid’s total volume. While mass is being removed from the asteroid, its orbit would be continuously stabilised by the two space tugs, still docked to either side. Finally, once mining has finished, a rotating habitat could be constructed inside the cave.

 

The future path to space

While our technology is still a long way off from being able to build these habitats, Grandl is confident that with the current pace of advancement, they will one day be perfectly feasible. Before we get there, he envisages a step-by-step improvement in our understanding of survival in space. ‘As a first step, we should build a rotating space station in Earth’s orbit to study the influence of different gravity-levels on human health,’ he describes.

 

Space habitats could be made safer by housing them inside hollowed-out asteroids – shielding them from outer space.

From here, we could build on this understanding to modify designs of manned space habitats to ensure the highest possible standards of safety and comfort for their inhabitants. Ultimately, by starting to tackle these challenges now, Grandl hopes that the possibility of permanently manned space habitats will begin to look far more feasible in the coming decades. In turn, his ideas may one day help to accelerate humanity’s exploration of the solar system, and to ensure our future in the face of whatever disasters we may one day face.

 

Personal Response

How long do you think it will be before humans will be able to live permanently in space?

It will depend on political decisions. In a best case scenario, a spinning orbital station as a successor of the present ISS could be built by 2035. First habitats inside hollow asteroids may be constructed in the last decade of this century. It will depend on the development of mining techniques in space.

 

References

Grandl, W, Böck, C, (2023) Asteroid habitats—Living inside a hollow celestial body. In: Badescu, V, et al, (eds), Handbook of Space Resources. Switzerland: Springer Nature, 763–785. doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-97913-3_22

 

Grandl, W, Autino, AV, Böck, C, (2023) Artificial gravity orbital dtation (AGOS)-the simulation of gravity in a rotating space station, 74th International Astronautical Congress (IAC).

Grandl, W, Bazso A, (2013) Near Earth asteroids — Prospection, orbit modification, mining and habitation. In: Badescu, V, (eds), Asteroids. Heidelberg: Springer Berlin, 415–438. doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-39244-3_17

Behind the Research

  

Werner Grandl

 

Werner Grandl was born in Vienna in 1957. He graduated from the Technical University of Vienna in 1984. He is a trained architect and civil engineer in Austria. His research interests include space stations and space colonies, and the use of lunar and asteroid resources.

 

Research Objectives

Werner Grandl describes the construction of self-sustaining colonies in space using lunar and asteroid resources.

 

Funding

Space Renaissance International (SRI), Viale Risorgimento 57, 22073 Fino Mornasco (CO), Italy.

 

Collaborators

Clemens Böck

Adriano V Autino

  

Cite this Article

Grandl, W, (2024) How could we build a liveable space habitat?, Research Outreach, 139.

DOI: 10.32907/RO-139-5856553861

 

Creative Commons Licence

(CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Creative Commons License

 

What does this mean?

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Making a Home on the Moon

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ESA / Education / Moon Camp

A future home on the Moon has to have a lot more than a place to eat and sleep. It will be the only structure on the Moon, it will have to provide shelter, power, and a place to work and live. But where should it be located and how will it be built? Find out more in this set of 6 animations from Airbus Foundation Discovery Space.

 

What is the best place to live on the Moon?

An entirely new landscape awaits when you land on the Moon. Will you choose one of the poles or dig underground – where will your Moon village be?

www.esa.int/Education/Moon_Camp/Making_a_Home_on_the_Moon

recognize themselves...

 

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comunque...

a me piace molto di piu' in B&W...

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One of our secretive visitor this summer... lucky to snap its diving shot!

 

Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus)

 

The peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus), also known as the peregrine, and historically as the duck hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-grey back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache". As is typical of bird-eating raptors, peregrine falcons are sexually dimorphic, females being considerably larger than males. The peregrine is renowned for its speed, reaching over 322 km/h (200 mph) during its characteristic hunting stoop (high speed dive), making it the fastest member of the animal kingdom. According to a National Geographic TV programme, the highest measured speed of a peregrine falcon is 389 km/h (242 mph).

 

The peregrine's breeding range includes land regions from the Arctic tundra to the tropics. It can be found nearly everywhere on Earth, except extreme polar regions, very high mountains, and most tropical rainforests; the only major ice-free landmass from which it is entirely absent is New Zealand. This makes it the world's most widespread raptor and one of the most widely found bird species. In fact, the only land-based bird species found over a larger geographic area is not always naturally occurring but one widely introduced by humans, the rock pigeon, which in turn now supports many peregrine populations as a prey species. Both the English and scientific names of this species mean "wandering falcon", referring to the migratory habits of many northern populations. Experts recognize 17 to 19 subspecies which vary in appearance and range; there is disagreement over whether the distinctive Barbary falcon is represented by two subspecies of Falco peregrinus, or is a separate species, F. pelegrinoides. The two species' divergence is relatively recent, during the time of the last ice age, therefore the genetic differential between them (and also the difference in their appearance) is relatively small. It has been determined that they are only approximately 0.6–0.8% genetically differentiated.

 

While its diet consists almost exclusively of medium-sized birds, the peregrine will occasionally hunt small mammals, small reptiles, or even insects. Reaching sexual maturity at one year, it mates for life and nests in a scrape, normally on cliff edges or, in recent times, on tall human-made structures. The peregrine falcon became an endangered species in many areas because of the widespread use of certain pesticides, especially DDT. Since the ban on DDT from the early 1970s, populations have recovered, supported by large-scale protection of nesting places and releases to the wild.

 

The peregrine falcon is a well respected falconry bird due to its strong hunting ability, high trainability, versatility, and in recent years availability via captive breeding. It is effective on most game bird species from small to large.

  

Description

 

The peregrine falcon has a body length of 34 to 58 cm (13–23 in) and a wingspan from 74 to 120 cm (29–47 in). The male and female have similar markings and plumage, but as in many birds of prey the peregrine falcon displays marked sexual dimorphism in size, with the female measuring up to 30% larger than the male. Males weigh 330 to 1,000 g (0.73–2.20 lb) and the noticeably larger females weigh 700 to 1,500 g (1.5–3.3 lb). In most subspecies, males weigh less than 700 g (1.5 lb) and females weigh more than 800 g (1.8 lb), with cases of females weighing about 50% more than their male breeding mates not uncommon. The standard linear measurements of peregrines are: the wing chord measures 26.5–39 cm (10.4–15.4 in), the tail measures 13–19 cm (5.1–7.5 in) and the tarsus measures 4.5 to 5.6 cm (1.8 to 2.2 in).

 

The back and the long pointed wings of the adult are usually bluish black to slate grey with indistinct darker barring (see "Subspecies" below); the wingtips are black. The white to rusty underparts are barred with thin clean bands of dark brown or black. The tail, coloured like the back but with thin clean bars, is long, narrow, and rounded at the end with a black tip and a white band at the very end. The top of the head and a "moustache" along the cheeks are black, contrasting sharply with the pale sides of the neck and white throat. The cere is yellow, as are the feet, and the beak and claws are black. The upper beak is notched near the tip, an adaptation which enables falcons to kill prey by severing the spinal column at the neck. The immature bird is much browner with streaked, rather than barred, underparts, and has a pale bluish cere and orbital ring.

  

Taxonomy and systematics

 

Falco peregrinus was first described under its current binomial name by English ornithologist Marmaduke Tunstall in his 1771 work Ornithologia Britannica. The scientific name Falco peregrinus is a Medieval Latin phrase that was used by Albertus Magnus in 1225. The specific name taken from the fact that juvenile birds were taken while journeying to their breeding location rather than from the nest, as falcon nests were difficult to get at. The Latin term for falcon, falco, is related to falx, the Latin word meaning sickle, in reference to the silhouette of the falcon's long, pointed wings in flight.

 

The peregrine falcon belongs to a genus whose lineage includes the hierofalcons and the prairie falcon (F. mexicanus). This lineage probably diverged from other falcons towards the end of the Late Miocene or in the Early Pliocene, about 5–8 million years ago (mya). As the peregrine-hierofalcon group includes both Old World and North American species, it is likely that the lineage originated in western Eurasia or Africa. Its relationship to other falcons is not clear, as the issue is complicated by widespread hybridization confounding mtDNA sequence analyses. For example, a genetic lineage of the saker falcon (F. cherrug) is known which originated from a male saker producing fertile young with a female peregrine ancestor, and the descendants further breeding with sakers.

 

Today, peregrines are regularly paired in captivity with other species such as the lanner falcon (F. biarmicus) to produce the "perilanner", a somewhat popular bird in falconry as it combines the peregrine's hunting skill with the lanner's hardiness, or the gyrfalcon to produce large, strikingly coloured birds for the use of falconers. As can be seen, the peregrine is still genetically close to the hierofalcons, though their lineages diverged in the Late Pliocene (maybe some 2.5–2 mya in the Gelasian).

  

Subspecies

 

Numerous subspecies of Falco peregrinus have been described, with 19 accepted by the 1994 Handbook of the Birds of the World, which considers the Barbary falcon of the Canary Islands and coastal north Africa to be two subspecies (pelegrinoides and babylonicus) of Falco peregrinus, rather than a distinct species, F. pelegrinoides. The following map shows the general ranges of these 19 subspecies:

 

Falco peregrinus anatum

- described by Bonaparte in 1838, is known as the American peregrine falcon, or "duck hawk"; its scientific name means "duck peregrine falcon". At one time, it was partly included in leucogenys. It is mainly found in the Rocky Mountains today. It was formerly common throughout North America between the tundra and northern Mexico, where current reintroduction efforts seek to restore the population. Most mature anatum, except those that breed in more northern areas, winter in their breeding range. Most vagrants that reach western Europe seem to belong to the more northern and strongly migratory tundrius, only considered distinct since 1968. It is similar to peregrinus but is slightly smaller; adults are somewhat paler and less patterned below, but juveniles are darker and more patterned below. Males weigh 500 to 700 g (1.1–1.5 lb), while females weigh 800 to 1,100 g (1.8–2.4 lb). It has become extinct in eastern North America, and populations there are hybrids as a result of reintroductions of birds from elsewhere.

 

Falco peregrinus babylonicus

- described by P.L. Sclater in 1861, is found in eastern Iran along the Hindu Kush and Tian Shan to Mongolian Altai ranges. A few birds winter in northern and northwestern India, mainly in dry semi-desert habitats. It is paler than pelegrinoides, and somewhat similar to a small, pale lanner falcon (Falco biarmicus). Males weigh 330 to 400 grams (12 to 14 oz), while females weigh 513 to 765 grams (18.1 to 27.0 oz).

 

Falco peregrinus brookei

- described by Sharpe in 1873, is also known as the Mediterranean peregrine falcon or the Maltese falcon. It includes caucasicus and most specimens of the proposed race punicus, though others may be pelegrinoides, Barbary falcons (see also below), or perhaps the rare hybrids between these two which might occur around Algeria. They occur from the Iberian Peninsula around the Mediterranean, except in arid regions, to the Caucasus. They are non-migratory. It is smaller than the nominate subspecies, and the underside usually has rusty hue. Males weigh around 445 g (0.981 lb), while females weigh up to 920 g (2.03 lb).

 

Falco peregrinus calidus

- described by John Latham in 1790, was formerly called leucogenys and includes caeruleiceps. It breeds in the Arctic tundra of Eurasia, from Murmansk Oblast to roughly Yana and Indigirka Rivers, Siberia. It is completely migratory, and travels south in winter as far as South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. It is often seen around wetland habitats. It is paler than peregrinus, especially on the crown. Males weigh 588 to 740 g (1.296–1.631 lb), while females weigh 925 to 1,333 g (2.039–2.939 lb).

 

Falco peregrinus cassini

- described by Sharpe in 1873, is also known as the Austral peregrine falcon. It includes kreyenborgi, the pallid falcon, a leucistic morph occurring in southernmost South America, which was long believed to be a distinct species. Its range includes South America from Ecuador through Bolivia, northern Argentina, and Chile to Tierra del Fuego and the Falkland Islands. It is non-migratory. It is similar to nominate, but slightly smaller with a black ear region. The variation kreyenborgi is medium grey above, has little barring below, and has a head pattern like the saker falcon, but the ear region is white.

 

Falco peregrinus ernesti

- described by Sharpe in 1894, is found from Indonesia to Philippines and south to Papua New Guinea and the nearby Bismarck Archipelago. Its geographical separation from nesiotes requires confirmation. It is non-migratory. It differs from the nominate subspecies in the very dark, dense barring on its underside and its black ear coverts.

 

Falco peregrinus furuitii

- described by Momiyama in 1927, is found on the Izu and Ogasawara Islands south of Honshū, Japan. It is non-migratory. It is very rare, and may only remain on a single island. It is a dark form, resembling pealei in colour, but darker, especially on tail.

 

Falco peregrinus japonensis

- described by Gmelin in 1788, includes kleinschmidti, pleskei, and harterti, and seems to refer to intergrades with calidus. It is found from northeast Siberia to Kamchatka (though it is possibly replaced by pealei on the coast there) and Japan. Northern populations are migratory, while those of Japan are resident. It is similar to peregrinus, but the young are even darker than those of anatum.

 

Falco peregrinus macropus

- described by Swainson in 1837, is the Australian peregrine falcon. It is found in Australia in all regions except the southwest. It is non-migratory. It is similar to brookei in appearance, but is slightly smaller and the ear region is entirely black. The feet are proportionally large.

 

Falco peregrinus madens

- described by Ripley and Watson in 1963, is unusual in having some sexual dichromatism. If the Barbary falcon is considered a distinct species, it is sometimes placed therein. It is found in the Cape Verde Islands, and is non-migratory; it is endangered with only six to eight pairs surviving. Males have a rufous wash on crown, nape, ears, and back; underside conspicuously washed pinkish-brown. Females are tinged rich brown overall, especially on the crown and nape.

 

Falco peregrinus minor

- first described by Bonaparte in 1850. It was formerly often perconfusus. It is sparsely and patchily distributed throughout much of sub-Saharan Africa and widespread in Southern Africa. It apparently reaches north along the Atlantic coast as far as Morocco. It is non-migratory and dark coloured. This is the smallest subspecies of peregrine, with smaller males weighing as little as approximately 300 g (11 oz).

 

Falco peregrinus nesiotes

- described by Mayr in 1941, is found in Fiji and probably also Vanuatu and New Caledonia. It is non-migratory.

 

Falco peregrinus pealei

- described by Ridgway in 1873, is also known as Peale's falcon, and includes rudolfi. It is found in the Pacific Northwest of North America, northwards from the Puget Sound along the British Columbia coast (including the Queen Charlotte Islands), along the Gulf of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands to the far eastern Bering Sea coast of Russia, and may also occur on the Kuril Islands and the coasts of Kamchatka. It is non-migratory. It is the largest subspecies, and it looks like an oversized and darker tundrius or like a strongly barred and large anatum. The bill is very wide. Juveniles occasionally have pale crowns. Males weigh 700 to 1,000 g (1.5–2.2 lb), while females weigh 1,000 to 1,500 g (2.2–3.3 lb).

 

Falco peregrinus pelegrinoides

- first described by Temminck in 1829, is found in the Canary Islands through north Africa and the Near East to Mesopotamia. It is most similar to brookei, but is markedly paler above, with a rusty neck, and is a light buff with reduced barring below. It is smaller than the nominate subspecies; females weigh around 610 g (1.34 lb).

 

Falco peregrinus peregrinator

- described by Sundevall in 1837, is known as the Indian peregrine falcon, Shaheen falcon, Indian shaheen or shaheen falcon. It was formerly sometimes known as Falco atriceps or Falco shaheen. Its range includes South Asia from Pakistan across India and Bangladesh to Sri Lanka and Southeastern China. In India, the shaheen is reported from all states except Uttar Pradesh, mainly from rocky and hilly regions. The Shaheen is also reported from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal. It has a clutch size of 3 to 4 eggs, with the chicks fledging time of 48 days with an average nesting success of 1.32 chicks per nest. In India, apart from nesting on cliffs, it has also been recorded as nesting on man-made structures such as buildings and cellphone transmission towers. A population estimate of 40 breeding pairs in Sri Lanka was made in 1996. It is non-migratory, and is small and dark, with rufous underparts. In Sri Lanka this species is found to favour the higher hills while the migrant calidus is more often seen along the coast.

 

Falco peregrinus peregrinus

- the nominate (first-named) subspecies, described by Tunstall in 1771, breeds over much of temperate Eurasia between the tundra in the north and the Pyrenees, Mediterranean region and Alpide belt in the south. It is mainly non-migratory in Europe, but migratory in Scandinavia and Asia. Males weigh 580 to 750 g (1.28–1.65 lb), while females weigh 925 to 1,300 g (2.039–2.866 lb). It includes brevirostris, germanicus, rhenanus, and riphaeus.

 

Falco peregrinus radama

- described by Hartlaub in 1861, is found in Madagascar and Comoros. It is non-migratory.

 

Falco peregrinus submelanogenys

- described by Mathews in 1912, is the Southwest Australian peregrine falcon. It is found in southwest Australia and is non-migratory.

 

Falco peregrinus tundrius

- described by C.M. White in 1968, was at one time included in leucogenys It is found in the Arctic tundra of North America to Greenland, and migrates to wintering grounds in Central and South America. Most vagrants that reach western Europe belong to this subspecies, which was previously united with anatum. It is the New World equivalent to calidus. It is smaller than anatum. It is also paler than anatum; most have a conspicuous white forehead and white in ear region, but the crown and "moustache" are very dark, unlike in calidus. Juveniles are browner, and less grey, than in calidus, and paler, sometimes almost sandy, than in anatum. Males weigh 500 to 700 g (1.1–1.5 lb), while females weigh 800 to 1,100 g (1.8–2.4 lb).

  

Barbary falcon (Main article: Barbary falcon)

 

Two of the subspecies listed above (Falco peregrinus pelegrinoides and F. p. babylonicus) are often instead treated together as a distinct species, Falco pelegrinoides (the Barbary falcon), although they were included within F. peregrinus in the 1994 Handbook of the Birds of the World. These birds inhabit arid regions from the Canary Islands along the rim of the Sahara through the Middle East to Central Asia and Mongolia.

 

Barbary falcons have a red neck patch but otherwise differ in appearance from the peregrine proper merely according to Gloger's Rule, relating pigmentation to environmental humidity. The Barbary falcon has a peculiar way of flying, beating only the outer part of its wings like fulmars sometimes do; this also occurs in the peregrine, but less often and far less pronounced. The Barbary falcon's shoulder and pelvis bones are stout by comparison with the peregrine, and its feet are smaller. Barbary falcons breed at different times of year than neighboring peregrine falcon subspecies, but they are capable of interbreeding. There is a 0.6–0.7% genetic distance in the peregrine-Barbary falcon ("peregrinoid") complex.

 

Another subspecies of Falco peregrinus, madens, has also sometimes been treated instead within a separately recognized F. pelegrinoides.

  

Ecology and behaviour

 

The peregrine falcon lives mostly along mountain ranges, river valleys, coastlines, and increasingly in cities. In mild-winter regions, it is usually a permanent resident, and some individuals, especially adult males, will remain on the breeding territory. Only populations that breed in Arctic climates typically migrate great distances during the northern winter.

 

The peregrine falcon reaches faster speeds than any other animal on the planet when performing the stoop, which involves soaring to a great height and then diving steeply at speeds of over 320 km/h (200 mph), hitting one wing of its prey so as not to harm itself on impact. The air pressure from such a dive could possibly damage a bird's lungs, but small bony tubercles on a falcon's nostrils guide the powerful airflow away from the nostrils, enabling the bird to breathe more easily while diving by reducing the change in air pressure. To protect their eyes, the falcons use their nictitating membranes (third eyelids) to spread tears and clear debris from their eyes while maintaining vision. A study testing the flight physics of an "ideal falcon" found a theoretical speed limit at 400 km/h (250 mph) for low altitude flight and 625 km/h (388 mph) for high altitude flight. In 2005, Ken Franklin recorded a falcon stooping at a top speed of 389 km/h (242 mph).

 

The life span of peregrine falcons in the wild is up to 15.5 years. Mortality in the first year is 59–70%, declining to 25–32% annually in adults. Apart from such anthropogenic threats as collision with human-made objects, the peregrine may be killed by larger hawks and owls.

 

The peregrine falcon is host to a range of parasites and pathogens. It is a vector for Avipoxvirus, Newcastle disease virus, Falconid herpesvirus 1 (and possibly other Herpesviridae), and some mycoses and bacterial infections. Endoparasites include Plasmodium relictum (usually not causing malaria in the peregrine falcon), Strigeidae trematodes, Serratospiculum amaculata (nematode), and tapeworms. Known peregrine falcon ectoparasites are chewing lice, Ceratophyllus garei (a flea), and Hippoboscidae flies (Icosta nigra, Ornithoctona erythrocephala).

 

Feeding

 

The peregrine falcon feeds almost exclusively on medium-sized birds such as pigeons and doves, waterfowl, songbirds, and waders. Worldwide, it is estimated that between 1,500 and 2,000 bird species (up to roughly a fifth of the world's bird species) are predated somewhere by these falcons. In North America, prey has varied in size from 3 g (0.11 oz) hummingbirds (Selasphorus and Archilochus ssp.) to a 3.1 kg (6.8 lb) sandhill crane (killed in Alaska by a peregrine in a stoop), although most prey taken by peregrines weigh from 20 g (0.71 oz) (i.e. small passerines) to 1,100 g (2.4 lb) (i.e. ducks and gulls). The peregrine falcon takes the most diverse range of bird species of any raptor in North America, with more than 300 species having fallen victim to the falcon, including nearly 100 shorebirds. Smaller hawks and owls are regularly predated, mainly smaller falcons such as the American kestrel, merlin and sharp-shinned hawks. In urban areas, the main component of the peregrine's diet is the rock or feral pigeon, which comprise 80% or more of the dietary intake for peregrines in some cities. Other common city birds are also taken regularly, including mourning doves, common wood pigeons, common swifts, northern flickers, common starlings, American robins, common blackbirds, and corvids (such as magpies or carrion, house, and American crows). Other than bats taken at night, the peregrine rarely hunts mammals, but will on occasion take small species such as rats, voles, hares, shrews, mice and squirrels. Coastal populations of the large subspecies pealei feed almost exclusively on seabirds. In the Brazilian mangrove swamp of Cubatão, a wintering falcon of the subspecies tundrius was observed while successfully hunting a juvenile scarlet ibis. Insects and reptiles make up a small proportion of the diet, which varies greatly depending on what prey is available.

 

The peregrine falcon hunts most often at dawn and dusk, when prey are most active, but also nocturnally in cities, particularly during migration periods when hunting at night may become prevalent. Nocturnal migrants taken by peregrines include species as diverse as yellow-billed cuckoo, black-necked grebe, virginia rail, and common quail. The peregrine requires open space in order to hunt, and therefore often hunts over open water, marshes, valleys, fields, and tundra, searching for prey either from a high perch or from the air. Large congregations of migrants, especially species that gather in the open like shorebirds, can be quite attractive to hunting peregrines. Once prey is spotted, it begins its stoop, folding back the tail and wings, with feet tucked. Prey is typically struck and captured in mid-air; the peregrine falcon strikes its prey with a clenched foot, stunning or killing it with the impact, then turns to catch it in mid-air. If its prey is too heavy to carry, a peregrine will drop it to the ground and eat it there. If they miss the initial strike, peregrines will chase their prey in a twisting flight. Although previously thought rare, several cases of peregrines contour-hunting, i.e. using natural contours to surprise and ambush prey on the ground, have been reported and even rare cases of prey being pursued on foot. In addition, peregrines have been documented preying on chicks in nests, from birds such as kittiwakes. Prey is plucked before consumption.

  

Reproduction

 

The peregrine falcon is sexually mature at one to three years of age, but in healthy populations they breed after two to three years of age. A pair mates for life and returns to the same nesting spot annually. The courtship flight includes a mix of aerial acrobatics, precise spirals, and steep dives. The male passes prey it has caught to the female in mid-air. To make this possible, the female actually flies upside-down to receive the food from the male's talons.

 

During the breeding season, the peregrine falcon is territorial; nesting pairs are usually more than 1 km (0.62 mi) apart, and often much farther, even in areas with large numbers of pairs. The distance between nests ensures sufficient food supply for pairs and their chicks. Within a breeding territory, a pair may have several nesting ledges; the number used by a pair can vary from one or two up to seven in a 16-year period.

 

The peregrine falcon nests in a scrape, normally on cliff edges. The female chooses a nest site, where she scrapes a shallow hollow in the loose soil, sand, gravel, or dead vegetation in which to lay eggs. No nest materials are added. Cliff nests are generally located under an overhang, on ledges with vegetation. South-facing sites are favoured. In some regions, as in parts of Australia and on the west coast of northern North America, large tree hollows are used for nesting. Before the demise of most European peregrines, a large population of peregrines in central and western Europe used the disused nests of other large birds. In remote, undisturbed areas such as the Arctic, steep slopes and even low rocks and mounds may be used as nest sites. In many parts of its range, peregrines now also nest regularly on tall buildings or bridges; these human-made structures used for breeding closely resemble the natural cliff ledges that the peregrine prefers for its nesting locations.

 

The pair defends the chosen nest site against other peregrines, and often against ravens, herons, and gulls, and if ground-nesting, also such mammals as foxes, wolverines, felids, bears, wolves, and mountain lions. Both nests and (less frequently) adults are predated by larger-bodied raptorial birds like eagles, large owls, or gyrfalcons. The most serious predators of peregrine nests in North America and Europe are the great horned owl and the Eurasian eagle owl. When reintroductions have been attempted for peregrines, the most serious impediments were these two owls routinely picking off nestlings, fledglings and adults by night. Peregrines defending their nests have managed to kill raptors as large as golden eagles and bald eagles (both of which they normally avoid as potential predators) that have come too close to the nest by ambushing them in a full stoop. In one instance, when a snowy owl killed a newly fledged peregrine, the larger owl was in turn killed by a stooping peregrine parent.

 

The date of egg-laying varies according to locality, but is generally from February to March in the Northern Hemisphere, and from July to August in the Southern Hemisphere, although the Australian subspecies macropus may breed as late as November, and equatorial populations may nest anytime between June and December. If the eggs are lost early in the nesting season, the female usually lays another clutch, although this is extremely rare in the Arctic due to the short summer season. Generally three to four eggs, but sometimes as few as one or as many as five, are laid in the scrape. The eggs are white to buff with red or brown markings. They are incubated for 29 to 33 days, mainly by the female, with the male also helping with the incubation of the eggs during the day, but only the female incubating them at night. The average number of young found in nests is 2.5, and the average number that fledge is about 1.5, due to the occasional production of infertile eggs and various natural losses of nestlings.

 

After hatching, the chicks (called "eyases") are covered with creamy-white down and have disproportionately large feet. The male (called the "tiercel") and the female (simply called the "falcon") both leave the nest to gather prey to feed the young. The hunting territory of the parents can extend a radius of 19 to 24 km (12 to 15 mi) from the nest site. Chicks fledge 42 to 46 days after hatching, and remain dependent on their parents for up to two months.

  

Relationship with humans

 

Use in falconry (Main article: Falconry)

 

The peregrine falcon is a highly admired falconry bird, and has been used in falconry for more than 3,000 years, beginning with nomads in central Asia. Its advantages in falconry include not only its athleticism and eagerness to hunt, but an equitable disposition that leads to it being one of the easier falcons to train. The peregrine falcon has the additional advantage of a natural flight style of circling above the falconer ("waiting on") for game to be flushed, and then performing an effective and exciting high speed diving stoop to take the quarry. The speed and energy of the stoop allows the falcon to catch fast flying birds, and to deliver a knock out blow with a fist-like clenched talon against game that may be much larger than itself. Additionally the versatility of the species, with agility allowing capture of smaller birds and a strength and attacking style allowing capture of game much larger than themselves, combined with the wide size range of the many peregrine subspecies, means there is a subspecies suitable to almost any size and type of game bird. This size range, evolved to fit various environments and prey species, is from the larger females of the largest subspecies to the smaller males of the smallest subspecies, approximately five to one (approximately 1500 g to 300 g). The males of smaller and medium-sized subspecies, and the females of the smaller subspecies, excel in the taking of swift and agile small game birds such as dove, quail, and smaller ducks. The females of the larger subspecies are capable of taking large and powerful game birds such as the largest of duck species, pheasant, and grouse.

 

Peregrine falcons are also occasionally used to scare away birds at airports to reduce the risk of bird-plane strikes, improving air-traffic safety, and were used to intercept homing pigeons during World War II.

 

Peregrine falcons have been successfully bred in captivity, both for falconry and for release back into the wild. Until 2004 nearly all peregrines used for falconry in the US were captive-bred from the progeny of falcons taken before the US Endangered Species Act was enacted and from those few infusions of wild genes available from Canada and special circumstances. Peregrine falcons were removed from the United States' endangered species list in 1999. The successful recovery program was aided by the effort and knowledge of falconers – in collaboration with The Peregrine Fund and state and federal agencies – through a technique called hacking. Finally, after years of close work with the US Fish and Wildlife Service, a limited take of wild peregrines was allowed in 2004, the first wild peregrines taken specifically for falconry in over 30 years.

 

The development of captive breeding methods has led to peregrines being commercially available for falconry use, thus mostly eliminating the need to capture wild birds for support of falconry. The main reason for taking wild peregrines at this point is to maintain healthy genetic diversity in the breeding lines. Hybrids of peregrines and gyrfalcons are also available that can combine the best features of both species to create what many consider to be the ultimate falconry bird for the taking of larger game such as the sage-grouse. These hybrids combine the greater size, strength, and horizontal speed of the gyrfalcon with the natural propensity to stoop and greater warm weather tolerance of the peregrine.

 

Since peregrine eggs and chicks are still often targeted by illegal collectors, it is common practice not to publicize unprotected nest locations.

  

Decline due to pesticides

 

The peregrine falcon became an endangered species because of the use of organochlorine pesticides, especially DDT, during the 1950s, '60s, and '70s. Pesticide biomagnification caused organochlorine to build up in the falcons' fat tissues, reducing the amount of calcium in their eggshells. With thinner shells, fewer falcon eggs survived to hatching. In several parts of the world, such as the eastern United States and Belgium, this species became extirpated (locally extinct) as a result. An alternate point of view is that populations in the eastern North America had vanished due to hunting and egg collection.

  

Recovery efforts

 

In the United States, Canada, Germany and Poland, wildlife services in peregrine falcon recovery teams breed the species in captivity. The chicks are usually fed through a chute or with a hand puppet mimicking a peregrine's head, so they cannot see to imprint on the human trainers. Then, when they are old enough, the rearing box is opened, allowing the bird to train its wings. As the fledgling gets stronger, feeding is reduced, forcing the bird to learn to hunt. This procedure is called hacking back to the wild. To release a captive-bred falcon, the bird is placed in a special cage at the top of a tower or cliff ledge for some days or so, allowing it to acclimate itself to its future environment.

 

Worldwide recovery efforts have been remarkably successful. The widespread restriction of DDT use eventually allowed released birds to breed successfully. The peregrine falcon was removed from the U.S. Endangered Species list on August 25, 1999.

 

Some controversy has existed over the origins of captive breeding stock used by The Peregrine Fund in the recovery of peregrine falcons throughout the contiguous United States. Several peregrine subspecies were included in the breeding stock, including birds of Eurasian origin. Due to the extirpation of the eastern anatum (Falco peregrinus anatum), the near extirpation of the anatum in the Midwest, and the limited gene pool within North American breeding stock, the inclusion of non-native subspecies was justified to optimize the genetic diversity found within the species as a whole.

  

Current status

 

Populations of the peregrine falcon have bounced back in most parts of the world. In Britain, there has been a recovery of populations since the crash of the 1960s. This has been greatly assisted by conservation and protection work led by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. The RSPB has estimated that there are 1,402 breeding pairs in the UK. Peregrines now breed in many mountainous and coastal areas, especially in the west and north, and nest in some urban areas, capitalising on the urban feral pigeon populations for food. In Southampton, a nest prevented restoration of mobile telephony services for several months, after Vodafone engineers despatched to repair a faulty transmitter mast discovered a nest in the mast, and were prevented by the Wildlife and Countryside Act, on pain of a possible prison sentence, from proceeding with repairs until the chicks fledged. In many parts of the world peregrine falcons have adapted to urban habitats, nesting on cathedrals, skyscraper window ledges, tower blocks, and the towers of suspension bridges. Many of these nesting birds are encouraged, sometimes gathering media attention and often monitored by cameras.

 

From an ecological perspective, raptor populations in urban areas are highly beneficial. Compared with Europe where pigeon populations have exploded to the point they are both a tourist attraction and a public nuisance. Their faeces are highly acidic causing damage to historic buildings and statues made of soft stone. They nest in bridges where it compiles and damages iron work causing rust and corrosion. In the United States, falcon and other raptors are in numbers high enough to ward off pigeon nest building in major highrises.

  

Cultural significance

 

Due to its striking hunting technique, the peregrine has often been associated with aggression and martial prowess. Native Americans of the Mississippian culture (c. 800–1500) used the peregrine, along with several other birds of prey, in imagery as a symbol of "aerial (celestial) power" and buried men of high status in costumes associating to the ferocity of "raptorial" birds. In the late Middle Ages, the Western European nobility that used peregrines for hunting, considered the bird associated with princes in formal hierarchies of birds of prey, just below the gyrfalcon associated with kings. It was considered "a royal bird, more armed by its courage than its claws". Terminology used by peregrine breeders also used the Old French term gentil, "of noble birth; aristocratic", particularly with the peregrine.

 

The peregrine falcon is the national animal of the United Arab Emirates. Since 1927, the peregrine falcon has been the official mascot of Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. The 2007 U.S. Idaho state quarter features a peregrine falcon. The peregrine falcon has been designated the official city bird of Chicago.

  

[Credit: en.wikipedia.org]

 

the wire has lasted a long time

 

"SPRINT" is an acronym for Southern Pacific Railroad Internal Networking Telephony.

Radio Kootwijk is a small town in the Dutch municipality of Apeldoorn, with (in 2006) ca. 120 inhabitants. It is situated in a heather- and forest-rich territory in the Veluwe region, east of the sandhills of the Kootwijkerzand and the town of Kootwijk.

 

The housing accommodations of Radio Kootwijk arose as a result of the building of a shortwave transmitter site with the same name, starting in 1918. The transmitters played an important role in the 20th century as a communication facility between the Netherlands and its then colony of Dutch East Indies. In 1923 Dutch PTT started trans-oceanic telegraphy using a longwave transmitter (a 400KW high frequency alternator) from the German Telefunken company under the callsign PCG, in the 24 kHz and 48 kHz. By 1925 the longwave transmitter was changed by a shortwave tube based, electronic transmitter which had a much better performance due to the better propagation of shortwaves. With this new technology, in 1928 a radio-telephonic connection was established. At the end of World War II, the German occupying forces blew up the transmitter. Afterward some of the radio towers were rebuilt.[1]

 

Due to the development of new technologies like satellite communication, Radio Kootwijk lost its position as main overseas wireless connection point of the Netherlands. In 1980, the last transmission mast was blown up. In 2004 the park lost its last transmitter functions, and was transferred from the KPN company (successor to PTT) to the State Forestry Commission, which started attracting new buyers. The main building of the former transmitter park, designed by Dutch architect Julius Maria Luthmann and named 'Building A', 'The Cathedral' or sometimes 'The Sphynx', was officially appointed as a monument. It is used as venue and scenery for several cultural events and productions, including the American film Mindhunters in

8675-309 I got your number. I spent a fair amount of my working life in the telephone industry. I was never a repair or maintenance technician but a manager in multiple departments including repair and maintenance. My rural upbringing included party lines where people answered based on distinctive ring patterns. Two longs and a short was the Scott family and 3 shorts was the Johnson’s. Because the party line is shared anyone can listen in or interrupt. Great for gossip. Sometimes you would need to tell the neighbors (grandma or children) to get off the line because the call was yours and not theirs. And sometimes the other parties spoke little English. Before I retired we were building survivable collapsed fiber optic rings. Naturally, when I saw this relic hanging on the wall of a basement stairwell without its shroud (cover) and no receiver, I took a little stroll down memory lane.

Hé les amis vous savez bien que j'en n'ai rien à cirer de l'explore mais ça serait bien si cette publication traduite pouvait y figurer pour qu'un maximum de personnes la voient.

Si ça pouvait avoir un petit impact aussi minime soit il, ce serait bien. J'en appelle à vos favoris donc.

  

J'espère que tout le monde est au courant du fait que starlink envoi des chiées de satellites... même à Nice un des multiples envoi a été observé. Starlink affirme que c'est pour la téléphonie et le nombre de satellites cibles à envoyer est édifiant! Il pensent jusqu'à 42000 satellites en plus en fin de mission...Je trouve que ces envois de satellites sont suffisamment inquiétants de par le budget que ça représente pour que soit juste pour la téléphonie et l'internet.

 

Voilà donc un autre documentaire sur la 5G cette fois (sous titré français). Suivi d'une pétition.

  

www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxiGnE9qXvY&feature=youtu.be&...

 

Pétition: www.leslignesbougent.org/petitions/stop-5g-en-france/?fbc...

 

J'oubliais un autre super documentaire en français sur les ondes leurs effets et l'intimidations des multinationnales. www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVd3NXvTH4s&fbclid=IwAR1V3ynY...

 

En ce moment pendant ce confinement on installe des antennes 5G en France voici le lien des textes en vigueur. C'est considéré comme une première nécessité donc www.vie-publique.fr/loi/273988-ordonnance-covid-19-reseau....

 

et pour finir en folie un extrait de c'est dans l'air: www.facebook.com/Cdanslairf5/videos/219840489099559/UzpfS...

 

======================================================

google translate:

 

The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.

 

Albert einstein

  

I hope everyone is aware of the fact that starlink sends satellite files ... even in Nice one of the multiple sending has been observed. Starlink says it is for telephony and the number of target satellites to send is edifying! They think up to 42,000 more satellites at the end of the mission ... I find that these satellite shipments are sufficiently worrying given the budget it represents to be fair for telephony and the Internet.

 

So this is another documentary on 5G this time (with French subtitles). Followed by a petition.

 

Pétition: www.leslignesbougent.org/petitions/stop-5g-en-france/?fbc...

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=KVd3NXvTH4s&fbclid=IwAR1V3ynY...

  

At the moment during this confinement, 5G antennas are installed in France here is the link of the texts in force. It is considered a first necessity therefore.

 

www.vie-publique.fr/loi/273988-ordonnance-covid-19-reseau....

  

an extract of a french tv informations show

www.facebook.com/Cdanslairf5/videos/219840489099559/UzpfS...

   

Building Radio Kootwijk, Veluwe NL - 1922 - architect Julius Maria Luthmann.

The housing accommodations of Radio Kootwijk arose as a result of the building of a shortwave transmitter site with the same name, starting in 1918. The transmitters played an important role in the 20th century as a communication facility between the Netherlands and its colony of Dutch East Indies. In 1923 Dutch PTT (Post, Telegraph and Telephone Company) started trans-oceanic telegraphy using a longwave transmitter, a 400 KW high frequency alternator, from the German Telefunken company under the call sign PCG, in the 24 kHz and 48 kHz. By 1925 the longwave transmitter was changed by a shortwave tube based, electronic transmitter which had a much better performance due to the better propagation of short waves. With this new technology, in 1928 a radio-telephonic connection was established. At the end of World War II, the German occupying forces blew up the transmitter. Afterward some of the radio towers were rebuilt. Due to the development of new technologies like satellite communication, Radio Kootwijk lost its position as main overseas wireless connection point of the Netherlands. In 1980, the last transmission mast was blown up. In 2004 the park lost its last transmitter functions, and was transferred from the telephone company to the State Forestry Commission, which started attracting new buyers. The main building of the former transmitter park and named 'Building A', 'The Cathedral' or sometimes 'The Sphinx', was officially appointed as a monument. It is used as venue and scenery for several cultural events and productions, including the American film Mind Hunters in 2004.

Building Radio Kootwijk, Veluwe NL - 1922 - architect Julius Maria Luthmann.

The housing accommodations of Radio Kootwijk arose as a result of the building of a shortwave transmitter site with the same name, starting in 1918. The transmitters played an important role in the 20th century as a communication facility between the Netherlands and its colony of Dutch East Indies. In 1923 Dutch PTT (Post, Telegraph and Telephone Company) started trans-oceanic telegraphy using a longwave transmitter, a 400 KW high frequency alternator, from the German Telefunken company under the call sign PCG, in the 24 kHz and 48 kHz. By 1925 the longwave transmitter was changed by a shortwave tube based, electronic transmitter which had a much better performance due to the better propagation of short waves. With this new technology, in 1928 a radio-telephonic connection was established. At the end of World War II, the German occupying forces blew up the transmitter. Afterward some of the radio towers were rebuilt. Due to the development of new technologies like satellite communication, Radio Kootwijk lost its position as main overseas wireless connection point of the Netherlands. In 1980, the last transmission mast was blown up. In 2004 the park lost its last transmitter functions, and was transferred from the telephone company to the State Forestry Commission, which started attracting new buyers. The main building of the former transmitter park and named 'Building A', 'The Cathedral' or sometimes 'The Sphinx', was officially appointed as a monument. It is used as venue and scenery for several cultural events and productions, including the American film Mind Hunters in 2004.

No Doubt - Spiderwebs

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZktNItwexo

 

You think that we connect

That the chemistry's correct

Your words walk right through my ears

Presuming I like what I hear

And now I'm stuck in the

The web you're spinning

You got me for your prey

Sorry I'm not home right now

I'm walking into spiderwebs

So leave a message and I'll call you back

A likely story, but

Leave a message and I'll call you back

You're intruding on what's mine

Yeah, and you're taking up my time

Don't have the courage inside me

To tell you "Please let me be"

Communication

A telephonic invasion

I'm planning my escape

Sorry, I'm not home right now

I'm walking into spiderwebs

So leave a message and I'll call you back

A likely story, but

Leave a message and I'll call you back

And it's all your fault

I screen my phone calls

No matter who calls

I gotta screen my phone calls

Now it's gone too deep (now it's gone too deep)

You wake me in my sleep (wake me in my sleep)

My dreams become nightmares (my dreams become nightmares)

'Cause you're ringing in my ears

Sorry I'm not home right now

I'm walking into spiderwebs

So leave a message and I'll call you back

A likely story, but

Leave a message and I'll call you back

And it's all your fault

I screen my phone calls

No matter, matter, matter, matter who calls

I gotta screen my phone calls

Ooh, the spiderwebs

Leave a message and I'll call you back

I'm walking into spiderwebs

So leave a message and I'll call you back

It's all your fault

I screen my phone calls

No matter, matter, matter who calls

I gotta screen my phone calls

It's all your fault

It's all your fault

No matter who calls

No matter who calls

Ooh, I'm walking into spiderwebs

So leave a message and I'll call you back

I'm walking into spiderwebs

Leave a message and I'll call you back

Oh, it's all your fault (I'm walking into spiderwebs)

(Leave a message and I'll call you back) no matter who calls

I gotta screen my phone calls (I'm walking into spiderwebs)

(Leave a message and I'll call you back) It's all your fault

No matter, matter, matter who calls (I'm walking into spiderwebs)

(Leave a message and I'll call you back) I screen my phonecalls

I'm walking into spiderwebs

Leave a message and I'll call you back

The Windmill Tower:

 

The oldest convict-built structure surviving in Queensland, the windmill tower has accommodated a range of uses. Constructed in 1828 to process the wheat and corn crops of the Moreton Bay penal settlement, it had a treadmill attached for times when there was no wind but also as a tool for punishing convicts. The mill ceased grinding grain in 1845 and the treadmill was removed sometime before 1849. From 1855 the tower was reused as a signal station to communicate shipping news between the entrance of the Brisbane River and the town. Substantial renovations were made to it in 1861 including the installation of a time ball to assist in regulating clocks and watches. Twenty years later a cottage for the signalman was constructed to the immediate west of the tower, with a detached kitchen erected to the south two years after that. Both were later demolished. The windmill tower was used as a facility for early radio, telephony and television communications research from the 1920s and underwent substantial conservation work in the 1980s and 2009.

 

In May 1825, after eight months of occupation at Redcliffe, the contingent of convicts, soldiers, administrators and their families comprising the Moreton Bay penal settlement relocated to the site of present-day Brisbane's central business district. The growing settlement was to be self-sufficient in feeding its residents by cultivating corn (also known as maize) and wheat crops at the government farm, which were then processed into meal and flour by hand mills.[1] By 1827, with a substantial crop to process, the settlement storekeeper recommended a treadmill be erected to grind the crop into flour. Commandant Logan indicated at this time that such a devise at Brisbane town would be of service and also provide an avenue for the punishment of convicts.[2]

 

There is little evidence confirming details of the windmill tower's planning and construction. In July 1828, Peter Beauclerk Spicer, the Superintendent of Convicts at the time, recorded in his diary that convicts were 'clearing ground for foundations for the Mill' and proceeded to dig a circular trench that reached bedrock and had a circumference of approximately 9 metres.[3] Allan Cunningham noted soon after that construction was in progress. The mill was constructed on the highest point overlooking the settlement on what is now Wickham Terrace. By 31 October 1828 the first grain was being ground at the site by a mill gang; however it is supposed that this was done by a treadmill as the rotating cap and sails associated with the wind-powered operation of the mill were not brought to the site until November.[4] Circumstantial evidence suggests that the wind-powered grinding of grain did not begin until December.

 

There were two pairs of millstones inside the tower, each driven independently by the treadmill and sail mechanisms. The former was located outside the tower, a shaft connecting the treadwheel and the mill cogwheels inside. Two sketches from the early 1830s show the windmill tower and its sail stocks in place,[5] while an 1839 description depicts a tower built from stone and brick, comprising four floors, a treadmill and windmill. From 1829 the windmill tower was said to be continually requiring repair, possibly because its equipment was all made from locally-available timber rather than iron[6].

 

The treadmill was an important component of the mill, for use as punishment without trial, and for times when there was no wind but the amounts of grain sufficient to sustain the settlement still required processing. No plans exist of the Brisbane treadmill, however, the Office of the Colonial Architect produced a standard Design for Tread Mill Adapted for Country Districts Average Estimate £120.[7] Between 25 and 30 men worked at the mill at any one time. Sixteen operated the treadmill, although as there are no plans, it is uncertain whether it comprised a standard 16-place treadmill, or two 8-place sections connected to a common shaft. Each man would climb five steps to get onto the wheel, standing on the 9 inch wide treads and holding on to the rail. The men would then work as though ascending steps to operate the treadmill. Some undertook this task while in leg irons, while the more able used one hand to hold on and the other to draw sketches of people, animals and scenes on the boards of the mill. The men would work from sunrise to sunset with three hours rest in the middle of the day in summer, and two hours in winter.[8] [9] The first casualty of the treadmill, which produced the first official record of its existence, occurred in September 1829 when prisoner Michael Collins lost his life after being entangled in the operating mechanism. Maps of 1840s Brisbane feature a rectangular structure attached to the outside of the tower, Robert Dixon's in particular showing a 6 x 5 metre structure, probably the treadmill, located on ground that was to become Wickham Terrace.

 

In July 1841 the Brisbane tower was reputedly the site of a public execution of two Aboriginal men who had been convicted in Sydney of the murder of Assistant Surveyor Stapylton and one of his party near Mount Lindsay. They were returned to Moreton Bay and hanged with about 100 Aboriginal people present, however it may be that the execution took place elsewhere on what was known as Windmill Hill.[10]

 

Indicative of the prominence of its physical position, the tower served as one of the stations for the trigonometrical survey of the Moreton Bay district conducted by Robert Dixon, Granville Stapylton and James Warner from May 1839 in preparation for the area being opened to free settlement.[11]

 

In February 1836 the windmill tower was struck by lightning, causing severe damage throughout, including to the treadmill. A convict millwright was brought from Sydney in June for the repairs, which amounted to a major rebuild of the structure that was not completed until May 1837.[12] In April 1839, with the closure of the Moreton Bay penal settlement being planned, the windmill tower was one of the buildings recommended for transfer to the colony. This was approved in 1840-41 but it continued to sporadically process grain until 1845, when due to crop failure, a stagnant population and the availability of imported flour, it finally ceased being used. The penal settlement had officially closed in February 1842. The treadmill operated until 1845 and had been removed by October 1849[13].

 

The windmill tower in Brisbane is the oldest of its type left standing in Australia and further distinguished by having been built by convict labour. The earliest standing stone windmill towers extant around the country date from the 1830s and include: one built in 1837 in South Perth, Western Australia[14]; another built in the same year at Oatlands in Tasmania which operated until 1890[15]; and another built at Mount Gilead near Campbelltown in New South Wales in 1836[16]. Most were built to process grains into flour. Other surviving mill towers are the one built in 1842 by FR Nixon at Mount Barker in South Australia; Chapman's mill built around 1850 at Wonnerup in Western Australia[17], and another built at a similar time on an island in the Murray River near Yunderup in Western Australia[18]. None of the nineteen windmill towers that characterised the early settlement at Sydney have survived.[19] Technological developments, most particularly steam power which was more dependable than wind power or that generated by convict labour at a treadmill, rendered wind-driven mills largely redundant.

 

After the cessation of milling operations there were discussions about possible future use of Brisbane's windmill tower. In December 1849 the tower was put up for auction and bought by a government official who promptly sought tenders for removal of it and its machinery (the auction terms required it to be cleared away by three months after the sale).[20] Ownership of the place quickly reverted to the Crown because of a legal problem with the sale, but not before some dismantling had occurred.[21] In a January 1850 article the Moreton Bay Courier continued its appeal for the windmill not to be pulled down and secured by the town, arguing that aside from its landmark and picturesque qualities it was the ‘best fixed point for land measurement in the district'. In this vein the site was the most accessible viewing point for the picturesque landscape of Brisbane and its environs. Despite earlier calls to erase evidence of Brisbane's convict past, 'sentiment and pragmatism combined to override the detrimental taint of convictism' saving the tower from destruction. The sails were still in place in 1854 and appear in a painting of the windmill completed in 1855.[22]

 

By 1855 Brisbane was the leading Queensland port and it became important to establish signal stations to communicate shipping news between the entrance of the Brisbane River and the town, one of which was set up on Windmill Hill. This required modifications to the tower to include a semaphore station connected to the electric telegraph. Information on ships entering the river was converted to semaphore signals using flags hoisted on a mast erected on top of the tower. The renovations were undertaken by John Petrie in October 1861 to plans by colonial architect Charles Tiffin and included the removal of the windmill stocks or arms and wheels; the laying of floors on each storey; new doors and windows; a weatherproof floor on the top of the tower with an iron railing; a new winding staircase from bottom to top; repair of stone, brickwork and plastering; and the installation of a high flagstaff to fly signals.[23] The tower's renovation at this time also fitted it out as a public observatory and it became known by that term.[24] The following year it became the first home of the newly founded Queensland Museum; serving this purpose until 1868 when other accommodation was provided in the old convict barracks or parliamentary building on Queen Street.[25]

 

Petrie also installed a time ball on the tower to provide a reliable authority for regulating clocks and watches. It was dropped at one o'clock each day based on observations relayed by telegraph from Sydney. The time ball was replaced by a time gun in 1866, with an embankment and shed constructed to hold the gun in 1874. After 1882 the gun and shed were moved to the eastern section of the current reserve before the shed was demolished in 1908. The time gun proved useful to people as far away as Logan, Caboolture and Ipswich. The old gun was replaced in 1888 with another before a new electrically-controlled time ball was installed in 1894. This was associated with the legislated implementation of a single time throughout the colony, being designated as ten hours earlier than the mean time at Greenwich. Adjustments were made to the tower at this time to accommodate the new time ball. The roof was lowered and the flagstaff pared down.[26]

 

A cottage for the signalman was constructed in 1883 to the immediate west of the tower to plans prepared by Government Architect FDG Stanley and on part of the Waterworks reserve. Two years later a detached kitchen was also constructed behind it to the south of the tower. Use of the signal station was discontinued in 1921 by the state government, which then sought a new use for the structure and land. [27] Despite this the flagstaff remained in place until 1949. From January 1893 the Fire Brigade implemented a nightly observation post from a specially-constructed platform on top of the tower. This was used until around 1922.

 

The Commonwealth government assumed responsibility for the site in 1901 but control reverted to the state in 1908 when it was designated as an Observatory Reserve. In 1902 it had been connected to the Railway Telegraph Office at Roma Street so that the railways had the correct time for their operations. The evidence of historical photographs suggests that sometime between 1902 and 1912 the cabin at the top was increased in size.[28] The time ball remained in operation until 1930.

 

The site was placed under the trusteeship of the Brisbane City Council in 1922. The site of the cottage remained in the hands of the Waterworks Board and a boundary re-arrangement had to occur to allow its continued use in relation to the observatory. At this time the Queensland Institute of Radio Engineers began wireless radio and telephony research at the tower, and used the signalman's cottage to meet two nights a month. Apparatus to operate a wireless radio station was installed in 1926. The cottage was occupied on a more regular basis in order to reduce the risk of vandalism to the tower, but fell vacant. In 1926 the City Architect, AH Foster, proposed a plan for beautifying the observatory, which included removal of the cottage and adjacent sheds. The tender of Messrs Guyomar and Wright to remove the cottage, shed and outhouse for £60 was accepted.[29] At this time the stone and wrought iron wall along Wickham Terrace was erected. It was intended to add 'dignity to the historical reserve, and harmonise with the massive character of the Tower'.[30]

 

From 1924 Thomas Elliott installed equipment in the tower to undertake cutting-edge television research; he and Allen Campbell giving a demonstration from the site in 1934 which constituted Queensland's first television broadcast. It was considered by many at the time as the most outstanding achievement thus far in the history of television in Australia. They gained a license from the government and continued experimental broadcasting from the tower until about 1944.[31]

 

From 1945 the Brisbane City Council was considering suitable action to preserve the tower, which had become a popular visitor attraction. Some restoration work was carried out in 1950 on the advice of Frank Costello (then Officer in Charge of Planning and Building with the City Council), which included removal of old render and re-rendering the entire structure. It was at this time that the flagstaff was removed in preparation for making the open ground of the reserve 'a real park'. Certainly these conservation efforts considered the heritage value of the place as well as the public's use of it.

 

However by 1962 the windmill tower was again in poor condition. Floodlighting to enhance its appearance for tourists was undertaken for the first time during the Warana Festival five years later. In the early 1970s the Council and the National Trust of Queensland undertook detailed investigations regarding restoration and transfer of trusteeship from the council to the trust (the latter were abandoned in 1976). None of the original plans or any of the original windmill machinery parts could be located at that time. Based on these findings the National Trust formed the opinion that the building should be preserved in its present form and not reconstructed to its windmill form.

 

In 1982 City Council undertook some external maintenance work on the observation house or cabin, including replacement of deteriorated timber to the balcony and sills, and corrugated iron on the roof, and repair of the time ball and its mast (which was shortened by about 300 mm to remove some part affected by dry rot).[32]

 

In 1987 a consortium of companies involved in the construction of the Central Plaza office building offered to assist the Brisbane City Council with the conservation of the Windmill Tower. To inform this work a conservation study was undertaken by Allom Lovell Marquis-Kyle Architects, which also oversaw conservation work[33]. Preliminary archaeological investigations undertaken at this time identified the remains of the original flagstaff base which was reinstated.[34] The conserved Windmill Tower was opened by the Lord Mayor of Brisbane on 3 November 1988. A further archaeological investigation was carried out at the site in 1989-90 by a University of Queensland team, revealing clear stratigraphic layers datable to each of the key phases of use of the site.[35] In August 1993 further investigations of the fabric of the tower were undertaken to explore the extent of the footings and the nature of construction of the curb and cap frame. More conservation work was carried out in May 1996. [36]

 

In 2009 the Brisbane City Council received considerable funding to carry out restoration work of the windmill tower through the State Government's Q150 Connecting Brisbane project. It was intended that the structure be publically accessible to allow visitors to experience the view from its observation platform, a practice that has been commented on since the 1860s.[37] In 2008 - 2009 the Brisbane CBD Archaeological Plan assessed the area of the observatory reserve and a length of Wickham Terrace associated with it as having exceptional archaeological research potential because of the combination of its association with the penal settlement and the low level of ground disturbance that has occurred there since.[38]

 

The Tower Mill Hotel:

 

Spring Hill is Brisbane’s oldest suburb containing many of Brisbane’s oldest structures. Opposite the site of the Tower Mill Motel is the convict-built windmill tower dating from 1828 and nearby the town’s first purpose-built reservoirs dating from 1866.

 

Being close to the town centre, Spring Hill developed as the town developed with fashionable, more expensive houses on the ridgeline above Brisbane Town and cheaper housing on the lower slopes and gullies. As the town spread in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, newer suburbs further out attracted development and Spring Hill was, by the early twentieth century, crowded, a bit run-down and cheap. In the postwar era, as prosperity returned in the 1950s and 1960s, a wave of new development swept the city. Young professionals and artists were attracted to Spring Hill as it was close to the city centre and the suburb experienced somewhat of a revival and the beginnings of gentrification.

 

The increased frequency and affordability of international travel also had an impact as Australia became a destination and new international style hotels were built. In Brisbane, the traditional corner hotels lacked the facilities and accommodation standards required by the growing modern tourist market. In the 1960s a number of new hotels were built, with the Tower Mill Motel being one of the first and an outstanding example of the new modern international style.

 

The site of the motel was previously occupied by a doctor’s surgery in-keeping with the development of Wickham Street over time as the location of private hospitals and specialist clinics. The site was purchased by Chacewater Pty Ltd who applied in November 1964 to build a seventy unit motel designed by architect, Stephen Trotter, estimated to cost £285,000.

 

Stephen Trotter was born in Brisbane in 1930 and trained in the offices of Mervyn Rylance and Fulton and Collin. He gained a Diploma of Architecture (Qld) in 1954 and became a registered architect in 1955. He started in practice as an associate of Fulton and Collin in 1958. His time with Mervyn Rylance, who specialized in Old English designs, instilled in Trotter a desire to design buildings that responded to the sub-tropical climate of Brisbane. In 1962 John Gillmour, Stephen Trotter and Graham Boys became partners in the firm. Influenced by the new international styles being constructed overseas and the new engineering technologies being developed after the war, Stephen Trotter successfully applied for a Royal Australian Institute of Architects (RAIA) Sisalkraft Scholarship in 1962. His application included the design of the Tower Mill Motel in his portfolio of works as an indication of his desire to study design responses to climatic conditions. Trotter’s whirlwind three-month tour of the world resulted in a study entitled “Cities in the Sun” which identified the elements of design relating to hot, dry; hot wet, warm wet and warm dry climates in the subcontinent, Persia, Oceania, South America, North America and Europe.

 

The Tower Mill Motel features a striking circular form, distinctive concrete sun-shading and a restaurant on the top floor. The circular form and roof detailing mirror the circular form and detailing of the diminutive historic windmill tower across the road. Embracing the new design technologies of the international style, the Tower Mill Motel features expressed concrete floor plates and columns and concrete awnings shading the full height glazed walls. It is completely different from the international style hotels being built in the city at this time which, although featuring curtain walls and full height glazing, generally adhered to a rectangular footprint and identical room layouts.

 

Stephen Trotter remained as a partner of Fulton, Collin, Boys, Gilmour and Trotter until 1999. During this period he taught architecture at the Queensland Institute of Technology (QIT now QUT), instilling an understanding of the importance of the environment and energy efficiency in building design to a generation of architecture students. As well as lecturing at QIT for nineteen years, Trotter was involved in the Queensland Chapter of the Australian Institute of Architects for a number of years. Trotter retired from Fulton Trotter in 1999, however his sons Mark and Paul are now directors. Stephen Trotter also made an outstanding contribution to the University of Queensland residential college, International House, for over sixty years and he was made a Fellow in November 2011. Stephen Trotter passed away on 30 July 2015, aged 84.

 

The Tower Mill Motel was completed in 1964 and went on to become a destination for overseas visitors.

 

The outstanding innovative design of the Tower Mill Motel, not only is a unique example of a 1960s cyclindrical building that is sensitively designed to respond to the site and climate. The hotel was subdivided for 107 strata titled units in December 2002 with some being sold into private ownership and some being retained for use as hotel rooms. A recent change in ownership has seen the purchase of a number of private units to facilitate the return of the whole building to use as a hotel.

 

Source: Queensland Heritage Register & Brisbane City Council Heritage Register.

You think that we connect

That the chemistry's correct

Your words walk right through my ears

Presuming I like what I hear

  

And now I'm stuck in the web

You're spinning

You've got me for your prey

  

Sorry I'm not home right now

I'm walking into spiderwebs

So leave a message

And I'll call you back

A likely story, but leave a message

And I'll call you back

  

You're intruding on what's mine and

You're taking up my time

Don't have the courage inside me

To tell you please let me be

  

Communication, a telephonic invasion

I'm planning my escape...

 

~ No Doubt

Park Tower (formerly known as the Lykes Building) is a skyscraper located in downtown Tampa, Florida. It is Tampa's first high-rise tower. At the time of its completion in November 1973, it was the tallest in Florida, and is currently sixth-tallest in Tampa, at 458 feet (36 stories). It was the tallest building in Tampa until One Tampa City Center was built in 1981.

 

Park Tower is located in the heart of downtown Tampa directly across from The Tampa Riverwalk & Hillsborough River; Curtis Hixon and Gaslight Parks; the Glazer Children's Museum and the Tampa Museum of Art. It is within walking distance of the Tampa Convention Center, University of Tampa, and the David A. Straz Jr. Center for the Performing Arts.

 

In 2016 the tower was purchased by a joint venture consisting of affiliates of NYSE listed City Office REIT (NYSE: CIO), Feldman Equities LLC, and Tower Realty Partners for $79.75 million. The group completed a multi-million-dollar renovation in 2019. The most significant change at Park Tower is the modernization of the office building's façade by painting the exterior a lighter color and upgrading the main entrance. The building's amenities were upgraded with a modern lobby and the addition of Buddy Brew Coffee café. The office tower's updated design was created by internationally renowned architect Gensler.

 

Since acquiring the property, new leases have been signed including the headquarters relocation of CAPTRUST Advisors, LLC, Buddy Brew Coffee and Continuity Logic, LLC. Anchor tenants include BB&T, United States Department of Justice – US Attorney's Office, Level 3 Communications and Lykes Insurance.

 

Park Tower is LEED EB Gold Certified and EPA Energy Star certified.

 

The tower's amenities include FedEx Office, U.S. Post Office, BB&T Bank, Grow Financial Credit Union, Pearl Salon, Nature's Table Café, a fitness center, conference room and a 6th-floor tenant lounge, lobby concierge and Buddy Brew Coffee.

 

Park Tower is the "Telco-Hotel" for the region, with a major telephony and internet presence.

Tenants with a major Point of Presence (POP's) and Central Offices (CO's, AKA Telephone Exchanges)

 

AT&T

Verizon Communications (formerly XO Communications, Frontier Communications, Verizon Business (MCI, UUNET, World Comm))

CenturyLink (formerly Level 3 Communications and Global Crossing)

Charter Spectrum (formerly Bright House Networks)

Crown Castle (formerly FPL FiberNet)

TW Telecom (formerly Time Warner Communications)

Windstream Communications (formerly Earthlink, ITC Deltacom, PAETEC, USLEC, NUVOX, and Florida Digital Networks)

Cogent Communications

FiberLight www.fiberlight.com/

Online Technology Exchange www.otxi.com/

Summit Broadband (formerly US Metropolitan Telecom) summit-broadband.com/

Tampa Internet Exchange tampix.com/ (located within the WOW Business Data Center)

WOW Business Services (Wide Open West, a carrier-neutral colocation data center formerly known as E Solutions Corporation).

 

The building has two underground 13.2kV electrical feeds from the utility power company, one of which is from the high-priority medical grid and multiple diverse entry points for fiber optic and other data cabling. Park Tower is home to a large underground Federal Reserve Vault. The building also features video-enhanced 24x7x365 on-site security.

 

When it was originally built, the tower was the home of The First National Bank of Tampa, later First National Bank of Florida (First Florida Corporation). Park Tower was also the headquarters of the Lykes Brothers Corporation. The tower was purchased by Sterling American Property of New York City for $27.4 million in 2006 and underwent its first restoration including newly renovated elevators, air conditioning, and replacement of much of the electrical distribution system. The building later became the downtown Tampa headquarters of Colonial Bank, now BB&T. BB&T's sign is still featured on the top of the building.

 

Credit for the data above is given to the following websites:

www.emporis.com/buildings/128610/park-tower-tampa-fl-usa

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park_Tower_(Tampa)

www.parktowertampa.com

 

© All Rights Reserved - you may not use this image in any form without my prior permission.

   

Santa Luzia

De stoptrein Mol-Hasselt vertrekt richting Hasselt. Toen nog met M1 rijtuigen in onregelmatige dienst.Het rechtse telefoniegebouw en het station is alles wat er nog rechtstaat.De lokomotief is wel nog in dienst bij Infrabel als blauwe Infrabel proeflok.(Diascan)

The commuter train Mol-Hasselt leaving in the direction of Hasselt. Then still with M1 carriages in irregular service.The rightmost telephony building and the station is still everything there is rule of law.The locomotive is still in service with Infrabel as blue Infrabel lokomotive.(Diascan)

The unfulfilled promise of British b&w B films of the 1950's..

Avenue de Flandre | Rue Suzanne Mason 01/10/2022 10h02

A beautiful mural on a wall in a side street of the Rue de Flandre in the 19ème arrondissement of Paris.

 

A photo especially taken and uploaded for the

Wednesday Walls Group.

 

Avenue de Flandre

Avenue de Flandre (formely « rue de Flandre ») is one of the main thoroughfares in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, 1,500 m long.

It connects Place de la Bataille-de-Stalingrad to Avenue Corentin-Cariou and provides access to the Paris ring road via Porte de la Villette.

Traffic is organized around a central parterre lined with trees.

Before 2019, the avenue was composed, in each direction, of 2 traffic lanes (including a lane reserved for public transport and bicycles on only part of the avenue) bordered by 2 parking lanes (one on each side) .

Since 2019, a cycle path has been created in each direction in place of the parking lot on the central side.

The avenue is bordered on most of its length by various shops, practically all services being available: general food, cafes, catering (fast, traditional and foreign), mass distribution (traditional and hard-discount), DIY, services banks, pharmacies, sale and repair of automobiles, bicycles and mopeds, optics, bookstores, telephony, libraries, real estate agencies, etc.

There are 4 métro stations under the Avenue de Flandre:

Corentin Cariou (M) (7)

Crimée (M) (7)

Riquet (M) (7)

Stalingrad (M) (2) (5) (7)

[ Wikipedia - Avenue de Flandre ]

McKean Road, San Jose, CA

Building Radio Kootwijk, Veluwe NL - 1922 - architect Julius Maria Luthmann.

The housing accommodations of Radio Kootwijk arose as a result of the building of a shortwave transmitter site with the same name, starting in 1918. The transmitters played an important role in the 20th century as a communication facility between the Netherlands and its colony of Dutch East Indies. In 1923 Dutch PTT (Post, Telegraph and Telephone Company) started trans-oceanic telegraphy using a longwave transmitter, a 400 KW high frequency alternator, from the German Telefunken company under the call sign PCG, in the 24 kHz and 48 kHz. By 1925 the longwave transmitter was changed by a shortwave tube based, electronic transmitter which had a much better performance due to the better propagation of short waves. With this new technology, in 1928 a radio-telephonic connection was established. At the end of World War II, the German occupying forces blew up the transmitter. Afterward some of the radio towers were rebuilt. Due to the development of new technologies like satellite communication, Radio Kootwijk lost its position as main overseas wireless connection point of the Netherlands. In 1980, the last transmission mast was blown up. In 2004 the park lost its last transmitter functions, and was transferred from the telephone company to the State Forestry Commission, which started attracting new buyers. The main building of the former transmitter park and named 'Building A', 'The Cathedral' or sometimes 'The Sphinx', was officially appointed as a monument. It is used as venue and scenery for several cultural events and productions, including the American film Mind Hunters in 2004.

Detail of an old red telephone booth of London street.

Many governmental organisations in the post-WW2 years published a popular and accessible history of wartime endeavours and service and this, written by Ian Hay, is the story of the Post Office. The Post Office was responsible for a multitude of public services ranging from the operation of Post Offices, the collection and delivery of the mail, the telegram and telephone services. These were all vital infrastructure in wartime conditions where the growth in demand for services was enormous - both at home and, in the theatres of war, abroad. The sacrifice of staff is covered as they often worked in the most trying of circumstances. The record of development and repair, such as of exchanges and cables due to damage, is described and some of the work of the vitally important Research Station at Dollis Hill is described.

 

The cover, that includes this wrapped round letter of thanks from the Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in Europe, is a bold graphic showing the various methods of transport used by the Post Office and is signed 'AMC'. This is, I am sure, the 'Coombs' who signs the two rather fine endpaper illustrations that show Post Office staff going about their varied duties. In pre-war years the Post Office had an often adventurous style of publicity and these illustrations are redolent of that period in their style.

Well, here we are then. I suppose with shot 365 it is compulsory to give some kind of reflection on the project as a whole, and I warn you - this could get philosophical ;) Skip to the end if you get bored. :)

 

Firstly, I can honestly say that I started the project with little expectation that I would finish it. It has, however, proven to be easier than I expected. I know that Laura spent many frustrating days trying to think of something to snap, but I had a rather easier time of it. She had no mobile phone camera, and a very camera unfriendly job. I'm just the opposite. I'm blessed with a job where I'm often taking photos every day, even if they're ones that I can't post in public places. A school is a place of life though - even though individuals may find their own days boring there's always SOMETHING going on somewhere, and with such a large building there's often things to see if you look closer.

 

I've never kept a journal or a diary, and have now realised how terribly life affirming it all is. 2009 is a year in which I will have some kind of memory of every single day, and it won't be a forgotten year like so many others. I can't remember a damn thing I did in say...1998. I could probably come up with one or two things if I REALLY tried, but not more than one or two.

 

So, what have I hated? Not a lot really. I haven't found it too strenuous and it really hasn't been a chore.

 

What have I loved? Well, getting the camera out more is always a good thing. I'm also looking around a lot more, and being more aware of the wonderful things around me. The things that can make an interesting photograph are often strange and wonderful.

 

I like also that the project gives the tiniest little hint of an insight into the pressures that professional photographers face. It's dead easy to take photos when you're feeling inspired and creative. In a 365 you quickly discover that when you're tired, grouchy, sick, stressed, hung over or a combination of all of them it becomes very difficult to take a shot that's even technically competent - never mind one that has any kind of artistic merit! Spare a thought for that photographer trying to take beautiful photos of two families that he doesn't really care about at the next wedding that you're at!

 

One thing that I've really loved is that my photographs are littering the net all over the place. There are probably three reasons for this:

 

1. My photos are by and large reasonably ok from a technical viewpoint. There's not many with appallingly bad focussing, exposure, etc.

 

2. I give my photos away, and everybody loves free stuff! I generally put all my photos under a creative commons licence that lets people use them for whatever they want. I didn't take them to make money, so I'm happy to put them out there.

 

3. I take lots of very, very generic photos. I think this is largely because lots of people around me aren't comfortable having their photo on the net, and I'd never take a people shot from my workplace. So very few of my shots feature people, and that makes them ideal for illustrating blogs, tutorials and other concept pieces.

 

My Ryanair 737 on approach to Liverpool can be found in many travel blogs. My exam desks illustrate lots of topics about exams and nerves. My crossed fingers end up in the unlikeliest of places. My smiley face biscuit illustrates a spiritual presentation on ignorance. My pebbles on Llandudno beach are probably going to be published at some point in a book. My stuff is all over the place - and I love that!

 

It's interesting to see what people do like, and so how about a quick run down of the top ten photos based on view. Thanks to the Flickr statistics module, here we go!

 

In tenth: #6: A Little Prick with a Needle

 

With 158 views, this one just scraped ahead of the approaching Ryanair 737 to get tenth place. This is a very average shot of some dental equipment taken with a mobile phone. Why it's proved so popular is a mystery to me, even if it has had the longest time to be viewed. I can only put it down to the words 'little prick' in the title. People do look for the funniest things ;)

 

In ninth: #74: The Eyes Have It

 

This one has had 159 views, and is a favourite of three people. It wasn't the easiest shot, and it turned out quite well so I'm rather happy with it. And we won't even start about what colour the eye is - there could be blood on the carpet.

 

In joint seventh: #140: Hell's Kitchen

 

With 164 views, I'm really pleased with this very dramatic shot, and I'm not surprised that it's earned a good few views.

 

In joint seventh: #145b: They Meet At Last

 

I'm delighted that this made the top ten, as it's one of my favourite shots of the whole year. Anything tagged 'Red Arrows' gets lots of views, and something that isn't a plane in the air is always interesting. A lovely moment. This has had 164 views...I'm guessing that 160 of them were by Laura ;)

 

In sixth: #44: A Bit of a Mix Up

 

Do you remember me talking about generic photos? This mixing desk shot fulfils the basic 'lights, knobs and sliders' requirements that have led it to be used in lots of 'techie' type blog posts all over the place. It made sixth with 198 well earned views.

 

In fifth: #4: Crossed Words

 

It's right back to the start again as this perfectly boring photo of a crossword chalked up a whopping 232 views. It's back to generic illustrations again.

 

In fourth: #147: Testing Times Ahead

 

This photo of a very large exam hall has proven really popular with bloggers, and has also been included in a commercial product that someone is putting together. I'm not sure why it does so well, but the geometry is nice and the sheer scale is huge. 251 views.

 

In third: #25: It's Good to Talk!

 

Why, oh why, oh why do 343 people think this is a great photo to use? It's just a phone! Nevertheless it's very popular and has been used to illustrate a lot of articles about VOIP telephony.

 

In second: #237: Fingers Crossed!

 

This is a weird one. It's the newest photo in the top ten, and it has racked up 454 views, and yet it's a not particularly attractive photo of a bloody unattractive hand (mine). Strange, strange, strange. It also has the honour of having been used for one day on the front page of the Yahoo directory. It's a small claim to fame, but one that pleased me very much. :)

 

In first place, the winner is... #133: Lost Luggage?

 

Yes, an unlikely winner, but not without good reason! This five minute bit of fun was a visual gag based on an incident at LAX airport. The reason for the huge popularity is that Laura posted it as a link on one of the aviation forums that she uses and hence it got a whole pile of views from there. About 545 in fact. :)

 

And with that analysis done, it's time to have my Oscar moment and make some very important thank yous.

 

Firstly, to all the wonderful people who have appeared in or helped me create my photos. You know who you are, and you have been a source of inexhaustible patience, tolerance and kindness. I thank you.

 

Secondly to you. Yes you - reading this post! A body of artistic/journalistic/observational/documentary work still has a place without anyone reading it, but an audience - even an audience of one - gives the whole thing validity. Pretty much all of my 365 posts get between ten and twenty views, and it makes me really happy to think that there are ten people out there reading my daily photos - but I don't know who all of you are! If you're reading this then drop me a comment, even if only to say hi. :) Thanks, and I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I have. :)

 

Thirdly I give a nod to all the folks on the h.tv board who started this project together - and a very big nod to the handful of us left ;)

 

Now on to two very special thank yous.

 

The first is to Keith, my former colleague and good friend who is now resident in sunny Spain. Keith is living proof that a good teacher may hang up his chalk but he can never, ever retire. Keith's often seemingly throwaway references to great photographers, his dropping of technical terms and his acute observations have allowed me to view my own humble efforts in the context of some of the artistic greats of the twentieth century. Each journey prompted by such a comment has been a learning experience and of more interest than he can possibly know. He also manages to diligently produce a meaningful and cogent comment on even my poorest efforts. Thanks Keith, it's been a joy.

 

And my final special thank you goes out to Laura - my inspiration (let's not forget that she finished a 366 long before I started mine) and constant companion in the journey. I can also tell you that there has been at least one, and probably two, occasions when the absence of Laura's timely reminder to take a photo would have led to failure in this project. Thanks honey!

 

I did give Laura a bit of stick about the huge number of photos of cups of tea in her 366 collection. She sternly warned me that I'd be doing the same thing in mine. And so in a moment of true male pig headedness, having satisfied myself that I actually CAN complete a 365 without taking a photo of a cup of tea/coffee, that's exactly what I'm going to do in tribute to my sweetheart. So here it is - my first cup of the day which is a Christmas coffee from Finland!

 

So there we are, against all odds I did it. I didn't miss a day (which I thought I would) and I didn't - much as I was tempted to - borrow a photo from another day to fill a space.

 

Having completed it, one is left with the dilemma of whether or not to continue. Given that I don't feel the overwhelming sense of relief that many people get on reaching #365, I think I'm going to carry on. I won't beat myself up if I miss a day, and I might even borrow from a different day without feeling bad about it. And as the account is paid for for at least another year, I might as well.

 

A very happy New Year to all of you, and if you read all of that crap then I thank you once again. :)

The Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF), whose members were referred to as WAAFs (/ˈwæfs/), was the female auxiliary of the British Royal Air Force during World War II. Established in 1939, WAAF numbers exceeded 181,000 at its peak strength in 1943, (15.7% of the RAF)[1] with over 2,000 women enlisting per week.

 

History

A Women's Royal Air Force had existed from 1918 to 1920, but had been disbanded in the wake of the end of the First World War, alongside the Women's Army Auxiliary Corp (1917-1921) and the first iteration of the Women's Royal Naval Service (1917-1919).[1]

 

Second World War

The Women's Auxiliary Air Force was created on 28 June 1939, absorbing the forty-eight RAF companies of the British Auxiliary Territorial Service which had existed since 1938, following the Munich Agreement.[2] Conscription of women did not begin until after December 1941 when the British Government passed the National Service Act (No. 2), which was issued by Royal Proclamation on 10 January 1942. It only applied to those between 20 and 30 years of age and they had the choice of the military auxiliary services, the civilian Women's Land Army or factory work in support of the war effort.[1]

 

Training

 

The first WAAF nursing orderlies selected to fly on air-ambulance duties to France, 1944

Women recruited into the WAAF were given basic training at one of five sites, though not all of the sites ran training simultaneously. The five sites were at West Drayton, Harrogate, Bridgnorth, Innsworth and Wilmslow.[3] All WAAF basic recruit training was located at Wilmslow from 1943.[4]

 

Roles in the WAAF

WAAFs did not serve as aircrew. (The use of women pilots was limited to the Air Transport Auxiliary, which was civilian, but 30 WAAFs did transfer to serve as pilots in the ATA).[1] Although WAAFs did not participate in active combat, they were exposed to the same dangers as any on the "home front" working at military installations. They were active in parachute packing and the crewing of barrage balloons in addition to performing catering, meteorology, radar, aircraft maintenance, transport, communications duties including wireless telephonic and telegraphic operation. They worked with codes and ciphers, analysed reconnaissance photographs, and performed intelligence operations. WAAFs were a vital presence in the control of aircraft, both in radar stations and iconically as plotters in operation rooms, most notably during the Battle of Britain. These operation rooms directed fighter aircraft against the Luftwaffe, mapping both home and enemy aircraft positions.[5]

 

Air Force nurses belonged to Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service instead. Female medical and dental officers were commissioned into the Royal Air Force and held RAF ranks.

 

WAAFs were paid two-thirds of the pay of male counterparts in RAF ranks.

 

By the end of World War II, WAAF enrolment had declined and the effect of demobilisation was to take the vast majority out of the service. The remainder, now only several hundred strong, was renamed the Women's Royal Air Force on 1 February 1949.

The oldest convict-built structure surviving in Queensland, the windmill tower has accommodated a range of uses. Constructed in 1828 to process the wheat and corn crops of the Moreton Bay penal settlement, it had a treadmill attached for times when there was no wind but also as a tool for punishing convicts. The mill ceased grinding grain in 1845 and the treadmill was removed sometime before 1849. From 1855 the tower was reused as a signal station to communicate shipping news between the entrance of the Brisbane River and the town. Substantial renovations were made to it in 1861 including the installation of a time ball to assist in regulating clocks and watches. Twenty years later a cottage for the signalman was constructed to the immediate west of the tower, with a detached kitchen erected to the south two years after that. Both were later demolished. The windmill tower was used as a facility for early radio, telephony and television communications research from the 1920s and underwent substantial conservation work in the 1980s and 2009.

 

In May 1825, after eight months of occupation at Redcliffe, the contingent of convicts, soldiers, administrators and their families comprising the Moreton Bay penal settlement relocated to the site of present-day Brisbane's central business district. The growing settlement was to be self-sufficient in feeding its residents by cultivating corn (also known as maize) and wheat crops at the government farm, which were then processed into meal and flour by hand mills.[1] By 1827, with a substantial crop to process, the settlement storekeeper recommended a treadmill be erected to grind the crop into flour. Commandant Logan indicated at this time that such a devise at Brisbane town would be of service and also provide an avenue for the punishment of convicts.[2]

 

There is little evidence confirming details of the windmill tower's planning and construction. In July 1828, Peter Beauclerk Spicer, the Superintendent of Convicts at the time, recorded in his diary that convicts were 'clearing ground for foundations for the Mill' and proceeded to dig a circular trench that reached bedrock and had a circumference of approximately 9 metres.[3] Allan Cunningham noted soon after that construction was in progress. The mill was constructed on the highest point overlooking the settlement on what is now Wickham Terrace. By 31 October 1828 the first grain was being ground at the site by a mill gang; however it is supposed that this was done by a treadmill as the rotating cap and sails associated with the wind-powered operation of the mill were not brought to the site until November.[4] Circumstantial evidence suggests that the wind-powered grinding of grain did not begin until December.

 

There were two pairs of millstones inside the tower, each driven independently by the treadmill and sail mechanisms. The former was located outside the tower, a shaft connecting the treadwheel and the mill cogwheels inside. Two sketches from the early 1830s show the windmill tower and its sail stocks in place,[5] while an 1839 description depicts a tower built from stone and brick, comprising four floors, a treadmill and windmill. From 1829 the windmill tower was said to be continually requiring repair, possibly because its equipment was all made from locally-available timber rather than iron[6].

 

The treadmill was an important component of the mill, for use as punishment without trial, and for times when there was no wind but the amounts of grain sufficient to sustain the settlement still required processing. No plans exist of the Brisbane treadmill, however, the Office of the Colonial Architect produced a standard Design for Tread Mill Adapted for Country Districts Average Estimate £120.[7] Between 25 and 30 men worked at the mill at any one time. Sixteen operated the treadmill, although as there are no plans, it is uncertain whether it comprised a standard 16-place treadmill, or two 8-place sections connected to a common shaft. Each man would climb five steps to get onto the wheel, standing on the 9 inch wide treads and holding on to the rail. The men would then work as though ascending steps to operate the treadmill. Some undertook this task while in leg irons, while the more able used one hand to hold on and the other to draw sketches of people, animals and scenes on the boards of the mill. The men would work from sunrise to sunset with three hours rest in the middle of the day in summer, and two hours in winter.[8] [9] The first casualty of the treadmill, which produced the first official record of its existence, occurred in September 1829 when prisoner Michael Collins lost his life after being entangled in the operating mechanism. Maps of 1840s Brisbane feature a rectangular structure attached to the outside of the tower, Robert Dixon's in particular showing a 6 x 5 metre structure, probably the treadmill, located on ground that was to become Wickham Terrace.

 

In July 1841 the Brisbane tower was reputedly the site of a public execution of two Aboriginal men who had been convicted in Sydney of the murder of Assistant Surveyor Stapylton and one of his party near Mount Lindsay. They were returned to Moreton Bay and hanged with about 100 Aboriginal people present, however it may be that the execution took place elsewhere on what was known as Windmill Hill.[10]

 

Indicative of the prominence of its physical position, the tower served as one of the stations for the trigonometrical survey of the Moreton Bay district conducted by Robert Dixon, Granville Stapylton and James Warner from May 1839 in preparation for the area being opened to free settlement.[11]

 

In February 1836 the windmill tower was struck by lightning, causing severe damage throughout, including to the treadmill. A convict millwright was brought from Sydney in June for the repairs, which amounted to a major rebuild of the structure that was not completed until May 1837.[12] In April 1839, with the closure of the Moreton Bay penal settlement being planned, the windmill tower was one of the buildings recommended for transfer to the colony. This was approved in 1840-41 but it continued to sporadically process grain until 1845, when due to crop failure, a stagnant population and the availability of imported flour, it finally ceased being used. The penal settlement had officially closed in February 1842. The treadmill operated until 1845 and had been removed by October 1849[13].

 

The windmill tower in Brisbane is the oldest of its type left standing in Australia and further distinguished by having been built by convict labour. The earliest standing stone windmill towers extant around the country date from the 1830s and include: one built in 1837 in South Perth, Western Australia[14]; another built in the same year at Oatlands in Tasmania which operated until 1890[15]; and another built at Mount Gilead near Campbelltown in New South Wales in 1836[16]. Most were built to process grains into flour. Other surviving mill towers are the one built in 1842 by FR Nixon at Mount Barker in South Australia; Chapman's mill built around 1850 at Wonnerup in Western Australia[17], and another built at a similar time on an island in the Murray River near Yunderup in Western Australia[18]. None of the nineteen windmill towers that characterised the early settlement at Sydney have survived.[19] Technological developments, most particularly steam power which was more dependable than wind power or that generated by convict labour at a treadmill, rendered wind-driven mills largely redundant.

 

After the cessation of milling operations there were discussions about possible future use of Brisbane's windmill tower. In December 1849 the tower was put up for auction and bought by a government official who promptly sought tenders for removal of it and its machinery (the auction terms required it to be cleared away by three months after the sale).[20] Ownership of the place quickly reverted to the Crown because of a legal problem with the sale, but not before some dismantling had occurred.[21] In a January 1850 article the Moreton Bay Courier continued its appeal for the windmill not to be pulled down and secured by the town, arguing that aside from its landmark and picturesque qualities it was the ‘best fixed point for land measurement in the district'. In this vein the site was the most accessible viewing point for the picturesque landscape of Brisbane and its environs. Despite earlier calls to erase evidence of Brisbane's convict past, 'sentiment and pragmatism combined to override the detrimental taint of convictism' saving the tower from destruction. The sails were still in place in 1854 and appear in a painting of the windmill completed in 1855.[22]

 

By 1855 Brisbane was the leading Queensland port and it became important to establish signal stations to communicate shipping news between the entrance of the Brisbane River and the town, one of which was set up on Windmill Hill. This required modifications to the tower to include a semaphore station connected to the electric telegraph. Information on ships entering the river was converted to semaphore signals using flags hoisted on a mast erected on top of the tower. The renovations were undertaken by John Petrie in October 1861 to plans by colonial architect Charles Tiffin and included the removal of the windmill stocks or arms and wheels; the laying of floors on each storey; new doors and windows; a weatherproof floor on the top of the tower with an iron railing; a new winding staircase from bottom to top; repair of stone, brickwork and plastering; and the installation of a high flagstaff to fly signals.[23] The tower's renovation at this time also fitted it out as a public observatory and it became known by that term.[24] The following year it became the first home of the newly founded Queensland Museum; serving this purpose until 1868 when other accommodation was provided in the old convict barracks or parliamentary building on Queen Street.[25]

 

Petrie also installed a time ball on the tower to provide a reliable authority for regulating clocks and watches. It was dropped at one o'clock each day based on observations relayed by telegraph from Sydney. The time ball was replaced by a time gun in 1866, with an embankment and shed constructed to hold the gun in 1874. After 1882 the gun and shed were moved to the eastern section of the current reserve before the shed was demolished in 1908. The time gun proved useful to people as far away as Logan, Caboolture and Ipswich. The old gun was replaced in 1888 with another before a new electrically-controlled time ball was installed in 1894. This was associated with the legislated implementation of a single time throughout the colony, being designated as ten hours earlier than the mean time at Greenwich. Adjustments were made to the tower at this time to accommodate the new time ball. The roof was lowered and the flagstaff pared down.[26]

 

A cottage for the signalman was constructed in 1883 to the immediate west of the tower to plans prepared by Government Architect FDG Stanley and on part of the Waterworks reserve. Two years later a detached kitchen was also constructed behind it to the south of the tower. Use of the signal station was discontinued in 1921 by the state government, which then sought a new use for the structure and land. [27] Despite this the flagstaff remained in place until 1949. From January 1893 the Fire Brigade implemented a nightly observation post from a specially-constructed platform on top of the tower. This was used until around 1922.

 

The Commonwealth government assumed responsibility for the site in 1901 but control reverted to the state in 1908 when it was designated as an Observatory Reserve. In 1902 it had been connected to the Railway Telegraph Office at Roma Street so that the railways had the correct time for their operations. The evidence of historical photographs suggests that sometime between 1902 and 1912 the cabin at the top was increased in size.[28] The time ball remained in operation until 1930.

 

The site was placed under the trusteeship of the Brisbane City Council in 1922. The site of the cottage remained in the hands of the Waterworks Board and a boundary re-arrangement had to occur to allow its continued use in relation to the observatory. At this time the Queensland Institute of Radio Engineers began wireless radio and telephony research at the tower, and used the signalman's cottage to meet two nights a month. Apparatus to operate a wireless radio station was installed in 1926. The cottage was occupied on a more regular basis in order to reduce the risk of vandalism to the tower, but fell vacant. In 1926 the City Architect, AH Foster, proposed a plan for beautifying the observatory, which included removal of the cottage and adjacent sheds. The tender of Messrs Guyomar and Wright to remove the cottage, shed and outhouse for £60 was accepted.[29] At this time the stone and wrought iron wall along Wickham Terrace was erected. It was intended to add 'dignity to the historical reserve, and harmonise with the massive character of the Tower'.[30]

 

From 1924 Thomas Elliott installed equipment in the tower to undertake cutting-edge television research; he and Allen Campbell giving a demonstration from the site in 1934 which constituted Queensland's first television broadcast. It was considered by many at the time as the most outstanding achievement thus far in the history of television in Australia. They gained a license from the government and continued experimental broadcasting from the tower until about 1944.[31]

 

From 1945 the Brisbane City Council was considering suitable action to preserve the tower, which had become a popular visitor attraction. Some restoration work was carried out in 1950 on the advice of Frank Costello (then Officer in Charge of Planning and Building with the City Council), which included removal of old render and re-rendering the entire structure. It was at this time that the flagstaff was removed in preparation for making the open ground of the reserve 'a real park'. Certainly these conservation efforts considered the heritage value of the place as well as the public's use of it.

 

However by 1962 the windmill tower was again in poor condition. Floodlighting to enhance its appearance for tourists was undertaken for the first time during the Warana Festival five years later. In the early 1970s the Council and the National Trust of Queensland undertook detailed investigations regarding restoration and transfer of trusteeship from the council to the trust (the latter were abandoned in 1976). None of the original plans or any of the original windmill machinery parts could be located at that time. Based on these findings the National Trust formed the opinion that the building should be preserved in its present form and not reconstructed to its windmill form.

 

In 1982 City Council undertook some external maintenance work on the observation house or cabin, including replacement of deteriorated timber to the balcony and sills, and corrugated iron on the roof, and repair of the time ball and its mast (which was shortened by about 300 mm to remove some part affected by dry rot).[32]

 

In 1987 a consortium of companies involved in the construction of the Central Plaza office building offered to assist the Brisbane City Council with the conservation of the Windmill Tower. To inform this work a conservation study was undertaken by Allom Lovell Marquis-Kyle Architects, which also oversaw conservation work[33]. Preliminary archaeological investigations undertaken at this time identified the remains of the original flagstaff base which was reinstated.[34] The conserved Windmill Tower was opened by the Lord Mayor of Brisbane on 3 November 1988. A further archaeological investigation was carried out at the site in 1989-90 by a University of Queensland team, revealing clear stratigraphic layers datable to each of the key phases of use of the site.[35] In August 1993 further investigations of the fabric of the tower were undertaken to explore the extent of the footings and the nature of construction of the curb and cap frame. More conservation work was carried out in May 1996.

 

In 2009 the Brisbane City Council received considerable funding to carry out restoration work of the windmill tower through the State Government's Q150 Connecting Brisbane project. It was intended that the structure be publically accessible to allow visitors to experience the view from its observation platform, a practice that has been commented on since the 1860s. In 2008 - 2009 the Brisbane CBD Archaeological Plan assessed the area of the observatory reserve and a length of Wickham Terrace associated with it as having exceptional archaeological research potential because of the combination of its association with the penal settlement and the low level of ground disturbance that has occurred there since.

 

Source: Queensland Heritage Register.

No one calls any more...