+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

  

The origins of the Turbo Fury reach back to 1943, when the piston-driven Hawker Sea Fury's development was formally initiated in response to a wartime requirement of the RAF.

 

As the Second World War drew to a close, the RAF cancelled their order for the aircraft. However, the Royal Navy saw the type as a suitable carrier aircraft to replace a range of increasingly obsolete or poorly suited aircraft being operated by the Fleet Air Arm. Development of the Sea Fury proceeded, and the type began entering operational service in 1947.

 

The Sea Fury had many design similarities to Hawker's preceding Tempest fighter, but the Sea Fury was a considerably lighter aircraft. Both the Sea Fury's wings and fuselage originated from the Tempest but were significantly modified and redesigned.

 

The Sea Fury attracted international orders as both a carrier and land-based aircraft; it was operated by countries including Australia, Burma, Canada, Cuba, Egypt, West Germany, Iraq, and Pakistan. The Sea Fury was retired by the majority of its military operators in the late 1950s in favour of jet-propelled aircraft. One of the largest export customers for the type, Pakistan, went a different way.

 

A total of 87 new-build Sea Furies were purchased and delivered to Pakistan between 1950 and 1952, but some ex-FAA and Iraqi Sea Furies were also subsequently purchased.

 

The Sea Fury began to be replaced by the jet-powered North American F-86 Sabre in 1955, but it became quickly clear that the Sabre was primarily a fighter, not a ground attack aircraft. It also lacked adequate performance in 'hot and high' operation theatres, and the PAF's B-57 bombers were too big for certain CAS tasks, and their number highly limited.

 

Hence the decision was taken to modernize a part of the PAF Sea Fury fleet for the ground attack role. This was to be achieved with a better engine that would deliver more power, a better overall performance as well as an extended range for prolonged loiter times close to the potential battlefield.

 

Engine choice fell on the Allison T56 turboshaft engine, which had originally been developed for the C-130 Hercules transporter (later also installed in the P-3 and E-2) - the type had just been bought by the PAF, so that low maintenance cost due to parts and infrastructure commonality was expected. Pakistan Aeronautical Complex (commonly abbreviated 'PAC') was tasked to develop a suitable update, and this lead to the integration of a turboprop engine into the Sea Fury airframe.

 

For the relatively small Sea Fury airframe the T56 was downrated to 3.000 hp, to which approximately 750 lbs of thrust from its exhaust could be added. The latter was bifurcated and ran along the fuselage flanks, ending in fairings at the wings' trailing edge. In order to cope with the additional power, the original five-bladed propeller had to be replaced by a six-bladed, indigenously developed propeller. Together with the more pointed spinner and the raised propeller position, the Sea Fury's profile changed dramatically, even though the good field of view for the pilot was retained. Officially, the modified machines were just called 'Sea Fury FB.61', inofficially they were called 'Turbo Furies' or 'وایلار' (Urdu: Wailer), for their characteristic, penetrating engine and propeller sound.

 

Internally, structural reinforcements had to be made and new wing spars were introduced. These allowed higher g forces for low level maneuvers and also carried additional ordnance hardpoints under the outer wings - these enabled the aircraft to carry HVARs of American origin and/or several small caliber bombs instead of only a single pair of up to 1.000 lb (454 kg) caliber.

 

The last piston engine Sea Furies in Pakistani service were ultimately retired in 1960, while the Turbo Fury fleet was used throughout the 1965 India-Pakistan War. After the end of hostilities, the 'Turbo Furies' were quickly phased out since it had become clear that they had become too vulnerable in battlefield conditions.

 

Some of these machines were sold to Thailand, though, where it served with the Royal Thai Marine Corps (นาวิกโยธินแห่งราชอาณาจักรไทย) in the CAS role and saw frequent use: The Chanthaburi and Trat borders with Cambodia gave the Marine Corps Department its first assignment, safeguarding the coastline and southeastern border. Since 1970 the Marine Corps' Chanthaburi-Trat Task Force had been officially assigned the defense of this area.

 

During 1972 and 1973, Thai Marines were involved in the "Sam-Chai" anti-communist operations in Phetchabun Province and the "Pha-Phum" anti-communist operations in Chiang Rai Province. In 1973 and 1974, they took part in anti-communist operations in the southern provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat. After ten years of frequent and successful use, the end of the Thai TurBo Furies came - the type was retired in late 1975. Two specimen were sold into the USA to Flight Systems Inc., where the machines were de-militarized and modified to be used as fast low-level target tugs.

 

Still, the aircraft would see a late career for the USAF, even though only an indirect one - and ironically against another WWII veteran reincarnation! In 1971 Piper Aircraft Corp. at Lakeland, Florida, built for the USAF's PAVE COIN programm (calling for a simple aircraft tailored to the ground attack role for small armies) two Piper Enforcers by heavily modifying two existing P-51 Mustang aircraft and fitting them with Lycoming T55-L9A turboprop engines, along with numerous other significant modifications.

 

Prior to the PAVE COIN evaluation, N202PE was lost in a crash off the Florida Coast. Although the Enforcer performed well in PAVE COIN, Piper failed to secure a United States Air Force contract. Anyway, Piper kept on lobbying Congress for another 8 years to force the USAF to officially re-evaluate the Enforcer.

 

Eventually in the 1979 defense bill $11.9 million was allocated for Piper to build two new prototypes and for the USAF to perform another flight evaluation. Since the Enforcer was never in the Air Force inventory, it was not given an official military designation and did not receive an Air Force serial number. Instead, it carries the Piper designation PA-48 and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) registration numbers N481PE and N482PE.

 

During 1983 and 1984 the PA-48s were pitted against several "modern" jets at 1984 at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida and Edwards Air Force Base, California. Beyond 'state of the art' competirion, the USAF wanted a direct competitor - and found Flight Systems Inc's Turbo Furies. One of these, aircraft N287FS, was leased in 1981 and revamped to military status in order to act as a further benchnmark and as aggressor.

 

By the time the machine had already undergone some major modifications, including an ejection seat for the pilot and a new five-bladed propeller plus exhaust dampers in order to minimize the machine's distinctive, penetrating noise.

Further modifications saw the re-installment of armament, including wing hardpoints and the respective wiring, as well as adding four 20mm cannon, this time domestic Pontiac M39A1 revolver cannon - easily recognizable through the longer gun barrels that protruded from the wings' leading edge.

 

During the two years of evaluation the revamped Turbo Fury fared well, while its sister ship remained in the target tug role - and it was the only machine to survive, since N287FS crashed on 8th of August 1984 at Eglin AB due to hydraulic failure, with the pilot escaping securely thanks to the new ejection seat.

  

General characteristics

Crew: One

Length: 36 ft 2 in (11.05 m)

Wingspan: 38 ft 43⁄4 in (11.69 m)

Height: 15 ft 101⁄2 in (4.84 m)

Wing area: 280 ft2 (26.01 m2)

Empty weight: 10.500 lb (4.767 kg)

Loaded weight: 14,100 lb (6.400 kg)

Max. takeoff weight: 15,650 lb (7.105 kg)

 

Powerplant:

1× Allison T56 turboshaft engine rated at 2.206 kW (3.000 hp) plus 750 lbs of residual thrust

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: 490 mph (427 knots, 790 km/h) at 18,000 ft (5,500 m)

Range: 700 mi (609 nmi, 1,126 km) with internal fuel;

1,040 mi (904 nmi, 1,674 km) with two drop tanks

Service ceiling: 35,800 ft (10,910 m)

Rate of climb: 4,320 ft/min (21.9 m/s)

 

Armament:

4× 20 mm (0.787 in) Pontiac M39A1 revolver cannon

Eight underwing hardpoints for an external load of 4.000 lb (1.814 kg),

including bombs, unguided rockets, napalm tanks or drop tanks

 

The kit and its assembly:

Turbo Fury V3.0, spinning forth the initial fictional background story of this whif conversion. The combination of a WWII figher design and a C-130 Hercules sounds unlikely, but that's what I built. The idea of revamped piston-engine aircraft for a post-WWII-use has its charm and continually brings forth impressive designs, like the real world Piper PA-48.

 

Inspiration came with a set of 1:72 aftermarket C-130J resin engine nacelles from OzMods, which I had bunkered a while ago. This time the engine was mated again to the single seater kit from Pioneer2/PM Models. The Hercules engines are an almost perfect fit - the original fuselage just had to be cut away behind the original exhaust reflectors. Some sculpting had to be done on both sides, and the wing roots filled up in order to match the new, more narrow engine, but things went really smoothly.

 

This time, the Turbo Fury was to have a more modern touch - we are in the 80ies now. So I decided to use the original C-130 sickle blades that come with the OzMods conversion kit, even though I only used five of them instead of six (the spinner was modified accordingly). Another idea was to conceal the original exhaust pipes under the cockpit - I scratched dampers with intakes that would muffle engine sound and mix the hot gases with fresh air. These break up the sleek lines of the Fury, but I think that this installation makes sense, also as a potential survival measure that reduces the aircraft's IR signature?

 

Otherwise, only little things were changed. In the cockpit a new seat and a dashboard cover were added. The underwing hardpoints were new, too, and I added some antennae for a more modern and purposeful look. All pylons are new, and the bomb ordnance was puzzled together from the spares box, including four Rockeye CBUs from an Italeri F-16, an camera pod (from an Italeri F-18, IIRC) and a single ACMI pod from an Italeri F-21.

 

Painting and markings:

Piper's PA-48 was a bit of inspiration for this build, and I wanted the final Turbo Fury to be an American aircraft. USAF use would have been unlikely, though, but a private operator like Flight Systems Inc. (Which also operated F-86 as target tugs!) opened a new opportunity, as well as the historic trials of the PA-48 in the early 80ies.

 

Well, how to paint the Turbo Fury? An early idea had been a simple, all Gunship Grey aircraft with low-viz markings, but I eventually settled for the contemporary "USMC Land Scheme", applied to helicopters (AH-1, CH-46) and some of the USMC's OA-10. On a classic airframe like the Sea Fury's it would look totally anachronistic - but for an aggressor and test aircraft? Why not?

 

This wraparound scheme consists of grey, green and black - I used FS 35237 (Humbrol 145), FS 34097 (Humbrol 105) and FS 37038 (Humbrol 85, slightly lightened with some Humbrol 32 Dark Grey). The cockpit interior was kept in dark gray, the landing gear is in Aluminum, just like on the former builds of this series.

 

As per usual the kit received a light black ink wash and some dry painting that emphasizes the panel lines.

 

Decals were puzzled together from the scrap box, with some typical US markings and modern stencils.

  

Even though the paint finish turned out to look a bit more worn than initially intended, I am very happy with the result of this "Final Turbo Fury", esp. with its modern details. It looks rather odd and purposeful! And there's still one Hercules engine left... maybe a forth Turbo Fury might come forth, in the hands of another obscure operator's hands. ;)

 

The Salvation Army is a Christian Protestant church and international charitable organisation structured in a quasi-military fashion. The organisation reports a worldwide membership of over 1.5 million, consisting of soldiers, officers and adherents known as Salvationists. Its founders Catherine and William Booth sought to bring salvation to the poor, destitute and hungry by meeting both their "physical and spiritual needs". It is present in 127 countries, running charity shops, operating shelters for the homeless and disaster relief and humanitarian aid to developing countries.

 

The theology of the Salvation Army is derived from that of Methodism although it is distinctive in institution and practice. The Army's doctrine is typical of evangelical Protestant denominations. The Army's purposes are "the advancement of the Christian religion ... of education, the relief of poverty, and other charitable objects beneficial to society or the community of mankind as a whole".

 

The Army was founded in 1865 in London by one-time Methodist circuit-preacher William Booth as the East London Christian Mission. In 1878 Booth reorganised the mission, becoming its first General and introducing the military structure which has been retained to the present day. The current world leader of The Salvation Army is General André Cox, who was elected by the High Council of The Salvation Army on 3 August 2013.

 

HISTORY

The Salvation Army was founded in London's East End in 1865 by one-time Methodist Reform Church minister William Booth and his wife Catherine as the East London Christian Mission. The name "The Salvation Army" developed from an incident on 19 and 20 May. William Booth was dictating a letter to his secretary George Scott Railton and said, "We are a volunteer army." Bramwell Booth heard his father and said, "Volunteer! I'm no volunteer, I'm a regular!" Railton was instructed to cross out the word "volunteer" and substitute the word "salvation". The Salvation Army was modelled after the military, with its own flag (or colours) and its own hymns, often with words set to popular and folkloric tunes sung in the pubs. Booth and the other soldiers in "God's Army" would wear the Army's own uniform, for meetings and ministry work. He became the "General" and his other ministers were given appropriate ranks as "officers". Other members became "soldiers".

 

When William Booth became known as the General, Catherine is known as the "Mother of The Salvation Army". William preached to the poor, and Catherine spoke to the wealthy, gaining financial support for their work. She also acted as a religious minister, which was unusual at the time; the Foundation Deed of the Christian Mission states that women had the same rights to preach as men. William Booth described the organisation's approach: "The three ‘S's’ best expressed the way in which the Army administered to the 'down and outs': first, soup; second, soap; and finally, salvation."

 

In 1880, the Salvation Army started its work in three other countries: Australia, Ireland, and the United States. It was not always an Officer of The Salvation Army who started the Salvation Army in a new country; sometimes Salvationists emigrated to countries and started operating as "the Salvation Army" on their own authority. When the first official officers arrived in Australia and the United States, they found groups of Salvationists already waiting for them and started working with each other.

 

The Salvation Army's main converts were at first alcoholics, morphine addicts, prostitutes and other "undesirables" unwelcome in polite Christian society, which helped prompt the Booths to start their own church. The Booths did not include the use of sacraments (mainly baptism and Holy Communion) in the Army's form of worship, believing that many Christians had come to rely on the outward signs of spiritual grace rather than on grace itself. Other beliefs are that its members should completely refrain from drinking alcohol (Holy Communion is not practiced), smoking, taking illegal drugs and gambling. Its soldiers wear a uniform tailored to the country in which they work; the uniform can be white, grey, navy, fawn and are even styled like a sari in some areas. Any member of the public is welcome to attend their meetings. As the Salvation Army grew rapidly in the late 19th century, it generated opposition in England. Opponents, grouped under the name of the Skeleton Army, disrupted Salvation Army meetings and gatherings, with tactics such as throwing rocks, bones, rats, and tar as well as physical assaults on members of the Salvation Army. Much of this was led by pub owners who were losing business because of the Army's opposition to alcohol and targeting of the frequenters of saloons and public houses.

 

The Salvation Army's reputation in the United States improved as a result of its disaster relief efforts following the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 and the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. The familiar use of bell ringers to solicit donations from passers-by "helps complete the American portrait of Christmas." In the U.S. alone, over 25,000 volunteers with red kettles are stationed near retail stores during the weeks preceding Christmas for fundraising. The church remains a highly visible and sometimes controversial presence in many parts of the world.

 

In 1994, the Chronicle of Philanthropy, an industry publication, released the results of the largest study of charitable and non-profit organisation popularity and credibility. The study showed that The Salvation Army was ranked as the 4th "most popular charity/non-profit in America" of over 100 charities researched, with 47% of Americans over the age of 12 choosing 'Love' and 'Like A Lot' for The Salvation Army.

 

Charity Watch rates the Salvation Army an "A-" to an "A", indicating a high level of financial efficiency and organisational transparency.

  

STRUCTURE, ORGANISATION AND EXPENDITURES

As at 1 September 2015, the Salvation Army operates in 127 countries and provides services in 175 different languages.[3] For administrative purposes, the Salvation Army divides itself geographically into territories, which are then sub-divided into divisions. In larger areas, regional and area commands are also introduced as sub-divisions of divisions. Each territory has an administrative hub known as territorial headquarters (THQ). Likewise, each division has a divisional headquarters (DHQ). Each of these territories is led by a territorial commander who receives orders from the Salvation Army's International Headquarters in London. A territory is normally led by an officer holding the rank of colonel (for small territories) or commissioner for larger territories. In some countries, the work of The Salvation Army may be called a command, led by a command commander. A larger command is typically led by an officer holding the rank of colonel.

 

Its stated membership (as quoted from 2010 Year Book) includes 16,938 active and 9,190 retired officers, 1,122,326 soldiers, 189,176 Adherents, 39,071 Corps Cadets, 378,009 Junior Soldiers, around 104,977 other employees and more than 4.5 million volunteers. Members of the Salvation Army also include "adherents", these are people who do not make the commitment to be a soldier but who recognise the Salvation Army as their church. (According to the 2006 Salvation Army Year Book, in the United States there are 85,148 Senior Soldiers and 28,377 Junior Soldiers, 17,396 Adherents and around 60,000 employees.)

 

The current world leader of the Salvation Army is General André Cox.

 

The Salvation Army is one of the world's largest providers of social aid[citation needed], with expenditures including operating costs of $2.6 billion in 2004, helping more than 32 million people in the U.S. alone. In addition to community centres and disaster relief, the organisation does work in refugee camps, especially among displaced people in Africa. The Salvation Army has received an A- rating from the American Institute of Philanthropy. In the United Kingdom, the Salvation Army is no longer the largest non-governmental provider of social services; however provides a significant service to people in need. The Salvation Army is the second largest charity in the United States, with private donations of almost $2 billion for the fiscal year ending 30 September 2007.

 

In 2004, the Army in the United States received a $1.6 billion donation in the will of Joan B. Kroc, third wife of former McDonald's CEO Ray Kroc. This donation was among the largest individual philanthropic gifts ever given to a single organisation. The donation came with certain restrictions that caused some controversy.

 

The International Congress of the Salvation Army is normally held every 10 years as a conference for all Salvationists from around the world to meet. The first such conference took place in London, UK, from 28 May to 4 June 1886, and subsequent Congressional meetings were held sporadically until 1904 and then 1990. The seventh International Congress in Atlanta, GA, USA, from 28 June to 2 July 2000, was the first held outside of the UK. The latest International Congress was held in London, England 1–5 July 2015, in commemoration of the 150th Anniversary of The Salvation Army's founding.

 

Officers are given Marching Orders to change ministries within the Salvation Army. Usually, officers are given new Marching Orders every two to five years and reassigned to different posts, sometimes moving great distances.

 

A Moscow court ruled that the Salvation Army was a paramilitary organisation subject to expulsion. In October 2006, the European Court of Human Rights ruled the decision illegal.

 

BELIEFS

The beliefs of the Salvation Army rest upon these eleven doctrines:

- We believe that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments were given by inspiration of God, and that only they constitute the Divine rule of Christian faith and practice.

- We believe that there is only one God, who is infinitely perfect, the Creator, Preserver, and Governor of all things, and who is the only proper object of religious worship.

- We believe that there are three persons in the Godhead – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, undivided in essence and co-equal in power and glory.

- We believe that in the person of Jesus Christ the divine and human natures are united, so that he is truly and properly God and truly and properly man.

- We believe that our first parents were created in a state of innocence, but by their disobedience they lost their purity and happiness, and that in consequence of their fall all men have become sinners, totally depraved and as such are justly exposed to the wrath of God.

- We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ has, by his suffering and death, made an atonement for the whole world so that whosoever believeth in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Messiah will may be saved.

- We believe that repentance towards God, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, and regeneration by the Holy Spirit, are necessary to salvation.

- We believe that we are justified by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ and that he that believeth hath the witness in himself.

- We believe that continuance in a state of salvation depends upon continued obedient faith in Christ.

- We believe that it is the privilege of all believers to be wholly sanctified, and that their whole spirit and soul and body may be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

- We believe in the immortality of the soul; in the resurrection of the body; in the general judgment at the end of the world; in the eternal happiness of the righteous; and in the endless punishment of the wicked.

 

The denomination does not celebrate the Christian sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion; although its officers conduct marriages, it holds a traditional Protestant belief that marriage was not instituted by Christ and therefore is not a sacrament.

 

The Salvation Army opposes euthanasia and assisted suicide. Its official stance on abortion is that "The Salvation Army believes in the sanctity of all human life and considers each person to be of infinite value and each life a gift from God to be cherished, nurtured and redeemed. Human life is sacred because it is made in the image of God and has an eternal destiny. (Genesis 1:27) Sacredness is not conferred, nor can it be taken away by human agreement." The Salvation Army official stance admitted in 2010 exceptions in cases such as rape and incest: "In addition, rape and incest are brutal acts of dominance violating women physically and emotionally. This situation represents a special case for the consideration of termination as the violation may be compounded by the continuation of the pregnancy.” It is also against the death penalty: "The Salvation Army recognises that the opinions of Salvationists are divided on the moral acceptability of capital punishment and its effectiveness as a deterrent. However, to advocate in any way the continuance or restoration of capital punishment in any part of the world would be inconsistent with the Army’s purposes and contrary to the Army’s belief that all human life is sacred and that each human being, however wretched, can become a new person in Christ."

 

In 2012, the Salvation Army published a "Positional Statement on Homosexuality" after receiving adverse publicity about their position on homosexuality.

 

"The Bible teaches that God’s intention for humankind is that society should be ordered on the basis of lifelong, legally sanctioned heterosexual unions.... A disposition towards homosexuality is not in itself blameworthy nor is the disposition seen as rectifiable at will.... Homosexual practice however, is, in the light of Scripture, clearly unacceptable. Such activity is chosen behaviour and is thus a matter of the will. It is therefore able to be directed or restrained in the same way heterosexual urges are controlled. Homosexual practice would render any person ineligible for full membership (soldiership) in the Army."

 

As of 2016 the organisation will not appoint homosexuals to posts as ministers, preferring individuals "whose values are consistent with the church's philosophy." (See also Salvation Army Controversy: Criticism by LGBT activists section.)

 

The ordination of women is permitted in the Salvation Army. Salvation Army officers were previously allowed to marry only other officers (this rule varies in different countries); but this rule has been relaxed in recent years. Husbands and wives usually share the same rank and have the same or similar assignments - the major exception to this is the General's spouse, who holds the rank of commissioner.

 

SYMBOLS

FLAG

The Salvation Army flag is a symbol of the Army's war against sin and social evils. The red on the flag symbolises the blood shed by Jesus Christ, the yellow for the fire of the Holy Spirit and the blue for the purity of God the Father.

 

The oldest official emblem of The Salvation Army is the crest.

 

In 1878 Captain W.H. Ebdon suggested a logo, and in 1879 it was to be found on the letterhead of the Salvation Army Headquarters. The captain's suggested design was changed only slightly and a crown was added.

 

The meaning of the crest:

The cross: The cross of the Lord Jesus Christ

The "S": Salvation from sin through Jesus

The ray on the outside of the circle: The Fire of the Holy Spirit

The dots: The Truth of the Gospel

The swords: Spiritual Warfare

"Blood and Fire": The Blood which was shed by Jesus for our sins and the Fire of the Holy Spirit

 

RED SHIELD

The Red Shield has its origins in Salvation Army work during wartime. At the end of the 19th century, Staff-Captain Mary Murray was sent by William Booth to support British troops serving in the Boer War in South Africa. Then, in 1901, this same officer was given the task of establishing the Naval and Military League, the forerunner of the Red Shield Services.

 

Salvation Army officers serving in the Red Shield Services in wartime performed many functions. The Doughnut Girls of World War I are an early example, serving refreshments to troops in the trenches. They also provided first aid stations, ambulances, chaplaincy, social clubs, Christian worship and other front-line services.

 

This symbol is still used in Blue Shield Services that serve the British Armed Forces but it is widely used as a simple, more readily identifiable symbol in many Salvation Army settings. It is common to see the Red Shield used on casual Salvation Army uniform. It is now official Salvation Army policy in the UK that the red shield should be used as the external symbol of the Salvation Army, with the Crest only being used internally. Therefore, any new Salvation Army building will now have the red shield on the outside rather than the crest which certainly would have been used on its Corps (church) buildings.

 

In Australia, the Red Shield has become one of the country's most identified and trusted symbols, leading the Australian Salvation Army to prefer to use this symbol over the logo on its uniform, corps buildings and advertising materials. In the 5th volume of Australian Superbrands it was recorded that "Research reveals that the popular Salvation Army slogan ‘Thank God for the Salvos’ has almost total recognition amongst the Australian public, achieving 93 per cent aided awareness".

 

UNIFORM

Salvation Army officers and soldiers often wear uniforms. The idea that they should do so originated with Elijah Cadman who, at the Salvation Army's 'War Congress' in August 1878 said "I would like to wear a suit of clothes that would let everyone know I meant war to the teeth and salvation for the world". The uniform identifies the wearer as a Salvationist and a Christian. It also symbolises availability to those in need. The uniform takes many forms internationally but is characterised by the 'S' insignia for 'Salvation' and carries the meaning 'Saved to Serve', or 'Saved to Save'. Other letters are substituted to conform with local language.

 

TARTAN

Since 1983 there has been an official Salvation Army tartan. It was designed by Captain Harry Cooper, for the Perth Citadel Corps centenary commemoration. It is based upon the colours of the Salvation Army flag, with which it shares the same symbolism. However, it is rarely seen outside Scotland

 

SALUTE

The Salvation Army has a unique form of salute which involves raising the right hand above shoulder-height with the index finger pointing upwards. It signifies recognition of a fellow citizen of heaven, and a pledge to do everything possible to get others to heaven also. In the case of saluting in response to applause, in circumstances such as a musical festival or being applauded for a speech, it also signifies that the Salvationist wishes to give Glory to God and not themselves.

 

In some instances, the salute is accompanied with a shout of 'hallelujah!'

 

CONTROVERSY

CRITICISM BY LGBT ACTIVISTS

Some in the United States have alleged that the Salvation Army discriminates against lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals in its hiring practices. The Salvation Army states that it does not "discriminate against hiring gays and lesbians for the majority of its roughly 55,000 jobs". Because the Salvation Army is a church, Title VII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964 allows it to inquire into people's religious beliefs in its hiring practices. In 2001, the Salvation Army pressed the Bush Administration to exempt it and other religious groups from anti-discrimination legislation which it felt infringed on the organisation's religious freedoms. This request was denied, and was sharply rebuked by David Smith, then-spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign. “Gays and lesbians are taxpayers, too,” said Smith. “Their money should not be used by religious groups to fund discriminatory practices against them."

 

The Salvation Army Western Territory approved a plan in October 2001 to start offering domestic-partnership benefits to gay employees. Members of various evangelical Christian interest groups protested the decision. Focus on the Family founder James Dobson excoriated the Salvation Army for abandoning its "moral integrity" and urged his radio listeners to bombard the organisation's offices with phone calls and letters. The American Family Association also accused the Salvation Army of a "monstrous … appeasement of sin" that resulted in a "betrayal of the church." In November 2001 the Salvation Army nationwide rescinded the Western Territory's decision with an announcement that it would only provide benefits coverage for different-sex spouses and dependent children of its employees.

 

In 2004, the Salvation Army said that it would close operations in New York City unless it was exempted from a municipal ordinance requiring them to offer benefits to gay employees’ partners. The City Council refused to make the exemption. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg's administration chose not to enforce the ordinance. The administration's right to decline to enforce the ordinance was upheld by the New York State Court of Appeals in 2006.

 

On 15 December 2012, in Canada, Andrea Le Good noticed a Salvation Army bell-ringer carrying a sign reading "if you support gay rights: please do not donate." While the bell-ringer claimed he had permission from the charity to wear the sign, Salvation Army spokeswoman Kyla Ferns said that it had no part in the sign, and that the bell-ringer was pulled away immediately when the charity learned about it. The charity's website describes marriage as heterosexual by definition, and a published document called on homosexuals to embrace celibacy as a way of life. The same document also states that there is no scriptural support for the mistreatment of homosexuals.

 

In February 2000, the Salvation Army in the United Kingdom publicly opposed (in their publication The War Cry and in a letter to a Scottish Parliament committee) the repeal of Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988, which prevented local authorities from "intentionally promot[ing] homosexuality". However, the organisation's UK website states that it offers "unconditional assistance and support regardless of race, religion, gender or sexual orientation, respecting the identity and choices of all those referred to them.... As well as having a right to be dealt with professionally, people can expect from us encouragement and a respect for their individual beliefs, ambitions and preferences".

 

Before the passing of the Homosexual Law Reform Act 1986 by the New Zealand Parliament, the Salvation Army was active throughout New Zealand gathering signatures for a petition seeking to prevent the bill's passing. In 2006, the Army released a statement regretting the ill feelings that persisted following this activity. It stated in part "We do understand though that The Salvation Army’s official opposition to the Reform Bill was deeply hurtful to many, and are distressed that ill-feeling still troubles our relationship with segments of the gay community. We regret any hurt that may remain from that turbulent time and our present hope is to rebuild bridges of understanding and dialogue between our movement and the gay community."

 

Despite documented events of Salvation Army's volunteers and their views, the organisation has issued an LGBT Statement as a response. The statement does not address any documented news events of discrimination and claims to debunk these events as urban myth.

 

In November 2013 it was made known that the Salvation Army was referring LGBT individuals to one of several conversion therapy groups. As a response the Salvation Army removed such referrals from their website.

 

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Tianliang Ma

 

~ a Taiwanese social reformer, philosopher, photographer and film director

 

“Touching Fairness and Justice”

  

馬天亮

 

~ 臺灣的社會改革者，哲學家，攝影師，和電影導演

 

《感動的公平與正義》

  

TianLiang Maa, alternative spelling: Tianliang Ma, also known as Theophilus Raynsford Mann; Ma, Tianliang; Chinese: 馬天亮; 马天亮.

  

SUMMARY

 

TianLiang Maa is a naturalist, occultist, Buddhist and Taoist. In 1982, Maa developed a technique for abstract photography, applied “Rayonism” into photographic works. Maa staged 32 individual, extraordinary exhibitions around Taiwan, who was the first exhibitor around Formosa. Maa’s works is the beginning of modernization in the modern abstract arts in the world. At the University of Oxford, Maa’s attractive topic was “A View of Architectural History: Towns through the Ages from Winchester through London Arrived at Oxford in England”; also an author at the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Michigan in the United States; an alumnus from Christ Church College at the University of Oxford in England, the University of Glamorgan in Wales, and National Taiwan University in Taipei on Taiwan. Maa’s works have been quoted by the scholars many times, making Maa one of the highly cited technological, artistic, and managing public administrators in the academia. Maa was listed in “Taiwan Who’s Who In Business” © 1984, 1987, 1989 Harvard Management Service.

  

Early Life and Record of Genealogy

 

TianLiang Maa possesses both Taiwanese and German surnames from birth. Usually, whenever anyone asks Maa about where he comes from, he would reply “Formosa” as he grew up and was educated in the Far East and lives in Taiwanese and Japanese lifestyles. Moreover, he often teaches and educates younger generations based on the methods of the Far Eastern teaching he experienced when he was young, though he does not oppose the Western ways of teaching and thinking. Maa takes great pride in his roots, which go back 150 years (since 1864); Maa’s ancestry originates and creates generations, and prepares younger generations to succeed their personality and ethical standards and integrity.

 

Education in Taiwan and a Brief of Latest Generation of History in Taiwan / Formosa

 

In 1980, Maa obtained his postgraduate certificate from the Graduate Institute of Electrical Engineering of National Taiwan University in Taipei; successfully completed another graduate studies in Information dBase III Plus and Taiwanese Traditional Chinese Mandarin Information System at National Sun Yat-Sen University in Kaohsiung in 1989.

 

In history, the Portuguese explorers discovered and called the island (Taiwan), “Formosa” (meaning “Beautiful Island”) in 1590. They are non-Chinese people; it was long a Chinese and Japanese pirate base. Fighting continued, between its original inhabitants of Taiwanese and the Chinese settlers, into the 19th century. In 1894-95 first Sino-Japanese War that ended in Manchus of the Qing (Ching) dynasty defeat, the late Manchu Qing Government forced to cede Formosa to Japan. This result was made by the Treaty of Shomonoseki in 1895 and remained under Japanese control until the end of the Second World War. Early on, Taiwan was conquered by the Qing in 1683 and for the first time became part of older China dynasty. However, today, the home country of Maa’s origin has around 165 institutions (93 universities) of higher education, which now has one of the best-educated populations in Asia. Among the major public (state) ones are the National Taiwan University (NTU) at Taipei, and National Sun Yat-Sen University (NSYSU) at Kaohsiung. NSYSU is also called National Chun-Shan University; according to Times Higher Education 2010-2011, NSYSU ranks as the 3rd university in Taiwan, 21st in Asia, and 163rd worldwide. National Taiwan University is ranked 51 to 60 ranks on Times Higher Education World University Rankings - Top Universities by Reputation 2013, the United Kingdom (see www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/...); King's College London (KCL) (21st in the world and 6th in Europe in the 2010, QS World University Rankings), the University of London, and University of Southern California (is one of the world's leading private research universities, located in the heart of Los Angeles), afterward.

 

Backing to Maa’s early school-time of Taiwan Provincial Kaohsiung Industrial Senior High School (Kaohsiung Municipal Kaohsiung Industrial High school), the professional technical education, which is equivalent to Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, commonly referred to as an A-level in the United Kingdom; China Electronic Engineering College, the distance learning programme, which is in equivalence as UK’s Diploma of Higher Education / Undergraduate Diploma (as an Associate Degree in the United States). An additional, his middle education was taught by the Kaohsiung Municipal Chihjh (Ci Sian) Junior High School; and Kaohsiung Municipal San Min Elementary School was his first school in Taiwan.

  

Early Career

 

In 1989, Maa instituted Maa’s Office of Electrical Engineer, he settled himself in electrical technology and industries as a chief engineer in his early years. He put his professional and precise knowledge to good account in business management. A formal business management with business relationship established to provide for regular services, dealings, and other commercial transactions and deed. He had many customers having a business and credit relationship with his firm then he was a successful engineer.

  

Study Abroad and Immigration into the United Kingdom

 

In 1998, Maa studied abroad when he arrived in Great Britain; he studied at School of Built Environment, the University of Glamorgan (Prifysgol Morgannwg) in Merthyr Tydfil, Pontypridd, Wales for a master of science in real estate appraisal. Until the summer of 2000, Maa completed an academic course on “Towns through the Ages” from Christ Church College at the University of Oxford (is ranked the 2nd place worldwide on The Times Higher Education, World University Rankings 2012-2013

www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/world-university-rankings/...) in England. Afterward, Maa immigrated into the United Kingdom in the early year of 2004.

  

PHILOSOPHICAL VIEWS

 

Maa is a naturalist; he trusts spiritual naturalism and naturalistic spirituality, which teaches that “the unknown” created this wonderful world. “The unknown” arranged the nature with its law so that everything in nature is kept balanced and in order. However, human beings failed to control themselves, deliberately went against the law of nature, and resulted in disasters, which we deserved. He also is an occultist, a Taoist, and a Buddhist; but in Britain, he frequently goes to Christian and Catholic churches, where he makes friends with pastors and fathers as well as churchgoers. In his mind, he recognizes “Belief is truth held in the mind; faith is a fire in the heart”. He is always a freethinker, does not accept traditional, social, and religious teaching, but based on his ideas: a thought or conception that potentially and actually exists in his mind as a product of mental activity - his opinion, conviction, and principle. If people have not come across eastern classics and philosophy, we are afraid that people would never understand TianLiang Maa. People cannot judge an eastern philosopher based on western ways of thinking. He studies I Ching discovering eastern classics of ancient origin consisting of 64 interrelated hexagrams along with commentaries. The hexagrams embody Taoist philosophy by describing all nature and human endeavour in terms of the interaction of yin and yang, and the classics may be consulted as an oracle.

 

Back in the 1990s when Maa just arrived at England, he had been offered places to do Ph.D. and LL.M. degrees (degree in Law and Politics of the European Union) by several western professors in the Great Britain. He has met all the requirements for postgraduate admissions to study at UK’s universities.

 

During his time at Oxford, he learnt a lot of British culture and folk-custom while carrying out research with many British and Western professors, experts, and archaeologists. This proves that Maa understands various aspects in British society, culture, and lifestyles. Of course, he does not fully understand about the perspectives of thinking of a typical British. For example, what would be the most valuable in life for a British person? What would a British want to gain from life? What is the goal in life for a British? Is it fortune or a lover? Alternatively, perhaps honour? On the other hand, maybe being able to travel around the world and see the world?

  

FAIRNESS and JUSTICE

 

As TianLiang Maa’s (馬天亮) saying are:

 

“Touching Fairness and Justice”

 

Feel good about themselves, but do not know the sufferings of the people...

Who can get easy life like them?

What is profile of modern society?

What type and style is truly solemn for this society identify?

Where “the characterization” is? Who can see? Did you see it?

 

《感動的公平與正義》

 

自我感覺良好, 不知民間疾苦...

誰能得到安逸的生活如同他們一樣？

這是個什麼樣子的社會？

這個社會認定什麼樣的類型和風格是真正莊重的?

「特徵」在那裡？誰可以看到？你看到了嗎？

  

Jurisprudence and Political Philosophy and Perspectives

 

Maa ever studied judicial review and governmental action, the impact of law and legal techniques, constitutional mechanisms for the protection of basic rights, and ensuring the integrity of commercial activity, the impact of law and legal techniques on government, policymaking, and administration, as well as the creation of markets. He tries to understand these critical trends in the political development of modern state. Maa will combine both theoretical and empirical approaches, and the conditions for democratic transition and the nature of state development in the ‘post-industrial’ era of globalisation and economic integration.

 

According as Maa’s legal experiences, he comprehend that “the knowledge of the law is like a deep well, out of which each man draught according to the strength of his understanding”, and, law and arbitrary power are in eternal enmity. He is also sure law and institutions are constantly tending to gravitate like clocks; they must be occasionally cleansed, and wound up, and set to true time.

 

The government issues a decree - an authoritative order having the force of law, which charged with putting into effect a country's laws and the administering of its functions. Any of the officials promulgate a law or put into practice relating to the government charged with the execution and administration of the nation's laws then they announce and carry out the creation of any order or new policy that will be responsible for the people.

 

Maa had knowledge in connexion with construction law; he also understands architectural arts, and as well learnt the forms by combining materials and parts include as an integral part concerning modern construct. I ever built urban buildings and rural architecture in different styles under new housing and building projects by the governmental administration and construction corporations.

 

Right now, Maa studies the problems caused by ethnic disputes and human armed conflicts in the modern society resulted code of mixed civil and criminal procedure. He wishes an agreement or a treaty to end human hostilities - the absence of war and other hostilities around the world. The interrelation and arrangement of freedom from quarrels and disagreement become harmonious relations living in peace with each other. Actually, erect peace in more friendly ways of making friendships for modern human society is comfortable in my ideal. It is like building monolithic architecture: houses and buildings for the people. Maa would like to do “something beautiful for `the unknown`”.

 

In the ethnic disagreement and armed conflicts as concerning the poor people and children notwithstanding they live through a bad environment on any of poor or crowded village or town in a particular manner - lived frugally. However, after years of industrialisation as a more educated population, becomes more aware of global plenum, continuing to be alive. Environmental groups are increasing and lobbing government will legislate to stop bad environmental and social practices. The establishments of human rights’ wide and untiring efforts will be alleviated people’s suffering. And as well the poor people shall meet and debate sustainable development and for a concerted government led action towards sustainability is an example that the younger generation are concerned for the future. It shall be making the younger easier for their life and make better on their lives, and help them to build a better future.

 

In present world, Maa really knows the full meanings of “Fundamental Human Rights and Equal Opportunities for the People”. He thinks ethics is the moral code governing the daily conduct of the individual toward those about him / her. It represents those rules or principles by which men and women live and work in a spirit of mutual confidence and service. Without going into the question of how an ethical code was formulated or why anybody should obey it, we can look at the matter in a common-sense fashion with reference to its influence upon our legal affairs. In brief, from the law point of view, a reputable ethical code embodies the qualities of accuracy, dependability, fair play, sound judgement, and service. It is based upon honesty.

 

No person can have an ethical code that concerns him / her alone. Living in society, as he / she must, a person encounters others whose rights must be respected as well as his / her own. An honest regard for the rights of others is an essential element of any decent code of ethics, and one that anyone must observe if anybody intends to follow that code. After all, ethics is not something apart from human beings. Indeed, there is no such thing apart from our actions and us. It is the duty, therefore, of every man and woman in legal affairs to see that his daily associations with others are truly in conformity with the plain meaning of the Ten Commandments: “Thou shalt not barratry, thou shalt not bear false witness, thou shalt not receive illegal fee and the rest”.

 

The knowledge Maa has, in connection with legal affairs, was usually come from his precious experiences of his past over ten year’s law and political careers. In an interval regarded as a distinct period of 1980s, he studied mixed civil and crime, and the code of mixed civil and criminal procedure for the problems caused by ethnic disputes and human armed conflicts in the modern society. He was especially one who maintains the language and customs of the group, and social security in Taiwan.

 

Since 30 July of 1988, Maa settled himself in law as a chief executive and scrivener at Central Legal, Real Estate, and Accounting Services Office; it is in the equivalent to a solicitor of the United Kingdom. The Office provided full legal, accounting, real estate, and commercial services to the public. He did his job as a person legally appointed by another to act as his or her agent in the transaction of business, specifically one qualified and licensed to act for plaintiffs and defendants in legal proceedings and affairs. Over and above Maa was a chairman and executive consultant at Taiwan Credit Information Company®, founded in 1994. The company offered services to the public in response to need and demand in the area of credit information.

 

Maa had excellent experiences in political and law work was pertaining to mixed civil and crime, the code of mixed civil and criminal procedure, construction, and commercial law abroad. The experiences of legal services related to the rights of private individuals and legal proceedings concerning these rights as distinguished. In the criminal proceedings, he did many cases for the defendants. Although an act committed or omitted in violation of a law forbidding or commanding it and for which punishment is imposed upon conviction; but he also laid legal claim, required as useful, just, proper, or necessary to the defendants under the human rights in the meantime. This provision ensures to the defendant a real voice in the subject.

 

The men whose judgement we respect are those who do not allow prejudices, preferences, or personalities to influence their decisions. Profit and self-aggrandisement are likewise ignored in their determination to reach an equitable and fair settlement. What are the basic principles upon which good judgement is founded? A keen intellect, a normal emotionally, a through understanding of human nature, experience of law work, sincerity, and integrity.

  

Developed a Technique for Abstract Photography and Abstractionist

 

In 1982, Maa developed a technique for abstractive photography, which applied “rayonism” to the photographic works. In November of 1984, Maa was 26-year-old, he instructed many professors and students of National Taiwan Normal University in photography of abstract impressionism and rayonnisme in Taipei, Taiwan. The word “rayonnisme” is French for rayonism - a style of abstract painting developed in 1911 in Russia.

  

Photographic Exhibitions

 

TianLiang Maa (Theophilus Raynsford Mann) Photographic Exhibition of “Rayonnisme / Rayonism” Tour - Invitational Exhibition of Taiwan 1983-84.

一九八三〜八四年中華民國臺灣 馬天亮攝影巡迴邀請展

 

TianLiang Maa (Theophilus Raynsford Mann) Photographic Exhibition of Rayonnisme / Rayonism (32 individual exhibitions) 1983~1985.

馬天亮『光影』攝影特展（個人展32場）1983〜1985年.

 

Maa staged 32 individual, extraordinary exhibitions and annual special exhibitions on photography of abstractive image and Rayonnisme around Taiwan / Formosa. Maa was the first exhibitor around the country. All of the invited displays were by the Chinese Government, cultural and artistic organisations, and sponsors. Maa’s earliest exhibition took place in the National Taiwan Arts Education Institute (Museum) on 19 December 1983 when Maa was 25 years old; Maa was the youngest exhibitor in the history of the Institute in any solo exhibitions. The Institute that was opened in March 1957, kept a collection of Maa’s work. It is currently updating the Institute’s internal organisation and strengthening co-operation with leading institutes and museums around the world. Meanwhile, it widened the institute’s scope to increase its emphasis on Taiwan’ regional culture and folk arts.

  

Modernization in the Modern Abstract Arts of Taiwan

 

Maa’s works is the beginning of modernization in the modern abstract arts of Taiwan, China and greater Chinese society in the world. The use of “modernisation” as a concept that is opposed to “Traditional” of “Conservative” ideas began with the approach of the 20th century. It spreads rapidly through academic circles, and was broadly accepted as a means to reform society. Chinese Manchu Qing (Ching) dynasty’s first steps toward modernisation began in the Tung-chih era (1862-1874) with the “Self-Empowerment Movement”. During the late 19th century, as late Manchu dynasty was confronted on all sides by foreign aggression, voices throughout society debated the most effective means to reform and strengthen the country. Some advocated “combining the best of East and West”, while others went so far as to call for “complete Westernisation”. Taiwan was at the centre of these waves of reform. Faced with direct threats against the island by foreign enemies, the Chinese Ching dynasty court took special steps to push Taiwan’s modernisation.

 

In a role just like that of a gardener wanting to create a rich and fertile environment for the seeds of culture, one in which Maa may sprout, grow and bloom. Maa aims to provide an educational stimulus for society by introducing his works - Maa can express the neo-romantic spirit deftly from various creations and supporting international artistic exchanges. Maa believes that the first step in creating such a new and independent state is the real emergence of culture and arts, for which the art and science of designing and erecting buildings, and fine arts (including photography and motion picture) of the civilization is a good measurement of success. For the foreseeable future, Maa should be continuing to forge ahead, working diligently and unceasingly towards its mission of raising China and Formosa / Taiwan’s culture in his spare time.

  

Became an Author and a Scholar

 

In 1980, TianLiang Maa completed his first book - scenario original “The Soul's Sentimentalizing”, also named: “Hun Yun : Jin Qi Tu Rui” 電影原著《魂韻》(衿契吐蕊) then Maa was at the age of 22. In 1983, The General Library of the University of California, Berkeley in the United States of America, collected and kept Maa’s writings - scenario original 「魂韻 : 衿契吐蕊」“Hun Yun : jin qi tu rui”, included a musical composition of his own – “Sonate Nr. 1 C-dur op. 3 für Klavier (piano)”, composed on 3rd April 1977 then Maa was 18 years old. The works were published in 1980; the theme was based on “The Soul's Sentimentalizing”. Another masterpiece was an Album of Academic Work for News Publication “TianLiang Maa (Theophilus Raynsford Mann) Photographic Exhibition of Rayonnisme / Rayonism”, published in 1985. The Hathi Trust Digital Library, the University of Michigan also collected and kept Maa’s writings.

  

Authorship

 

Maa’s articles and writings were published in more than 200 different kinds of domestic and foreign magazines, newspapers, and periodicals, in the period between May of 1972 and 1990s. It was all started when Maa was just 13-year-old. Many of which have been very influential. These have been quoted by Western and Eastern scholars many times in the last few years, making Maa one of the highly cited technological, artistic, and managing public administrators in the world in the late 20th and early 21st century. The Ministry of the Interior in Taiwan had registered Maa’s professional writings and given him two certificates of copyright. The numbers are 33080 and 33081 on 4th July of 1985; and Taiwan’s Gazette of The Presidential Office issue No. 4499, featured his writings on 4th September 1985.

  

Became an Academic and Film Director

 

Today, Maa is a professor at Space Time Life Research Academy, and a photographer, film director, and computer engineer now live and work in London.

  

Director Works:

FILMS:

Experimental Film “New Image for the Spring” © 1982

Documentary Film “Rayonnisme” © 2011

“The Soul's Sentimentalizing” of the feature film is based on the scenario original “The Soul's Sentimentalizing” (preparation)

 

FASHION SHOWS:

New Image for the Spring of Shapely Models International © 1982

High Lights on the Summer and Fall Fashion of Shapely Models Int’l © 1982

 

ART EXHIBITIONS:

The Cadillac Club International Fine Arts Exhibition © 1981

The Cinematic & Photographic Arts Salon and the Hall of the Arts, Pegasus Academy of Arts © 1981

  

Musician Work:

MUSIC COMPOSITION:

Sonate Nr. 1 C-dur op. 3 für Klavier (piano) © 1977, © 1980, © 1981, © 1983, the theme was based on “The Soul's Sentimentalizing”.

  

PHOTOGRAPHIC ALBUMS:

Portrait and Landscape in France © 2000

Portrait and Landscape in Scotland © 2001

Portrait and Landscape in England © 2009

Portrait at Queen Mary, University of London © 2010

Rayonism of London © 2011

Portrait at The University of Nottingham, United Kingdom © 2011

Snowy London © 2012

Portrait at King's College London © 2013

  

BOOKS:

Scenario Original「魂韻」(衿契吐蕊) “Hun yun: jin qi tu rui” © December 1980, © 1981, © 1983 (Date of First Publication: 31 December 1980, Second Edition on 29 July 1981, Date of Revision: Revised Edition on 8 May 1983), Languages: Chinese (traditional), and English language.

“Album of the Cadillac Club International Fine Arts Exhibition” © 1981

“Album of the Cinematic & Photographic Arts Salon and the Hall of the Arts, Pegasus Academy of Arts” © 1981

“Album of New Image for the Spring of Shapely Models International” © 1982

“Album of High Lights on the Summer and Fall Fashion of Shapely Models Int’l” © 1982

“Romantic Carol” © 1982

Album of Academic Work for News Publication: “TianLiang Maa (Theophilus Raynsford Mann) Photographic Exhibitions of Rayonnisme” © May 1985

新聞出版之學術著作專輯「馬天亮『光影』“Rayonism” 攝影展」© May 1985

New version of scenario original “The Soul's Sentimentalizing” (to be published)

「曾經輝煌到頂天立地」 “The Indomitable Spirit Was Brilliant to Upright” (individual biography, to be published)

“My Life, My History, and My Love” (based on a legend, to be published, a film scenario will be developed later)

「感動的公平與正義」“Touching Fairness and Justice” (political science and social studies, to be published)

  

Research Interests:

 

University of Oxford

Research Studies in Archaeology:

Maa’s attractive topic was “A View of Architectural History: Towns through the Ages from Winchester through London Arrived at Oxford in England”.

 

National Taiwan University

Graduate Certificate,

Graduate Institute of Electrical Engineering:

Maa’s monograph of seminar was “Applied the sequence control in the electric power distribution engineering”.

 

University of Glamorgan

M.Sc. Course,

Master of Science in Real Estate Appraisal:

Maa’s thesis - major subject, with relevant construction law was “The Assignment is under Economics of Construction Management in Architecture”.

 

National Sun Yat-Sen University

Postgraduate Certificate,

Postgraduate Studies in Computing:

Maa’s required subject was Information dBase III Plus and Taiwanese Traditional Mandarin Chinese Information System. He combined academic course work and practical laboratory sessions in “Applied Mandarin Phonetic Symbols into Traditional Taiwanese Personal Computer and Its Information System”.

  

Associations:

 

Since 1980, a member of Chinese Taipei Film Archive (CTFA, National Film Archive, Taiwan; founded in 1978), The Motion Picture Foundation, R.O.C. (member of Fédération Internationale des Archives du Film, FIAF; The International Federation of Film Archives was founded in Paris in 1938 by the British Film Institute, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the Cinémathèque Française and the Reichsfilmarchiv in Berlin.)

 

Commissioner of the cinema, photography, radio, and television committee of The Culture and Arts Association (Chinese Writers and Artists Association) of Taiwan ever since September 1983.

 

Classic member, the membership is equivalent to a doctorate membership of the Chinese Institute of Electrical Engineering since 23 March 1984.

 

On 15 March 1989, Maa promoted and founded the Consortium Juridical Person Mr. TianLiang Maa Social Benefit Foundation 財團法人馬天亮先生社會公益基金會 in Taiwan. near.archives.gov.tw/cgi-bin/near2/nph-redirect?rname=tre...

 

Classic member, the membership is equal to a professor or associate professor of The Chinese Institute of Engineers since 30 September 1991.

  

Honours:

 

Listed on ‘Taiwan Who’s Who In Business’, © 1984, © 1987, and © 1989 Harvard Management Service.

中華民國企業名人錄編纂委員會, 哈佛企業管理顧問公司.

 

On 26 August 1985, Maa was awarded a professional certificate of the Outdoor Artistry Activities issued by Education Bureau, Kaohsiung City Government, Taiwan. He acquired awards and certificates of honour about twenty times from National Taiwan Arts Education Center (Museum) on 24 December 1983; Kaohsiung Municipal Social Education Center on 17 March 1984, Kaohsiung Cultural Center, Taipei Cultural Center (Taipei Municipal Social Education Hall); and Taiwan Province Government, Taipei City Government, Kaohsiung City Government, and many cultural centres and art galleries, and so on.

  

Careers:

 

Honorary Professor at Space Time Life Research Academy, 7 June 2012 to present; Professor at Space Time Life Research Academy, 1 September 2011 to 1 June 2012 in London, United Kingdom:

Academia,

Teaching and Research:

business management and consultant, political philosophy, Chinese classics, Chinese humanities, modern Chinese language and literature, photography (portrait, fashion, commercial, digital, architectural, abstract photography), visual arts and film production.

www.facebook.com/stlra/info

教學與研究：

企業管理及顧問、政治哲學、中華經典 (古典漢學、文學、藝術、語言) 、中華人文、中華現代語言與文學、攝影 (人像、時裝、商業、數位/數碼、建築、抽象攝影) ，視覺藝術和影片製作。

 

Consultant and Translator at Eternal Life Consultants of Immigration and Translations Services, 10 March 2004 to present in London, United Kingdom:

consultants of immigration, translations, and legal services.

www.facebook.com/elcits/info

永生移民顧問翻譯服務社的移民諮詢顧問和翻譯：

移民事務，翻譯和法律服務。

 

Computer Hardware & Networking Engineer at Maa Office of Electrical Engineer, 8 March 2004 to present in London, United Kingdom:

Computer Engineering and Network Services. Repairing of Motherboards, Monitors, Power Supplies, CD-ROM Drives; UPS, Hard Disk Drives, H.D.D Data Recovery; BIOS Programming, and all types of Computer Hardware and Software Solutions.

www.facebook.com/maaelec/info

計算機工程和網絡服務。維修主機板，顯示器，電源供應器，光碟機/光盘驱动器，不斷電系統，硬碟/硬盘，硬盤數據恢復，基本輸入輸出系統編程，以及所有類型的電腦/計算機硬體/硬件和軟體/軟件解決方案。

 

Film Director & Photographer at Photographer and Film Director (Shapely), 2 April 2007 to present in London, United Kingdom:

1) Photo, Video and Film Production; 2) Graphic Design, Web Design, Social Networking, Social Media and Advertising; 3) Architectural Design and Interior Design.

www.facebook.com/filmshapely/info

 

Reformer and Philosopher at Taiwanese Social Reformer and Philosopher, 7 April 2012 (location: Los Angeles, California) to present in London, United Kingdom:

Social Reform in Taiwan

www.facebook.com/twreform/info

  

《魂韻》(衿契吐蕊) - 馬天亮22歲寫的電影原著。TianLiang Maa (Theophilus Raynsford Mann) wrote “Hun Yun” (Jin Qi Tu Rui), scenario original “The Soul’s Sentimentalizing” © 1980, 1981, 1983, was at the age of 22.

Website

mtltwp.pixnet.net/album/set/1265174

album.blog.yam.com/mtltwp

photo.roodo.com/photos/mtltwp/albums/small/100469.html

www.facebook.com/hunyun22

www.facebook.com/hy22tss

www.facebook.com/tsstrm

  

Sonate Nr. 1 C-dur op. 3 für Klavier (piano) by Theophilus Raynsford Mann (TianLiang Maa 馬天亮) © 1977, © 1980, © 1981, © 1983. The Sonate composed on 3rd April 1977 then Maa was 18-year-old. The work was published in 1980; the theme was based on “The Soul's Sentimentalizing”.

Website

www.facebook.com/sonate1c

www.facebook.com/piano1c/info

  

LINKS:

 

University of California, Berkeley

berkeley.worldcat.org/search?q=Ma%2C+Tianliang&dblist...

berkeley.worldcat.org/title/hun-yun/oclc/813684284?refere...

oskicat.berkeley.edu/record=b11283690~S1

 

University of Michigan

mirlyn.lib.umich.edu/Record/006237256

catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/006237256

 

WorldCat® Identities

www.worldcat.org/search?q=au%3AMa%2C+Tianliang%2C&dbl...

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Google Books

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developing b&w film prints in the darkroom myself is the best thing everrr

DEVELOP participants Labreshia Mims, Britta Dosch, Garrett Kidd, Amy Wolfe and Rebekke Muench present the outcomes of the El Salvador Ecological Forecasting project during the last week of the Spring 2016 term. This project demonstrated the use of NASA Earth Observations to predict deforestation and forest degradation in El Salvador. develop.larc.nasa.gov

 

Image credit: NASA LaRC

Brookhaven National Laboratory is developing a new Northeast Solar Energy Research Center (NSERC) on its campus that will serve as a solar energy research and test facility for the solar industry. The NSERC will include laboratories for standardized testing in accordance with industry standards, along with a solar PV research array for field testing existing or innovative new technologies under actual northeastern weather conditions.

 

The NSERC will also include access to unique high-resolution data sets from the 32MW Long Island Solar Farm located at Brookhaven.

Some background:

The VF-1 was developed by Stonewell/Bellcom/Shinnakasu for the U.N. Spacy by using alien Overtechnology obtained from the SDF-1 Macross alien spaceship. The space-capable VF-1's combat debut was on February 7, 2009, during the Battle of South Ataria Island - the first battle of Space War I - and remained the mainstay fighter of the U.N. Spacy for the entire conflict. Introduced in 2008, the VF-1 would be out of frontline service just five years later, though.

 

The VF-1 proved to be an extremely capable craft, successfully combating a variety of Zentraedi mecha even in most sorties which saw UN Spacy forces significantly outnumbered. The versatility of the Valkyrie design enabled the variable fighter to act as both large-scale infantry and as air/space superiority fighter. The basic VF-1 was built and deployed in four minor variants (designated A, J, and S single-seater and the D two-seater/trainer) and its success was increased by continued development of various enhancements including the GBP-1S "Armored" Valkyrie exoskeleton with enhanced protection and integrated missile launchers, the so-called FAST (“Fuel And Sensor Tray”) packs that created the fully space-capable "Super" Valkyries and the additional RÖ-X2 heavy cannon pack weapon system for the VF-1S “Super Valkyrie”.

 

After the end of Space War I, the VF-1 continued to be manufactured both in the Sol system and throughout the UNG space colonies. At the end of 2015 the final rollout of the VF-1 was celebrated at a special ceremony, commemorating this most famous of variable fighters. The VF-1 Valkryie was built from 2006 to 2013 with a total production of 5,459 VF-1 variable fighters with several original variants (VF-1A = 5,093, VF-1D = 85, VF-1J = 49, VF-1S = 30, VF-1G = 12, VE-1 = 122, VT-1 = 68), even though these machines were frequently updated and modified during their career, leading to a wide range of sub-variants and different standards.

 

Although the VF-1 would be replaced in 2020 as the primary Variable Fighter of the U.N. Spacy, a long service record and continued production after the war proved the lasting worth of the design. One of these post-war designs became the VF-1EX, a replica variant of the VF-1J with up-to-date avionics and instrumentation. It was only built in small numbers in the late 2040s and was a dedicated variant for advanced training with dissimilar mock aerial and ground fighting.

 

The only operator of this type was Xaos (sometimes spelled as Chaos), a private and independent military and civilian contractor. Xaos was originally a fold navigation business that began venturing into fold wave communication and information, expanding rapidly during the 2050s and entering new business fields like flight tests and providing aggressor aircraft for military training. They were almost entirely independent from the New United Nations Spacy (NUNS) and was led by the mysterious Lady M. During the Vár Syndrome outbreak, Echo Squadron and Delta Flight and the tactical sound unit Thrones and Walküre were formed to counteract its effects in the Brísingr Globular Cluster.

 

The VF-1EX was restricted to its primary objective and never saw real combat. The replica unit retained the overall basic performance of the original VF-1 Valkyrie, the specifications being more than sufficient for training and mock combat. The only difference was the addition of the contemporary military EG-01M/MP EX-Gear system for the pilot as an emergency standard, an exoskeleton unit with personal inner-wear, two variable geometry wings, two hybrid jet/rocket engines, mechanical hardware for the head, torso, arms and legs. This feature gave the VF-1EX its new designation.

Furthermore, the VF-1EX was also outfitted with other electronic contingency functions like AI-assisted flight and remote override controls. Some of these features could be disabled according to necessity or pilot preferences. The gun pod unit was retained but was usually only loaded with paintball rounds for mock combat. For the same purpose, one of the original Mauler RÖV-20 anti-aircraft laser cannon in the "head unit" was replaced by a long-range laser target designator. AMM-1 missiles with dummy warheads or other training ordnance could be added to the wing hardpoints, but the VF-1EX was never seen being equipped this way - it remained an agile dogfighter.

  

General characteristics:

All-environment variable fighter and tactical combat Battroid. 3-mode variable transformation; variable geometry wing; vertical take-off and landing; control-configurable vehicle; single-axis thrust vectoring; three "magic hand" manipulators for maintenance use; retractable canopy shield for Battroid mode and atmospheric reentry; EG-01M/MP EX-Gear system; option of GBP-1S system, atmospheric-escape booster, or FAST Pack system.

 

Accommodation:

Single pilot in Marty & Beck Mk-7 zero/zero ejection seat

 

Dimensions:

Battroid Mode:

Height 12.68 meters

Width 7.3 meters

Length 4.0 meters

Fighter Mode:

Length 14.23 meters

Wingspan 14.78 meters (at 20° minimum sweep)

Height 3.84 meters

 

Empty weight: 13.25 metric tons

Standard take-off mass: 18.5 metric tons

MTOW: 37.0 metric tons

 

Power Plant:

2x Shinnakasu Heavy Industry/P&W/Roice FF-2001 thermonuclear reaction turbine engines, output 650 MW each, rated at 11,500 kg in standard or in overboost (225.63 kN x 2);

4x Shinnakasu Heavy Industry NBS-1 high-thrust vernier thrusters (1 x counter reverse vernier thruster nozzle mounted on the side of each leg nacelle/air intake, 1 x wing thruster roll control system on each wingtip);

18x P&W LHP04 low-thrust vernier thrusters beneath multipurpose hook/handles

 

Performance:

Battroid Mode: maximum walking speed 160 km/h

Fighter Mode: at 10,000 m Mach 2.71; at 30,000+ m Mach 3.87

g limit: in space +7

Thrust-to-weight ratio: empty 3.47; standard TOW 2.49; maximum TOW 1.24

 

Transformation:

Standard time from Fighter to Battroid (automated): under 5 sec.

Min. time from Fighter to Battroid (manual): 0.9 sec.

 

Armament:

1x Mauler RÖV-20 anti-aircraft laser cannon in the "head" unit, firing 6,000 pulses per minute

1x Howard GU-11 55 mm three-barrel Gatling gun pod with 200 RPG, fired at 1,200 rpm

4x underwing hardpoints for a wide variety of ordnance

  

The kit and its assembly:

The VF-1EX Valkyrie is a Variable Fighter introduced in the Macross Δ television series, and it's, as described above, a replica training variant that resembles outwardly the VF-1J. There's even a Hasegawa 1:72 kit from 2016 of this obscure variant.

However, what I tried to recreate is a virtual (and purely fictional/non-canonical) VF-1EX, re-skinned by someone called David L. on the basis of a virtual VF-1S 3D model with a 2 m wing span (sounds like ~1:8 scale) for the Phoenix R/C simulator software. Check this for reference: www.supermotoxl.com/projects-articles/ready-to-drive-fly-...). How bizarre can things be/become? And how sick is a hardware model of it, though...?

 

I found the complex livery very attractive and had the plan to build a 1:100 model for some years now. But it took this long to gather enough mojo to tackle this project, due to the tricolor paint scheme's complex nature...

The "canvas" for this stunt is a vintage Arii 1:100 VF-1 kit, built OOB except for some standard mods. The kit was actually a VF-1A, but I had a spare VF-1J head unit in store as a suitable replacement. Externally, some dorsal blade aerials and vanes on the nose were added, the attachment points under the wings for the pylons were PSRed away. A pilot figure was added to the cockpit because this model would be displayed in flight. As a consequence, the ventral gun pod received an adapter at its tail and I added one of my home-brew wire displays, created on the basis of the kit's OOB plastic base.

  

Painting and markings:

As mentioned above, this VF-1 is based on a re-skinned virtual R/C model, and its creator apparently took inspiration from a canonical VF fighter, namely a VF-31C "Siegfried", and specifically the "Mirage Farina Jenius Custom" version from the Macross Δ series that plays around 2051. Screenshots from the demo flight video under the link above provided various perspectives as painting reference, but the actual implementation on the tiny model caused serious headaches.

The VF-1's shapes are rather round and curvy, the model's jagged surface and small size prohibited masking. The kit is IMHO also best built and painted in single sub-assemblies, but upon closer inspection the screenshots revealed some marking inconsistencies (apparently edited from various videos?), and certain areas were left uncertain, e .g. the inside of the legs or the whole belly area. Therefore, this model is just a personal interpretation of the design, and as such I also deviated in the markings.

 

The paints became Humbrol 20 (Crimson) and 58 (Magenta), plus Revell 301 (Semi-gloss White), and they were applied with brushes. To replicate the edgy and rather fragmented pattern I initially laid down the two reds in a rather rough and thin fashion and painted the white dorsal and ventral areas. Once thoroughly dry, the white edges were quasi-masked with white decal material, either with stripes of various widths or tailored from sheet material, e. g. for the "wedges" on the wings and fins and the dorsal "swallow tail". This went more smoothly than expected, with a very convincing and clean result that i'd never had achieved with brushes alone, even with masking attempts, which would probably have led to chaos and too much paint on the model.

 

Other details like the grey leading edges or the air intakes were created with grey and black decal material, too.

No weathering was done, since the aircraft would be clean and in pristine condition, but I used a soft pencil to emphasize the engraved panel lines, esp. on white background. The gun pod became grey and the exhausts, painted in Revell 91 (Iron), were treated with graphite for a darker shade and a more metallic look.

 

Stencils came from the kit's OOB sheet, but only a few, since there was already a lot "going on" on the VF-1's hull. The flash-shaped Xaos insignia and the NUNS markings on legs and wings were printed at home - as well as the small black vernier thrusters all around the hull, for a uniform look. The USN style Modex and the small letter code on the fins came from an Colorado Decals F-5 sheet, for an aggressor aircraft.

 

Finally, the kit was sealed overall with semi-gloss acrlyic varnish (which turned out glossier than expected...) and position lights etc. added with translucent paint on top of a silver base.

  

Well, while the VF-1 was built OOB with no major mods and just some cosmetical upgrades, the paint scheme and its finish were more demanding - and I am happy that the "decal masking" trick worked so fine. The paint scheme surely is attractive, even though it IMHO does not really takes the VF-1's lines into account. Nevertheless, I am certain that there are not many models that are actually based on a virtual 1:8 scale 3D model of an iconic SF fighter, so that this VF-1EX might be unique.

 

Darjeeling is a City and a Municipality in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located in the Mahabharat Range or Lesser Himalaya at an elevation of 2,164.1 m. It is noted for its tea industry and the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Darjeeling is the headquarters of Darjeeling district which has a partially autonomous status within the state of West Bengal. The development of the town dates back to the mid-19th century, when the colonial British administration set up a sanatorium and a military depot. Subsequently, extensive tea plantations were established in the region, and tea growers developed hybrids of black tea and created new fermentation techniques. The resultant distinctive Darjeeling tea is internationally recognized and ranks among the most popular of the black teas.

 

The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway connects the town with the plains and has one of the few steam locomotives still in service in India.

 

Darjeeling has several British-style public schools, which attract students from India and neighbouring countries. The varied culture of the town reflects its diverse demographic milieu consisting of Nepalis, Bhutia, Lepcha and other mainland Indian ethno-linguistic groups. Darjeeling, with its neighboring town of Kalimpong, was a center of the Gorkhaland movement (Separate State demand within India) in the 1980s. The town's fragile ecology has been threatened by a rising demand for environmental resources, stemming from growing tourist traffic and poorly planned urbanization.

 

HISTORY

The history of Darjeeling is intertwined with that of Sikkim, Nepal, British India and Bhutan. Until the early 19th century, the hilly area around Darjeeling was controlled by the kingdom of Sikkim, while the plains around Siliguri were intermittently occupied by the Kingdom of Nepal, with settlement consisting of a few villages of Lepcha and Kirati people. The Chogyal of Sikkim had been engaged in unsuccessful warfare against the Gorkhas of Nepal. From 1780, the Gorkhas made several attempts to capture the entire region of Darjeeling. By the beginning of 19th century, they had overrun Sikkim as far eastward as the Teesta River and had conquered and annexed the Terai. In the meantime, the British were engaged in preventing the Gorkhas from overrunning the whole of the northern frontier. The Anglo-Gorkha war broke out in 1814, which resulted in the defeat of the Gorkhas and subsequently led to the signing of the Sugauli Treaty in 1815. According to the treaty, Nepal had to cede all those territories which the Gorkhas had annexed from the Chogyal of Sikkim to the British East India Company (i.e. the area between Mechi River and Teesta River). Later in 1817, through the Treaty of Titalia, the British East India Company reinstated the Chogyal of Sikkim, restored all the tracts of land between the Mechi River and the Teesta River to the Chogyal of Sikkim and guaranteed his sovereignty.In 1828, a delegation of the British East India Company (BEIC) officials on its way to the Nepal-Sikkim border stayed in Darjeeling and decided that the region was a suitable site for a sanatorium for British soldiers. The company negotiated a lease of the area west of the Mahananda River from the Chogyal of Sikkim in 1835. In 1849, the BEIC director Arthur Campbell and the explorer and botanist Joseph Dalton Hooker were imprisoned in the region by the Sikkim Chogyal. The BEIC sent a force to free them. Continued friction between the BEIC and the Sikkim authorities resulted in the annexation of 1,700 km2 of territory by the British in 1850. In 1864, the Bhutanese rulers and the British signed the Treaty of Sinchula that ceded the passes leading through the hills and Kalimpong to the British. Further discord between Sikkim and the British resulted in a war, culminating in the signing of a treaty and the annexation by the British of the area east of the Teesta River in 1865. By 1866, Darjeeling district had assumed its current shape and size, covering an area of 3,200 km2.

 

During the British Raj, Darjeeling's temperate climate led to its development as a hill station for British residents seeking to escape the summer heat of the plains. The development of Darjeeling as a sanatorium and health resort proceeded briskly. Arthur Campbell, a surgeon with the Company, and Lieutenant Robert Napier were responsible for establishing a hill station there. Campbell's efforts to develop the station, attract immigrants to cultivate the slopes and stimulate trade resulted in a hundredfold increase in the population of Darjeeling between 1835 and 1849. The first road connecting the town with the plains was constructed between 1839 and 1842. In 1848, a military depot was set up for British soldiers, and the town became a municipality in 1850. Commercial cultivation of tea in the district began in 1856, and induced a number of British planters to settle there. Darjeeling became the formal summer capital of the Bengal Presidency after 1864. Scottish missionaries undertook the construction of schools and welfare centres for the British residents, laying the foundation for Darjeeling's notability as a centre of education. The opening of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway in 1881 further hastened the development of the region. In 1899, Darjeeling was rocked by major landslides that caused severe damage to the town and the native population.

 

Under British rule, the Darjeeling area was initially a "Non-Regulation District", a scheme of administration applicable to economically less advanced districts in the British Raj; acts and regulations of the British Raj did not automatically apply to the district in line with rest of the country. In 1919, the area was declared a "backward tract". During the Indian independence movement, the Non-cooperation Movement spread through the tea estates of Darjeeling. There was also a failed assassination attempt by revolutionaries on Sir John Anderson, the Governor of Bengal in 1934. Subsequently, during the 1940s, Communist activists continued the nationalist movement against the British by mobilising the plantation workers and the peasants of the district.

 

Socio-economic problems of the region that had not been addressed during British rule continued to linger and were reflected in a representation made to the Constituent Assembly of India in 1947, which highlighted the issues of regional autonomy and Nepali nationality in Darjeeling and adjacent areas. After the independence of India in 1947, Darjeeling was merged with the state of West Bengal. A separate district of Darjeeling was established consisting of the hill towns of Darjeeling, Kurseong, Kalimpong and some parts of the Terai region. While the hill population comprised mainly ethnic Nepalis, the plains harboured a large ethnic Bengali population who were refugees from the Partition of India. A cautious and non-receptive response by the West Bengal government to most demands of the ethnic Nepali population led to increased calls, in the 1950s and 1960s, for Darjeeling's autonomy and for the recognition of the Nepali language; the state government acceded to the latter demand in 1961.

 

The creation of a new state of Sikkim in 1975, along with the reluctance of the Government of India to recognise Nepali as an official language under the Constitution of India, brought the issue of a separate state of Gorkhaland to the forefront. Agitation for a separate state continued through the 1980s, included violent protests during the 1986–88 period. The agitation ceased only after an agreement between the government and the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), resulting in the establishment of an elected body in 1988 called the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC), which received autonomy to govern the district. Though Darjeeling became peaceful, the issue of a separate state lingered, fuelled in part by the lack of comprehensive economic development in the region even after the formation of the DGHC. New protests erupted in 2008–09, but both the Union and State governments rejected Gorkha Janmukti Morcha's (GJM) demand for a separate state. In July 2011, a pact was signed between GJM, the Government of West Bengal and the Government of India which includes the formation of a new autonomous, elected Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), a hill council endowed with more powers than its predecessor Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council.

 

GEOGRAPHY

Darjeeling is the main town of the Sadar subdivision and also the headquarters of the district. It is located at an elevation of 2,200 m in the Darjeeling Himalayan hill region on the Darjeeling-Jalapahar range that originates in the south from Ghum. The range is Y-shaped with the base resting at Katapahar and Jalapahar and two arms diverging north of the Observatory Hill. The north-eastern arm dips suddenly and ends in the Lebong spur, while the north-western arm passes through North Point and ends in the valley near Tukver Tea Estate. The hills are nestled within higher peaks and the snow-clad Himalayan ranges tower over the town in the distance. Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest peak, 8,598 m high, is the most prominent mountain visible. In days clear of clouds, Nepal's Mount Everest, 8,850 m high, can be seen. The hills of Darjeeling are part of the Mahabharat Range or Lesser Himalaya. The soil is chiefly composed of sandstone and conglomerate formations, which are the solidified and upheaved detritus of the great range of Himalaya. However, the soil is often poorly consolidated (the permeable sediments of the region do not retain water between rains) and is not considered suitable for agriculture. The area has steep slopes and loose topsoil, leading to frequent landslides during the monsoons. According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, the town falls under seismic zone-IV, (on a scale of I to V, in order of increasing proneness to earthquakes) near the convergent boundary of the Indian and the Eurasian tectonic plates and is subject to frequent earthquakes.

 

FLORA AND FAUNA

Darjeeling is a part of the Eastern Himalayan zoo-geographic zone. Flora around Darjeeling comprises sal, oak, semi-evergreen, temperate and alpine forests. Dense evergreen forests of sal and oak lie around the town, where a wide variety of rare orchids are found. The Lloyd's Botanical Garden preserves common and rare species of plants, while the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park specialises in conserving and breeding endangered Himalayan species. The town of Darjeeling and surrounding region face deforestation due to increasing demand for wood fuel and timber, as well as air pollution from increasing vehicular traffic.Wildlife in the district is protected by the wildlife wing of the West Bengal Forest Department. The fauna found in Darjeeling includes several species of ducks, teals, plovers and gulls that pass Darjeeling while migrating to and from Tibet. Small mammals found in the region include civets, mongooses and badgers. The nearby Jaldapara National Park consists of semi-evergreen and sal forests. Animals found here include the one-horned rhinoceros, elephant, tiger, leopard and hog deer, while the main bird species include the Bengal florican and herons. As of 2009, work was in progress for setting up a conservation centre for red pandas in Darjeeling.

 

CLIMATE

Darjeeling has a temperate climate (Köppen: Cwb, subtropical highland climate) with wet summers caused by monsoon rains. The annual mean maximum temperature is 15.98 °C while the mean minimum temperature is 8.9 °C, with monthly mean temperatures range from 5 to 17 °C. The lowest temperature recorded was −24 °C on 11 February 1905. The average annual precipitation is 309.2 cm, with an average of 126 days of rain in a year. The highest rainfall occurs in July. The heavy and concentrated rainfall that is experienced in the region, aggravated by deforestation and haphazard planning, often causes devastating landslides, leading to loss of life and property.

 

CIVIC ADMINISTRATION

The Darjeeling urban agglomeration consists of Darjeeling Municipality and the Pattabong Tea Garden.Established in 1850, the Darjeeling municipality maintains the civic administration of the town, covering an area of 10.57 km2. The municipality consists of a board of councillors elected from each of the 32 wards of Darjeeling town as well as a few members nominated by the state government. The board of councillors elects a chairman from among its elected members; the chairman is the executive head of the municipality. The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJMM) holds power in the municipality As of 2011.From 1988 to 2012, the Gorkha-dominated hill areas of Darjeeling district was under the jurisdiction of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC). In 2012, the DGHC was replaced by the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA). The elected members of this body are authorised to manage certain affairs of the hills, including education, health and tourism. Law and order in Darjeeling town comes under the jurisdiction of the district police force, which is a part of the West Bengal Police; a Deputy Superintendent of Police oversees the town's security and law affairs. Darjeeling municipality area has two police stations at Darjeeling and Jorebungalow.

 

UTILITIES

Natural springs in the Senchal Range provide most of Darjeeling's water supply. Water collected is routed through stone conduits to two lakes that were constructed in 1910 and 1932, from where it is piped to the town after purification at the Jorebungalow filtration plant. During the dry season, when water supplied by springs is insufficient, water is pumped from Khong Khola, a nearby small perennial stream. There is a steadily widening gap between water supply and demand; just over 50% of the town's households are connected to the municipal water supply system. Various efforts made to augment the water supply, including the construction of a third storage reservoir in 1984, have failed to yield desired results. The town has an underground sewage system, covering about 40% of the town area, that collects domestic waste and conveys it to septic tanks for disposal. Solid waste is disposed of in a nearby dumping ground, which also houses the town's crematorium. Doorstep collection of garbage and segregation of biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste have been implemented since 2003. Vermicomposting of vegetable waste is carried out with the help of non-governmental organisations. In June 2009, in order to reduce waste, the municipality proposed the ban of plastic carry bags and sachets in the town.

 

Darjeeling got from 1897 up to the early 1990s hydroelectricity from the nearby Sidrapong Hydel Power Station, such being the first town in India supplied with hydropower. Today, electricity is supplied by the West Bengal State Electricity Board from other places. The town often suffers from power outages and the electrical supply voltage is unstable, making voltage stabilisers popular with many households. Almost all of the primary schools are now maintained by Darjeeling Gorkha Autonomous Hill Council. The total length of all types of roads within the municipal area is around 134 km. The West Bengal Fire Service provides emergency services for the town.

 

ECONOMY

The two most significant contributors to Darjeeling's economy are tourism and the tea industry. Darjeeling tea, due to the unique agro-climatic conditions of Darjeeling, has a distinctive natural flavour, is internationally reputed and recognised as a geographical indicator. Darjeeling produces 7% of India's tea output, approximately 9,000,000 kilograms every year. The tea industry has faced competition in recent years from tea produced in other parts of India as well as other countries like Nepal. Widespread concerns about labour disputes, worker layoffs and closing of estates have affected investment and production. Several tea estates are being run on a workers' cooperative model, while others are being planned for conversion into tourist resorts. More than 60% of workers in the tea gardens are women. Besides tea, the most widely cultivated crops include maize, millets, paddy, cardamom, potato and ginger. Darjeeling had become an important tourist destination as early as 1860. It is reported to be the only location in eastern India that witnesses large numbers of foreign tourists. It is also a popular filming destination for Bollywood and Bengali cinema. Satyajit Ray shot his film Kanchenjungha (1962) here, and his Feluda series story, Darjeeling Jomjomaat was also set in the town. Bollywood movies Aradhana (1969), Main Hoon Na (2004), and more recently Barfi! (2012) have been filmed here. Tourist inflow into Darjeeling has been affected by the political instability in the region, and agitations in the 1980s and 2000s have hit the tourism industry hard.

 

TRANSPORT

Darjeeling can be reached by the 88 km long Darjeeling Himalayan Railway from New Jalpaiguri, or by National Highway 55, from Siliguri, 77 km away.The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway is a 600 mm narrow-gauge railway that was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999 for being "an outstanding example of the influence of an innovative transportation system on the social and economic development of a multi-cultural region, which was to serve as a model for similar developments in many parts of the world", becoming only the second railway in the world to have this honour.Bus services and hired vehicles connect Darjeeling with Siliguri and Darjeeling has road connections with Bagdogra, Gangtok and Kathmandu and the neighbouring towns of Kurseong and Kalimpong. However, road and railway communications often get disrupted in the monsoons because of landslides. The nearest airport is Bagdogra Airport, located 90 km from Darjeeling. Within the town, people usually traverse by walking. Residents also use two-wheelers and hired taxis for travelling short distances. The Darjeeling Ropeway, functional since 1968, was closed in 2003 after an accident killed four tourists. It was proposed to be reopened in 2007, and finally opened in February 2012.

 

DEMOGRAPHICS

According to provisional results of 2011 census of India, Darjeeling urban agglomeration has a population of 132,016, out of which 65,839 were males and 66,177 were females. The sex ratio is 1005 females per 1,000 males. The 0–6 years population is 7,382. Effective literacy rate for the population older than 6 years is 93.17 per cent. According to the 2001 census, the Darjeeling urban agglomeration, with an area of 12.77 km2 had a population of 109,163, while the municipal area had a population of 107,530. The population density of the municipal area was 10,173 per km2. The sex ratio was 1,017 females per 1,000 males, which was higher than the national average of 933 females per 1000 males. The three largest religions were Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity, in that order. The majority of the populace are Gorkhas of ethnic Nepali background. Indigenous ethnic groups include the Limbu, Rai, Magars, Gurung, Tamangs, Lepchas, Bhutias, Sherpas and Newars. Other communities that inhabit Darjeeling include the Marwaris, Anglo-Indians, Chinese, Biharis, Tibetans and Bengali. The most commonly spoken languages are Nepali, Hindi, Bengali and English. Darjeeling has seen a significant growth in its population, its decadal growth rate being 47% between 1991 and 2001. The colonial town had been designed for a population of only 10,000, and subsequent growth has created extensive infrastructural and environmental problems. The district's forests and other natural wealth have been adversely affected by an ever-growing population. Environmental degradation, including denudation of the surrounding hills has adversely affected Darjeeling's appeal as a tourist destination. The official language of West Bengal is Bengali, additional official languages in Darjeeling are English and Nepali.

 

CULTURE

Apart from the major religious festivals of Dashain (Durga puja), Tihar (Diwali) and Christmas the diverse ethnic populace of the town celebrates several local festivals. The Lepchas and Bhutias celebrate new year in January, while Tibetans celebrate their new year, Losar, in February–March. The birthday of the Buddha is celebrated in mid-June with processions. Darjeeling Carnival, initiated by a civil society movement known as The Darjeeling Initiative, is a ten-day carnival held every year during the winter with portrayal of the Darjeeling Hill's musical and cultural heritage as its central theme. A popular food in Darjeeling is the Nepalese and Tibetan momo, a steamed dumpling containing meat cooked in a doughy wrapping and served with clear soup and achar. A form of Tibetan noodle called thukpa, served in soup form is also popular. Other commonly eaten dishes include alu dum, a potato preparation, and shaphalay, Tibetan bread stuffed with meat. Fermented foods and beverages are consumed by a large percentage of the population. Fermented foods include preparations of soybean, bamboo shoots, milk and Sel roti, which is made from rice. Tea is the most popular beverage, the Tibetan version is also drunk.Alcoholic beverages include Tongba, Jnaard and Chhaang, variations of a local beer made from fermenting finger millet.

 

Colonial architecture characterises many buildings in Darjeeling, exemplified by several mock Tudor residences, Gothic churches, the Raj Bhawan, Planters' Club and various educational institutions. Buddhist monasteries showcase the pagoda style architecture. Darjeeling is regarded as a centre of music and a niche for musicians and music admirers. Singing and playing musical instruments is a common pastime among the resident population, who take pride in the traditions and role of music in cultural life. Darjeeling also has a Peace Pagoda built in 1992 by the Japanese Buddhist organisation Nipponzan Myohoji.

 

EDUCATION

There are 52 primary schools, 21 high schools and 4 colleges in the town. Darjeeling's schools are either run by the state government or by private and religious organisations. Schools mainly use English and Nepali as their media of instruction, although there is the option to learn the national language Hindi and the official state language Bengali. The schools are either affiliated with the ICSE, the CBSE, or the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education. Having been a summer retreat for the British in India, Darjeeling became the place of choice for the establishment of public schools on the model of Eton, Harrow and Rugby, allowing the children of British officials to obtain an exclusive education. Institutions such as Mount Hermon School, St. Robert's H.S. School, St. Joseph's College (School Dept.), Loreto Convent, and St. Paul's School are renowned as centres of educational excellence. Darjeeling has four colleges - St. Joseph's College, Southfield College (earlier known as Loreto College), Darjeeling Government College and Sri Ramakrishna B.T. College - all affiliated to the University of North Bengal in Siliguri.

 

TOURIST ATTRACTIONS

Tiger Hill is located in Darjeeling, in the Indian State of West Bengal, and is the summit of Ghoom, the highest railway station in the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway - a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park is a 67.56-acre zoo in the town of Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal. The zoo was opened in 1958, and an average elevation of 7,000 feet, is the largest high altitude zoo in India.

 

The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, also known as the "Toy Train", is a 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge railway that runs between New Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal, India.

 

The Batasia Loop is a spiral railway created to lower the gradient of ascent of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway in Darjeeling district of West Bengal, India. At this point, the track spirals around over itself through a tunnel and over a hilltop.

 

Peace Pagoda, Darjeeling or Darjeeling Peace Pagoda is one of the Peace Pagodas designed to provide a focus for people of all races and creeds to help unite them in their search for world peace.

 

Windamere Hotel, built in the 1930s, is a heritage hotel situated on Observatory Hill, in Darjeeling, India.

 

Mirik is a picturesque tourist spot nestled in the serene hills of Darjeeling district in West Bengal, India. The name Mirik comes from the Lepcha words Mir-Yok meaning "place burnt by fire".

 

Samsing is a small hill village and tourist spot in the Malbazar subdivision of Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal situated at an elevation of 3000 ft in the foothills of Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling districts border.

 

Suntalekhola or Suntaley Khola is a small village and a tourist spot in the Darjeeling District of West Bengal. The altitude of the place ranges from 650 to 950 m. It gets it name from a small stream: Suntaley Khola.

 

Bhutia Busty monastery or Karmaa Dorjee Chyoling monastery is a Buddhist monastery located in Tongsong, Darjeeling, India. It belongs to the Red Sect of Buddhist Lamas.

 

DARJEELING CARNIVAL

Darjeeling Carnival is a ten-day carnival arranged in the town of Darjeeling, West Bengal, India.The carnival consists of several functions like poetry-reading sessions, painting and photo exhibitions, tea-drinking ceremonies, a Land Rover rally, music concerts and ethnic food festivals.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Hong Kong (香港; "Fragrant Harbour"), officially Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, is an autonomous territory on the southern coast of China at the Pearl River Estuary and the South China Sea. Hong Kong is known for its skyline and deep natural harbour. It has an area of 1104 km2 and shares its northern border with the Guangdong Province of Mainland China. With around 7.2 million Hongkongers of various nationalities, Hong Kong is one of the world's most densely populated metropolises.

 

After the First Opium War (1839–42), Hong Kong became a British colony with the perpetual cession of Hong Kong Island, followed by Kowloon Peninsula in 1860 and a 99-year lease of the New Territories from 1898. Hong Kong remained under British control for about a century until the Second World War, when Japan occupied the colony from December 1941 to August 1945. After the Surrender of Japan, the British resumed control. In the 1980s, negotiations between the United Kingdom and the People's Republic of China resulted in the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration, which provided for the transfer of sovereignty of Hong Kong on 30 June 1997. The territory became a special administrative region of China with a high degree of autonomy on 1 July 1997 under the principle of one country, two systems. Disputes over the perceived misapplication of this principle have contributed to popular protests, including the 2014 Umbrella Revolution.

 

In the late 1970s, Hong Kong became a major entrepôt in Asia-Pacific. The territory has developed into a major global trade hub and financial centre. The 44th-largest economy in the world, Hong Kong ranks top 10 in GDP (PPP) per capita, but also has the most severe income inequality among advanced economies. Hong Kong is one of the three most important financial centres alongside New York and London, and the world's number one tourist destination city. The territory has been named the freest market economy. The service economy, characterised by free trade and low taxation, has been regarded as one of the world's most laissez-faire economic policies, and the currency, the Hong Kong dollar, is the 13th most traded currency in the world.

 

The Hong Kong Basic Law empowers the region to develop relations and make agreements directly with foreign states and regions, as well as international organizations, in a broad range of appropriate fields. It is an independent member of APEC, the IMF, WTO, FIFA and International Olympic Committee among others.

 

Limited land created a dense infrastructure and the territory became a centre of modern architecture, and one of the world's most vertical cities. Hong Kong has a highly developed public transportation network covering 90 per cent of the population, the highest in the world, and relies on mass transit by road or rail. Air pollution remains a serious problem. Loose emissions standards have resulted in a high level of atmospheric particulates. Nevertheless, Hongkongers enjoy the world's longest or second longest life expectancies.

 

NAME

It is not known who was responsible for the Romanisation of the name "Hong Kong" but it is generally believed to be an early imprecise phonetic rendering of the pronunciation of the spoken Cantonese or Hakka name 香港, meaning "Fragrant Harbour". Before 1842, the name referred to a small inlet—now Aberdeen Harbour (香港仔, Sidney Lau: heung1gong2 jai2, Jyutping: hoeng1gong2 zai2, or Hiong1gong3 zai3 in a form of Hakka, literally means "Little Hong Kong")—between Aberdeen Island and the south side of Hong Kong Island, which was one of the first points of contact between British sailors and local fishermen. As those early contacts are likely to have been with Hong Kong's early inhabitants, the Tankas (水上人), it is equally probable that the early Romanisation was a faithful execution of their speech, i.e. hong1, not heung1. Detailed and accurate Romanisation systems for Cantonese were available and in use at the time.

 

The reference to fragrance may refer to the sweet taste of the harbour's fresh water estuarine influx of the Pearl River, or to the incense from factories, lining the coast to the north of Kowloon, which was stored near Aberdeen Harbour for export before the development of the Victoria Harbour.

 

In 1842, the Treaty of Nanking was signed and the name, Hong Kong, was first recorded on official documents to encompass the entirety of the island.

 

The name had often been written as the single word Hongkong until the government adopted the current form in 1926. Nevertheless, a number of century-old institutions still retain the single-word form, such as the Hongkong Post, Hongkong Electric and the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation.

 

The full official name, after 1997, is "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China". This is the official title as mentioned in the Hong Kong Basic Law and the Hong Kong Government's website; however, "Hong Kong Special Administrative Region" and "Hong Kong" are widely accepted.

 

Hong Kong has carried many nicknames: the most famous among those is the "Pearl of the Orient", which reflected the impressive night-view of the city's light decorations on the skyscrapers along both sides of the Victoria Harbour. The territory is also known as "Asia's World City".

 

HISTORY

PRE-BRITISH

Archaeological studies support human presence in the Chek Lap Kok area (now Hong Kong International Airport) from 35,000 to 39,000 years ago and on Sai Kung Peninsula from 6,000 years ago.

 

Wong Tei Tung and Three Fathoms Cove are the earliest sites of human habitation in Hong Kong during the Paleolithic Period. It is believed that the Three Fathom Cove was a river-valley settlement and Wong Tei Tung was a lithic manufacturing site. Excavated Neolithic artefacts suggested cultural differences from the Longshan culture of northern China and settlement by the Che people, prior to the migration of the Baiyue (Viets) to Hong Kong. Eight petroglyphs, which dated to the Shang dynasty in China, were discovered on the surrounding islands.

 

ANCIENT CHINA

In 214 BC, Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, conquered the Baiyue tribes in Jiaozhi (modern Liangguang region and Vietnam) and incorporated the territory into imperial China for the first time. Modern Hong Kong was assigned to the Nanhai commandery (modern Nanhai District), near the commandery's capital city Panyu. In Qin dynasty, the territory was ruled by Panyu County(番禺縣) up till Jin Dynasty.

 

The area of Hong Kong was consolidated under the kingdom of Nanyue (Southern Viet), founded by general Zhao Tuo in 204 BC after the collapse of the short-lived Qin dynasty. When the kingdom of Nanyue was conquered by the Han Dynasty in 111 BC, Hong Kong was assigned to the Jiaozhi commandery. Archaeological evidence indicates that the population increased and early salt production flourished in this time period. Lei Cheng Uk Han Tomb on the Kowloon Peninsula is believed to have been built during the Han dynasty.

 

IMPERIAL CHINA

Started from Jin dynasty to early period of Tang dynasty, the territory that now comprises Hong Kong was governed by Bao'an County (寶安縣). In Tang dynasty, the Guangdong region flourished as an international trading center. The Tuen Mun region in what is now Hong Kong's New Territories served as a port, naval base, salt production centre and later, base for the exploitation of pearls. Lantau Island was also a salt production centre, where the salt smugglers riots broke out against the government.

 

Under the Tang dynasty, the Guangdong (Canton) region flourished as a regional trading centre. In 736 AD, the first Emperor of Tang established a military stronghold in Tuen Mun in western Hong Kong to defend the coastal area of the region. The first village school, Li Ying College, was established around 1075 AD in the modern-day New Territories under the Northern Song dynasty. After their defeat by the Mongols, the Southern Song court briefly moved to modern-day Kowloon City (the Sung Wong Toi site), before its final defeat at the Battle of Yamen.

 

From the mid-Tang dynasty to early Ming dynasty, the territory that now comprises Hong Kong was governed by Dongguan County (東莞縣/ 東官縣). In Ming dynasty, the area was governed by Xin'an County (新安縣) before it was colonized by the British government. The indigenous inhabitants of what is now Hong Kong are identified with several ethnicities, including Punti, Hakka, Tanka) and Hoklo.

 

The earliest European visitor on record was Jorge Álvares, a Portuguese explorer who arrived in 1513. Having founded an establishment in Macau by 1557, Portuguese merchants began trading in southern China. However, subsequent military clashes between China and Portugal led to the expulsion of all Portuguese merchants from the rest of China.

 

In the mid-16th century, the Haijin order (closed-door, isolation policy) was enforced and it strictly forbade all maritime activities in order to prevent contact from foreigners by sea. From 1661 to 1669, Hong Kong was directly affected by the Great Clearance of the Kangxi Emperor, who required the evacuation of coastal areas of Guangdong. About 16,000 people from Hong Kong and Bao'an County were forced to emigrate inland; 1,648 of those who evacuated were said to have returned after the evacuation was rescinded in 1669.

 

BRITSH CROWN COLONY 1842–1941

In 1839, the refusal of Qing authorities to support opium imports caused the outbreak of the First Opium War between the British Empire and the Qing Empire. Qing's defeat resulted in the occupation of Hong Kong Island by British forces on 20 January 1841. It was initially ceded under the Convention of Chuenpee, as part of a ceasefire agreement between Captain Charles Elliot and Governor Qishan. While a dispute between high-ranking officials of both countries led to the failure of the treaty's ratification, on 29 August 1842, Hong Kong Island was formally ceded in perpetuity to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland under the Treaty of Nanking. The British officially established a Crown colony and founded the City of Victoria in the following year.

 

The population of Hong Kong Island was 7,450 when the Union Flag raised over Possession Point on 26 January 1841. It mostly consisted of Tanka fishermen and Hakka charcoal burners, whose settlements scattered along several coastal hamlets. In the 1850s, a large number of Chinese immigrants crossed the then-free border to escape from the Taiping Rebellion. Other natural disasters, such as flooding, typhoons and famine in mainland China would play a role in establishing Hong Kong as a place for safe shelter.

 

Further conflicts over the opium trade between Britain and Qing quickly escalated into the Second Opium War. Following the Anglo-French victory, the Crown Colony was expanded to include Kowloon Peninsula (south of Boundary Street) and Stonecutter's Island, both of which were ceded to the British in perpetuity under the Convention of Beijing in 1860.

 

In 1898, Britain obtained a 99-year lease from Qing under the Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory, in which Hong Kong obtained a 99-year lease of the Lantau Island, the area north of Boundary Street in Kowloon up to Shenzhen River and over 200 other outlying islands.

 

Hong Kong soon became a major entrepôt thanks to its free port status, attracting new immigrants to settle from both China and Europe alike. The society, however, remained racially segregated and polarised under British colonial policies. Despite the rise of a British-educated Chinese upper-class by the late-19th century, race laws such as the Peak Reservation Ordinance prevented ethnic Chinese in Hong Kong from acquiring houses in reserved areas, such as the Victoria Peak. At this time, the majority of the Chinese population in Hong Kong had no political representation in the British colonial government. There were, however, a small number of Chinese elites whom the British governors relied on, such as Sir Kai Ho and Robert Hotung, who served as communicators and mediators between the government and local population.

 

Hong Kong continued to experience modest growth during the first half of the 20th century. The University of Hong Kong was established in 1911 as the territory's oldest higher education institute. While there was an exodus of 60,000 residents for fear of a German attack on the British colony during the First World War, Hong Kong remained peaceful. Its population increased from 530,000 in 1916 to 725,000 in 1925 and reached 1.6 million by 1941.

 

In 1925, Cecil Clementi became the 17th Governor of Hong Kong. Fluent in Cantonese and without a need for translator, Clementi introduced the first ethnic Chinese, Shouson Chow, into the Executive Council as an unofficial member. Under his tenure, Kai Tak Airport entered operation as RAF Kai Tak and several aviation clubs. In 1937, the Second Sino-Japanese War broke out when the Japanese Empire expanded its territories from northeastern China into the mainland proper. To safeguard Hong Kong as a freeport, Governor Geoffry Northcote declared the Crown Colony as a neutral zone.

 

JAPANESE OCCUPATION 1941–45

As part of its military campaign in Southeast Asia during Second World War, the Japanese army moved south from Guangzhou of mainland China and attacked Hong Kong on 8 December 1941. The Battle of Hong Kong ended with the British and Canadian defenders surrendering control of Hong Kong to Japan on 25 December 1941 in what was regarded by locals as Black Christmas.

 

During the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, the Japanese army committed atrocities against civilians and POWs, such as the St. Stephen's College massacre. Local residents also suffered widespread food shortages, limited rationing and hyper-inflation arising from the forced exchange of currency from Hong Kong Dollars to Japanese military banknotes. The initial ratio of 2:1 was gradually devalued to 4:1 and ownership of Hong Kong Dollars was declared illegal and punishable by harsh torture. Due to starvation and forced deportation for slave labour to mainland China, the population of Hong Kong had dwindled from 1.6 million in 1941 to 600,000 in 1945, when Britain resumed control of the colony on 30 August 1945.

 

ECONOMY

As one of the world's leading international financial centres, Hong Kong has a major capitalist service economy characterised by low taxation and free trade. The currency, Hong Kong dollar, is the eighth most traded currency in the world as of 2010. Hong Kong was once described by Milton Friedman as the world's greatest experiment in laissez-faire capitalism, but has since instituted a regime of regulations including a minimum wage. It maintains a highly developed capitalist economy, ranked the freest in the world by the Index of Economic Freedom every year since 1995. It is an important centre for international finance and trade, with one of the greatest concentrations of corporate headquarters in the Asia-Pacific region, and is known as one of the Four Asian Tigers for its high growth rates and rapid development from the 1960s to the 1990s. Between 1961 and 1997 Hong Kong's gross domestic product grew 180 times while per-capita GDP increased 87 times over.

 

The Hong Kong Stock Exchange is the seventh largest in the world and has a market capitalisation of US$2.3 trillion as of December 2009. In that year, Hong Kong raised 22 percent of worldwide initial public offering (IPO) capital, making it the largest centre of IPOs in the world and the easiest place to raise capital. The Hong Kong dollar has been pegged to the US dollar since 1983.

 

The Hong Kong Government has traditionally played a mostly passive role in the economy, with little by way of industrial policy and almost no import or export controls. Market forces and the private sector were allowed to determine practical development. Under the official policy of "positive non-interventionism", Hong Kong is often cited as an example of laissez-faire capitalism. Following the Second World War, Hong Kong industrialised rapidly as a manufacturing centre driven by exports, and then underwent a rapid transition to a service-based economy in the 1980s. Since then, it has grown to become a leading centre for management, financial, IT, business consultation and professional services.

 

Hong Kong matured to become a financial centre in the 1990s, but was greatly affected by the Asian financial crisis in 1998, and again in 2003 by the SARS outbreak. A revival of external and domestic demand has led to a strong recovery, as cost decreases strengthened the competitiveness of Hong Kong exports and a long deflationary period ended. Government intervention, initiated by the later colonial governments and continued since 1997, has steadily increased, with the introduction of export credit guarantees, a compulsory pension scheme, a minimum wage, anti-discrimination laws, and a state mortgage backer.

 

The territory has little arable land and few natural resources, so it imports most of its food and raw materials. Imports account for more than 90% of Hong Kong's food supply, including nearly all of the meat and rice available there. Agricultural activity - relatively unimportant to Hong Kong's economy and contributing just 0.1% of its GDP - primarily consists of growing premium food and flower varieties. Hong Kong is the world's eleventh largest trading entity, with the total value of imports and exports exceeding its gross domestic product. It is the world's largest re-export centre. Much of Hong Kong's exports consist of re-exports, which are products made outside of the territory, especially in mainland China, and distributed via Hong Kong. Its physical location has allowed the city to establish a transportation and logistics infrastructure that includes the world's second busiest container port and the world's busiest airport for international cargo. Even before the transfer of sovereignty, Hong Kong had established extensive trade and investment ties with the mainland, which now enable it to serve as a point of entry for investment flowing into the mainland. At the end of 2007, there were 3.46 million people employed full-time, with the unemployment rate averaging 4.1% for the fourth straight year of decline. Hong Kong's economy is dominated by the service sector, which accounts for over 90% of its GDP, while industry constitutes 9%. Inflation was at 2.5% in 2007. Hong Kong's largest export markets are mainland China, the United States, and Japan.

 

As of 2010 Hong Kong is the eighth most expensive city for expatriates, falling from fifth position in the previous year. Hong Kong is ranked fourth in terms of the highest percentage of millionaire households, behind Switzerland, Qatar, and Singapore with 8.5 percent of all households owning at least one million US dollars. Hong Kong is also ranked second in the world by the most billionaires per capita (one per 132,075 people), behind Monaco. In 2011, Hong Kong was ranked second in the Ease of Doing Business Index, behind Singapore.

 

Hong Kong is ranked No. 1 in the world in the Crony Capitalism Index by the Economist.

 

In 2014, Hong Kong was the eleventh most popular destination for international tourists among countries and territories worldwide, with a total of 27.8 million visitors contributing a total of US$38,376 million in international tourism receipts. Hong Kong is also the most popular city for tourists, nearly two times of its nearest competitor Macau.

  

DEMOGRAPHICS

The territory's population in mid-2015 is 7.30 million, with an average annual growth rate of 0.8% over the previous 5 years. The current population of Hong Kong comprises 91% ethnic Chinese. A major part of Hong Kong's Cantonese-speaking majority originated from the neighbouring Guangdong province, from where many fled during the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Chinese Civil War, and the communist rule in China.

 

Residents of the Mainland do not automatically receive the Right of Abode, and many may not enter the territory freely. Like other non-natives, they may apply for the Right of Abode after seven years of continuous residency. Some of the rights may also be acquired by marriage (e.g., the right to work), but these do not include the right to vote or stand for office. However, the influx of immigrants from mainland China, approximating 45,000 per year, is a significant contributor to its population growth – a daily quota of 150 Mainland Chinese with family ties in Hong Kong are granted a "one way permit". Life expectancy in Hong Kong is 81.2 years for males and 86.9 years for females as of 2014, making it the highest life expectancy in the world.

 

About 91% of the people of Hong Kong are of Chinese descent, the majority of whom are Taishanese, Chiu Chow, other Cantonese people, and Hakka. Hong Kong's Han majority originate mainly from the Guangzhou and Taishan regions in Guangdong province. The remaining 6.9% of the population is composed of non-ethnic Chinese. There is a South Asian population of Indians, Pakistanis and Nepalese; some Vietnamese refugees have become permanent residents of Hong Kong. There are also Britons, Americans, Canadians, Japanese, and Koreans working in the city's commercial and financial sector. In 2011, 133,377 foreign domestic helpers from Indonesia and 132,935 from the Philippines were working in Hong Kong.

 

Hong Kong's de facto official language is Cantonese, a variety of Chinese originating from Guangdong province to the north of Hong Kong. English is also an official language, and according to a 1996 by-census is spoken by 3.1 percent of the population as an everyday language and by 34.9 percent of the population as a second language. Signs displaying both Chinese and English are common throughout the territory. Since the 1997 Handover, an increase in immigrants from communist China and greater interaction with the mainland's economy have brought an increasing number of Mandarin speakers to Hong Kong.

 

RELIGION

A majority of residents of Hong Kong have no religious affiliation, professing a form of agnosticism or atheism. According to the US Department of State 43 percent of the population practices some form of religion. Some figures put it higher, according to a Gallup poll, 64% of Hong Kong residents do not believe in any religion, and possibly 80% of Hong Kong claim no religion. In Hong Kong teaching evolution won out in curriculum dispute about whether to teach other explanations, and that creationism and intelligent design will form no part of the senior secondary biology curriculum.

 

Hong Kong enjoys a high degree of religious freedom, guaranteed by the Basic Law. Hong Kong's main religions are Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism; a local religious scholar in contact with major denominations estimates there are approximately 1.5 million Buddhists and Taoists. A Christian community of around 833,000 forms about 11.7% of the total population; Protestants forms a larger number than Roman Catholics at a rate of 4:3, although smaller Christian communities exist, including the Latter-day Saints and Jehovah's Witnesses. The Anglican and Roman Catholic churches each freely appoint their own bishops, unlike in mainland China. There are also Sikh, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu and Bahá'í communities. The practice of Falun Gong is tolerated.

 

PERSONAL INCOME

Statistically Hong Kong's income gap is the greatest in Asia Pacific. According to a report by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme in 2008, Hong Kong's Gini coefficient, at 0.53, was the highest in Asia and "relatively high by international standards". However, the government has stressed that income disparity does not equate to worsening of the poverty situation, and that the Gini coefficient is not strictly comparable between regions. The government has named economic restructuring, changes in household sizes, and the increase of high-income jobs as factors that have skewed the Gini coefficient.

 

WIKIPEDIA

Leica M3 and Leitz 50mm f/2 Summicron DR

 

Fujifilm Neopan 1600 developed @ 3200 in Xtol (1:3)

 

...

 

Thanks to Bill Allen for lending me his dual range Summicron!

Borghetto, a place name of Lombard origin that means “fortified settlement,” is the name of the first settlement that developed near the ford across the Mincio river.

 

Valeggio supposedly means “flat area,” although tradition somewhat more evocatively gives the name of “Vale dium,” or “Valley of the Gods”.

 

Borghetto’s history is that of an important crossing point and a border area fought over by opposing armies.

 

The ford across the Mincio was the safest and best-located south of Lake Garda, and over the centuries the river was a natural barrier between the lands of Mantua and those of Verona, in a border area much desired by the seigniories and armies lusting for power: the Gonzaga, the Scaligeri, the Visconti, the Venetian Republic, Austria, and France.

 

These lands were also shaped by the Napoleonic battles and especially the battles of the Risorgimento: nevertheless, the green Mincio that meanders here across the countryside reveals an unsuspected Arcadia, inspiring endless reveries.

  

The landscape is still, perennial, timeless, and brings us back to our need for springs, to our sources, like in every river legend in which water and dreams combine into one. Strolling through Borghetto in the evening to see a sunset over the Mincio, or when fog blurs the silhouettes of the buildings so that only the Ghibelline battlements emerge, is like sinking into an imaginary medieval world.

 

Borghetto is just a handful of houses, an ancient village of mills in complete symbiosis with its river. A river idyll, with the three ancient mills that seem to rise out of the water.

 

The Ponte Visconteo, an extraordinary fortified dam built in 1393 by the order of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, has been defined the “checkpoint of an ancient regime.” 650 meters long and 25 meters wide, it was completed in 1395 and was connected to the Scaligero Castle rising above it by two high battlemented curtains, making it part of a fortified complex extending for about 16 km.

 

The castle with its towers continues to dominate over the Mincio valley from the top of the hill. Only the Tonda tower, an unusual structure built in the 12th century, remains of the oldest part of the castle. The rest of the complex dates from the 14th century. It had three drawbridges, only one of which still exists.

 

Inside the village, the Church of San Marco Evangelista is a neoclassical reconstruction (1759) of the old Romanesque church dedicated to Santa Maria (11th cent.), of which two valuable frescoes from the 1400s remain.

    

Trump National Doral Miami

 

-- The Kaskel Years --

 

Immigrating from Poland in the 1920's, Alfred L. Kaskel (1901–1968) used his skills to open in the Coney Island neighborhood a small building supplies store which led to early opportunities as a building contractor. Kaskel saved his money and was able to build his first apartment building on Parkside Avenue in Brooklyn. By the age of 30 he was a millionaire. He reinvested the profits and rose to prominence in New York City real estate in the postwar period - as did Donald Trump's father, Fred Trump and Sam Lefrak - by securing low cost government loans to build housing for returning GIs. Kaskel realized the potential for affordable housing in New York City and developed apartments in Forest Hills-Kew Gardens-Rego Park, Queens. In 1945 Kaskel bought the Belmont Plaza Hotel on Lexington and 49th Street - which marked his beginning of a rapid acceleration into the hotel real estate. Kaskel (Carol Management named after his daughter Carole) bought Coney Island's famed Half Moon Hotel for $900,000 in 1947. Kaskel sold the hotel in 1949 for $1,000,000 to the Harbor Hospital of Brooklyn.

 

By 1958 Kaskel was a part time resident of Miami and built the Carillon, a 620 room palace designed by Norman Giller, the celebrated “father” of Miami Modern (MiMo) architecture at Collins and 68th. The Carillon epitomized resort culture in Miami Beach. In 1959, it was voted Miami Beach’s “Hotel of the Year.” A glamorous night spot, the Carillon became known during the 1960s for its famous guests, lavish parties, cabaret shows, and big-name entertainment. Kaskel enjoyed golf - it led him to the swampland west of the Miami Airport and the Doral Country Club. Alfred and Doris Kaskel purchased 2,400 acres of swampland between NW 36 Street and NW 74 Street and from NW 79 Avenue to NW 117 Avenue for about $49,000 with the intention of building a golf course and hotel. At that time there was no paved road to the property. Kaskel's wife and daughter thought he was crazy to purchase the property and called it "Kaskel's folly". In 1962, the Kaskel's dream came true when they opened a hotel and country club that featured the Blue, Red and Par 3 golf courses. They named it Doral - a combination of Alfred and Doris. The Doral was the most luxurious resort constructed in South Florida since the Miami Biltmore in Coral Gables opened in the 1920's. The Doral Country Club was built for $10 million by Kaskel's family owned real estate firm, Carol Management. The Doral golf concept was to build multiple golf courses with a central country club, dining, meeting facilities and lodge rooms and reserve the fairway views for future house, condo and apartment buildings. In 1963 Kaskel also opened the 420- room Doral-on-Ocean - as the sister hotel to the Doral Country Club. The Doral Beach Hotel was long considered the most elegant and luxurious hotel in the area. It won several Mobil Five Star awards. It was said Kaskel did not have a mortgage on the Carillon Hotel, Doral Beach of the Doral Country Club - all funded by the thousands of apartment houses he owned in New York City.

 

Kaskel hired Louis Sibbett "Dick" Wilson and his assistants Joe Lee and Bob Hagge (Robert von Hagge) to design Doral's two regulation length golf courses plus a par-3 course. Wilson was the architect for Bay Hill in Orlando and La Costa in Carlsbad, CA. Since much of the land was swamp Mr. Hagge excavated enough land to route fairways through the water infested terrain just as Kaskel had requested. The intention was to use existing water as an ever-present hazard compensating for the very flat landscape. In May, 1963 construction began on the White Course, for the Doral complex, but it needed dirt, and so the lakes were dredged and enlarged on the Blue course from 60 acres to 75 acres. Kaskel hired Bob Hagge to design the White course. As a result of the building of the new White course, the par-3 course was redesigned since they were both located on the same parcel of land. On January 20, 1966 the Doral Country Club White Course opened and in December 1966 the redesigned Par 3 course reopened. Since the Blue Course had been renamed the Blue Monster, the other courses were renamed as well. The Red Course was renamed the Red Tiger, as Jackie Gleason once called the course. The White Course became known as the White Wonder, and the Par-3 Course became known as the Green Course or the Green Hornet. In 1968, Robert von Hagge and Bruce Devlin were hired to build the fifth course at the Doral Country Club - the Gold Course. In January, 1970 the Gold Course opened for business and received the moniker of Bachelor's Gold.

 

Kaskel put up a large purse to attract a PGA event at Doral in 1962. The tournament was held on the Blue Course and was named the Doral Country Club Open Invitational. Billy Casper was the inaugural winner of the Doral tournament. For that triumph, Casper earned $9,000 of the $50,000 purse. After watching the professionals struggle on the Blue Course, the tournament director Frank Strafaci gave the Blue Course the nickname 'The Blue Monster' which stuck. Doral's Touring Golf Pro for many years was Seve Ballesteros.

 

By 1978 the Kaskel family had grown the Doral brand to 8 hotels including in NYC: Doral Tuscany (now the St Giles Tuscany), Doral Park Avenue (now the Iberostar), Doral Court (now the St. Giles The Court) and the Doral Inn (originally the Belmont Plaza and the former W Flagship hotel now the Maxwell). In 1987, a spa wing was added to the Doral Country Club's hotel and the facility was renamed as the Doral Golf Resort and Spa. Prior to its renovation, the 800 acre complex was reported to feature "four golf courses; 700 hotel rooms across 10 lodges; more than 86,000-square-foot of meeting space, including a 25,000-square-foot ballroom; a 50,000-square-foot spa with 33 treatment rooms; six food and beverage outlets; extensive retail; and a private members' clubhouse.

 

--- The next five owners - KSL, CNL, Morgan Stanley, Paulson & Co. and Donald J. Trump ---

 

In 1994, the Kaskel family (Carol Management) sold the resort to KSL Recreation, a Kohlberg Kravis Roberts affiliate focused on premier golf facilities, for approximately $100 million. KSL Recreation was formed in 1992 (Henry Kravis, Michael Shannon and Larry Lichliter) as a portfolio company of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. KSL investors include public and private pensions and high net worth individuals. KSL appointed Hans Turnovszky as the new general manager. KSL planned a $30 million renovation. Starwood Capital was another interested buyer. The renovation included the remodel of ground floor restaurants (Terraza and Champions Sports Bar and Grill), all rooms and the 4 golf courses.

 

By 1995 the 4 courses (Blue Monster, Gold, White and Red) at Doral were frayed around the edges after some years of neglect. The Blue Monster was dropped off Golf Digest's list of the best 100 courses in 1993. In an effort to update the Blue Monster's difficulty in relation to changes in golf technology and skill, KSL contracted Ray Floyd to renovate the course in 1995. Floyd added and enlarged the already numerous bunkers narrowing many landing areas from the tee. The course was challenging under ideal conditions, but in normal tradewinds the alterations proved too penal and very unpopular. In 1999 Jim McLean, the Doral golf instructor, was asked to take the edges off Floyd's modifications.

 

In 1999 KSL sold 36 acres next to the Doral's golf courses to Marriott Vacation Club International for 240 timeshare villas. The sale marks the first time the Doral's owner, KSL Hotel Corp., relinquished a part of its property, said Joel Paige, KSL president and general manager of the Doral Golf Resort & Spa. KSL has agreed to let Marriott feed off the Doral's amenities by granting timeshare owners the same 40 percent discount and preferred access as guests at KSL's 700-room hotel. That includes the spa, golf courses, tennis courts.

 

In 2004 CNL acquired KSL for $1.366 billion and debt of $794 million for total acquisition cost of $2.16 billion. The resort portfolio of six included: 692-room Doral Golf Resort & Spa in Miami, Florida, 780-room Grand Wailea Resort & Spa on Maui, Hawaii, 796-room La Quinta Resort & Club and PGA West in La Quinta, California, 738-room Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa in Phoenix, Arizona, 279-room Claremont Resort & Spa in Berkeley, California, 246-room Lake Lanier Islands Resort near Atlanta, Georgia. CNL placed the Doral resort under the management of Marriott International and renamed the property the Doral Golf Resort and Spa, a Marriott Resort. CNL said it would spend $40 million over the next three years on capital improvements at the Doral.

 

In 2007, CNL Hotels was acquired by the real estate arm of Morgan Stanley. The Doral was included in the portfolio of 8 resorts acquired by Morgan Stanley Real Estate for a total transaction cost of $6.6 billion. Michael Franco, the managing director of Morgan Stanley Real Estate said the resorts are extremely hard to replicate and will show excellent future growth from increased corporate group travel and leisure traveler markets.

 

In 2009, Doral's Silver Course was redesigned by Jim McLean and the course was renamed as the Doral Golf Resort & Spa - Jim McLean Signature Course.

 

In 2011, a group of creditors led by hedge fund giant Paulson & Co. seized control of the Doral and seven other properties from Morgan Stanley real estate funds. Morgan Stanley could not handle a $1 billion bond payment coming due. They quickly placed the Doral under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and began seeking a buyer for the Doral. By selling Doral now the Paulson-led owners can use the cash to pay down debts and avoid making overdue capital expenditures of updating the property.

 

Donald Trump announced in October 2011 that he would buy Doral for $150 million and invest more than the purchase price to restore the property and make Doral great again. When asked what the renovation budget would be Trump has said "unlimited" which publicly became $250 million. The renovations were financed with $125 million in loans from Deutsche Bank. The Trump Organization's hotel management unit, Trump Hotel Collection, took over Doral's management in June 2012. Donald Trrump's daughter Ivanka took charge of the 700 guest rooms' redesign featuring Ivanka's "stylish palette of elegant neutrals, including ivory, champagne and caramel - accentuated with mahogany veneers and gold leaf Spanish revival details". Ivanka introduced her own brand synonymous with quality, elegance, and sophistication into every aspect; from the imported Austrian crystal chandeliers to the handmade Italian bed linens. The rooms were made over in to luxury suites that include massive marble baths with European styled whirlpools. All existing restaurants were gutted and a classic five-star "gourmet stunner" opened - BLT Prime.

 

Doral Golf Resort & Spa was renamed Trump National Doral Miami. The Blue Monster course was renovated by Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner and reopened in December 2013. After a Hanse/Wagner renovation, the Silver Fox course reopened in December 2014. The White Course was closed in January, 2015. The Red Tiger course reopened on January 12, 2015 and the Golden Palm course reopened in September 2015 after the Hanse/Wagner renovations.

 

The Blue Monster played host to the Doral Open on the PGA Tour from 1962 to 2006, and from 2007 to 2016 the WGC-Cadillac Championship made its home there. In 2016, it was announced that the tournament would be moved to Mexico City. In 2017 Rick Smith, best known as Phil Mickelson's former swing coach, replaced Jim McLean as the lead instructor at Trump National Doral Miami. McLean, a fixture at Doral through five owners and 26 years, moved his golf school to the nearby Biltmore Miami Hotel, where ownership has promised significant upgrades to its existing practice facilities. McLean called the move to Coral Gables "bittersweet."

 

Trump has been the target of dozens of liens from contractors who worked on the renovation project. On May 20, 2016, a Miami-Dade County Circuit Court judge ordered Trump National Doral Miami to be foreclosed and sold on June 28 unless the Trump Organization paid $32,800 to a Miami paint supply company. A 6-foot high portrait of Donald Trump hanging in the Champions Bar became controversial when it was reported to be purchased for $10,000 with funds from the non-profit Trump Foundation. The resort has challenged the local property tax assessments every year. In May 2019 it was reported the resort was in "steep decline" financially, in which its net operating income had fallen by 69 percent – from $13.8 million in 2015 to $4.3 million two years later.

 

David Feder has served as Vice President and Managing Director of Trump National Doral from 2014 to present. He previously presided over the Boca Resort and Club, Fairmont Turnberry Isle and the Arizona Biltmore. Paige Koerbel managed Doral in 2010 when it was operated by Marriott International and was there during the Trump acquisition. Joel Paige served as KSL's General Manager at Doral from 1995 to 2001. Paige is now the Chief Operating Officer at Kingsmill Resort in Williamsburg, Va.

 

Photos and text compiled by Dick Johnson

richardlloydjohnson@hotmail.com

Following, a text, in english, from Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia:

 

Foro Romano

Roma, Largo della Salara Vecchia 5/6

 

The valley of Foro, nestled between the seven hills of Rome, was in ancient times a marsh. From the end of the seventh century B.C., after the improvement and drainage of the marshes, the Foro Romano (a forum) was constructed and this served as the centre of public life in Rome for over a thousand years. Over the course of the centuries, the various monuments were constructed: firstly, those structures which served political, religious and economic purposes and, later, during the second century B.C., the civil buildings or ‘basilicas’, which functioned as juridical centres. At the end of the Republic era of Ancient Rome, the Foro Romano was inadequate in its functioning as a civil and administrative centre. The various Emperors and their dynasties added only monuments of prestige: The Temple of Vespasian and Titus and that of Antoninus Pio and Faustina dedicated to the memory of the Divine Emperors, the monumental arch of Settimo Severo, built on the extreme west of the square in 203 A.D. to celebrate his military victories. The last great addition was made in the first years of the fourth century A.D. under the Emperor Massenzio, a temple dedicated to the memory of his son Romulus. The imposing Basilica on the Velia was restructured at the end of the fourth century A.D. and the last monument to be erected in the Foro was the Column of 608 A.D. in honour of the Byzantine Emperor Foca.

 

Copyright © 2003-2007 Pierreci

 

The Roman Forum, Forum Romanum, (although the Romans called it more often the Forum Magnum or just the Forum) was the central area around which ancient Rome developed, in which commerce and the administration of justice took place. The communal hearth was also located here. It was built on the site of a past cemetery.

 

Sequences of remains of paving show that sediment eroded from the surrounding hills was already raising the level of the forum in early Republican times. Originally it had been marshy ground, which was drained by the Tarquins with the Cloaca Maxima. Its final travertine paving, still visible, dates from the reign of Augustus.

 

Structures within the Forum

 

The ruins within the forum clearly show how urban spaces were utilized during the Roman Age. The Roman Forum includes a modern statue of Julius Caesar and the following major monuments, buildings, and ancient ruins:

 

Temples

 

Temple of Castor and Pollux

Temple of Saturn

Temple of Vesta

Temple of Venus and Roma

Temple of Antoninus and Faustina

Temple of Caesar

Temple of Vespasian and Titus

Temple of Concord

Shrine of Venus Cloacina

Basilicas

Basilica Aemilia

Basilica Julia

Basilica of Maxentius and Constantine

Arches

Arch of Septimius Severus

Arch of Titus

Arch of Tiberius

Arch of Augustus

Temple of Saturn

Temple of Castor and Pollux

Temple of Vesta

Temple of Venus and Roma

Temple of Antoninus and Faustina

Temple of Concord

Campo Vaccino, by Claude Lorrain

The Roman Forum

Other structures

 

Regia, originally the residence of the kings of Rome or at least their main headquarters, and later the office of the Pontifex Maximus, the high priest of Roman religion.

Rostra, from where politicians made their speeches to the Roman citizens

Curia Hostilia (later rebuilt as the Curia Julia), the site of the Roman Senate

Tabularium

Gemonian stairs

Clivus Capitolinus was the street that started at the Arch of Tiberius, wound around the Temple of Saturn, and ended at Capitoline Hill.

Umbilicus Urbi, the designated centre of the city from which and to which all distances in Rome and the Roman Empire were measured

Milliarium Aureum

Lapis Niger, a shrine also known as the Black Stone

Atrium Vestae, the house of the Vestal Virgins

A processional street, the Via Sacra, linked the Atrium Vetae with the Colosseum. By the end of the Empire, it had lost its everyday use but remained a sacred place.

Column of Phocas, the last monument built within the Forum

Tullianum, the prison used to hold various foreign leaders and generals.

 

Excavation and preservation

 

An anonymous 8th century traveler from Einsiedeln (now in Switzerland) reported that the Forum was already falling apart in his time. During the Middle Ages, though the memory of the Forum Romanum persisted, its monuments were for the most part buried under debris, and its location was designated the "Campo Vaccino" or "cattle field," located between the Capitoline Hill and the Colosseum. The return of Pope Urban V from Avignon in 1367 led to an increased interest in ancient monuments, partly for their moral lesson and partly as a quarry for new buildings being undertaken in Rome after a long lapse. Artists from the late 15th century drew the ruins in the Forum, antiquaries copied inscriptions in the 16th century, and a tentative excavation was begun in the late 18th century.

 

A cardinal took measures to drain it again and built the Alessandrine neighborhood over it. But the excavation by Carlo Fea, who began clearing the debris from the Arch of Septimius Severus in 1803, and archaeologists under the Napoleonic regime marked the beginning of clearing the Forum, which was only fully excavated in the early 20th century.

 

Remains from several centuries are shown together, due to the Roman practice of building over earlier ruins.

Other forums in Rome

  

Other fora existed in other areas of the city; remains of most of them, sometimes substantial, still exist. The most important of these are a number of large imperial fora forming a complex with the Forum Romanum: the Forum Iulium, Forum Augustum, the Forum Transitorium (also: Forum Nervae), and Trajan's Forum. The planners of the Mussolini era removed most of the Medieval and Baroque strata and built the Via dei Fori Imperiali road between the Imperial Fora and the Forum. There is also:

 

The Forum Boarium, dedicated to the commerce of cattle, between the Palatine Hill and the river Tiber,

The Forum Holitorium, dedicated to the commerce of herbs and vegetables, between the Capitoline Hill and the Servian walls,

The Forum Piscarium, dedicated to the commerce of fish, between the Capitoline hill and the Tiber, in the area of the current Roman Ghetto,

The Forum Suarium, dedicated to the commerce of pork, near the barracks of the cohortes urbanae in the northern part of the campus Martius,

The Forum Vinarium, dedicated to the commerce of wine, in the area now of the "quartiere" Testaccio, between Aventine Hill and the Tiber.

Other markets were known but remain unidentifiable due to a lack of precise information on the function of the sites. Among these, the Forum cuppedinis, was known as a general market for many goods.

 

Fórum Romano.

O principal fórum da Roma antiga.

O Fórum Romano ( latim : Forum Romanum, italiano : Foro Romano) é um pequeno retângulo aberto rodeado pelas ruínas de antigos edifícios do governo no centro da cidade de Roma . Os cidadãos da cidade antiga referência a este mercado como a Magnum Fórum, ou simplesmente o Fórum . Foi durante séculos o centro da vida pública romana: o local de procissões triunfais e as eleições, palco para discursos públicos e núcleo de assuntos comerciais. Aqui estátuas e monumentos comemorou os grandes homens da cidade. O coração cheio de Roma antiga , foi chamado o local de encontro mais célebre do mundo, e em toda a história. [1] Localizado no pequeno vale entre o Palatino e Capitolino Hills , hoje o Fórum é um imenso arruinar de fragmentos de arquitetura intermitente e escavações arqueológicas atrair turistas numerosos.

Muitas das estruturas mais antigas e importantes da cidade antiga foram localizadas sobre ou próximo ao Fórum. O Reino de primeiros santuários e templos foram localizados na borda sudeste. Estes incluíram a sua antiga residência real antiga, a Regia ( século 8 aC ), bem como os arredores do complexo virgens vestais , as quais foram reconstruídas depois da ascensão de Roma imperial . Outros santuários arcaico para o noroeste desenvolvido na República formal Comitium , onde o Senado - bem como do governo republicano em si - começou. A Casa do Senado, repartições públicas, tribunais, templos, monumentos e estátuas gradualmente a área desordenado. Com o tempo a Comitium arcaica foi substituída pelo Fórum maiores eo foco da atividade judicial movida para a nova Basílica Emília (179 aC). Cerca de 130 anos depois, Júlio César construiu a basílica Julia , juntamente com a nova Cúria Júlia , a recentragem ambos os cargos judiciais e do próprio Senado. O Fórum serviu então como uma praça revitalizada em que o povo de Roma pudesse se reunir para comercial, político, judicial e religioso buscas em um número cada vez maior.

Eventualmente negócio muito económico e judicial seria a transferência de distância do Fórum de estruturas maiores e mais extravagantes para o norte. Após a construção do Fórum de Trajano (110 dC), essas atividades transferidas para o Ulpia Basílica . O reinado de Constantino, o Grande viu a divisão do império em suas metades oriental e ocidental, bem como a construção da Basílica de Maxêncio (312 dC), as principais última expansão do complexo do Fórum. Este devolveu o centro político do Fórum, até a queda do Império Romano do Ocidente quase dois séculos mais tarde.

Descrição

A plateia grego antigo (πλατεία), uma praça pública ou praça da cidade , foi o modelo utilizado como base para o fórum romano. No período Imperial os edifícios públicos de grande porte que se aglomeraram ao redor da praça central havia reduzido a área aberta a um retângulo de aproximadamente 130 por 50 metros, a sua dimensão de longo foi orientado de noroeste para sudeste e estendia desde o sopé da colina do Capitólio ao do Hill Velian . O Fórum bom incluídos nesta praça, os prédios de frente para ele e, às vezes, uma área adicional (o Adjectum Forum ) que prorroga a sudeste até o Arco de Tito . [2] O Fórum basílicas , embora originalmente concebido como escritórios do governo, foram as bases dos primeiros elaborados cristã igrejas. A arquitetura dos templos e edifícios judiciais do fórum romano pode ser visto copiado em muitas das estruturas atuais do governo moderno que ainda estão organizadas em torno de um espaço público central.

Originalmente, o site do Fórum foi pantanoso terreno, que foi drenada por Tarquínio com a Cloaca Máxima . Devido à sua localização, nos sedimentos de ambas as inundações do Rio Tibre ea erosão das colinas circundantes foram o aumento do nível do piso do Fórum durante séculos. Escavada seqüências de remanescentes de pavimento mostram que o sedimento corroído das colinas circundantes já levantava o nível no início republicano vezes. Como o chão em torno dos edifícios começou a subir, os moradores simplesmente abriu sobre os escombros que foi demais para remover. Seu final de travertino pavimentação, ainda visível, as datas do reinado de Augusto . As escavações no século 19 revelou uma camada em cima da outra. O nível mais profundo escavado foi de 3,60 metros acima do nível do mar. Achados arqueológicos mostram a atividade humana a esse nível com a descoberta de madeira carbonizada.

Uma importante função do Fórum, durante os dois republicanos e os tempos imperiais, era o de servir como local para os militares que culminou desfiles comemorativos conhecidos como Triunfos . generais vitoriosos entrou na cidade pelo oeste do Triunfo Gate ( Porta Triumphalis ) e circum o Palatino (esquerda) antes de prosseguir a partir do monte Velian abaixo da Via Sacra e no Fórum. A partir daí eles montar o Rise Capitolino ( Clivus Capitolinus ) até o Templo de Júpiter Optimus Maximus na cúpula do Capitólio. Pródiga banquetes públicos seguiu para baixo sobre o Fórum.

A área do Fórum foi originalmente uma gramínea pantanal . Ele foi drenado no século 7 aC, com a construção da Cloaca Maxima , um sistema de esgotos cobertos de grandes dimensões que desaguava no rio Tibre , quanto mais pessoas começaram a se estabelecer entre os dois morros.

Segundo a tradição, o começo do Fórum estão relacionadas com a aliança entre Rômulo , primeiro rei de Roma controlar o Monte Palatino , e seu rival, Tito Tácio , que ocupou a colina do Capitólio . Assim, uma aliança formada após o combate havia sido interrompida pelas orações e gritos de Sabine mulheres. Como o vale estava entre os dois assentamentos, foi o local designado para os dois povos se conhecerem. Como a área do Fórum adiantados incluíram poças de água estagnada, a área mais acessível foi a parte norte do vale, que foi designado como o Comitium . Foi aqui que, de acordo com a história, as duas partes depuseram as armas e formaram uma aliança. [4]

O fórum foi fora das muralhas da fortaleza original Sabine, que foi inserido através da Porta Saturni. Estas paredes foram destruídas na maior parte, quando os dois morros foram apensados. [5] O Fórum original começou como um mercado ao ar livre perto da Comitium, mas ampliou sua dia-a-dia de compras e as necessidades do mercado. Como a política, questões judiciais e julgamentos começaram a assumir cada vez mais espaço, fóruns por toda a cidade começou a surgir a expandir as necessidades específicas da população em crescimento. Fora de gado, porco, legumes e vinho especializada em produtos de seu nicho e as divindades associadas ao seu redor.

O segundo rei, Numa Pompilius , é dito ter começado o culto de Vesta, construção de sua casa e no templo, bem como a Regia como a primeira cidade real do palácio. Mais tarde Tullus Hostilius fechado Comitium ao redor do templo etrusco antigo, onde o senado se reunir no local do conflito Sabine. Ele disse ter convertido o templo ao Hostilia Curia perto de onde o Senado se conheceram em uma velha cabana etrusca. Em 600 aC, Tarquínio Prisco teve a área pavimentada, pela primeira vez.

Durante o período republicano Comitium continuou a ser o local central para todos e vida política judiciária, na cidade de Roma. [6] No entanto, a fim de criar um espaço, bem como local de reunião maior, o Senado começou a expandir tanto o Fórum e Comitium através da compra de casas particulares existentes e removê-los para uso público. construção de projetos de vários cônsules e imperadores repaved e construída em ambos os Comitium e do Fórum. [7]

O século V aC viu a construção do Templo de Castor e Pólux . O templo de Concord foi introduzido no século IV aC, possivelmente por Marcus Furius Camillus. A Basílica Emília é uma estrutura republicana, mas teve vários nomes após a sua dedicação inicial em 179 aC. Muitas das tradições do Comitium tais como assembléias populares, os funerais da nobreza e os jogos foram transferidos para o Fórum. [8] Caio Graco é creditado com (ou acusados de) perturbar mos maiorum ("costume dos pais / ancestrais" ) na antiga Roma. Um realizada longa tradição de falar nos alto-falantes elevados " Rostra frente para o norte em direção à Casa do Senado para os políticos ea elite montada colocar de volta o orador para o povo reunido no Fórum Romano atrás do Comitium. A tribuna conhecido como Caio Licínio foi o primeiro a afastar-se da elite romana para as pessoas no Forum, um ato repetido posteriormente por Gracchus. [9] Isso começou a tradição de popularis locus, onde, ainda jovens nobres eram esperados para falar da Rostra.

Em 78 aC, o tabularium (Registros Hall) foi construído no final Capitólio do Fórum, por despacho dos cônsules para o ano, M. Emílio Lépido e Q. Lutatius Catulus . Com o tempo a Comitium foi perdida para o crescimento Cúria sempre e Júlio César s rearranjos "antes de seu assassinato em 44 aC. Naquele ano, dois dramáticos eventos extremamente foram testemunhados pelo Fórum, talvez o mais famoso de sempre a acontecer lá: Marc Antony é oração fúnebre de César (imortalizada em Shakespeare é famosa peça ) foi entregue a partir parcialmente falante concluída a plataforma conhecida como a Nova Rostra ea queima pública de corpo de César ocorreu em um local em frente ao Rostra torno do qual o Templo para o César Deificado foi posteriormente construída por grandes Octavius sobrinho dele (Augusto). [10] Quase dois anos depois, Marc Antony adicionado a notoriedade da Rostra por exibir publicamente a cabeça cortada e mão direita de seu inimigo de Cícero lá.

A estreita relação entre a Comitium eo Fórum Romano eventualmente sumiu a partir dos escritos dos antigos. O primeiro é o último mencionado no reinado de Sétimo Severo .

Após a morte de Júlio César, e no final do subsequente Guerra Civil , Augusto terminou grande tio, seu trabalho no Fórum. Ele teria declarado "Achei Roma, uma cidade de tijolos e deixou uma cidade de mármore". O que é verdade é que ele continuou a construção de projetos de seu antecessor e começou a muitos de seus próprios diretamente no Fórum. Durante primeiros tempos imperiais, no entanto, os negócios económicos e judiciais transferidos muito longe do Fórum de estruturas maiores e mais extravagantes para o norte. Após a construção do Fórum de Trajano (110 dC), essas atividades transferidas para o Ulpia Basílica .

O reinado de Constantino, o Grande viu a divisão do império em suas metades oriental e ocidental, bem como a construção da Basílica de Maxêncio (312 dC), as principais última expansão do complexo do Fórum. Este devolveu o centro político do Fórum, até a queda do Império Romano do Ocidente quase dois séculos mais tarde.

No século 5 a velhos edifícios no âmbito do Fórum começaram a ser transformados em igrejas cristãs. Por volta do século 8, todo o espaço foi cercado por igrejas cristãs tomando o lugar das ruínas e templos abandonados. [11]

Um viajante do século 8 anônimas de Einsiedeln (agora na Suíça) informou que o Fórum já caía aos pedaços em seu tempo. Durante a Idade Média, embora a memória do Fórum Romano persistisse, seus monumentos foram em sua maioria enterrados embaixo do entulho, e sua localização foi designado "Campo Vaccino" ou "campo de gado", localizado entre o Capitólio eo Coliseu .

Após o século 8 as estruturas do Fórum foram desmontadas, re-arranjadas e usado para construir torres e castelos feudais dentro da área local. No século 13 dessas estruturas reorganizadas foram derrubadas eo local se tornou uma lixeira. Isto, junto com os restos da construção medieval desmontado e estruturas antigas, ajudou a contribuir para o aumento do nível do solo. [12]

O retorno do Papa Urbano V de Avinhão em 1367 levou a um interesse crescente em monumentos antigos, em parte para sua lição moral e em parte como uma pedreira para os edifícios novos que estão sendo empreendidos em Roma depois de um longo lapso.

Artistas do final do século 15 atraiu as ruínas do Fórum, os antiquários copiaram inscrições no século 16, e uma tentativa de escavação teve início no final do século 18.

Um cardeal tomou medidas para drená-lo novamente e construiu a vizinhaça Alessandrina sobre ele. Mas a escavação por Carlo Fea , que começou a limpar o entulho do Arco de Septímio Severo em 1803, e arqueólogos sob o regime napoleônico marcaram o início do clareamento do Fórum, que só foi totalmente escavado no início do século 20.

Restos de vários séculos são mostrados em conjunto, devido à prática romana de construir sobre ruínas anteriores.

Hoje, as escavações arqueológicas continuam, juntamente com a restauração e preservação permanente. Por muito tempo um dos principais destinos turísticos na cidade, o Fórum está aberto para tráfego de pedestres ao longo das ruas da Roma antiga que são restauradas para o nível Imperial tarde. O Museu do Forum (Antiquarium Forense) é encontrado no final Coliseu de uma estrada moderna, a Via dei Fori Imperiali . Este pequeno museu tem uma importante colecção de esculturas e fragmentos arquitetônicos. Há também reconstruções do Fórum e nas proximidades Imperial Fora, bem como um pequeno vídeo em vários idiomas. Ele é realizado a partir do Fórum ao lado de Santa Francesca Romana (n º 53 Piazza S. Maria Nova) e está aberto das 08:30 h às uma hora antes do anoitecer. A entrada é gratuita.

Em 2008, as fortes chuvas causaram danos estruturais da cobertura de concreto segurando o moderno "Black Stone" de mármore em conjunto durante os Vulcanal .

Muitos dos templos do Fórum de data para os períodos do Reino e da República, embora a maioria foi destruída e reconstruída várias vezes. As ruínas no âmbito do Fórum mostram claramente como os espaços urbanos foram utilizados durante a época romana. O Fórum inclui actualmente uma estátua moderna de Júlio César e os principais monumentos seguintes, prédios antigos e ruínas :

Templos

Esta seção requer expansão .

Templo Data construída Construtor Localização dentro do Fórum

Templo de Castor e Pollux 494 aC Aulus Postumius Albino Lado sul, leste da Basílica Júlia

Templo de Saturno 501 aC Tarquínio Superbus Lado sul, a oeste da Basílica Júlia

Templo de Vesta 7 º século aC Numa Pompilius Canto sudeste, junto ao Templo de Castor e Pollux

Templo de Vênus e Roma 135 Adriano Late expansão fórum Imperial para a mais distante da Regia , em frente ao Coliseu

Templo de Antonino e Faustina 141 Antonino Pio Lado norte, a leste da Basílica Emília

Templo de César 29 aC Augustus Lado Leste, a oeste da Regia

Templo de Vespasiano e Tito 79 Tito e Domiciano West borda abaixo do tabularium Sul do Templo da Concórdia e no norte do Dii Portico Consentes

Templo de Rômulo 309 Maxêncio

Santuário de Vênus Cloacina

Templo de Rômulo Divus 309 Maxêncio

Basílicas

Basílica Emília

Basílica Júlia

Basílica de Maxêncio e Constantino

Arcos

Arco de Septímio Severo

Arco de Tito

edifícios públicos ou residências oficiais

Regia , originalmente a residência dos reis de Roma ou, pelo menos, a sua sede principal, e mais tarde do escritório do Pontifex Maximus, o sumo sacerdote da religião romana.

Cúria Júlia (mais tarde reconstrução por Diocleciano ), o site do Senado romano .

Tabularium , o escritório de registros de Roma.

Portico Dii Consentes

Atrium Vestae , a casa das virgens vestais.

Tullianum , a prisão usado para prender vários líderes estrangeiros e de generais.

monumentos menores

Rostra , de onde os políticos discursavam aos cidadãos romanos.

Urbi umbigo , o centro da cidade designados a partir da qual e para o qual todas as distâncias em Roma e no Império Romano foram medidos.

Milliarium Aureum Depois de Augustus erguido este monumento, todas as estradas foram consideradas para começar aqui e todas as distâncias no Império Romano foram medidos em relação a esse ponto.

Coluna de Focas , o último monumento construído dentro do Fórum.

Lapis Niger ("Pedra Negra"), um antigo santuário, que foi muito obscura, mesmo para os romanos.

Piscinas, molas

O Lacus Curtius , o site de uma piscina misteriosa venerado pelos romanos, mesmo depois de terem esquecido o que significava.

O Iuturnae Lacus ("Primavera de Juturna"), uma piscina de cura, onde Castor e Pólux foram disse ter regado os seus cavalos

Estradas, ruas, escadarias

Gemonian stairssteps situado na parte central de Roma, líder da Arx do Capitólio até o Fórum Romano.

Clivus Capitolinus era a rua que começou no Arco de Tibério, enrolado em torno do Templo de Saturno, e terminou no Capitólio.

Via Sacra , a famosa procissão de rua de Roman triunfos ; ligados a Vestae Atrium com o Coliseu .

Vanished (ou quase desapareceu) estruturas

Arco de Augusto

Arco de Fabius

Arco de Tibério

Basílica Fulvia

Basílica Opimia

Basílica Porcia

Basílica Sempronia

Golden House of Nero (Domus Aurea)

Instituto dos escribas e Arautos do Aediles

Santuário de Faustina, o Jovem

Santuário de Vulcano (Vulcanal)

Estátua de Navius Attus

Estátua de Constantino, o Grande

Estátua de Domiciano

Estátua de Tremulus

Estátua de Vertumno

Templo de Augusto

Templo de Baco

Templo da Concórdia

Templo de Janus

Tribunal do Marco Aurélio

Tribunal da Cidade do Pretor (Praetor Urbanus)

Tribunal do Pretor para Estrangeiros (Praetor Peregrinus)

Bem-chefe de Libo (Puteal Libonus ou Scribonianum)

Estátuas de vários outros deuses e os homens

Igor & Svetlana Kopystiansky

FLOW

Documenta 11.2002)

 

Six channel video/sound installation. Running time 8.40 min

 

Director: Okwui Enwezor. Documenta 11.2002

 

The double video installation Flow by Igor & Svetlana Kopystiansky at Documenta11 – an emblem of a medial documenta

 

As simple and straightforward as the video installation Flow may appear, equally complex is the artists´ concept and the meaning of the work that develops over the course of viewing. Here, isolating the filmed object from its context is an important artistic step. The speed of modern living produces a carelessness and indifference towards people, actions, and objects. Removing an object from this activity disrupts the normal attitude of consumption and use, so that the machine of everyday life comes to a halt.

 

Making everyday life a worthy subject of art and presenting an isolated view of everyday objects, as in the Kopystianskys´ video installation, both artists are rooted in the avant-garde tradition. When Marcel Duchamp declared a bottle rack, a urinal, and suspended bicycles wheels works of art, he caused lasting puzzlement with his ready-mades among the art-viewing public at the beginning of the 20th century. Kurt Schwitters and the Dadaists pursued this course further in the 1920s, and later in the 1960s their work was taken up again by the so-called New Realists (including Arman and Daniel Spoerri), happenings artists like Wolf Vostell, and Pop Art artists like Andy Warhol and Richard Hamilton. Even today, a confrontation with all facets of everyday life continues to be a standard approach in modern art, although concepts vary widely.

 

However, a common thread is that isolating an object and transferring it to the realm of art challenges our habits of perception; the way a viewer sees Duchamp´s bottle rack or the floating plastic cup of the Kopystianskys alternates between aesthetic and social experience. Is the everyday object a consumer item or a work of art that the viewer looks at because of its special aesthetic appearance and conceptual significance? The work of art raises this question without offering any subsequent answer. Instead, the viewers are required to answer the question based on their perceptions and interpretations, and in doing so they take part in the work.

 

This fundamental significance in the video installation Flow could also apply to exhibition context of the work i.e., Documenta11 as a whole. The work shows that objects and actions have multiple codes, which can always change further in their content. The different meanings of an object are independent of our opinions and values, with which we attribute an object as a reflection of our entire culture.

 

Kai-Uwe Hemken

 

Documenta 11_ Platform 5: Exhibition Catalogue

Editor/s: Heike ANDER, Nadja Rottner

Description: Okwui Enwezor, Artistic Director of Documenta 11, commented in his preface that almost fifty years after its founding, Documenta found itself confronted once again with the specters of yet another turbulent time of unceasing cultural, social, and political frictions. In order to meet the challenge of making a meaningful articulation of the possibilities of contemporary art in such a climate, Documenta 11 was presented in a series of five Platforms of public discussions, conferences, workshops, books, and film and video programs. 'In a sense, then, Documenta 11's five Platforms, in a paradoxical but necessary critical move, begin with a series of deterritorializations which not only intervene in the very historical location of Documenta in Kassel but also emblematize the mechanisms that make the space of contemporary art one of multiple ruptures. Beginning in Vienna on March 15, 2001, then to New Delhi, Berlin, St. Lucia, Lagos, and ending in Kassel on September 15 2002, the Platforms unfold over the course of eighteen months across continents, cities, and disciplines...' - Okwui Enwezor,

 

The catalogue includes preface by Okwui Enwezor, brief biographical notes of the participating artists, artists' writings and project proposals for Documenta11. The catalogue appendix is provided in a separate booklet with detailed artist biographies and a list of exhibited works.

 

Other participating artists/art groups included: Georges Adeagbo, Eija-Liisa Ahtila, Chantal Akerman, Gaston A. Ancelovici, Fareed Armaly, Michael Ashkin, Asymptote, Kutlug Ataman, The Atlas Group, Julie Bargmann & Stacy Sevy, Artur Barrio, Bernd & Hilla Becher, Zarina Bhimji, BlackAudio Film Collective, John Bock, Ecke Bonk, Frederic Bruly Bouabre, Louise Bourgeois, Pavel Braila, Stanley Brouwn, Tania Bruguera, Luis Camnitzer, James Coleman, Constant, Hanne Darboven, Destiny Deacon, Stan Douglas, Cecilia Edefalk, William Eggleston, Maria Eichhorn, Touhami Ennadre, Cerith Wyn Evans, Chohreh Feyzdjou, Yona Friedman, Meschac Gaba, Giuseppe Gabellone, Carlos Garaicoa, Kendell Geers, Isa Genzken, Jef Geys, David Goldblatt, Leon Golub, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Renee Green, Victor Grippo, Le Groupe Amos, Jens Haaning, Thomas Hirschhorn, Candida Hofer, Craigie Horsfield, Huit Facettes, Pierre Huyghe, Igloolik Isuma Productions, Sanja Ivekovic, Alfredo Jaar, Joan Jonas, Issac Julien, William Kentridge, Johan Van Der Keuken, Bodys Isek Kingelez, Ben Kinmont, Igor & Svetlana Kopystiansky, Ivan Kozaric, Andreja Kuluncic, Glenn Ligon, Mark Manders, Fabian Marcaccio, Steve McQueen, Cildo Meireles, Jonas Mekas, Annette Messager, Santu Mofokeng, Multiplicity, Juan Munoz, Gabriel Orozco, Olumuyiwa Olamide Osifuye, Ulrike Ottinger, Ouattara Watts, Park Fiction, Manfred Pernice, Raymond Pettibon, Adrian Piper, Lisl Ponger, Pere Portabella, Raqs Media Collective, Alejandra Riera with Doina Petrescu, Dieter Roth, Doris Salcedo, Gilles Saussier, Allan Sekula, Yinka Shonibare, Andreas Siekmann, Simparch, Lorna Simpson, David Small, Pascale Marthine Tayou, Jean-Marie Teno, Joelle Tuerlinckx, Luc Tuymans, Nomeda & Gediminas Urbonas, Jeff Wall, Nari Ward.

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based historical facts. BEWARE!

 

The Westland Whirlwind (Whirly or Whirlibomber in RAF slang) was a British twin-engined heavy fighter developed by Westland Aircraft. It was the Royal Air Force's first single-seat, twin-engined, cannon-armed fighter, and a contemporary of the Supermarine Spitfire and Hawker Hurricane. It was one of the fastest aircraft in service when it flew in the late 1930s, and was much more heavily armed than any other.

 

However, protracted development problems with its Rolls-Royce Peregrine engines delayed the entire project and only a relatively small number were ever built. During the Second World War only two RAF squadrons were equipped with the Whirlwind, and despite successful use as a fighter-bomber it was withdrawn from service in 1943.

 

After retirement in December 1943, the surviving Whirlwinds were sent to 18 Maintenance Unit at Dumfries, Scotland, where they were to be scrapped - but this was halted in early 1944 when the remaining airframes were modified for a completely new role: as radar-equipped pathfinders with the new, American H2X radar.

 

The H2X radar ("Mickey set", AN/APS-15) was an American development of the British H2S radar, the first ground mapping radar to be used in combat. It was used by the USAAF during World War II as a navigation system for daylight overcast and nighttime operations. It used a shorter 3 cm wavelength (10 GHz frequency) than the H2S, giving a sharper picture (H2S subsequently adopted 3 cm in the Mark III version entering operational service on November 18, 1943, for “Battle of Berlin”) and not known to have ever been spotted by the German Naxos radar detector, due to that receiving device's specific purpose being to spot the original British H2S equipment's lower frequency, 3 GHz emissions.

 

The hemispherical radome for the H2X's rotating dish antenna replaced the much bigger ball turret of the H2S, which was e. g. installed under Avro Lancaster bombers. The first H2X-equipped aircraft, B-17s, arrived in England in early February 1944, and were first used in combat later that month, and the first use of the "Mickey" was against Ploesti on April 5, 1944.

 

Availability of the new radar systems was scarse, so the idea of special aircraft guiding groups of bombers was born. Furthermore, due to the absence of radar maps as guidance, respective reconnaissance and radar mapping missions had to be conducted.

Consequently six PR Mk.XVI de Havilland Mosquito aircraft in the 482nd Bomb Group were equipped with H2X equipment in April 1944. The idea was to produce photographs of the radar screen during flights over Germany allowing easy interpretation of these radar images in later bombing runs. Three aircraft were subsequently lost in training, and the project was discontinued, but the idea was kept up.

 

Twenty Westland Whirlwind airframes as well as further twelve PR Mk.XVI de Havilland Mosquito aircraft were fitted with H2X. The Whirlwinds saw major modification: first of all, the complete nose section was redesigned. The cannon armament was replaced by a more spacious, deeper compartment that carried the H2X in the nose section behind an opaque perspex cover, as well as the technical equipment for the radar and a work station for a radar operator right in front of the cockpit.

 

The Whirlwind's original Peregrine engines were replaced by bigger, more powerful Merlin 76, which were optimized for high altitude operation. The engines also featured cabin pressure blowers that supported a pressurized crew compartment . Wet hardpoints under the wings were added, so that drop tanks extended the range. Theoretically, two 1.000 lb (454 kg) bombs could be carried, but the Whirlwind PR.3, how the aircraft was officially designated, normally flew unarmed.

 

The new machines were allocated to RAF No. 627 Squadron. This squadron had been formed on 12 November 1943 at RAF Oakington from part of 139 Squadron, and it was originally equipped with the de Havilland Mosquito. It flew operations as part of No. 8 Group's light bomber force. Beyond normal bombing missions it also carried out Pathfinder duties and was involved in attacks on Berlin in early 1944. In April 1944 it was transferred to No. 5 Group as a specialised target marking squadron, although it also carried out amend reconnaissance and normal bombing duties.

 

Beginning in May 1944 the Whirlwinds were, together with some radar-equipped Mosquitos, integrated into American Bomber Groups and joined by American aircraft, e .g. modified P-38Ls. Nicknamed "Pelican" by the crews, the retrofitted Whirlwinds flew bomber guidance and radar mapping night missions until February 1945. The sets tended to overload the aircraft's electrical system and occasionally exploded, and Mickey aircraft had the highest loss, abort and mission failure rates, so that service was severely curtailed after February 19, 1945, but the machines were kept in service and flew photo and weather reconnaissance missions until the end of the hostilities.

 

General characteristics:

Crew: One pilot

Length: 35 ft 4 1/2 in (10.80 m)

Wingspan: 45 ft 0 in (13.72 m)

Height: 11 ft 0 in (3.35 m)

Wing area: 250 ft² (23.2 m²)

Airfoil: NACA 23017-08

Empty weight: 8.800 lb (3.,995 kg)

Loaded weight: 11.467 lb (5.206 kg)

Max. take-off weight: 12.665 lb (5,750 kg)

 

Powerplant:

2× Rolls-Royce Merlin 76 liquid-cooled V-12 and fitted with a two-speed, two-stage supercharger and a Bendix Stromberg anti-g carburettor, rated at 1.233 hp (919 kW) at 35,000 ft (10,668 m) and driving de Havilland constant speed propellers with a diameter of 9 ft 10 in (3.00 m)

 

Performance:

Maximum speed: 415 mph (361 kn, 668 km/h)) at 28,000 ft (8,500 m)

Stall speed: 95 mph (83 knots, 153 km/h) (flaps down)

Range: 900 mi (782 nmi, 1.400 km))

Service ceiling: 37.000 ft (11.000 m)

 

Armament:

None. Two underwing hardpoints, normally occupied with a pair of 62 imp. gal (450l) slipper tanks. Alternatively a pair of bombs of up to 1.000 lb (454 kg) caliber could be carried, or racks with target indicator bombs, inclusing various candles and No. 1 Mk 1 TI Bombs, No. 7 Mk 1 Multi-flash Bombs or No. 8 Mk 1 Spotfire Bomb

  

The kit and its assembly:

This is another (kind of) tribute build, inspired by one of many Westland Whirlwind profiles created by fellow user Franclab at flickr.com.

Among the many great and creative ideas was a Pathfinder Whirlwind with a glass nose (reminiscent of the D.H, Mosquito bombers and also similar to the P-38L pathfinders with an optical bomb sight), finished in classic PRU Blue livery with USAAF insignia.

 

I liked this two seater idea, so I decided to make a contemporary hardware aircraft, loosely based on Franclab's creative input.

 

The kit is the venerable Airfix kit, and it saw some modifications. After my earlier Whirlwind FB.2 with implanted Mosquito engine nacelles resulted in a slightly overpowered ('Popeye style') bird, I tried something different this time: just an engine swap.

 

In this case I implanted resin Merlins from Pavla, which are replacements for the Tamiya kit and depict high altitude 72/73 versions. What sound simple was just as tedious as changing the complete nacelles: the Merllins are bigger than the Peregrines, in any dimension, so mounting them and blending them with the nacelles took some serious sculpting and putty work.

 

Another issue were the propellers: the Mosquito spinner is considerably larger than the Whilrwind's (including the propeller itself!), and in order to mount the OOB propellers I added a spacer, carved from spare wheels from the scrap box, so that a fluid, overall line was kept. Lots of work!

 

The new nose was taken wholesale from the Dragon P-38L Pathfinder kit, the one with the solid H2X nose. The alternative 'Droop Snoop' version with the glass nose is also available, but I found the radar-equipped version more interesting, and it is more voluminous so that the second crew member (a bomb aimer from an Airfix B-17) could rather sit than lay prone in the Whirlwind's nose.

 

As a drawback, the deeper new front had to be blended with the slender rest of the aircraft. I bridged this section with the half of a vintage Matchbox EA-6B drop tank, resulting in a kangaroo-like shape which could be justified through a ventral camera compartment, since the nose is occupied with the H2X equipment. Looks odd, as intended, but interesting, and the nose arrangement could also work for a night fighter - even though I have no idea where potential guns should be mounted?

 

Cockpit and landing gear were taken OOB, I just added the bulbous slipper tanks which were scratched from a Hawker Sea Fury's (PM Models) drop tanks, and also a lot of putty to blend them under the wings.

 

Painting and markings:

Simple and classic, with USAAF Mosquitos (ex RAF photo reconnaissance aircraft) as benchmark. All over PRU Blue sounds a bit boring, but the typical red tail for the pathfinder aircraft makes a massive contrast, and I decided to take the blue livery further: towards late 1944 the Invasion Stripes were about to disappear on Allied aircraft, painted over and in many cases the fuselage bands (or just the ventral section) were visible.

 

That's what I wanted to recreate: an almost all blue aircraft, but with the stripes dimly shining through. This was achieved in the same fashion as it would have been done in real life: the stripes were roughly painted with acrylics on wings and fuselage. Then the normal PRU Blue (Modelmaster) was added all around, and as final step the same PRU Blue was thinned and washed with a big, soft brush over the stripes, controlling the pigments' thickness and adding some slight streaks from front to back.

 

While not perfect, I am happy with the result - you can tell that there is "something" on and below the wings, as well as on the spine, but it is not clear at all.

 

Some dry-brushing with shades of blue-gray (e .g. revell 57 and Humbrol 230 and 147) completed the basic paint work.

 

The tail was painted in Humbrol 60 and shaded with 174 - the tone turns out to be orangic, a perfect match, as far as I can tell.

 

The radome was first primed with Humbrol 168 (Hemp) and then dry-brushed with 71 an 166 (Beige and RAF Light Aircraft Grey).

 

The markings were a bit tricky, and I used a real life, ex-RAF PR Spitfire in US service as benchmark: it received Stars and Bars, but retained its former RAF aircraft code, as well as its former RAF squadron code - but the latter were placed on the fin. I copied this concept, and since the high stabilizer blocks good view, the individual aircraft code letter (on Mosquitos it was frequently placed on the fin) was moved on a black contrast circle onto the flanks, while the RAF No. 627 Squadron. code "AZ" was painted in yellow digits above the three last digits of the RAF aircraft number. Totally odd, but plausible, and in the end more colorful than expected!

 

A small nose art completed the job, before the exhausts received some soot stains and the kit a coat with matt acrylic varnish.

 

A pretty aircraft/conversion - it looks a bit odd on the ground, due to the longer nose and engines, but the overall lines look very good, especially on the flight pics.

 

So, with best regards to Canada, thanks a lot for the inspiration. ^^

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

Immediately after the 1989 Velvet Revolution, the Czech president Václav Havel declared a de-mobilization of the Czech defense industry. Nevertheless, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Czech company Aero Vodochody continued developing the basic L-39 Albatros design with a view toward greater export. The resulting L-39MS, later re-designed as L-59 Super Albatros, featured a more powerful turbofan engine, advanced avionics, and has been bought in quantity by Egypt and Tunisia. In 1993, a group of Czech military experts launched a project of production of a modern domestic fighter to replace the obsolete Soviet aircraft. Since the proposed Aero L-X supersonic fighter development proved to be financially demanding (up to US$2 billion), the less costly L-159 subsonic attack aircraft was approved for procurement instead.

 

Conducted between the years 1994 and 1997, the technical development of L-159 ALCA (Advanced Light Combat Aircraft) in Aero Vodochody consisted primarily of building one L-159 two-seat prototype based on the L-59 airframe, utilizing western engine, avionics and weapon systems, with Rockwell Collins (eventually Boeing) as the avionics integrator.

 

The L-159 ALCA was designed for the principal role of light combat aircraft (single-seat L-159A variant) or light attack jet and advanced/lead-in fighter trainer (two-seat L-159B and T variants). The design of the L-159 was derived from the L-39/59 in terms of aerodynamic configuration, but a number of changes were made to improve its combat capabilities. These included strengthening of the airframe, reinforcing of the cockpit with composite and ceramic ballistic armor and enlargement of the aircraft's nose to accommodate a radar. Compared to the L-59, number of underwing pylons was increased from four to six, and a new hardpoint under the fuselage was added instead of a fixed GSh-23L cannon in an external fairing. The aircraft was capable of carrying external loads up to 2,340 kg, ranging from unguided bombs and rocket pods to air-to-ground and air-to-air guided missiles or special devices to conduct aerial reconnaissance or electronic warfare. Guided precision ordnance like laser-guided glide bombs could be carried, too, thanks to the aircraft’s ability to carry respective targeting equipment, for example the AN/AAQ-28(V) LITENING pod.

 

The L-159 was powered by the non-afterburning Honeywell/ITEC F124-GA-100 turbofan engine with a maximum thrust of 28 kN. Almost 2,000 litres of fuel was stored in eight internal tanks (six in the fuselage, two at the wingtips) with up to four external drop tanks (two 500 L and two 350 L tanks) carried under the inner wings.

The lightly armored cockpit was equipped with a VS-2B ejection seat, capable of catapulting the pilot at a zero flight level and at zero speed. The aircraft's avionics based on the MIL-STD-1553 databus include a Selex Navigation and Attack Suite, Ring Laser Gyro based Inertial Navigation System (INS) and Global Positioning System (GPS). Flight data was displayed both at the FV-3000 head-up display (HUD) and on two multi-function displays (MFD). Communications were provided by a pair of Collins ARC-182 transceivers. Self-protection of the L-159 was ensured by a Sky Guardian 200 radar warning receiver (RWR) and Vinten Vicon 78 Series 455 chaff and flare dispensers. L-159A and T2 variants were equipped with the lightweight Italian FIAR Grifo L multi-mode Doppler radar for all-weather, day and night operations.

The maiden flight of the first L-159 prototype occurred on 2 August 1997 with a two-seat version. On 18 August 1998, the single-seat L-159A prototype first flew; it was completed to Czech customer specifications. 10 April 2000 marked the first delivery of L-159A to the Czech Air Force and the type was marketed for export.

 

One of the type’s foreign operators became the young Republic of Catalonia, which had declared independence from Spain in 2017. The Catalan independence movement already began in 1922, when Francesc Macià founded the political party Estat Català (Catalan State), but the modern independence movement began and gained serious momentum in 2010, when the Constitutional Court of Spain ruled that some of the articles of the 2006 Statute of Autonomy - which had been agreed with the Spanish government and passed by a referendum in Catalonia - were unconstitutional, and others were to be interpreted restrictively. Popular protest against this decision quickly turned into demands for independence. Starting with the town of Arenys de Munt, over 550 municipalities in Catalonia held symbolic referendums on independence between 2009 and 2011. All of the towns returned a high "yes" vote, with a turnout of around 30% of those eligible to vote. A 2010 protest demonstration against the court's decision, organized by the cultural organization Òmnium Cultural, was attended by over a million people. The popular movement fed upwards to the politicians; a second mass protest on 11 September 2012 (the National Day of Catalonia) explicitly called on the Catalan government to begin the process towards independence. Catalan president Artur Mas called a snap general election, which resulted in a pro-independence majority for the first time in the region's history. The new parliament adopted the Catalan Sovereignty Declaration in early 2013, asserting that the Catalan people had the right to decide their own political future.

 

After three more troublesome years and constant strife for independence from Spain, the Catalonian president Carles Puigdemont eventually announced a binding referendum on the topic. Although deemed illegal by the Spanish government and the Constitutional Court, the referendum was held on 1 October 2017. In a vote where the anti-independence parties called for non-participation, results showed a 90% vote in favor of independence, with a turnout of 43%. Based on this result, on 27 October 2017 the Parliament of Catalonia approved a resolution unilaterally creating an independent Republic.

 

This event was also the rather sudden birth of the Catalonian armed forces. Esp. the nascent air force, called Guàrdies Aèries de la República Catalana (GARC, Republic of Catalonia Air Guard), faced serious trouble, since Spain refused any assistance. Furthermore, there were no former Spanish military air bases in the region that could be taken, and any equipment and infrastructure had to be procured from scratch and on short notice.

 

In the wake of this hasted start, the L-159s became part of the GARC’s initial mixed bag of flying low-budget equipment. They were 2nd hand machines, bought from EADS-CASA of Spain and mothballed since 2012 after a barter deal with the Czech Republic: In 2009, EADS had exchanged with the CzAF four CASA C-295 transporters for three L-159As, two L-159T1s and 130 million Euros. These aircraft were still in EADS inventory in late 2017, even though grounded and taken out of service since 2012, because the operations of this small fleet as chasing aircraft were expensive and no buyer could be found in the meantime.

 

However, in 2018 the company sold them, under indirect pressure from NATO, to the Catalonian government at a “symbolic”, yet unspecified, price. This small fleet was soon augmented by five more L-159As and ten L-159T1s which were directly procured from the Czech Republic in 2019. These aircraft formed the initial, small backbone of the young country’s air defense, armed with AIM-9 Sidewinders (AIM-120 AMRAAM was possible, to, but not procured due to severe budget restraints) and Mauser BK-27 cannon in conformal pods. Since no military airfields with a suitable infrastructure for jet aircraft were available for the GARC at the time of their purchase and introduction, the L-159s were initially based at two public regional airports: at Reus, in the proximity of Tarragona at the Mediterranean coast, and at Girona in the country’s north, where airfield sections were separated of the military operations.

  

General characteristics:

Crew: one

Length: 12.72 m (41 ft 8¾ in)

Wingspan: 9.54 m (31 ft 3½ in)

Height: 4.87 m (16 ft)

Wing area: 18.80 m² (202.4 ft²)

Airfoil: NACA 64A-012

Aspect ratio: 4.8:1

Empty weight: 4,350 kg (9,590 lb)

Max. takeoff weight: 8,000 kg (17,637 lb)

 

Powerplant:

1× Honeywell F124-GA-100 turbofan, delivering 28.2 kN (6,330 lbf) thrust

 

Performance:

Never exceed speed: 960 km/h (518 knots, 596 mph)

Maximum speed: 936 km/h (505 knots, 581 mph) at sea level, clean

Stall speed: 185 km/h (100 knots, 115 mph)

Range: 1,570 km (848 nmi, 975 mi) max internal fuel

Combat radius: 565 km (305 nmi, 351 mi) lo-lo-lo, with a gun pod, 2× Mark 82 bombs, 2× AIM-9

Sidewinder and 2× 500 L drop tanks

Service ceiling: 13,200 m (43,300 ft)

Rate of climb: 62 m/s (12,220 ft/min)

 

Armament:

7Í hardpoints in total, 3 under each wing (outer pylons only for AAMs) and 1 under the fuselage,

holding up to 2,340 kg (5,159 lb) of ordnance

  

The kit and its assembly:

This model was spawned by a grain of truth: as mentioned in the background, EADS Spain had actually bought a few L-159s in 2009 from the CzAF in exchange for transporters, and together with the ongoing plans of an independent Catalonia I merged both into this ALCA single seater for the fictional Republic of Catalonia Air Guard.

 

The kit is the relatively new KP L-159. This is basically a nice model, but the kit has some severe flaws (see below). The model was basically built OOB, I just added AIM-9L Sidewinders and their respective launch rails as external ordnance on the outermost underwing hardpoints. Since I did not find the standard gun pod (a ZVI PL-20 Plamen pod with 2×20 mm guns) suitable, I decided to give the GARC aircraft a heavier, Western weapon in the form of a Mauser BK-27 (the same weapon used onboard of the Panavia Tornado or the Saab Gripen) in a conformal cannon pod under the fuselage. This piece was taken and adapted from a Heller Alpha Jet. Its shape perfectly fitted between the two ventral air brakes.

 

Concerning the kit itself, the build turned out to be a medium nightmare. The kit looked promising in the box, with fine engravings, but nothing fits well. There are no locator pins, you have (massive) ejection marks almost everywhere, and the parts’ attachment points to the sprues protrude into the parts themselves, so there’s a lot to clean up. At least there are no sinkholes.

Upon assembly, the cockpit tub – nicely detailed – would not fit into the fuselage at all and ended up in an oblique position (hidden through a pilot figure from the scrap box and a re-mounted avionics fairing in the rear cockpit). The air intakes left me guessing, too: while the edges are crisp and thin, the overall fit with the fuselage and the orientation of the parts had to be guesstimated, plus a mediocre fit, too. The instructions are not very helpful, either. I am quite disappointed and tried to make the best of the situation.

  

Painting and markings:

Much more thought was put into the model’s looks. What camouflage should such an aircraft carry? And I had to invent roundels/markings for a Catalonian air force aircraft, too.

 

Since the Catalonian L-159s were multi-purpose aircraft, yet primarily tasked with air space defense, I opted for an subdued air superiority scheme instead of a tactical low-level camouflage. Furthermore, the camouflage was supposed to be suited for a mountainous landscape (Pyrenees), relatively flat and dry land and also to open sea. This was a good opportunity to give a model the Greek “Ghost” scheme: a three-tone wraparound scheme consisting of FS 36307 (Light Sea Grey), 36251 (Aggressor Grey) and 35237 (Medium Grey, but actually a rather greyish blue). The pattern was adapted from Hellenic F-16s. I think it’s a good compromise, and it suits the ALCA well.

 

The national markings caused more headaches. I was looking for something that would not look like the Spanish roundel, but still reflect the Catalonian indpendence flag and – most important – I wanted to be able to create it from stock material (not printing them at home), with the option to replicate it on potential future builds.

In the end and after long safaris through my spare decal repository, I came up with a round marking. It consists of an Ukrainian roundel with a relatively thin outer yellow ring (from a Begemot MiG-29 sheet), placed on top of a Hinomaru, so that a thin, red outer ring was added. Onto the central, blue disc a white star (from a TL Modellbau sheet with US Army markings) was added. I think that this looks original enough?

There was a problem, though… In my first attempt to apply this construction, the roundels turned out to be VERY large overall. While the design itself looked O.K. (despite reminding of Captain America somehow), this looked ridiculous, esp. on an aircraft with a wraparound low-viz paint scheme. I was not satisfied, so I heavy-heartedly ripped the decals off again (using adhesive tape, works like a charm) and tried it again, in a smaller version.

Hinomaru became the basis once more, even though smaller, and then die-punched discs in yellow and blue (from generic decal sheet) were added, and finally small white stars again, one size smaller than during the first attempt. While this is still colorful and stands out from the grey background, the second attempt looked much more balanced now, and I stuck with it.

 

In order to add more flavor, I added Catalonian fin flashes and squadron emblems on the nose, depicting the “burro”, the Catalonian donkey which has become a kind of unofficial regional symbol as a kind of anti-mascot to the Spanish bull. These markings/decals were printed at home on white sheet.

 

The tactical codes were based on the Spanish system. The Spanish Air Force has its own alphanumeric system for identifying aircraft: This forms a prefix to the airframe serial number, usually marked on the tail. C means cazabombardero (fighter bomber); A, ataque (attack); P, patrulla (patrol); T, transporte (transport); E, enseñanza (training); D, search and rescue; H, helicopter; K, tanker; V, Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL); and U, utility. An example would be that the F-18 with "C.15-08" on the tail is the fifteenth type of fighter that arrived in the Spanish Air Force (the Eurofighter is the C.16) and is the eighth example of this type to enter the SAF. On the nose or fuselage, the aircraft has a numeral specific to the unit in which it is based.

 

Variants of planes in service, for example two-seater versions or tanker versions of transports planes, add another letter to differentiate their function, and have their own sequence of serial numbers separate from the primary versions. Example: "CE.15-02" will be the second F-18 two-seater (Fighter Trainer) delivered to the SAF. In addition, the aircraft used by the Spanish Air Force usually carry a code consisting of one or two digits followed by a dash and two numbers, painted on the nose or fuselage. The first number corresponds to the unit to which they belong, and the second the order in which they entered service. Example: the fourth F-18 arriving at Ala 12 will have on the nose the code "12-04". Those codes do change when the aircraft is re-allocated to a different unit. Quite complicated…

 

This led to the tactical code “2-03”, for the 3rd aircraft allocated to the 2nd fighter squadron, and “C.1-03” as individual registration as the 3rd aircraft of the 1st fighter type in Catalonian service. All codes were puzzled together with single black letters and numbers from TL Modellbau in 3 and 5mm size.

 

Finally, the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish.

GOVERNOR TOMBLIN PRESENTS $9.3 MILLION IN GRANTS

 

TO LOCAL GROUPS, COMMUNITY JUSTICE PROGRAMS

   

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (September 9, 2016) – Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today presented more than $9.3 million in grant funding to community support groups and justice programs across the state. This funding will be used to develop new programming and enhance existing initiatives to support West Virginia’s communities and state justice system.

   

“With this needed funding, community programs from all corners of our state will be better equipped to serve children and families and further strengthen West Virginia’s justice system.” Gov. Tomblin said. “We are expanding direct services to victims of crime, putting programs in place to help at-risk youth get back on track and preparing parents with the life skills they need to foster a healthy, nurturing environment to raise their families.”

   

The total grant funding was allocated as follows:

   

$7,023,255 in Victims of Crime Act/Victim Assistance Grants - 75 grantees;

$529, 254 in Justice Reinvestment Treatment Supervision Grants - 4 grantees;

$1,203,175 in Justice Assistance Grants - 34 grantees;

$543,222 in Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Grants - 18 grantees.

  

Victims of Crime Act/Victim Assistance Grants:

BARBOUR

Barbour County Commission $38,936.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Assistance Coordinator in the Barbour County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Barbour County.

BERKELEY, JEFFERSON, MORGAN

Children's Home Society of West Virginia $35,576.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Family Advocate to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Jefferson, Berkeley, and Morgan Counties.

BROOKE, HANCOCK

A Child's Place CASA, Ltd. $25,090.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a part-time CASA Volunteer Coordinator and Program Director to provide direct services to victims of child abuse and neglect in Brooke and Hancock Counties.

CABELL

Cabell County Commission $129,895.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of three full-time Victim Advocates and two part-time Victim Advocates in the Cabell County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Cabell County.

CABELL, WAYNE, KANAWHA, PUTNAM

TEAM for West Virginia Children, Inc. $192,075.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time CASA Coordinator for Cabell County, a

Cabell/Wayne CASA Volunteer Coordinator, a Kanawha/Boone/Lincoln Volunteer Coordinator and a

Putnam/Cabell Volunteer Coordinator to provide direct services to child abuse and neglect victims in Cabell, Wayne, Putnam and Kanawha Counties.

CABELL, WAYNE, LINCOLN

Family Service a Division of Goodwill, Inc. $61,748.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of three part-time Victim Therapists to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse in Cabell, Lincoln, and Wayne Counties.

CABELL, WAYNE, LINCOLN

CONTACT Huntington Inc. $143,338.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Wayne & Lincoln County Advocate, Campus Victim Advocate, and Community Victim Advocate, and for a part-time Victim Advocate to provide direct services to victims of sexual assault in Cabell, Wayne, and Lincoln.

CABELL, WAYNE, PUTNAM, LINCOLN, MASON

Branches Domestic Violence Shelter, Inc. $292,641.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time Social Worker, a Mason County Advocate, a

Putnam County Advocate, a Lincoln County Advocate, Wayne County Advocate, Evening Advocate, Case Manager, and part-time Putnam County Advocate to provide direct services to domestic violence victims in Cabell, Lincoln, Putnam, Wayne, and Mason Counties.

GREENBRIER

Greenbrier County Commission $54,685.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Services Coordinator in the Greenbrier County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Greenbrier County.

GREENBRIER, MONROE, POCAHONTAS

Child and Youth Advocacy Center $88,469.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Family Advocate and full-time Forensic Interviewer, and a portion of the salaries of a full-time Therapist and Program Director to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Greenbrier, Pocahontas, and Monroe Counties.

GREENBRIER, MONROE, POCAHONTAS

Family Refuge Center $168,120.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of the full-time Lead Shelter Advocate, a Daytime Shelter

Advocate, Overnight Shelter Advocate, Monroe County Advocate, Pocahontas County Advocate, and part-time Weekend Shelter Advocate, and Victim Advocate to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in Greenbrier, Monroe, and Pocahontas Counties.

GREENBRIER, POCAHONTAS

CASA of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, Inc. $42,424.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the part-time salary of a Volunteer Coordinator and full-time Program Director to provide direct services to victims of child abuse in Greenbrier and Pocahontas Counties.

HANCOCK, BROOKE

CHANGE, Inc. $54,285.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate and part-time Victim Advocate to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence in Brooke and Hancock Counties.

HANCOCK, BROOKE, OHIO

Hancock County Commission $125,979.00

These funds will provide for the full-time salaries of a Hancock County Advocate, a Brooke County Advocate, and a portion of the salary of a full-time Ohio County Advocate to provide direct services to crime victims in Brooke, Hancock, and Ohio Counties.

HARRISON

Harrison County CASA Program, Inc. $42,907.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time Volunteer Coordinator and the Program Director to provide direct services to victims of child abuse and neglect in Harrison County.

HARRISON, DODDRIDGE

Harrison County Child Advocacy Center $40,991.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Family Advocate to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Harrison County.

JACKSON

Jackson County Commission $35,000.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Jackson County Sheriff's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Jackson County.

JACKSON, ROANE, CALHOUN

CASA of the Fifth Judicial Circuit, Inc. $46,101.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of the Program Director and two Volunteer Coordinators to provide direct services to child abuse and neglect victims in Jackson, Roane, and Calhoun Counties.

JEFFERSON

Jefferson County Commission $67,104.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of two full-time Victim Advocates in the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Jefferson County.

JEFFERSON, BERKELEY, MORGAN

Shenandoah Women's Center, Inc. $355,035.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time Jefferson County Outreach Advocate, and two Shelter

Advocates, and a portion of the salaries for a full-time Morgan County Outreach Advocate, a Jefferson County Outreach Advocate, two Berkeley County Outreach Advocates, Evening and Weekend Shelter Advocate positions, and two part-time Counselors to provide direct services to child victims, victims of domestic violence, and sexual assault in Berkeley, Jefferson, and Morgan Counties.

CASA of the Eastern Panhandle, Inc. $103,218.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a Senior Volunteer Coordinator, two Volunteer Coordinators, and a part-time Volunteer Coordinator to provide direct services to victims of child abuse and neglect in Berkeley, Jefferson, and Morgan Counties.

KANAWHA

City of Charleston $36,600.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Victim Services Coordinator in the Charleston Police Department to provide direct services to crime victims in the City of Charleston.

CAMC Health Education & Research Institute $105,966.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Family Advocate and a portion of the salary of a full-time Social Worker/Forensic Interviewer to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Kanawha County.

Kanawha County Commission $67,360.00

These funds will provide for the salary of two full-time Victim Advocates and portion of the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Kanawha County.

Kanawha County Commission $83,353.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of two full-time Victim Advocates in the Kanawha County Sheriff's Department to provide direct services to crime victims in Kanawha County.

KANAWHA, CLAY, BOONE

YWCA of Charleston, WV, Inc. $184,189.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time Racial Justice/Court Advocate, a Boone County

Coordinator, a part-time Clay County Coordinator and a portion of the salaries for three full-time Court Advocate positions, Youth Services Coordinator, and a Contracted Counselor to provide direct services to domestic violence victims in Kanawha, Clay, and Boone Counties.

KANAWHA, PUTNAM, JACKSON, BOONE

Family Counseling Connection $208,311.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time REACH Director, three REACH Sexual Violence Victim Specialist, a Victim Support Specialist, and seven Victim Therapist positions and a portion of two Sexual Violence Victim Specialists to provide direct services to victims of sexual violence, child abuse, and domestic violence in Kanawha, Boone, Jackson, and Putnam Counties.

LEWIS

Lewis County Commission $38,942.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Lewis County Prosecutor's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Lewis County.

LOGAN

Logan County Commission $48,498.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time and a part-time Victim Advocate in the Logan County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Logan County.

Logan County Commission $36,500.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Services Coordinator in the Logan County Sheriff's Department to provide direct services to crime victims in Logan County.

LOGAN, MINGO

The Logan County Child Advocacy Center, Inc. $46,748.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a part-time Mingo County Advocate and Child & Youth Forensic Interviewer and for a portion of the salary for a full-time Logan County Family Advocate to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Logan and Mingo Counties.

MARION

CASA of Marion County $46,069.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of the salaries for a Program Director and Volunteer Coordinator to provide direct services to victims of child abuse and neglect in Marion County.

Marion County Commission $45,278.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Assistance Coordinator in the Marion County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Marion County.

MARION, DODDRIDGE, GILMER, HARRISON, LEWIS

Task Force on Domestic Violence, "HOPE, Inc." $338,084.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time Family Therapist, Marion County Case

Manager, Children's Case Manager, Lewis County Case Manager, Harrison County Case Manager, Harrison

County Case Manager/Outreach Coordinator, Gilmer County Case Manager, Marion County Victim Advocate, Harrison County Victim Advocate, Doddridge County Case Manager, and Family Therapist and a portion of the salary for a part-time Marion County Case Manager to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child victims in Doddridge, Gilmer, Harrison, Lewis, and Marion Counties.

MARSHALL, WETZEL, TYLER, OHIO

CASA for Children Inc. $58,805.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of the Program Director, a Ohio County Volunteer Coordinator, and a Volunteer Coordinator in the 2nd Circuit to provide direct services to child abuse and neglect victims in Ohio, Marshall, Tyler, and Wetzel Counties.

MASON

Mason County Commission $29,830.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Mason County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Mason County.

MCDOWELL

Stop the Hurt, Inc., Children's Advocacy Center $34,436.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Family Advocate to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in McDowell County.

MCDOWELL, MERCER, WYOMING

Stop Abusive Family Environments, Inc. $257,416.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time McDowell County Advocate, a part-time

Wyoming County Victim Advocate, Resident Program Coordinator, Advocate Coordinator, Night Shelter Advocate, Evening Shelter Advocate, Weekend Shelter Advocate, Case Worker, Administrator, and for the salaries of two full-time Mercer County Advocates and Wyoming County Advocate to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child victims in McDowell, Mercer, and Wyoming Counties.

MERCER

Child Protect of Mercer County, Inc. $70,220.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Family Advocate, part-time Forensic Interviewer and a portion of a Contract Therapist to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Mercer County.

MERCER, MCDOWELL

ChildLaw Services, Inc. $16,000.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a part-time Victim Advocate/Counselor to provide direct services to child victims of abuse and neglect and children who witness domestic violence in Mercer and McDowell Counties.

MINERAL

Mineral County Court Appointed Special Advocates $49,686.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of the Program Director and for the salary of a full-time Volunteer Coordinator to provide direct services to victims of child abuse and neglect in Mineral County.

MINERAL, GRANT, HAMPSHIRE

Family Crisis Center, Inc. $55,000.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time Grant County Victim Advocate, a Mineral County Advocate, and a part-time Hampshire County Victim Advocate to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence in Mineral, Grant, and Hampshire Counties.

MINERAL, HAMPSHIRE, PENDLETON

Burlington United Methodist Family Services, Inc. $20,982.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Forensic Interviewer to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Hampshire, Mineral, and Pendleton Counties.

MINGO

Mingo County Commission $22,100.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Assistance Coordinator in the Mingo County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Mingo County.

MINGO, LOGAN

Tug Valley Recovery Shelter $89,434.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time Logan/Mingo County Victim Advocate, a part-time Court Advocate, a full-time Logan County Advocate and a part-time Mingo County Advocate to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child victims in Mingo and Logan Counties.

MONONGALIA

Monongalia County Commission $78,544.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time and two part-time Victim Assistance Coordinators in the Monongalia County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Monongalia County.

Monongalia County Child Advocacy Center, Inc. $17,302.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Family Advocate to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Monongalia County.

MONONGALIA, PRESTON

Monongalia County Youth Services Center / CASA for Kids $42,649.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time Preston County Volunteer Coordinator, a full-time Monongalia County Volunteer Coordinator, and a portion of the salary for the Program Director to provide direct services to victims of child abuse and neglect in Preston and Monongalia Counties.

MONONGALIA, PRESTON, TAYLOR

The Rape & Domestic Violence Information Center, Inc. $177,082.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time Monongalia County Victim Advocate, Case Manager,

Taylor County Victim Advocate and for a portion of the salary for a full-time Outreach Advocate for Monongalia, Preston, and Taylor Counties to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse in Monongalia, Preston, and Taylor Counties.

OHIO

Ohio County Commission $35,242.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Victim Assistance Coordinator in the Ohio County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Ohio County.

OHIO, BROOKE, HANCOCK, MARSHALL, WETZEL

Upper Ohio Valley Sexual Assault Help Center $161,670.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time Adult Victim Advocate and a Child Victim Advocate, and the part-time salaries of three Victim Advocates and a licensed Counselor/Therapist to provide direct services to adult and child victims of sexual assault in Hancock, Brooke, Ohio, Marshall, and Wetzel Counties.

OHIO, MARSHALL

Harmony House, Inc. $46,323.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Child and Family Advocate and a portion of the salary of a Child and Family Therapist to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Ohio and Marshall Counties.

OHIO, MARSHALL, WETZEL

Young Womens Christian Associaton of Wheeling, WV $153,405.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time Child Advocate, Ohio County Advocate, Marshall County Advocate, and Wetzel County Advocate, a part-time Employment Advocate, and a portion of the salaries of a

full-time Shelter Advocate and Wetzel County Advocate to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child victims in Ohio, Marshall, and Wetzel Counties.

PRESTON

Preston County Commission $35,125.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Preston County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Preston County.

PUTNAM

Putnam County Commission $34,000.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Putnam County Sheriff's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Putnam County.

Putnam County Commission $48,784.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary for a full-time Victim Liaison and provide for the salary of a part-time Victim Liaison in the Putnam County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Putnam County.

RALEIGH, FAYETTE, NICHOLAS, SUMMERS

Comprehensive Women's Service Council, Inc. $432,866.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time Summers County Advocate, Nicholas County Advocate, Raleigh County Advocate in the Beckley Police Department, and Raleigh County Shelter Advocate and for a

portion of the salaries for a full-time Evening Shelter Advocate, Weekend Shelter Advocate, Night Shelter

Advocate, Day Shelter Advocate, and for a portion of the salaries of a part-time Underserved Populations

Advocate, Raleigh County Victim Services Advocate, Fayette County Advocate, Nicholas County Advocate, and

Weekend Shelter Advocate, and for a portion of two Contractual Adult and Child Therapist to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse in Raleigh, Fayette, Nicholas, and Summers Counties.

RALEIGH, FAYETTE, WYOMING

Just For Kids Child Advocacy Center $76,250.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Family Advocate, Forensic Interviewer, and Counselor to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Fayette, Raleigh, and Wyoming Counties.

RANDOLPH

Randolph County Commission $40,436.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Victim Services Coordinator in the Randolph County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide services to crime victims in Randolph County.

RANDOLPH, TUCKER

Randolph-Tucker Children's Advocacy Center $65,222.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of a full-time Family Advocate and part-time Forensic Interviewer and for the salary of a part-time Tucker County Child and Family Advocate to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Randolph and Tucker Counties.

RANDOLPH, UPSHUR, TUCKER, BRAXTON, WEBSTER, BARBOUR

Women's Aid in Crisis $396,775.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries for a full-time Barbour County Outreach Coordinator,

Braxton County Outreach Coordinator, Tucker County Outreach Coordinator, Upshur County Outreach

Coordinator, Webster County Outreach Coordinator, Randolph County Legal Advocate, Randolph County Victim Advocate, and two Shelter Managers and a Contracted Counselor to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence, child victims, and sexual assault victims in Randolph, Barbour, Tucker, Upshur, Webster, and Braxton Counties.

ROANE

Roane County Commission $22,068.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Roane County Prosecuting Attorney's office to provide direct services to crime victims in Roane County.

SUMMERS

REACHH-Family Resource Center $15,715.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a part-time Family Advocate and Forensic Interviewer to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Summers County.

TYLER

Tyler County Commission $37,920.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Tyler County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Tyler County.

UPSHUR

Upshur County Commission $34,662.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Upshur County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Upshur County.

UPSHUR, LEWIS

Mountain CAP of West Virginia, Inc., a CAC $32,574.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Family Advocate to provide direct services to child abuse victims and adult survivors of child sexual abuse in Upshur and Lewis Counties.

WETZEL

Wetzel County Commission $40,000.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Wetzel County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Wetzel County.

WOOD

Wood County Commission $83,126.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of two full-time Victim Advocates in the Wood County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Wood County.

WOOD, CALHOUN, JACKSON, LOGAN, WIRT

Harmony Mental Health, Inc. $138,450.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of a full-time Social Worker and Counselor, and Contractual Counseling to provide services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, and child abuse in Calhoun, Jackson, Wirt, and Wood Counties.

WOOD, JACKSON, RITCHIE, PLEASANTS, WIRT

Family Crisis Intervention Center $224,087.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salaries of three part-time Shelter Advocates, three full-tim Shelter

Advocates, Legal Advocate, Sexual Assault Advocate, Ritchie County Advocate, Wirt County Advocate, Pleasants County Advocate, and part-time Jackson County Advocate to provide direct services to victims of domestic violence in Jackson, Ritchie, Wirt, Pleasants, and Wood Counties.

WOOD, WIRT, PLEASANTS, RITCHIE

Voices for Children Foundation - CASA Program $51,939.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the Program Director’s salary to provide direct services to child abuse and neglect victims in Wood, Wirt, Pleasants, and Ritchie Counties.

WYOMING

Wyoming County Commission $30,114.00

These funds will provide for the salary of a full-time Victim Advocate in the Wyoming County Prosecuting Attorney's Office to provide direct services to crime victims in Wyoming County.

STATEWIDE

West Virginia Division of Corrections $81,158.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a Victim Services Specialist to provide direct services to the crime victims of inmates under the custody of the Division of Corrections.

Legal Aid of West Virginia, Inc. $216,890.00

These funds will provide for the salaries of three full-time Attorneys to provide emergency legal services to victims of crime in West Virginia.

Mothers Against Drunk Driving West Virginia $39,453.00

These funds will provide for a portion of the salary of a full-time statewide Victim Advocate to provide direct services and support to victims of Driving Under the Influence cases throughout the State of West Virginia.

Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Grants:

BARBOUR

Barbour County Commission $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the position of a Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) in Philip Barbour High School.

CABELL

City of Barboursville $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the position of a Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) in Barboursville Middle School.

DODDRIDGE

Doddridge County Commission $40,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) positions in Doddridge County High and Dordddridge County Middle Schools.

HARDY

Hardy County Commission $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the position of a Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) in East Hardy High School.

HARRISON

Harrison County Commission $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the position of a Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) in South Harrison High School.

KANAWHA

HOPE Community Development Corporation $60,000.00

These funds will be utilized to implement the Disproportionate Minority Reduction Cycle in Kanawha County.

Kanawha County Commission $25,000.00

These funds will be utilzed to support the Project INTER-CEPT Program (Interventions Needed To End Recidivism-Critical Entry Point Treatment) in Kanawha County.

Partnership of African American Churches $60,000.00

These funds will be utilized to decrease Disproportionate MinortyContact in Kanawha County by expanding current initiatives between law enforcement, clergy, youth and families, including public defenders and prosecuting attorneys.

LOGAN

Logan County Commission $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the position of a Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) in Man High School.

MONONGALIA

Monongalia County Commission $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the VOICES II, a deliquency prevention program that focuses on at-risk and delinquent female teens.

Monongalia County Child Advocacy Center $18,612.00

These funds will be utilized to provide Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to child vicitims of abuse in Monongalia County.

Monongalia County Commission $60,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support a countywide Disproportionate Minorty Contact Reduction Initiative by utlizing an evidence-based intervention model to prevent at-risk minority youth’s involvement in the criminal justice system.

Morgantown Police Department $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the position of a Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) in Mountaineer Middle School.

Mountaineer Boys and Girls Club $45,000.00

These funds will be utilized to implement the Disproportionate Minorty Reduction Cycle in Monongalia County.

MORGAN

Morgan County Commission $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support a school and community based program that provides a school-based violence prevention curriculum and a developmental asset program to cultivate youth strengths and self-esteem.

Morgan County Commission $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the position of a Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) in Berkeley Springs High School.

STATEWIDE

West Virginia Child Advocacy Network $23,592.00

These funds will be utilized to assess and improve the data tracking and evaluation on both a statewide and local program level, and assist local Child Advocacy centers with data-informed strategic planning, interrupting the cycle of abuse and preventing adverse lifetime outcomes.

West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals $31,018.00

These funds will be utilized to provide current juvenile justice probation data to the State of West Virginia, the Federal Government, West Virginia Division of Justice and Community Services, the State Advisory Group and the citizens of West Virginia through the maintenance and daily management of the Juvenile Section of the Offender Case Management System. Funding will also provide analysis and a statewide report on the Juvenile Justice system as well as the collection of juvenile data and analysis to provide the numbers to create the DMC ratio.

Justice Assistance Grants:

BRAXTON

Braxton County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Braxton County High School.

CABELL

Cabell County Commission $69,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

GREENBRIER

Greenbrier County Commission $23,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

HAMPSHIRE

Hampshire County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Hampshire County High School.

HANCOCK

Hancock County Commission $40,000.00

Funds will provide for two Prevention Resource Officers (PRO) at Oak Glen High School and Weir High School.

Hancock County Commission $46,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

HARRISON

City of Bridgeport $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Bridgeport High School.

City of Bridgeport $46,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

City of Clarksburg $20,000.00

Funds will provide for one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Robert C. Byrd High School.

JACKSON

City of Ripley $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Ripley High School.

City of Ravenswood $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Ravenswood High School.

KANAWHA

City of South Charleston $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at South Charleston High School.

City of Charleston $69,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

City of Dunbar $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Dunbar Middle School.

City of Charleston $40,000.00

Funds will provide for two Prevention Resource Officers (PRO) at Capitol High School and Stonewall Jackson Middle School.

LEWIS

Lewis County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Lewis County High School.

LOGAN

Logan County Commission $46,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force and salary for one Prosecutor to work closely with the Drug Task Force.

MARSHALL

Marshall County Commission $23,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

MERCER

City of Bluefield $46,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

MINERAL

Mineral County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Frankfort High School.

MONROE

Monroe County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at James Monroe High School.

OHIO

Ohio County Commission $46,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

City of Wheeling $40,000.00

Funds will provide for two Prevention Resource Officers (PRO) at Bridge Street Middle School and Triadelphia Middle School.

PUTNAM

Putnam County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Poca High School.

City of Winfield $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Winfield High School.

City of Nitro $20,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support a Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Nitro High School.

RALEIGH

City of Beckley Police Department $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Woodrow Wilson High School.

ROANE

Roane County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Roane County High School.

TAYLOR

City of Grafton $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Grafton High School.

UPSHUR

Upshur County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Buckhannon-Upshur Middle School.

WETZEL

Wetzel County Commission $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Valley High School.

WOOD

City of Vienna $46,000.00

Funds will provide for officer salaries for a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

City of Williamstown $20,000.00

Funds will provide one Prevention Resource Officer (PRO) at Williamstown High School.

STATEWIDE

West Virginia State Police $223,175.00

Funds will provide for officer overtime to continue a multi-jurisdictional drug and violent crime task force.

Justice Reinvestment Treatment Supervision Grants:

BERKELEY, JEFFERSON, MORGAN

Jefferson Day Report Center, Inc. $140,998.00

These funds will be utilized to support the ongoing work through the Justice Reinvestment Treatment Supervision Program.

CABELL

Prestera Center for Mental HealthServices, Inc. $134,514.00

These funds will be utilized to support the ongoing work through the Justice Reinvestment Treatment Supervision Program.

HARRISON

Harrison County Commission $125,000.00

These funds will be utilized to support the ongoing work through the Justice Reinvestment Treatment Supervision Program.

United Summit Center, Inc. $118,753.00

These funds will be utilized to support the ongoing work through the JusticGOVERNOR TOMBLIN PRESENTS $9.3 MILLION IN GRANTS

 

TO LOCAL GROUPS, COMMUNITY JUSTICE PROGRAMS

   

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (September 9, 2016) – Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin today presented more than $9.3 million in grant funding to community support groups and justice programs across the state. This funding will be used to develop new programming and enhance existing initiatives to support West Virginia’s communities and state justice system.

   

“With this needed funding, community programs from all corners of our state will be better equipped to serve children and families and further strengthen West Virginia’s justice system.” Gov. Tomblin said. “We are expanding direct services to victims of crime, putting programs in place to help at-risk youth get back on track and preparing parents with the life skills they need to foster a healthy, nurturing environment to raise their families.”

   

The total grant funding was allocated as follows:

   

$7,023,255 in Victims of Crime Act/Victim Assistance Grants - 75 grantees;

$529, 254 in Justice Reinvestment Treatment Supervision Grants - 4 grantees;

$1,203,175 in Justice Assistance Grants - 34 grantees;

$543,222 in Juvenile Justice & Delinquency Grants - 18 grantees.

  

Photos available for media use. All photos should be attributed “Photo courtesy of Office of the Governor.”

There's probably a lot that can be done with scalloped polygons.

 

To do this off of landmarks, make a pentagram off of the midpoints of the pentagon. The center of the pentagram is the base and all the other folds radiate.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=irrrI4uNJm0

 

For Ann (Poupetta;-)

Mrs. Malika Qanih, owner of Sun Pharma, supervises her workers at her plant in Kabul, Afghanistan. Sun Pharma is the first woman-owned pharmaceutical company in the country, and the company prioritizes hiring women. The USAID-funded Assistance in Building Afghanistan by Developing Enterprises (ABADE) Program provides critical support to Sun Pharma, to expand its product line to include standard-quality liquid vitamin syrup for the Afghanistan market. The ABADE Program spurs economic growth in Afghanistan by assisting small and medium companies to innovate, expand, and modernize their businesses through equipment procurement and technical support. These leveraged partnerships encourage more direct investments by Afghan companies in Afghanistan.

 

Credit: Assistance in Building Afghanistan by Developing Enterprises (ABADE) Program/Steve Dorst

Douglaston Historic District, Douglaston, Queens, New York City, New York, United States

 

Type: Freestanding house with attached garage (on lot 93) Style: Vernacular cottage Stories: 1

 

Structure/material: Frame with stucco facing

 

Notable building features: Intersecting gable roofs, flared over front porch; round-arched, batten door; brick chimney; brick stoop with non-original wrought-iron railings; some brick veneer; windows with historic multi-pane sash and casements.

 

Notable site features: Mature trees; flagstone walkway; gravel driveway; perimeter hedge; storage shed; cobblestone curb.

 

INTRODUCTION

 

The Douglaston Historic District contains more than 600 houses set along landscaped streets on a mile-long peninsula extending into Little Neck Bay, at the northeastern edge of Queens adjoining Nassau County.

 

Its history over the past four centuries ranges from a native American settlement to an eighteenth-century farm, a nineteenth-century estate called Douglas Manor, and an early twentieth-century planned suburb, also called Douglas Manor.

 

The Douglaston Historic District encompasses the entire Douglas Manor suburban development, plus several contiguous blocks. Most of the houses in the proposed district date from the early- to mid-twentieth century, while a few survive from the nineteenth century, and one from the eighteenth century.

 

The landscape includes many impressive and exotic specimen trees planted on the mid-nineteenth-century estate, as well as a great white oak, located at 233 Arleigh Road, believed to be 600 years old.

 

Douglaston's location on a peninsula jutting into Flushing Bay at the eastern border of Queens County is an important factor in establishing the character of the district. The very early buildings surviving in the district include the c.1735 Van Wyck House, the c. 1819 Van Zandt manor house (expanded in the early twentieth century for use as the Douglaston Club), and the Greek Revival style c. 1848-50 Benjamin Allen House.

 

Much of the landscaping, including the specimen trees, survives from the estate of Douglas Manor, established by George Douglas and maintained by his son William Douglas.

 

Most of the houses in the historic district were built as part of the planned suburb of Douglas Manor, developed by the Rickert-Finlay Company, that was part of the residential redevelopment of the Borough of Queens following its creation and annexation to the City of Greater New York in 1898.

 

A set of covenants devised by the Rickert-Finlay Company helped assure a carefully planned environment, including a shorefront held in common, winding streets following the topography of the peninsula, and single-family houses ranging in size from substantial mansions along Shore Road on the west to more modest cottages closer to Udalls Cove on the east.

 

The houses of the historic district, which are representative of twentieth-century residential architecture, were designed in a variety of styles including the many variants of the Colonial Revival, many houses in the English manner incorporating Tudor Revival, English cottage, and Arts and Crafts motifs, as well as the Mediterranean Revival. In most cases, they were designed by local Queens architects, including over a dozen who lived in Douglaston itself.

 

The district includes three houses of the Craftsman type pioneered by Gustav Stickley. Eight of the houses in the district were designed by Josephine Wright Chapman, one of America's earliest successful women architects, and they constitute an important body of her work.

 

The Douglaston Historic District survives today as an important example of an early twentieth-century planned suburb adapted to the site of a nineteenth-century estate. The stylistically varied suburban residences, the distinctive topography, the landscaped setting, and the winding streets create a distinct sense of place and give the district its special character.

 

HISTORICAL AND ARCHITECTURAL BACKGROUND OF THE DOUGLASTON HISTORIC DISTRICT

 

Native American and Colonial antecedents

 

The Native American presence on the Little Neck peninsula today known as Douglaston included the Matinecoc,1 one of a group on western Long Island linked by culture and language to others in the area surrounding Manhattan Island (including the Nayack, Marechkawieck, Canarsee, Rockaway, and Massapequa). A number of finds from those settlements have been identified at various sites on the peninsula.2 The Matinecoc, who fanned the peninsula and apparently also produced wampum, were summarily evicted in the 1660s by Thomas Hicks, later Judge Hicks, in what has been described as the only such seizure of property recorded in Flushing town records. In the 1930s, according to local histories, a Matinecoc burial ground was destroyed to make way for a widening of Northern Boulevard, and the remains reinterred in the cemetery of Zion Church.3

 

The property seized by Thomas Hicks in the 1660s passed through the hands of several of his family members, and several subsequent sales to other families, before being acquired in 1813 by Wynant Van Zandt. In 1819 Van Zandt bought an adjoining farm from the Van Wyck family. Both tracts had been farmed during the eighteenth century. The Van Wycks built and lived in a shorefront house which still stands (the Cornelius Van Wyck House, at 126 West Drive aka 37-04 Douglaston Parkway, a designated New York City landmark).

 

Nineteenth-century country seat: Wynant Van Zandt. George and William Douglas, and Douglas Manor

 

Wynant Van Zandt (1767-1831) kept his property in agricultural use. Unlike his predecessors, mostly local formers, Van Zandt was a prominent New York City merchant, active in New York civic affairs. As a city alderman, Van Zandt served as chairman, starting in 1803, of the building committee for City Hall, and in 1804 as chairman of a committee on water supply, among other duties. Van Zandt established his Queens County property as a country estate, and built himself a manor, or country seat, in 1819; the building survives, with additions, as the Douglaston Club.

 

In May 1835, following Wynant Van Zandt's death, George Douglas acquired the estate from Robert B. Van Zandt; the deed identifies Van Zandt as a "farmer" and Douglas as a "gentleman."5 One obituary, in the Flushing Journal Weekly, described Douglas as "what the world would call an eccentric man."6 Another, in the New York Evening Post, described him as a wealthy young man from Scotland, who during a fifteen-year stay in Europe "collected some very valuable pictures," and later turned to philanthropy.7

 

Douglas's son, William Proctor Douglas, inherited the property after his father's death in 1862. The younger Douglas served as vice-commodore of the New York Yacht Club in 1871-74. During his tenure, Douglas Manor became a center for New York society yachting and polo. In later years, Douglas rented out the estate house to a variety of well-connected tenants, including European royalty.8

 

In 1869, Douglas hired landscape architect William McMillen to, in the words of McMillen's daughter, "superintend the Estate, improve driveways, and lay out plantings and trees and ornamental shrubs."9 McMillen was later associated with Frederick Law Olmsted and his work on the park system in Buffalo, New York.10 Although McMillen spent six years working on the estate, it is not known exactly what he undertook for Douglas. From turn-of-the-century photographs and other records analyzed in a landscape history undertaken in 1994, it appears that under Douglas's

 

ownership the landscape was characterized by "an informal 'English' look...with English ivy, winterberry, Boston ivy and wisteria."11

 

It was also during Douglas's tenure that a number of exotic specimen trees were planted on the property. Local histories suggest a connection with Samuel Parsons (1819-1906), a pioneer horticulturist with a nursery in Flushing; Parsons owned land near the Douglas Estate. The trees have been a distinguishing characteristic of Douglas Manor since William Douglas's day.12

 

Early suburban subdivision

 

Although the suburban development called Douglas Manor dates from 1906, William Douglas apparently attempted a suburban subdivision half a century earlier south of Douglas Manor. The dominant force propelling development was the gradual extension of the Long Island Railroad, which ran as far as Flushing until 1866 (with stage coach connections for points east), when its extension to Great Neck opened. Even in the 1850s, anticipating the railroad's extension to the Little Neck peninsula, William Douglas had subdivided part of his property (the area today known as "the Hill").

 

Douglas donated land for the railroad's right of way, and later, according to local histories, relocated one of his farm buildings to be used as a railroad station, asking in exchange that the new village be called "Douglaston" (instead of Marathon, a competing name).13 He named a number of new streets after the abundant trees on his property (Pine, Poplar, Willow, Cherry).

 

The Rickert-Finlav Realty Company

 

Besides the three early surviving houses already mentioned (the Van Wyck House, the Douglaston Club, and the Allen House), almost all the rest of the houses in the historic district were built as part of the early twentieth-century planned suburb of Douglas Manor, named for Douglas's estate, laid out by the Rickert-Finlay Realty Company. The redevelopment of Douglas Manor was part of the vast transformation of much of the newly created Borough of Queens into new residential neighborhoods. In 1906, the year Rickert-Finlay bought Douglas Manor, several major transportation projects to speed connections between Manhattan and Queens were underway: the Pennsylvania Railroad and Long Island Railroad tunnels under the East River, and the Queensborough Bridge at 59th Street.14 According to the Real Estate Record and Guide of that year:

 

The development of numerous farms into building lots and the erection of hundreds of new buildings have necessarily advanced the value of real estate in that section of Greater New York. It is said that more than 8,000 new apportionments have been made in the Borough of Queens during 1906, and that considerably more than 10,000 acres of land have been cut up into lots....

 

Chief among the new developments cited:

 

Title has just been taken to the Douglass [sic] homestead of about 180 acres by the Douglass Manor Co. This will probably be the highest class development on the island. It has a mile of water front and most magnificent shade trees. This property will be subdivided immediately.16

 

The Rickert-Finlay Realty Company, which bought Douglas Manor, was active in real-estate development in Queens and Nassau Counties in the early years of the century, buying up large farms and estates on the north shore of Long Island, preferably those with attractive topographical features, and subdividing them into new suburban communities. Their projects included Norwood in Long Island City, Broadway-Flushing in Flushing, Bellcourt in Bayside, Douglas Manor in Douglaston, and Westmoreland in Little Neck.17 By 1908, the company, with offices at 45 West 34th Street in Manhattan,18 was advertising itself as "The Largest Developers of Real Estate in Queens Borough ~ over 10,000 lots within the limits of New York City."19

 

The company's typical strategy for selecting development sites was described by E.J. Rickert in a 1914 article in Architecture and Building: "It was selected because it was on high ground, with a splendid outlook . . . and only four blocks from a railway station. It was . . . noted for the magnificent row of maples and lindens, nearly a mile long, extending through the entire property."20 The company then developed each tract according to a formula based on past successes. E.J. Rickert described the progression of the firm's ideas:

 

The first property developed was Bellcourt in Bayside, which was improved along the same lines as had heretofore prevailed on Long Island — that is, gravel sidewalks were laid, streets were graded and shade trees were set out, no other improvements being made. In the sale of Bellcourt, however, it was found that there was a demand for better improvements, and, consequently, when Douglas Manor was developed, cement sidewalks were laid, macadam roads were built and trees and hedges were set out. Broadway-Flushing and Westmoreland, which came next, were developed to about the same extent as Douglas Manor, all then being considered the best improved properties on Long Island.

 

The next development, Kensington, saw the addition of complete "sanitary sewer system, water mains and underground conduit for street lighting."

 

The new suburb of Douglas Manor

 

The qualities of the nineteenth-century Douglas Manor on which the Rickert-Finlay development capitalized included its hilly topography, its mile-long waterfront accessible to the entire narrow peninsula, and its lush plantings, especially the specimen trees planted during Douglas's tenure. The development also based its new road system on the major farm roads already in place, which became West, East, and Centre [Center] Drives.23

 

The company then established a series of protective covenants to guarantee a certain manner of development and density within the new suburb. In an era pre-dating the adoption of zoning regulations,24 the character of a new development could be guaranteed in no other way.

 

The covenants affected the architectural character of the houses only peripherally — by prohibiting flat roofs, thereby encouraging a more romantic roofline. Instead, they focused on the kind and size of houses and the nature of the landscaping of the new development. They required all houses to be single-family residences, with the sole exception of the Douglaston Club (commercial uses and two-family buildings and flats were specifically prohibited). They encouraged an economically mixed development, with a boulevard of substantial mansions along the Shore Road waterfront, while smaller, less expensive houses would predominate on the peninsula's east. (Such conditions were guaranteed by requiring houses of a certain cost and lots of a certain size). A verdant landscape was ensured by requiring houses to be set back 20 feet, leaving room for greenery, and by prohibiting fences and encouraging hedges, creating vistas not of individual, fenced-off gardens, but rather of a continuous, green, park-like, landscaped environment.

 

Rickert-Finlay went even further, taking steps to protect that environment and shape the community's social character by creating, in 1906, the Douglas Manor Association. Its stated objectives were the creation and maintenance of a club house to promote "social intercourse" among the residents, and to preserve and protect the development's physical amenities, including the roads, parks, shorefront, and plantings.26

 

Selling Douglas Manor

 

Promotional brochures prepared by Rickert-Finlay characterized the new neighborhood as a private community of houses, nestled in a landscape similar to Central Park, surrounded with a mile of shorefront, just blocks from each home.27

 

Douglas Manor's convenience to Midtown Manhattan via the Long Island Railroad was compared favorably to subway commutation to new Bronx neighborhoods. The commute was touted at "only 33 Minutes to Manhattan, 52 Trains a Day," and predicted to become "20 Minutes to Herald Square, when Pennsylvania-Long Island Tunnels are completed." The neighborhood was just three blocks from the Douglaston station, itself very near the Long Island Sound, "being the only station on the line near enough to the Sound to bring the shore front within easy walking distance. "28 The history and character of the old Douglas estate were emphasized, especially the trees planted by Douglas: "Scotch Holly, Magnolia, Japanese Maidenhair, Chinese Cypress, European Beech, Scarlet Maple, Horse Chestnut, Tulip, Lime, evergreens... Even Central Park does not possess a greater variety of rare trees....

 

" This park-like effect would be "preserved and increased by setting out hedges along winding roads, following the natural contour of the land as much as possible.... The shore drive, curving along the bay for over a mile, will be made the finest boulevard on Long Island." To all these suburban advantages, Douglas Manor also boasted the services provided by the City of New York: "city water, stone sidewalks, macadamized streets" and the "full benefit of all departments of the city government, including schools, water, police and fire protection."

 

From 1906 through the Depression, several hundred houses were erected in Douglas Manor, following the plan suggested by the Rickert-Finlay covenants. In general, the lots along Shore Road on the west were developed first, with larger, more substantial houses, followed by the more modest

 

homes to the east towards Udalls Cove. Property owners often acquired lots adjacent to those on which their houses were built to accommodate more generous lawns or gardens. The mile-long waterfront remained undeveloped, held in common by the Douglas Manor Association. The large caliper specimen trees planted in Douglas's day remained in place. The grounds of the various houses were separated by perimeter hedges only — no fences. Two smaller lots formed by irregular street intersections were planted as small parks, maintained by the Association. Together, the parks, commonly held shorefront, specimen trees, and hedged gardens created something close to Rickert-Finlay's version of Central Park, surrounded by water, with several hundred houses nestled in the landscape.

 

The Architecture of the Douglaston Historic District

 

The architectural styles of the over 600 houses and some 150 related structures (mostly garages) in the historic district reflect three centuries of Douglaston's built history. From the eighteenth-century colonial Van Wyck House, to the early nineteenth-century Van Zandt House and mid-nineteenth-century Allen House, to the twentiethth-century suburban houses of the Rickert-Finlay development, to the additions of the post-World War II period, they tell the story of the development of this part of eastern Queens, part of the larger developmental story of New York City and the country as a whole.

 

The Cornelius Van Wyck House, at 126 West Drive, survives as the oldest extant house in the district, and one of the oldest in New York City (it is a designated New York City landmark). Built c.1735 for an early Dutch settler as a farmstead, the house reflects eighteenth-century New York colonial styles. Douglas, who transformed the farm to Douglas Manor, is said to have used the house as an "entrance lodge to his estate.w29 In 1907, one year after the acquisition of the Manor by the Rickert-Finlay Company, the Douglaston Country Club enlarged the building for use as a clubhouse. In 1921, the Van Wyck House passed back into use as a single-family residence, and its owner, E.N. Wicht, hired Frank J. Forster, designer of Colonial Revival and Tudor Revival style houses in the new Douglas Manor development, to restore it to its original Dutch Colonial appearance.

 

The Wynant Van Zandt House, at 600 West Drive, reflects both the older and the newer history of Douglaston. Built in 1819 as a home for Wynant Van Zandt, it was significantly altered after 1906 for use as the Douglaston Club, but still reflects some of the character of Van Zandt's original two-story Greek Revival manor house.

 

The Benjamin P. Allen House (a/k/a the Allen-Beville House, a designated New York City landmark) at 29 Center Drive, built c. 1848-50, is another rare Queens farm house. Predominately Greek Revival in style, it also shows the influence of the newly fashionable Italianate style, especially in its cornices and brackets.

 

Almost all the other buildings in the district date from the twentieth century, and the greater number of them from its first three decades, when Douglas Manor was developed by the Rickert-Finlay Company. Douglas Manor is a contemporary of several other planned communities in New York City, notably Fieldston in the Bronx and Forest Hill Gardens in Queens, all three of which began as subdivisions in the first decade of die century, and blossomed in the late teens and twenties. Like them, Douglas Manor was developed with houses based on historic styles of the past.

 

The first few decades of the century constituted a period of ferment and development in the design of American single-family houses. The epoch has been characterized as "a resurgence of individualism and an indulgence in residential architecture, a reaction to the standardization of the previous two decades. Fanciful cottages in fairy-tale styles were part of that image."30 In some ways, that approach is a logical continuation of late nineteenth-century architectural eclecticism, characterized in the 1890s as "rampant eclecticism in all fields of life and taste, of triumphant individualism, when authority sits so lightly on men's interests and lives; in this age of archaeology, when the different periods of history are made to live again in our imagination. "31 At the same time, residential architecture was affected by notions of progress and efficiency, and a drive toward simplicity and sanitary conveniences in home design.

 

Rickert-Finlay's protective covenants left the architectural character of the buildings almost entirely in the hands of owners and architects, requiring only that building roofs not be flat.32 The result was a collection of early twentieth-century eclectic residential styles, ranging from grand Colonial Revival mansions on the Shore Road waterfront, to picturesque Tudor Revival or Mediterranean Revival houses or houses in the English cottage manner or Colonial Revival houses on the blocks between West and East Drives, to modest cottages near Udalls Cove. Houses were sited in harmony with the topography, which tends to get hillier in the southeastern section of the peninsula.

 

One Douglas Manor architect, Alfred Scheffer, expressed his point of view in an article published in 1929. He described the Tudor Revival house he designed for himself at 216 Beverly-Road — a particularly useful indication of both the architect's and the client's point of view. Tellingly, the very first observation he makes is about the siting of the house, overlooking Long Island Sound: "The water is only a stone's throw — of a conservative marksman — from our front door and the second floor bay window has a certain suggestion of the forecastle deck of a ship, for the intervening land and highway are quite lost to sight and I can get a fine sense of sailing the seas, when I stand there." Only then does he turn to the formal style of the design, and sums up in a sentence the attitude of his day towards historically-inspired styles: "The construction is quite definitely in the English manner although / was not concerned with making it exact or authentic [emphasis added]

 

Scheffer then lists the elements that make his house "English": "stucco and halftimber walls with slate roof . . . The substantial chimney of common brick is typical of many English country houses. . . . The main entrance doorway of the house, at the end of a narrow flagstone walk, forms a Gothic arch of oak timber, framing a paneled oak door with iron straps and two small leaded glass windows, the effect completed by a semi-circular stone stoop. Beside the door is a lantern of pierced wrought-iron in the shape of an inverted tunnel, with wrought-iron bracket." Clearly it is details like the paneled oak door and leaded glass windows which give the house the English "effect" Scheffer wanted. But when he turns to describing the interior, practical matters take precedence: "The interior of the house was designed to take full advantage of our gorgeous outlook over the water."

 

Historical details are listed — "The walls are of rough English hand finished plaster" - but so are the "built-in bookshelves," "built-in comer cabinets," and "convenient and numerous closets and the very large closet and bathroom which join the master bedroom and add much to its convenience." "The interior of the house," concludes Scheffer," will probably grow from year to year. Things will be taken out and others put in until eventually, it comes near to realizing my mental image of what it ought to be. Already, I think, it has the liveable quality which is most essential of all."33

 

The majority of houses in the historic district reflect a variety of styles, loosely adapted by architects like Frank Scheffer, typical of suburban residential architecture across the country. The predominant style is the Colonial Revival in several variants, ranging in date from c.1910 to the present. Most are of frame construction with shingle and/or clapboard siding. Besides a generic Colonial Revival style, the district has such distinctive variations as the Dutch Colonial Revival, New England Colonial Revival, and Cape Cod Colonial Revival. Colonial Revival houses of brick, or frame with brick facing, often have a more formal neo-Georgian appearance. The English manner, the other major stylistic mode, is expressed with Tudor Revival, English cottage, or Arts and Crafts details. These houses, too, are often of frame construction with stucco facing and brick and/or stone trim. The Mediterranean Revival style was also popular.

 

These houses usually have stucco facing and tile roofs. The district also has a handful of houses of the Craftsman type pioneered by Gustav Stickley. Suburban houses of the type found in the district were judged by their picturesque qualities. The Architectural Forum, for instance, featured a Douglas Manor house by Frank Forster, the same architect who restored the Van Wyck House to something approaching its original Dutch colonial appearance. The writer praised Forster's "excellent use of half-timber in connection with brick or stucco," but more importantly his "rare skill in grouping, which creates a picturesque and architectural composition, wholly unaffected or exaggerated and involving no sacrifice in the matter of interior planning to secure this effect."

 

An additional group of houses in the historic district, on the south side of Bay Street, predates the Douglas Manor development by several years. Designed c.1900, they are excellent examples of the Colonial Revival and Queen Anne styles popular at the end of the nineteenth century.

 

Playing an important role in the historic district are the many related garage structures, often designed in architectural styles compatible with the houses they serve. Some were constructed originally as carriage houses and stables, often with residential accommodations, and later converted for garage use. By about 1920, the automobile had supplanted the horse, and garages were built as freestanding structures, some with chauffeur's quarters at the second story, usually situated close to a side or rear lot line. By the late 1920s, some houses were constructed with attached garages, or garages were constructed later, atttached to earlier houses. After World War II, many houses were built with basement garages, while other earlier houses were modified to provide basement garages.

 

The Douglas Manor Architects

 

A few prominent New York City architects with Manhattan offices received commissions in the new neighborhood; however, the vast majority of Douglas Manor houses were designed by local Queens and Brooklyn architects, and a surprisingly large number by architects who themselves lived in Douglas Manor or had offices nearby.35

 

Among the better known firms from outside the neighborhood who worked in the historic district, Buchman & Fox, architects of many Manhattan office buildings, designed 1008 Shore Road, a substantial Colonial Revival mansion overlooking the Bay. George Keister, whose practice included churches, hotels and Broadway theaters, designed 24 Knollwood Avenue, an Arts and Crafts style house, and 104 Hollywood Avenue, a Colonial Revival house. Diego DeSuarez, who planned villa gardens at both La Pietra, outside Florence, and Vizcaya, outside Miami, designed a one-story Mediterranean fantasy at 231 Beverly Road. Lionel Moses, of the firm of McKim, Mead & White, designed a house in the English cottage manner at 1102 Shore Road overlooking Little Neck Bay. The architectural firm of McKim, Mead & White is credited with the formal French Renaissance Revival style house at 4 Ardsley Road. Dating from 1919, it is constructed of hollow terra-cotta block, a form of fireproof construction, and faced with stucco.36

 

Architects from Brooklyn and Queens represented in the historic district include Arthur H. Allen, an architect very active in Forest Hills (a Colonial Revival house at 217 Ridge Road); Philip Resnyk (Tudor Revival, English cottage manner, and Colonial Revival houses on Warwick, Beverly, Grosvenor, Hollywood, Knollwood, Richmond, Kenmore, Richmond and Manor); Benjamin Dreisler (an Arts and Crafts/Colonial Revival house at 243 Forest Road); Louis Feldman (English cottage type houses at 211 and 217 Forest Road); J. Sarsfield Kennedy (a Tudor Revival house at 369 Beverly Road and a grand English bungalow/Arts and Crafts house at 1114 Shore Road), and Shampan & Shampan (a Colonial Revival house at 110 Arleigh).

 

Almost 60 of the over 600 houses in the historic district, built in the first decades of the century, are known to be the work of fourteen Douglaston architects.37 Alfred Scheffer, whose views are quoted above, designed at least ten, most in the Colonial Revival style or English cottage manner with Tudor Revival or Arts and Crafts detail.

 

John C.W. Cadoo designed at least sixteen houses, mostly Colonial Revival in style. Frank Forster designed at least three houses, one Colonial Revival, the others in the English cottage manner, as well as overseeing the restoration of the eighteenth-century Van Wyck House. Albert Humble designed at least ten houses, most in the Colonial Revival style.

 

Josephine Wright Chapman

 

Eight houses in the historic district are known to have been designed in the 1910s and 1920s by one of America's earliest successful women architects, Josephine Wright Chapman (1867-?). Chapman was professionally active from 1892 to 1927, but little is known about her education or commissions.

 

She pursued her interest in a career in architecture over opposition from her family, working from 1892 to 1897 as a draftsman in the office of Boston architect Clarence H. Blackall. Very few academically trained women became architects in the last two decades of the nineteenth century, and Chapman may have entered the profession as an apprentice.

 

By 1898 she was listed in the Boston City Directory as an architect, and developed a successful practice, despite the rejection of her application for membership in the American Institute of Architects.

 

Chapman's first major project was the New England Building at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo in 1901. Other known work includes the Craigie Arms Apartments (1897) in Cambridge, Mass., the Episcopal Church in Leominster, Mass., and the Women's Clubs in Worcester and Lynn, Mass.

 

In 1905, Chapman began to devote herself to the design of houses. She preferred the "English type," long, low and rambling, with gables and timber and plaster detailing. In 1907 she moved to New York, where she was listed in directories as an architect until 1925. Among her few published works was a sixteen-story apartment building on Park Avenue, described as demonstrating "the feminine idea of correct planning . . .and many innovations were to be introduced."

 

While in New York, she also received the commission for Hillandale, an Italian Renaissance style villa in Washington, D.C., built 1922-25. In the words of historian Gwendolyn Wright: "Neither Chapman's early public success in Boston nor her conversion to professional pursuit more appropriate for a woman qualified her for coverage in the architectural press.

 

But her career was remarkable, for few women had the financial independence to experiment with their own offices."

 

Chapman's known Douglaston houses, which date from 1909 to 1917, are in the historic district's two prevalent stylistic modes — five Colonial Revival and three in the English cottage manner.

 

They share picturesque silhouetttes with rooflines that feature gambrel or gabled roofs with hipped or shed dormers, and exposed brick chimneys; and distinctive entry and porch details, including one with Tuscan columns, one with a pointed-arch batten door, and one with a panelled entrance with side-lights and transom.

 

The Craftsman style houses

 

Several Craftsman style houses, including No. 122 Arleigh Road, 140 Prospect Avenue, and 111 Hollywood Avenue, may be one of the largest such collections in any New York City neighborhood.

 

Furniture designer Gustav Stickley of Rochester, New York, created the Craftsman architectural movement and disseminated it throughout the country via his Craftsman magazine.

 

The Craftsman aesthetic drew on the English Arts and Crafts movement, California Mission design, Japanese architecture, and Native American design, and was supported by an ideology influenced by concepts of socialism, the nobility of work, and the value of manual training.

 

Stickley developed his interest in architecture in the years 1902-05, initially as a way of creating the proper environment for his furniture. He hired architect Harvey Ellis to help develop a Craftsman architecture, and the Craftsman magazine began publishing prototype houses initially designed by Ellis, encouraging the public to take them as models for their own homes.

 

The published houses included floor plans, sketches, renderings of room schemes, elevations, and descriptions of appropriate rugs, fabrics, furniture, and color schemes. Stickley then encouraged his readers to alter the plans to suit local conditions.

 

In 1909, Stickley became involved in the actual construction of houses when he organized the Craftsman Building Company, which constructed houses in New Jersey and on Long Island.

 

The company was active for just under a year; the exact number of houses built is unknown. Most "Craftsman" houses were built by contractors using Craftsman plans.

 

The Craftsman house embodies a number of characteristics in its exterior. It is generally designed to take advantage of its site and views. Picturesque in its composition, it incorporates an "honest" expression of its materials and structure.

 

It makes use of exposed or emphasized structural elements, especially a broad, overhanging roof, often supported by large, open rafters extending beyond the eaves.

 

There may be wooden elements including curved roofs, or exotic piled capitals. Often such houses include pergolas, porches, balconies or verandas. Windows are grouped together to create large openings.

 

Craftsman houses use a variety of materials, preferably local. Stonework is often textured and ornamental, with variegated colors and shapes. Other common materials include clinker brick, and stucco, often mixed with rough sand or bits of glass.

 

Historical and Architectural Introduction

 

No. 111 Hollywood Road was designed by the Craftsman architects in 1914.55 The interior follows the Craftsman aesthetic, while the exterior borrows the distinctive eyebrow window and brick Tudor arched entrance from neighboring houses.

 

No. 122 Arleigh Road corresponds to Craftsman plan number 70, a "Ten-Room House for Town or Country Life" published originally in the Craftsman in July 1909 and again in More Craftsman Homes. Its horizontal orientation, large living porch, emphasis on structural elements including low, spreading, overhanging eaves and extended rafters, and central entrance and symmetrical facade with grouped windows, all reflect the Craftsman mold.

 

No. 140 Prospect Road correspond to Craftsman plan number 85, a "Small Two-Story Cement House with Recessed Porch and Balcony," published originally in the Craftsman in March 1910 and again in More Craftsman Homes. Its low-pitched roof revealing the rafters, porch and balcony, decorative use of structural elements, and grouping of windows and openings, all fit the Craftsman aesthetic.

 

A number of other houses in the historic district reflect the Craftsman aesthetic, even though they do not follow published Craftsman plans.

 

Prominent residents and later history

 

The first residents to move into the new Douglas Manor development, in 1907, were "the Misses Butler, of Flushing." They were followed by a number of newspapermen including "Mr. Mayer, World cartoonist, on Shore Road and Knollwood Ave.," "George C. Minor, of the New York Herald" on West Drive and Knollwood, and "Arthur Greaves, city editor of the New York Times" on West Drive, as well as a Mr. Slater of Manhattan and a Mr. Burtis, "manager of the Brooklyn branch of Swift & Co."56 Country Life in America the following year showed houses for sale in Douglas Manor priced at $8500 and $10,000.

 

Over the years, the historic district has attracted many famous residents, including a number of people in theater and the arts. Besides the above mentioned Herbert Mayer, cartoonist for The World, and architect Elbert McGran Jackson, who also illustrated covers for the Saturday Evening Post, artists included Percy Crosby, author of the "Skippy" comic strip; Robbie Robinson, another

 

illustrator for the Saturday Evening Post, Norwegian born sculptor Trygve Hammer, whose house is at 329 Forest Road,59 and satirist George Grosz.

 

Douglaston's location on the Long Island Rail Road, which made it convenient to the Astoria Studios in Long Island City, an early movie center, attracted many actors in the days before the ascendancy of Hollywood.

 

Residents have included Ginger Rogers, Hedda Hopper, Richard Dix, Ward Bond, Bonita Granville, Clifton Webb, Arthur Treacher, Jack Donahue, and William Collier Sr., as well as Ziegfeld Follies star Margaret Corry.

 

Other notable residents have included author Ring Lardner, as well as Olympic swimmer Annette Kellerman, tennis pro John McEnroe, Jr., and pianist Claudio Arrau.

 

Douglaston resident Anne E. Hayes was one of the first women to attend Cornell University's medical school, and later became a clothing designer.

 

In the half century since the end of World War II, the Douglaston Historic District has seen numerous houses altered or demolished, and much new construction. Some of the new houses have maintained the scale and repeated the materials and styles of earlier houses; others have not.

 

They have ranged in style from ranch houses to modern versions of the Colonial Revival. Overall, however, the Douglaston Historic District survives, maintaining much of its original architectural character as a planned suburban community, as well as rare surviving reminders of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and significant landscape features including the commonly-held waterfront, specimen trees, and generous landscaping.

 

All create a distinct sense of place, recalling a significant period in the history of Queens.

 

- From the 1997 NYCLPC Historic District Designation Report

Life Ink, developed by the Ars Electronica Futurelab, shows the creative flow and flying sparks when Ars Electronica Center infotrainer Mario Mrcela plays the drums.

 

Life Ink revolves around the question: Can mind and body generate ink? It captures brainwaves and body signals in real time to create a new form of ink: This Life Ink is used to express our creative moments in a completely new form.

 

Life Ink was developed by the Ars Electronica Futurelab in collaboration with Wacom. Learn more:

 

ars.electronica.art/futurelab/en/projects-life-ink/

 

Photo: Jochen Manz / Wacom Co., Ltd.

Hasselblad 500C/M

Carl Zeiss Planar 80/2.8

expired Kodak T-Max 400, developed in Ilfotec HC

HPD pupils are developing concept models as part of their Developing Design Proposals Unit. As usual lighting remains a popular choice. Pupils are also developing proposals on themes as diverse as seating, kitchen utensils and sportswear equipment.

 

Good to see evidencs of great strides being made in quich modeling techniques using materials like plasticine, copper wire, plywood and foam. The glue gun gets a lot of use at the moment as does the bandsaw and fretsaw.

 

Fortunately, Cathy, our cleaner has been very understanding. The mess at times you would not believe!

 

Good work everybody. Have a great Christmas break, get some rest. You'll need all your energy for the new year!

Canonet QL17 40/1.7

Kodak ImageLink Technical film

Exposed like ISO32

Developing R09 1:100, 20C, 40min.

Developing.

Double Dance Dose at The Old Fire Station, 7 December 2013. Photos of Ran Kan Kan and Baila La Cumbia providing a night of Cuban and Colombian dance music for a full house of appreciative ears and feet. This was an ideal opportunity for me to try a film that I've been eager to use for myself, a 35mm color cinema film called CineStill 800Tungsten Xpro C-41.

 

The Brothers Wright took Kodak Vision3 500T 5219 color negative film, notable for its low light performance, and removed a black pigmented layer called rem-jet, used in cinema cameras for antihalation, antistatic, lubrication, and scratch protection. This process results in the film which they then cut down for 35mm still camera canisters and rebrand as CineStill, safe for normal C-41 processing, including standard lab processing machines.

 

So, that's what I did. I shot three rolls at this concert, and sent the film to ASDA. (Thanks, again, for the ride, Nas!) And I am impressed. I am thinking of this night as a practice run for this film, because there were definitely shots where I could have been less conservative with my exposures. I look forward to my next opportunity to use the film, as I intend to push, and possibly find, its limits. I thought it handled stage lighting in a small, dark club in a way that is fully deserving of the repute of its Kodak forebear, and it well exceeded my expectations.

 

* Pentax Spotmatic F *

* Pentax Digital Spot Meter *

* Zeiss Pancolar 1.8/50 *

* Jupiter 9 2/85 *

* CineStill 800Tungsten Xpro C-41 film *

* Developed by ASDA *

* Epson V500 scanner *

* Photoshop CS6 *

 

www.DavidStumpp.com

Couple of rolls that needed developing.

 

35mm Film 365 Project - Photo a Day.

 

Photo taken using a dedicated NIkon FM2 for the project on iso 400 Ilford HP5+

 

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

Armored wheeled vehicles were developed early in Germany, since they were not subject to the restrictions of the Versailles Treaty. The Sd.Kfz. 234 (Sonder-Kraftfahrzeug, or Special Purpose Vehicle) belonged to the so-called ARK series vehicles (the type designation of the chassis) and was the successor to the earlier, eight-wheeled Sd.Kfz. 231/232/233 heavy scout car family. The Sd.Kfz. 234 was a considerable step forward and incorporated several innovative features, including a monocoque chassis with eight wheels and an air-cooled Tatra 103 diesel engine that was originally chosen for use in North Africa. The latter gave the vehicle an extraordinary range of more than 600 miles (1.000 km) and a very good performance. The vehicle had eight-wheel steering and drive and was able to quickly change direction thanks to a second, rear-facing driver's seat, what made quick retreats and unexpected position changes easier.

 

Chassis were built by Büssing-NAG in Leipzig-Wahren, while armoured bodies were provided by Deutsche Edelstahlwerke of Krefeld and turrets by Daimler Benz in Berlin-Marienfelde and Schichau of Elbing, with engines from Ringhoffer-Tatra-Werke AG of Nesseldorf. The first and possibly best known version to reach frontline service was the Sd.Kfz. 234/2 ‘Puma’. It had a horseshoe-shaped turret armed with a 5cm L/60 gun, which had originally been developed for the VK 16.02 Leopard light tank which never made into production. Even though it was a dedicated reconnaissance vehicle, the armament made it possible to defend the vehicle effectively and even take on light armored vehicles. The Sd.Kfz. 234/2 was produced from late 1943 to mid-1944 and replaced in production by the second version, the Sd.Kfz. 234/1, which was less complex and easier to build. It had a simpler open turret and was armed only with a light 2 cm KwK 38 gun (in the so-called Hängelafette 38). It was manufactured from mid-1944 to early 1945 and became the standard reconnaissance vehicle in this period.

 

Other versions were derived from the Sd.Kfz. 234, too. The Sd.Kfz. 234/3, produced simultaneously with the 234/1, served as a support for the lightly armed reconnaissance vehicles with more firepower. It had an open-topped superstructure, too, but carried a short-barreled 7.5cm K51 L/24 gun. This gun was intended primarily for use against soft targets, but when using a hollow charge shell, the penetration power exceeded that of the 5cm L/60 gun. This variant was produced until late 1944, before switching production to the 234/4. This version replaced the L/24 gun with the 7.5cm L/46 PaK 40 and was primarily another attempt to increase the mobility of this anti-tank gun and not a reconnaissance vehicle. It was not very successful, though: the heavy weapon stretched the light 234 chassis to its limits and only a very limited ammunition load of just twelve rounds could be carried on board due to lack of storage space. This variant was manufactured from the end of 1944 on only in limited numbers.

 

In mid-1945 another reconnaissance variant appeared, the Sd.Kfz. 234/5. It was a kind of hybrid between the earlier 234/1 and 234/2 variants, combining the light armament with a fully closed turret that offered the crew better protection from enemy fire and climatic conditions. The origins of the Sd.Kfz. 234/5 remain a little unclear – in fact, this variant started as a field conversion of a handful of Sd.Kfz. 234/2s in Hungary in mid-1944, which were retrofitted in field workshops with turrets from damaged Panzer-Spähwagen (neue Art) II ‘Luchs’ (also known as ‘Panzer II Ausf. L’, ‘Sd.Kfz. 123 mit 2-cm-KwK 38’ and VK 13.03 during the vehicle’s development phase). This simple combination of existing components turned out to be so effective and popular among the crews that it was quickly ordered into production.

 

Both chassis and turret remained unchanged, with a maximum armor of 30 mm (1.18 in), but the small turret with its light weapon (which had been adapted from a 20 mm anti-aircraft gun with a higher rate of fire than earlier guns of this type) reduced the overall weight to a little under 11 tons. This, and a slightly more powerful variant of the Tatra 103 V12 diesel engine, raised the vehicle’s top speed by 10 km/h (6 mph). In service the Sd.Kfz. 234/5 was generally known as ‘Puma II’ and the frontline units frequently modified their vehicles.

Among these field updates were commander cupolas, transplanted from damaged Panzer III and IV and sometimes outfitted with a mount for a light Fla-MG (anti-aircraft machine gun), as well as more effective exhaust mufflers for a reduced noise signature. Additional thin, spaced armor plates were sometimes bolted to the hull and/or to the turret front to better protect the vehicle from armor-piercing weapons, esp. against rounds from Russian 14.5 mm tank rifles. Makeshift wire mesh shields against hollow charges, similar to heavier Thoma shields on battle tanks, were occasionally added, too, as well as smoke dischargers, mounted to the turret sides or to the vehicle’s front. Night vision devices (Infrarot-Nachtsichtgerät F.G. 1250 or F.G. 1252) were fitted when available, and some late-production Sd.Kfz. 234/5s had a 140 cm (55 in) Telemeter KDO 44 stereoscopic rangefinder/telescope integrated into the turret, protruding from it on both sides. Vehicles that were almost exclusively operated on roads frequently had the wheels of the 2nd axle removed in order to reduce overall weight, rolling resistance and save precious rubber/tires.

 

Since production could not meet the operational units’ demand the Sd.Kfz. 234/5s were issued very selectively to Panzerspähwagen companies of the Panzer Aufklärung battalions. They were operated alongside other Sd.Kfz. 234 versions and Panzer II, III and 38(t) Spähpanzer versions to provide artillery, AA and AT support. The Puma IIs were mostly given to veteran crews and equipped primarily Panzerdivision units operating in Russia, even though a few were sent to the Western front, too.

Exact production numbers remain uncertain because the original production of 81 new vehicles by Büssing-NAG was complemented by an uncertain number of field conversions that allowed older/damaged Sd.Kfz. 234/1 and 2s to be repaired and/or updated with the light ‘Luchs’ turret. The total number of operational Sd.Kfz. 234/5s remained less than 100, though.

  

Specifications:

Crew: Four (commander, gunner, driver, radio operator/2nd driver)

Weight: 10,600 kg (25,330 lb)

Length: 6.02 m (19 ft 9 in)

Width: 2.36 m (7 ft 9 in)

Height: 2.32 meters (7 ft 7¼ in)

2.53 meters (8 ft 3½ in) when outfitted with a commander cupola

Suspension: Wheeled (Tires: 270–20, bulletproof), with leaf springs

Track width: 1.95 m (6 ft 4 1/2 in)

Wading depth: 1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)

Trench crossing capability: 2m (6 ft 6 1/2 in)

Ground clearance: 350 mm (13 3/4 in)

Climbing capability: 30°

Fuel capacity: 360 l

Fuel consumption: 40 l/100 km on roads, 60 l/100 km off-road

 

Armor:

9 — 30 mm (0.35-1.18 in), sometimes augmented with

additional 5 — 10 mm (0.2-0.4 in) armor plates on the front of hull and/or turret

 

Performance:

Maximum road speed: 90 km/h (56 mph)

Operational range: 1,000 km (625 mi) on-road

600 km (373 mi) off-road

Power/weight: 20,75 PS/t

 

Engine:

Air-cooled 14,825 cc (905³ in) Tatra 103 V12 diesel engine,

with 157 kW (220 hp) output at 2.200 RPM

 

Transmission:

Büssing-NAG "GS" with 3 forward and reverse gears, eight-wheel drive

 

Armament:

1× 20mm KwK 38 L/55 machine cannon with 330 rounds

1× co-axial 7.92 mm Maschinengewehr 42 with 2.550 rounds

  

The kit and its assembly:

A straightforward conversion, and at its core this is not a what-if model because the Sd.Kfz. 234 was actually outfitted with the light ‘Luchs’ turret – even though this was probably only a field-modified, single vehicle that was eventually captured by Allied troops in Czechoslovakia in 1945. It was not an official variant (yet). However, as exotic as this combo seems, there is a complete 1:72 kit of this exotic vehicle from Attack Kits, but it’s pricey, and ModelTrans/Silesian Models from Germany does a resin conversion kit with the ‘Luchs’ turret. The latter set was used for this model and mated it with a Hasegawa Sd.Kfz. 234/2 hull, IMHO the best model of this vehicle, and even as a combo cheaper than the Attack kit.

 

Building the fictional Sd.Kfz. 234/5 from these ingredients was a very simple affair, everything was basically taken over OOB. For a more sophisticated in-service vehicle, I took over the smoke dischargers from the Hasegawa kit, added a leftover Panzer IV cupola as well as scratched fairings for a stereoscopic rangefinder, and replaced the original twin exhaust mufflers on the rear fenders with a different/bigger piece from an early Panzer IV, placed above the spare tire. This made enough room to add stowage boxes and no less than six jerry cans (all from the Hasegawa kit).

The antennae were made from heated sprue material and the gun barrels are brass pieces, left over from a First To Fight Sd.Kfz. 232, which looked better than the (already fine and good, though) parts from the ModelTrans conversion set. The commander figure came from the Hasegawa kit.

  

Painting and markings:

A conservative approach, and I stuck to German late-war practice to apply a uniform Dunkelgelb (RAL 7028) livery over a red primer base upon delivery. Individual camouflage in medium green and dark brown was later applied in the field on top of that – a classic ‘Hinterhalt’ scheme.

 

Initially, the hull’s underside was sprayed with Oxidrot (RAL 3009) from the rattle can, while the upper surfaces received a primer coat with a sandy brown. On top of the sand brown came a thin layer of RAL 7028 (thinned Tamiya XF-60, which is a rather desert-yellowish and pale interpretation of the tone, it should AFAIK have a slight greenish hue) to all directly visible surfaces, wheel hubs and the turret, for a cloudy and uneven basic camouflage. The individual, disruptive ‘tiger stripe’ camouflage was inspired by a late-war Panther battle tank from literature.

 

The stripes were applied to the Dunkelgelb basis with a small brush and thinned Tamiya XF-58 (Olive Green) and XF-64 (Red Brown), for a makeshift camouflage with scarce paint that still meets official regulations. Following these, the wheel hubs remained in just a single color (making them less obvious when on the move), and the light Dunkelgelb was chosen to lighten the lower vehicle areas up, esp. with the rel. dark interior of the wheelhouses. The interior of the turret and the hatch were painted in a yellowish ivory tone (Revell 314), the tires were painted with Revell 09 (Anthracite) and later dry-brushed with light grey and beige.

 

A thin black-brown ink wash and some dry-brushing along the many edges with grey and beige were used to weather the model and emphasize details. After decals had been applied (taken from the Hasegawa kit), the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish and grey-brown mineral pigments were very lightly dusted onto the model with a soft brush around the wheels and the lower hull to simulate some dust.

  

Well, this can be considered a semi-whif since such a vehicle actually existed – but there never was a serial production, and I tried to enhance the fictional aspect with some added details like the commander cupola or the rangefinder. It’s a subtle conversion, though. I was initially skeptical about the “tiger stripe” livery, but when it was applied, I was surprised how effective it is! It really blurs the vehicle’s outlines and details – making the turret conversion even less apparent.

 

Jeron Classic Motors began to develop a series of miniature ¼-scale cars and engines in the mid 1990’s. Only a few of the cars were sold before the company closed its doors forever and all remaining inventory was sold at auction. Twelve engines were built from the inventory parts by Bennie Vreeman in the Netherlands. One engine was a running model that burned methanol on glow ignition, while the remaining eleven were built for display only. This engine was completed as a running model in 2009 for the Miniature Engineering Museum. It burns methanol, on glow ignition and it is equipped with two oil pumps for dry sump lubrication. All six carburetors function and are linked together for smooth operation.

 

See Our Model Engine Collection at: www.flickr.com/photos/15794235@N06/sets/72157602933346098/

 

Visit Our Photo Sets at: www.flickr.com/photos/15794235@N06/sets

 

Courtesy of Paul and Paula Knapp

Miniature Engineering Museum

www.engine-museum.com

Finally make the attempt at colour developing and it was easier than I thought certainly no more difficult than black and white.

+++ DISCLAIMER +++

Nothing you see here is real, even though the conversion or the presented background story might be based on historical facts. BEWARE!

  

Some background:

Armored wheeled vehicles were developed early in Germany, since they were not subject to the restrictions of the Versailles Treaty. The Sd.Kfz. 234 (Sonder-Kraftfahrzeug, or Special Purpose Vehicle) belonged to the so-called ARK series vehicles (the type designation of the chassis) and was the successor to the earlier, eight-wheeled Sd.Kfz. 231/232/233 heavy scout car family. The Sd.Kfz. 234 was a considerable step forward and incorporated several innovative features, including a monocoque chassis with eight wheels and an air-cooled Tatra 103 diesel engine that was originally chosen for use in North Africa. The latter gave the vehicle an extraordinary range of more than 600 miles (1.000 km) and a very good performance. The vehicle had eight-wheel steering and drive and was able to quickly change direction thanks to a second, rear-facing driver's seat, what made quick retreats and unexpected position changes easier.

 

Chassis were built by Büssing-NAG in Leipzig-Wahren, while armoured bodies were provided by Deutsche Edelstahlwerke of Krefeld and turrets by Daimler Benz in Berlin-Marienfelde and Schichau of Elbing, with engines from Ringhoffer-Tatra-Werke AG of Nesseldorf. The first and possibly best known version to reach frontline service was the Sd.Kfz. 234/2 ‘Puma’. It had a horseshoe-shaped turret armed with a 5cm L/60 gun, which had originally been developed for the VK 16.02 Leopard light tank which never made into production. Even though it was a dedicated reconnaissance vehicle, the armament made it possible to defend the vehicle effectively and even take on light armored vehicles. The Sd.Kfz. 234/2 was produced from late 1943 to mid-1944 and replaced in production by the second version, the Sd.Kfz. 234/1, which was less complex and easier to build. It had a simpler open turret and was armed only with a light 2 cm KwK 38 gun (in the so-called Hängelafette 38). It was manufactured from mid-1944 to early 1945 and became the standard reconnaissance vehicle in this period.

 

Other versions were derived from the Sd.Kfz. 234, too. The Sd.Kfz. 234/3, produced simultaneously with the 234/1, served as a support for the lightly armed reconnaissance vehicles with more firepower. It had an open-topped superstructure, too, but carried a short-barreled 7.5cm K51 L/24 gun. This gun was intended primarily for use against soft targets, but when using a hollow charge shell, the penetration power exceeded that of the 5cm L/60 gun. This variant was produced until late 1944, before switching production to the 234/4. This version replaced the L/24 gun with the 7.5cm L/46 PaK 40 and was primarily another attempt to increase the mobility of this anti-tank gun and not a reconnaissance vehicle. It was not very successful, though: the heavy weapon stretched the light 234 chassis to its limits and only a very limited ammunition load of just twelve rounds could be carried on board due to lack of storage space. This variant was manufactured from the end of 1944 on only in limited numbers.

 

In mid-1945 another reconnaissance variant appeared, the Sd.Kfz. 234/5. It was a kind of hybrid between the earlier 234/1 and 234/2 variants, combining the light armament with a fully closed turret that offered the crew better protection from enemy fire and climatic conditions. The origins of the Sd.Kfz. 234/5 remain a little unclear – in fact, this variant started as a field conversion of a handful of Sd.Kfz. 234/2s in Hungary in mid-1944, which were retrofitted in field workshops with turrets from damaged Panzer-Spähwagen (neue Art) II ‘Luchs’ (also known as ‘Panzer II Ausf. L’, ‘Sd.Kfz. 123 mit 2-cm-KwK 38’ and VK 13.03 during the vehicle’s development phase). This simple combination of existing components turned out to be so effective and popular among the crews that it was quickly ordered into production.

 

Both chassis and turret remained unchanged, with a maximum armor of 30 mm (1.18 in), but the small turret with its light weapon (which had been adapted from a 20 mm anti-aircraft gun with a higher rate of fire than earlier guns of this type) reduced the overall weight to a little under 11 tons. This, and a slightly more powerful variant of the Tatra 103 V12 diesel engine, raised the vehicle’s top speed by 10 km/h (6 mph). In service the Sd.Kfz. 234/5 was generally known as ‘Puma II’ and the frontline units frequently modified their vehicles.

Among these field updates were commander cupolas, transplanted from damaged Panzer III and IV and sometimes outfitted with a mount for a light Fla-MG (anti-aircraft machine gun), as well as more effective exhaust mufflers for a reduced noise signature. Additional thin, spaced armor plates were sometimes bolted to the hull and/or to the turret front to better protect the vehicle from armor-piercing weapons, esp. against rounds from Russian 14.5 mm tank rifles. Makeshift wire mesh shields against hollow charges, similar to heavier Thoma shields on battle tanks, were occasionally added, too, as well as smoke dischargers, mounted to the turret sides or to the vehicle’s front. Night vision devices (Infrarot-Nachtsichtgerät F.G. 1250 or F.G. 1252) were fitted when available, and some late-production Sd.Kfz. 234/5s had a 140 cm (55 in) Telemeter KDO 44 stereoscopic rangefinder/telescope integrated into the turret, protruding from it on both sides. Vehicles that were almost exclusively operated on roads frequently had the wheels of the 2nd axle removed in order to reduce overall weight, rolling resistance and save precious rubber/tires.

 

Since production could not meet the operational units’ demand the Sd.Kfz. 234/5s were issued very selectively to Panzerspähwagen companies of the Panzer Aufklärung battalions. They were operated alongside other Sd.Kfz. 234 versions and Panzer II, III and 38(t) Spähpanzer versions to provide artillery, AA and AT support. The Puma IIs were mostly given to veteran crews and equipped primarily Panzerdivision units operating in Russia, even though a few were sent to the Western front, too.

Exact production numbers remain uncertain because the original production of 81 new vehicles by Büssing-NAG was complemented by an uncertain number of field conversions that allowed older/damaged Sd.Kfz. 234/1 and 2s to be repaired and/or updated with the light ‘Luchs’ turret. The total number of operational Sd.Kfz. 234/5s remained less than 100, though.

  

Specifications:

Crew: Four (commander, gunner, driver, radio operator/2nd driver)

Weight: 10,600 kg (25,330 lb)

Length: 6.02 m (19 ft 9 in)

Width: 2.36 m (7 ft 9 in)

Height: 2.32 meters (7 ft 7¼ in)

2.53 meters (8 ft 3½ in) when outfitted with a commander cupola

Suspension: Wheeled (Tires: 270–20, bulletproof), with leaf springs

Track width: 1.95 m (6 ft 4 1/2 in)

Wading depth: 1.2 m (3 ft 11 in)

Trench crossing capability: 2m (6 ft 6 1/2 in)

Ground clearance: 350 mm (13 3/4 in)

Climbing capability: 30°

Fuel capacity: 360 l

Fuel consumption: 40 l/100 km on roads, 60 l/100 km off-road

 

Armor:

9 — 30 mm (0.35-1.18 in), sometimes augmented with

additional 5 — 10 mm (0.2-0.4 in) armor plates on the front of hull and/or turret

 

Performance:

Maximum road speed: 90 km/h (56 mph)

Operational range: 1,000 km (625 mi) on-road

600 km (373 mi) off-road

Power/weight: 20,75 PS/t

 

Engine:

Air-cooled 14,825 cc (905³ in) Tatra 103 V12 diesel engine,

with 157 kW (220 hp) output at 2.200 RPM

 

Transmission:

Büssing-NAG "GS" with 3 forward and reverse gears, eight-wheel drive

 

Armament:

1× 20mm KwK 38 L/55 machine cannon with 330 rounds

1× co-axial 7.92 mm Maschinengewehr 42 with 2.550 rounds

  

The kit and its assembly:

A straightforward conversion, and at its core this is not a what-if model because the Sd.Kfz. 234 was actually outfitted with the light ‘Luchs’ turret – even though this was probably only a field-modified, single vehicle that was eventually captured by Allied troops in Czechoslovakia in 1945. It was not an official variant (yet). However, as exotic as this combo seems, there is a complete 1:72 kit of this exotic vehicle from Attack Kits, but it’s pricey, and ModelTrans/Silesian Models from Germany does a resin conversion kit with the ‘Luchs’ turret. The latter set was used for this model and mated it with a Hasegawa Sd.Kfz. 234/2 hull, IMHO the best model of this vehicle, and even as a combo cheaper than the Attack kit.

 

Building the fictional Sd.Kfz. 234/5 from these ingredients was a very simple affair, everything was basically taken over OOB. For a more sophisticated in-service vehicle, I took over the smoke dischargers from the Hasegawa kit, added a leftover Panzer IV cupola as well as scratched fairings for a stereoscopic rangefinder, and replaced the original twin exhaust mufflers on the rear fenders with a different/bigger piece from an early Panzer IV, placed above the spare tire. This made enough room to add stowage boxes and no less than six jerry cans (all from the Hasegawa kit).

The antennae were made from heated sprue material and the gun barrels are brass pieces, left over from a First To Fight Sd.Kfz. 232, which looked better than the (already fine and good, though) parts from the ModelTrans conversion set. The commander figure came from the Hasegawa kit.

  

Painting and markings:

A conservative approach, and I stuck to German late-war practice to apply a uniform Dunkelgelb (RAL 7028) livery over a red primer base upon delivery. Individual camouflage in medium green and dark brown was later applied in the field on top of that – a classic ‘Hinterhalt’ scheme.

 

Initially, the hull’s underside was sprayed with Oxidrot (RAL 3009) from the rattle can, while the upper surfaces received a primer coat with a sandy brown. On top of the sand brown came a thin layer of RAL 7028 (thinned Tamiya XF-60, which is a rather desert-yellowish and pale interpretation of the tone, it should AFAIK have a slight greenish hue) to all directly visible surfaces, wheel hubs and the turret, for a cloudy and uneven basic camouflage. The individual, disruptive ‘tiger stripe’ camouflage was inspired by a late-war Panther battle tank from literature.

 

The stripes were applied to the Dunkelgelb basis with a small brush and thinned Tamiya XF-58 (Olive Green) and XF-64 (Red Brown), for a makeshift camouflage with scarce paint that still meets official regulations. Following these, the wheel hubs remained in just a single color (making them less obvious when on the move), and the light Dunkelgelb was chosen to lighten the lower vehicle areas up, esp. with the rel. dark interior of the wheelhouses. The interior of the turret and the hatch were painted in a yellowish ivory tone (Revell 314), the tires were painted with Revell 09 (Anthracite) and later dry-brushed with light grey and beige.

 

A thin black-brown ink wash and some dry-brushing along the many edges with grey and beige were used to weather the model and emphasize details. After decals had been applied (taken from the Hasegawa kit), the kit was sealed with matt acrylic varnish and grey-brown mineral pigments were very lightly dusted onto the model with a soft brush around the wheels and the lower hull to simulate some dust.

  

Well, this can be considered a semi-whif since such a vehicle actually existed – but there never was a serial production, and I tried to enhance the fictional aspect with some added details like the commander cupola or the rangefinder. It’s a subtle conversion, though. I was initially skeptical about the “tiger stripe” livery, but when it was applied, I was surprised how effective it is! It really blurs the vehicle’s outlines and details – making the turret conversion even less apparent.

 

Developed using darktable 3.0.0

Because the box rests on the table with three tips touching, your food stays hot longer.

"The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less." ~ Socrates

 

chiotsrun.com/2010/03/13/sunny-spring-days/

Hotel lobby seating..

 

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

 

The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain

13900 North Dove Mountain Boulevard

Marana, Arizona

 

**In the Beginning**

 

In 1926, Missourian Eugene Cayton arrived in Tucson to improve his health. He acquired what was then known as Ruelas Canyon in the Tortolita Mountains and established the T Bench Bar Ranch. "Cush" Cayton built for his wife, Inez, a stone house atop one of the smaller peaks. The stone house is still there on top of the hill overlooking Dove Mountain Boulevard near the eighth and ninth holes of the Gallery Golf Club. The Gallery Golf Club at Dove Mountain was developed by John MacMillan, majority owner of Palo Verde Partners and opened in 2003.

 

The Cayton’s ranched the land until 1984. In 1985 David Mehl’s Cottonwood Properties Inc. Acquired the 1,300 acres of desert land and thus began Mehl's vision of Dove Mountain as an upscale golf community. David Mehl and his late brother George founded Tucson-based Cottonwood Properties in 1972. Its purpose was to invest in and develop quality real estate in the Tucson, Arizona area. David Mehl graduated from the University of Arizona in 1972.

 

In the early 1980’s Cottonwood Properties was the master developer of the 790 acre Westin La Paloma resort community in the foothills of Tucson. The development consisted of the 487 room Westin La Paloma Resort & Hotel and the 27 hole Jack Nicklaus signature golf course. Cottonwood owned the hotel until 1988 when it sold the hotel to the Aoki Corp., the Japan-based construction company that owned Westin. Aoki spent $200 million to acquire 3 hotels - the Inter-Continental at Hilton Head Island in South Carolina, the Inter-Continental at Buckhead in Atlanta, and an equity interest in the Westin La Paloma.

 

**Pygmy Owl**

 

In March 1997 the Pygmy Owl was added to the list of endangered species under federal law. In 1999 the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service dealt a set-back to the development. Environmental protections for the ferruginous pygmy owl forced Cottonwood to scale back plans at Dove Mountain. The numbers of homes were scaled back from 13,000 to 6,500 and the numbers of proposed resorts were reduced to one from 3 or 4. Cottonwood also contributed several million dollars to a conservation fund managed by the federal agency.

 

In 1999 the Tucson Citizen quoted David Mehl ”By making density reductions, we are developing at a density compatible with the pygmy owl.. In areas where it’s not, then we’re offering to pay to make up for it.”

 

**The Development**

 

Cottonwood committed some twenty years of planning into making Dove Mountain a premiere golf resort community.

 

In the late 1990’s Cottonwood Properties partnered with Scottsdale-based Greenbrier Southwest Corp. and began planning a 500-room Hyatt resort hotel for Dove Mountain. The hotel was designed and the developers received a verbal commitment for the financing on Sept. 10, 2001. The next day, September 11, 2001, the world changed and the idea for the Hyatt Resort was shelved.

 

The principals of Greenbrier Southwest Corporation, Tim and Casey Bolinger, previously served with Woodbine Southwest Corporation in Phoenix from 1991-1998. They managed the planning, zoning, financing, development and marketing of the 730-acre Kierland master-planned community, including Kierland Commons and the Westin Kierland Resort.

 

Greenbrier Southwest developed a much smaller project – the Hidden Meadow Ranch in Greer, Arizona. Opened in 2002, the rustic ranch (transformed from a church youth camp) has 12 luxury cabins starting at $500 a night including meals.

 

In August 2007 a building permit was issued for a Ritz-Carlton resort and spa to be built in Dove Mountain in Marana. The building permit cost $309,643.10 and was applied for by Dove Mountain Hotel Co. LLC. Also, Tucson Water approved a water main extension, a 290,000-gallon reservoir and a booster station that would serve the proposed 250-room hotel.

 

The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain and The Residences at The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain were announced as the largest branded resort/residential community managed by the Ritz Carlton hotel company. The $160 million hotel will be the second Ritz-Carlton in Arizona, joining the The Ritz-Carlton, Phoenix.

 

The Ritz Carlton press release announced that HKS Hill Glazier Architects of Palo Alto, California will design the hotel as a low-rise, four story building embracing the feel of the desert southwest. The main building of adobe block, straw-flecked stucco, clay tile and native stone will include 226 guest rooms and suites. Separate buildings nearby will feature 24 individual casita rooms and suites.

 

In addition a $60-million Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Course with 27-holes was planned for a late 2008 opening. The Ritz-Carlton Golf Club, Dove Mountain now hosts the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship beginning in February 2009 (The PGA Tour has committed to The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain through the 2013 event). When George and David Mehl hired Nicklaus in 1983 to design the Westin La Polama Golf Course, it was Nicklaus’s 26th golf course on his design resume. With Dove Mountain completed Nicklaus has designed over 200 golf courses around the world.

 

**Grand Opening**

 

The Ritz Carlton’s pre-opening General Manager – Michael McMahon - aims to have the resort become the first in the Tucson area to achieve AAA's highest rating of five diamonds. Previously McMahon was General Manager The Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Naples, Florida.

 

The hotel’s opening general manager was Allan Federer. In March 2011 Federer moved to the Ritz-Carlton Dubai as General Manager. Replacing Federer is Liam Doyle – who previously was general manager at the Sherbourne Dublin, Ireland and Hotel Manager at the Ritz-Carlton South Beach.

 

The Ritz-Carlton Grand Opening Press Release reported that Arizona Governor Jan Brewer was in attendance at the December 18, 2009 event. Speakers at the event included owner and developer David Mehl of Cottonwood Properties, senior vice president of operations for The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C., Hank Biddle, and The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain resort general manager, Allan Federer.

 

“This day is a landmark event not only for the town of Marana, but for the State of Arizona,” stated general manager Allan Federer. “Over twenty years ago, David and his brother George Mehl had a vision to build the finest resort in the country. All it took was the right partners and the perfect location. With the help of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. and co-developer Greenbrier Southwest Corporation, it became a reality. Now the world has the opportunity to visit a place like no other, The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain.”

 

Following the official ribbon-cutting seventy-two white doves were released symbolizing the property as the 72nd within The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. portfolio.

 

At full operation the hotel has 450 employees. It has 44,000 square feet of meeting space including a 9,000 square foot main ballroom.

 

The hotel’s opening Chef de Cuisine was Joel Harrington. Harrington previously was chef de cuisine of Fearing's at The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas. Harrington graduated from CIA in Hyde Park, NY and worked with Marcus Samuellson at Aquavit in NYC.

 

Replacing Harrington is Chef David Serus who previously served as Executive Sous-Chef of The Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay and Executive Chef of The Ritz-Carlton, Washington, D.C. Serus’ role encompass all hotel culinary activities, including those at CORE Kitchen & Wine Bar, Cayton’s Restaurant, Ignite Lobby Lounge, Turquesa Latin Grill, To Go, In-Room Dining, banquets, and catering.

 

**Two Landmark 200 Year Old Saguaros**

 

When Wild Burro Canyon was selected for the perfect hotel site, where balcony views of the Tortolita Mountains would be maximized, it was discovered that two majestic Saguaros, each estimated to be close to 200 years old, would have been lost. This was unacceptable to ownership. After three more months of analysis, the final solution was to simply shift the whole facility 25 feet. Today, as hotel guests behold the box canyon views from Ignite or CORE Kitchen and Wine Bar, they enjoy these two landmark cacti, which rise majestically overhead and stand in testament to the preservation of the High Sonoran Desert. “These cacti are sacred and add to our sense of place,” said Allan Federer, general manager of The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain. “Guests gaze in awe and wonder at the desert’s version of a redwood, adding to the memories they will have of this beautiful property.”

 

Photos and text compiled by Dick Johnson

richardlloydjohnson@hotmail.com

212-832-0098

March, 2012

 

Grand Canyon National Park, located in northwestern Arizona, is the 15th site in the United States to have been named as a national park. The park's central feature is the Grand Canyon, a gorge of the Colorado River, which is often considered one of the Wonders of the World. The park, which covers 1,217,262 acres (1,901.972 sq mi; 4,926.08 km2) of unincorporated area in Coconino and Mohave counties, received more than six million recreational visitors in 2017, which is the second highest count of all American national parks after Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Grand Canyon was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979. The park celebrated its 100th anniversary on February 26, 2019.

 

The Grand Canyon became well known to Americans in the 1880s after railroads were built and pioneers developed infrastructure and early tourism. In 1903, President Theodore Roosevelt visited the site and said,

 

The Grand Canyon fills me with awe. It is beyond comparison—beyond description; absolutely unparalleled through-out the wide world ... Let this great wonder of nature remain as it now is. Do nothing to mar its grandeur, sublimity and loveliness. You cannot improve on it. But you can keep it for your children, your children's children, and all who come after you, as the one great sight which every American should see.

 

Despite Roosevelt's enthusiasm and strong interest in preserving land for public use, the Grand Canyon was not immediately designated as a national park. The first bill to establish Grand Canyon National Park was introduced in 1882 by then-Senator Benjamin Harrison, which would have established Grand Canyon as the third national park in the United States, after Yellowstone and Mackinac. Harrison unsuccessfully reintroduced his bill in 1883 and 1886; after his election to the presidency, he established the Grand Canyon Forest Reserve in 1893. Theodore Roosevelt created the Grand Canyon Game Preserve by proclamation on November 28, 1906, and the Grand Canyon National Monument on January 11, 1908. Further Senate bills to establish the site as a national park were introduced and defeated in 1910 and 1911, before the Grand Canyon National Park Act was finally signed by President Woodrow Wilson on February 26, 1919. The National Park Service, established in 1916, assumed administration of the park.

 

The creation of the park was an early success of the conservation movement. Its national park status may have helped thwart proposals to dam the Colorado River within its boundaries. (Later, the Glen Canyon Dam would be built upriver.) A second Grand Canyon National Monument to the west was proclaimed in 1932. In 1975, that monument and Marble Canyon National Monument, which was established in 1969 and followed the Colorado River northeast from the Grand Canyon to Lees Ferry, were made part of Grand Canyon National Park. In 1979, UNESCO declared the park a World Heritage Site. The 1987 the National Parks Overflights Act found that "Noise associated with aircraft overflights at the Grand Canyon National Park is causing a significant adverse effect on the natural quiet and experience of the park and current aircraft operations at the Grand Canyon National Park have raised serious concerns regarding public safety, including concerns regarding the safety of park users."

 

In 2010, Grand Canyon National Park was honored with its own coin under the America the Beautiful Quarters program. On February 26, 2019, the Grand Canyon National Park commemorated 100 years since its designation as a national park.

 

The Grand Canyon had been part of the National Park Service's Intermountain Region until 2018.[citation needed] Today, the Grand Canyon is a part of Region 8, also known as the Lower Colorado Basin.

 

The Grand Canyon, including its extensive system of tributary canyons, is valued for its combination of size, depth, and exposed layers of colorful rocks dating back to Precambrian times. The canyon itself was created by the incision of the Colorado River and its tributaries after the Colorado Plateau was uplifted, causing the Colorado River system to develop along its present path.

 

The primary public areas of the park are the South and North Rims, and adjacent areas of the canyon itself. The rest of the park is extremely rugged and remote, although many places are accessible by pack trail and backcountry roads. The South Rim is more accessible than the North Rim and accounts for 90% of park visitation.

 

The park headquarters are at Grand Canyon Village, not far from the South Entrance to the park, near one of the most popular viewpoints.

 

Most visitors to the park come to the South Rim, arriving on Arizona State Route 64. The highway enters the park through the South Entrance, near Tusayan, Arizona, and heads eastward, leaving the park through the East Entrance. Interstate 40 provides access to the area from the south. From the north, U.S. Route 89 connects Utah, Colorado, and the North Rim to the South Rim. Overall, some 30 miles of the South Rim are accessible by road.

 

The North Rim area of the park is located on the Kaibab Plateau and Walhalla Plateau, directly across the Grand Canyon from the principal visitor areas on the South Rim. The North Rim's principal visitor areas are centered around Bright Angel Point. The North Rim is higher in elevation than the South Rim, at over 8,000 feet (2,400 m) of elevation. Because it is so much higher than the South Rim, it is closed from December 1 through May 15 each year, due to the enhanced snowfall at elevation. Visitor services are closed or limited in scope after October 15. Driving time from the South Rim to the North Rim is about 4.5 hours, over 220 miles (350 km).

 

There are few roads on the North Rim, but there are some notable vehicle-accessible lookout points, including Point Imperial, Roosevelt Point, and Cape Royal. Mule rides are also available to a variety of places, including several thousand feet down into the canyon.

 

Many visitors to the North Rim choose to make use of the variety of hiking trails including the Widforss Trail, Uncle Jim's Trail, the Transept Trail, and the North Kaibab Trail. The North Kaibab Trail can be followed all the way down to the Colorado River, connecting across the river to the South Kaibab Trail and the Bright Angel Trail, which continue up to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

 

The Toroweap Overlook is located in the western part of the park on the North Rim. Access is via unpaved roads off Route 389 west of Fredonia, Arizona. The roads lead through Grand Canyon–Parashant National Monument and to the overlook.

 

A variety of activities at the South Rim cater to park visitors. A driving tour (35 miles (56 km)) along the South Rim is split into two segments. The western drive to Hermit's Point is eight miles (13 km) with several overlooks along the way, including Mohave Point, Hopi Point, and the Powell Memorial. From March to December, access to Hermit's Rest is restricted to the free shuttle provided by the Park Service. The eastern portion to Desert View is 25 miles (40 km), and is open to private vehicles year round.

 

Walking tours include the Rim Trail, which runs west from the Pipe Creek viewpoint for about eight miles (13 km) of paved road, followed by seven miles (11 km) unpaved to Hermit's Rest. Hikes can begin almost anywhere along this trail, and a shuttle can return hikers to their point of origin. Mather Point, the first view most people reach when entering from the south entrance, is a popular place to begin.

 

Private canyon flyovers are provided by helicopters and small airplanes out of Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Grand Canyon National Park Airport. Due to a crash in the 1990s, scenic flights are no longer allowed to fly within 1,500 feet (460 m) of the rim within the Grand Canyon National Park. Flights within the canyon are still available outside of park boundaries.

 

Arizona is a state in the Southwestern region of the United States. Arizona is part of the Four Corners region with Utah to the north, Colorado to the northeast, and New Mexico to the east; its other neighboring states are Nevada to the northwest, California to the west and the Mexican states of Sonora and Baja California to the south and southwest. It is the 6th-largest and the 14th-most-populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix.

 

Arizona is the 48th state and last of the contiguous states to be admitted to the Union, achieving statehood on February 14, 1912. Historically part of the territory of Alta California and Nuevo México in New Spain, it became part of independent Mexico in 1821. After being defeated in the Mexican–American War, Mexico ceded much of this territory to the United States in 1848, where the area became part of the territory of New Mexico. The southernmost portion of the state was acquired in 1853 through the Gadsden Purchase.

 

Southern Arizona is known for its desert climate, with very hot summers and mild winters. Northern Arizona features forests of pine, Douglas fir, and spruce trees; the Colorado Plateau; mountain ranges (such as the San Francisco Mountains); as well as large, deep canyons, with much more moderate summer temperatures and significant winter snowfalls. There are ski resorts in the areas of Flagstaff, Sunrise, and Tucson. In addition to the internationally known Grand Canyon National Park, which is one of the world's seven natural wonders, there are several national forests, national parks, and national monuments.

 

Arizona's population and economy have grown dramatically since the 1950s because of inward migration, and the state is now a major hub of the Sun Belt. Cities such as Phoenix and Tucson have developed large, sprawling suburban areas. Many large companies, such as PetSmart and Circle K, have headquarters in the state, and Arizona is home to major universities, including the University of Arizona and Arizona State University. The state is known for a history of conservative politicians such as Barry Goldwater and John McCain, though it has become a swing state since the 1990s.

 

Arizona is home to a diverse population. About one-quarter of the state is made up of Indian reservations that serve as the home of 27 federally recognized Native American tribes, including the Navajo Nation, the largest in the state and the United States, with more than 300,000 citizens. Since the 1980s, the proportion of Hispanics in the state's population has grown significantly owing to migration from Mexico. A substantial portion of the population are followers of the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

 

The history of Arizona encompasses the Paleo-Indian, Archaic, Post-Archaic, Spanish, Mexican, and American periods. About 10,000 to 12,000 years ago, Paleo-Indians settled in what is now Arizona. A few thousand years ago, the Ancestral Puebloan, the Hohokam, the Mogollon and the Sinagua cultures inhabited the state. However, all of these civilizations mysteriously disappeared from the region in the 15th and 16th centuries. Today, countless ancient ruins can be found in Arizona. Arizona was part of the state of Sonora, Mexico from 1822, but the settled population was small. In 1848, under the terms of the Mexican Cession the United States took possession of Arizona above the Gila River after the Mexican War, and became part of the Territory of New Mexico. By means of the Gadsden Purchase, the United States secured the northern part of the state of Sonora, which is now Arizona south of the Gila River in 1854.

 

In 1863, Arizona was split off from the Territory of New Mexico to form the Arizona Territory. The remoteness of the region was eased by the arrival of railroads in 1880. Arizona became a state in 1912 but was primarily rural with an economy based on cattle, cotton, citrus, and copper. Dramatic growth came after 1945, as retirees and young families who appreciated the warm weather and low costs emigrated from the Northeast and Midwest.

 

In the Mexican–American War, the garrison commander avoided conflict with Lieutenant Colonel Cooke and the Mormon Battalion, withdrawing while the Americans marched through the town on their way to California. In the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848), Mexico ceded to the U.S. the northern 70% of modern-day Arizona above the Sonora border along the Gila River. During the California Gold Rush, an upwards of 50,000 people traveled through on the Southern Emigrant Trail pioneered by Cooke, to reach the gold fields in 1849. The Pima Villages often sold fresh food and provided relief to distressed travelers among this throng and to others in subsequent years.

 

Paleo-Indians settled what is now Arizona around 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. According to most archaeologists, the Paleo-Indians initially followed herds of big game—megafauna such as mammoths, mastodons, and bison—into North America. The traveling groups also collected and utilized a wide variety of smaller game animals, fish, and a wide variety of plants. These people were likely characterized by highly mobile bands of approximately 20 or 50 members of an extended family, moving from place to place as resources were depleted and additional supplies needed. Paleoindian groups were efficient hunters and created and carried a variety of tools, some highly specialized, for hunting, butchering and hide processing. These paleolithic people utilized the environment that they lived in near water sources, including rivers, swamps and marshes, which had an abundance of fish, and drew birds and game animals. Big game, including bison, mammoths and ground sloths, also were attracted to these water sources. At the latest by 9500 BCE, bands of hunters wandered as far south as Arizona, where they found a desert grassland and hunted mule deer, antelope and other small mammals.

 

As populations of larger game began to diminish, possibly as a result of intense hunting and rapid environmental changes, Late Paleoindian groups would come to rely more on other facets of their subsistence pattern, including increased hunting of bison, mule deer and antelope. Nets and the atlatl to hunt water fowl, ducks, small animals and antelope. Hunting was especially important in winter and spring months when plant foods were scarce.

 

The Archaic time frame is defined culturally as a transition from a hunting/gathering lifestyle to one involving agriculture and permanent, if only seasonally occupied, settlements. In the Southwest, the Archaic is generally dated from 8000 years ago to approximately 1800 to 2000 years ago. During this time the people of the southwest developed a variety of subsistence strategies, all using their own specific techniques. The nutritive value of weed and grass seeds was discovered and flat rocks were used to grind flour to produce gruels and breads. This use of grinding slabs in about 7500 BCE marks the beginning of the Archaic tradition. Small bands of people traveled throughout the area, gathering plants such as cactus fruits, mesquite beans, acorns, and pine nuts and annually establishing camps at collection points.

 

Late in the Archaic Period, corn, probably introduced into the region from central Mexico, was planted near camps with permanent water access. Distinct types of corn have been identified in the more well-watered highlands and the desert areas, which may imply local mutation or successive introduction of differing species. Emerging domesticated crops also included beans and squash.

 

About 3,500 years ago, climate change led to changing patterns in water sources, leading to a dramatically decreased population. However, family-based groups took shelter in south facing caves and rock overhangs within canyon walls. Occasionally, these people lived in small semisedentary hamlets in open areas. Evidence of significant occupation has been found in the northern part of Arizona.

 

In the Post-Archaic period, the Ancestral Puebloan, the Hohokam, the Mogollon and Sinagua cultures inhabited what is now Arizona. These cultures built structures made out of stone. Some of the structures that these cultures built are called pueblos. Pueblos are monumental structures that housed dozens to thousands of people. In some Ancestral Puebloan towns and villages, Hohokam towns and villages, Mogollon towns and villages, and Sinagua towns and villages, the pueblo housed the entire town. Surrounding the pueblos were often farms where farmers would plant and harvest crops to feed the community. Sometimes, pueblos and other buildings were built in caves in cliffs.

 

The Ancestral Puebloans were an ancient Pre-Columbian Native American civilization that spanned the present-day Four Corners region of the United States, comprising southeastern Utah, northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, and southwestern Colorado. The Ancestral Puebloans are believed to have developed, at least in part, from the Oshara tradition, who developed from the Picosa culture.

 

They lived in a range of structures that included small family pit houses, larger structures to house clans, grand pueblos, and cliff-sited dwellings for defense. The Ancestral Puebloans possessed a complex network that stretched across the Colorado Plateau linking hundreds of communities and population centers. They held a distinct knowledge of celestial sciences that found form in their architecture. The kiva, a congregational space that was used chiefly for ceremonial purposes, was an integral part of this ancient people's community structure. Some of their most impressive structures were built in what is now Arizona.

 

Hohokam was a Pre-Columbian culture in the North American Southwest in what is now part of Arizona, United States, and Sonora, Mexico. Hohokam practiced a specific culture, sometimes referred to as Hohokam culture, which has been distinguished by archeologists. People who practiced the culture can be called Hohokam as well, but more often, they are distinguished as Hohokam people to avoid confusion.

 

Most archaeologists agree that the Hohokam culture existed between c. 300 and c. 1450 CE, but cultural precursors may have been in the area as early as 300 BC. Whether Hohokam culture was unified politically remains under controversy. Hohokam culture may have just given unrelated neighboring communities common ground to help them to work together to survive their harsh desert environment.

 

The Mogollon culture was an ancient Pre-Columbian culture of Native American peoples from Southern New Mexico and Arizona, Northern Sonora and Chihuahua, and Western Texas. The northern part of this region is Oasisamerica, while the southern span of the Mogollon culture is known as Aridoamerica.

 

The Mogollon culture was one of the major prehistoric Southwestern cultural divisions of the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico. The culture flourished from c. 200 CE, to c. 1450 CE or 1540 CE, when the Spanish arrived.

 

The Sinagua culture was a Pre-Columbian culture that occupied a large area in central Arizona from the Little Colorado River, near Flagstaff, to the Verde River, near Sedona, including the Verde Valley, area around San Francisco Mountain, and significant portions of the Mogollon Rim country, between approximately 500 CE and 1425 CE. Besides ceremonial kivas, their pueblos had large "community rooms" and some featured ballcourts and walled courtyards, similar to those of the Hohokam culture. Since fully developed Sinagua sites emerged in central Arizona around 500 CE, it is believed they migrated from east-central Arizona, possibly emerging from the Mogollon culture.

 

The history of Arizona as recorded by Europeans began in 1539 with the first documented exploration of the area by Marcos de Niza, early work expanded the following year when Francisco Vásquez de Coronado entered the area as well.

 

The Spanish established a few missions in southern Arizona in the 1680s by Father Eusebio Francisco Kino along the Santa Cruz River, in what was then the Pimería Alta region of Sonora. The Spanish also established presidios in Tubac and Tucson in 1752 and 1775. The area north of the Gila River was governed by the Province of Las California under the Spanish until 1804, when the Californian portion of Arizona became part of Alta California under the Spanish and Mexican governments.

 

In 1849, the California Gold Rush led as many as 50,000 miners to travel across the region, leading to a boom in Arizona's population. In 1850, Arizona and New Mexico formed the New Mexico Territory.

 

In 1853, President Franklin Pierce sent James Gadsden to Mexico City to negotiate with Santa Anna, and the United States bought the remaining southern strip area of Arizona and New Mexico in the Gadsden Purchase. A treaty was signed in Mexico in December 1853, and then, with modifications, approved by the US Senate in June 1854, setting the southern boundary of Arizona and of New Mexico.

 

Before 1846 the Apache raiders expelled most Mexican ranchers. One result was that large herds of wild cattle roamed southeastern Arizona. By 1850, the herds were gone, killed by Apaches, American sportsmen, contract hunting for the towns of Fronteras and Santa Cruz, and roundups to sell to hungry Mexican War soldiers, and forty-niners en route to California.

 

During the Civil War, on March 16, 1861, citizens in southern New Mexico Territory around Mesilla (now in New Mexico) and Tucson invited take-over by the Confederacy. They especially wanted restoration of mail service. These secessionists hoped that a Confederate Territory of Arizona (CSA) would take control, but in March 1862, Union troops from California captured the Confederate Territory of Arizona and returned it to the New Mexico Territory.

 

The Battle of Picacho Pass, April 15, 1862, was a battle of the Civil War fought in the CSA and one of many battles to occur in Arizona during the war among three sides—Apaches, Confederates and Union forces. In 1863, the U.S. split up New Mexico along a north–south line to create the Arizona Territory. The first government officials to arrive established the territory capital in Prescott in 1864. The capital was later moved to Tucson, back to Prescott, and then to its final location in Phoenix in a series of controversial moves as different regions of the territory gained and lost political influence with the growth and development of the territory.

 

In the late 19th century the Army built a series of forts to encourage the Natives to stay in their territory and to act as a buffer from the settlers. The first was Fort Defiance. It was established on September 18, 1851, by Col. Edwin V. Sumner to create a military presence in Diné bikéyah (Navajo territory). Sumner broke up the fort at Santa Fe for this purpose, creating the first military post in what is now Arizona. He left Major Electus Backus in charge. Small skirmishes were common between raiding Navajo and counter raiding citizens. In April 1860 one thousand Navajo warriors under Manuelito attacked the fort and were beaten off.

 

The fort was abandoned at the start of the Civil War but was reoccupied in 1863 by Colonel Kit Carson and the 1st New Mexico Infantry. Carson was tasked by Brigadier-General James H. Carleton, Commander of the Federal District of New Mexico, to kill Navajo men, destroy crops, wells, houses and livestock. These tactics forced 9000 Navajos to take the Long Walk to a reservation at Bosque Redondo, New Mexico. The Bosque was a complete failure. In 1868 the Navajo signed another treaty and were allowed to go back to part of their former territory. The returning Navajo were restocked with sheep and other livestock. Fort Defiance was the agency for the new Navajo reservation until 1936; today it provides medical services to the region.

 

Fort Apache was built on the Fort Apache Indian Reservation by soldiers from the 1st Cavalry and 21st Infantry in 1870. Only one small battle took place, in September 1881, with three soldiers wounded. When the reservation Indians were granted U.S. citizenship in 1924, the fort was permanently closed down. Fort Huachuca, east of Tucson, was founded in 1877 as the base for operations against Apaches and raiders from Mexico. From 1913 to 1933 the fort was the base for the "Buffalo Soldiers" of the 10th Cavalry Regiment. During World War II, the fort expanded to 25,000 soldiers, mostly in segregated all-black units. Today the fort remains in operation and houses the U.S. Army Intelligence Center and the U.S. Army Network.

 

The Pueblos in Arizona were relatively peaceful through the Navajo and Apache Wars. However, in June 1891, the army had to bring in troops to stop Oraibi from preventing a school from being built on their mesa.

 

After the Civil War, Texans brought large-scale ranching to southern Arizona. They introduced their proven range methods to the new grass country. Texas rustlers also came, and brought lawlessness. Inexperienced ranchers brought poor management, resulting in overstocking, and introduced destructive diseases. Local cattleman organizations were formed to handle these problems. The Territory experienced a cattle boom in 1873–91, as the herds were expanded from 40,000 to 1.5 million head. However, the drought of 1891–93 killed off over half the cattle and produced severe overgrazing. Efforts to restore the rangeland between 1905 and 1934 had limited success, but ranching continued on a smaller scale.

 

Arizona's last major drought occurred during Dust Bowl years of 1933–34. This time Washington stepped in as the Agricultural Adjustment Administration spent $100 million to buy up the starving cattle. The Taylor Grazing Act placed federal and state agencies in control of livestock numbers on public lands. Most of the land in Arizona is owned by the federal government which leased grazing land to ranchers at low cost. Ranchers invested heavily in blooded stock and equipment. James Wilson states that after 1950, higher fees and restrictions in the name of land conservation caused a sizable reduction in available grazing land. The ranchers had installed three-fifths of the fences, dikes, diversion dams, cattleguards, and other improvements, but the new rules reduced the value of that investment. In the end, Wilson believes, sportsmen and environmentalists maintained a political advantage by denouncing the ranchers as political corrupted land-grabbers who exploited the publicly owned natural resources.

 

On February 23, 1883, United Verde Copper Company was incorporated under New York law. The small mining camp next to the mine was given a proper name, 'Jerome.' The town was named after the family which had invested a large amount of capital. In 1885 Lewis Williams opened a copper smelter in Bisbee and the copper boom began, as the nation turned to copper wires for electricity. The arrival of railroads in the 1880s made mining even more profitable, and national corporations bought control of the mines and invested in new equipment. Mining operations flourished in numerous boom towns, such as Bisbee, Jerome, Douglas, Ajo and Miami.

 

Arizona's "wild west" reputation was well deserved. Tombstone was a notorious mining town that flourished longer than most, from 1877 to 1929. Silver was discovered in 1877, and by 1881 the town had a population of over 10,000. Western story tellers and Hollywood film makers made as much money in Tombstone as anyone, thanks to the arrival of Wyatt Earp and his brothers in 1879. They bought shares in the Vizina mine, water rights, and gambling concessions, but Virgil, Morgan and Wyatt were soon appointed as federal and local marshals. They killed three outlaws in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, the most famous gunfight of the Old West.

 

In the aftermath, Virgil Earp was maimed in an ambush and Morgan Earp was assassinated while playing billiards. Walter Noble Burns's novel Tombstone (1927) made Earp famous. Hollywood celebrated Earp's Tombstone days with John Ford's My Darling Clementine (1946), John Sturges's Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957) and Hour of the Gun (1967), Frank Perry's Doc (1971), George Cosmatos's Tombstone (1993), and Lawrence Kasdan's Wyatt Earp (1994). They solidified Earp's modern reputation as the Old West's deadliest gunman.

 

Jennie Bauters (1862–1905) operated brothels in the Territory from 1896 to 1905. She was an astute businesswoman with an eye for real estate appreciation, and a way with the town fathers of Jerome regarding taxes and restrictive ordinances. She was not always sitting pretty; her brothels were burned in a series of major fires that swept the business district; her girls were often drug addicts. As respectability closed in on her, in 1903 she relocated to the mining camp of Acme. In 1905, she was murdered by a man who had posed as her husband.

 

By 1869 Americans were reading John Wesley Powell's reports of his explorations of the Colorado River. In 1901, the Santa Fe Railroad reached Grand Canyon's South Rim. With railroad, restaurant and hotel entrepreneur Fred Harvey leading the way, large-scale tourism began that has never abated. The Grand Canyon has become an iconic symbol of the West and the nation as a whole.

 

The Chinese came to Arizona with the construction of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1880. Tucson was the main railroad center and soon had a Chinatown with laundries for the general population and a rich mix of restaurants, groceries, and services for the residents. Chinese and Mexican merchants and farmers transcended racial differences to form 'guanxi,' which were relations of friendship and trust. Chinese leased land from Mexicans, operated grocery stores, and aided compatriots attempting to enter the United States from Mexico after the Mexican Revolution in 1910. Chinese merchants helped supply General John Pershing's army in its expedition against Pancho Villa. Successful Chinese in Tucson led a viable community based on social integration, friendship, and kinship.

 

In February 1903, U.S. Senator Hamilton Kean spoke against Arizona's statehood. He said Mormons who fled from Idaho to Mexico would return to the U.S. and mix in the politics of Arizona.

 

In 1912, Arizona almost entered the Union as part of New Mexico in a Republican plan to keep control of the U.S. Senate. The plan, while accepted by most in New Mexico, was rejected by most Arizonans. Progressives in Arizona favored inclusion in the state constitution of the initiative, referendum, recall, direct election of senators, woman suffrage, and other reforms. Most of these proposals were included in the constitution that was rejected by Congress.

 

A new constitution was offered with the problematic provisions removed. Congress then voted to approve statehood, and President Taft signed the statehood bill on February 14, 1912. State residents promptly put the provisions back in. Hispanics had little voice or power. Only one of the 53 delegates at the constitutional convention was Hispanic, and he refused to sign. In 1912 women gained suffrage in the state, eight years before the country as a whole.

 

Arizona's first Congressman was Carl Hayden (1877–1972). He was the son of a Yankee merchant who had moved to Tempe because he needed dry heat for his bad lungs. Carl attended Stanford University and moved up the political ladder as town councilman, county treasurer, and Maricopa County sheriff, where he nabbed Arizona's last train robbers. He also started building a coalition to develop the state's water resources, a lifelong interest. A liberal Democrat his entire career, Hayden was elected to Congress in 1912 and moved to the Senate in 1926.

 

Reelection followed every six years as he advanced toward the chairmanship of the powerful Appropriations Committee, which he reached in 1955. His only difficult campaign came in 1962, at age 85, when he defeated a young conservative. He retired in 1968 after a record 56 years in Congress. His great achievement was his 41-year battle to enact the Central Arizona Project that would provide water for future growth.

 

The Great Depression of 1929–39 hit Arizona hard. At first local, state and private relief efforts focused on charity, especially by the Community Chest and Organized Charities programs. Federal money started arriving with the Federal Emergency Relief Committee in 1930. Different agencies promoted aid to the unemployed, tuberculosis patients, transients, and illegal immigrants. The money ran out by 1931 or 1932, and conditions were bad until New Deal relief operations began on a large scale in 1933.

 

Construction programs were important, especially the Hoover Dam (originally called Boulder Dam), begun by President Herbert Hoover. It is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border with Nevada. It was constructed by the Federal Bureau of Reclamation between 1931 and 1936. It operationalized a schedule of water use set by the Colorado River Compact of 1922 that gave Arizona 19% of the river's water, with 25% to Nevada and the rest to California.

 

Construction of military bases in Arizona was a national priority because of the state's excellent flying weather and clear skies, large amounts of unoccupied land, good railroads, cheap labor, low taxes, and its proximity to California's aviation industry. Arizona was attractive to both the military and private firms and they stayed after the war.

 

Fort Huachuca became one of the largest nearly-all-black Army forts, with quarters for 1,300 officers and 24,000 enlisted soldiers. The 92nd and 93rd Infantry Divisions, composed of African-American troops, trained there.

 

During the war, Mexican-American community organizations were very active in patriotic efforts to support American troops abroad, and made efforts to support the war effort materially and to provide moral support for the American servicemen fighting the war, especially the Mexican-American servicemen from local communities. Some of the community projects were cooperative ventures in which members of both the Mexican-American and Anglo communities participated. Most efforts made in the Mexican-American community represented localized American home front activities that were separate from the activities of the Anglo community.

 

Mexican-American women organized to assist their servicemen and the war effort. An underlying goal of the Spanish-American Mothers and Wives Association was the reinforcement of the woman's role in Spanish-Mexican culture. The organization raised thousands of dollars, wrote letters, and joined in numerous celebrations of their culture and their support for Mexican-American servicemen. Membership reached over 300 during the war and eventually ended its existence in 1976.

 

Heavy government spending during World War II revitalized the Arizona economy, which was still based on copper mining, citrus and cotton crops and cattle ranching, with a growing tourist business.

 

Military installations peppered the state, such as Davis-Monthan Field in Tucson, the main training center for air force bomber pilots. Two relocation camps opened for Japanese and Japanese Americans brought in from the West Coast.

 

After World War II the population grew rapidly, increasing sevenfold between 1950 and 2000, from 700,000 to over 5 million. Most of the growth was in the Phoenix area, with Tucson a distant second. Urban growth doomed the state's citrus industry, as the groves were turned into housing developments.

 

The cost of water made growing cotton less profitable, and Arizona's production steadily declined. Manufacturing employment jumped from 49,000 in 1960 to 183,000 by 1985, with half the workers in well-paid positions. High-tech firms such as Motorola, Hughes Aircraft, Goodyear Aircraft, Honeywell, and IBM had offices in the Phoenix area. By 1959, Hughes Aircraft had built advanced missiles with 5,000 workers in Tucson.

 

Despite being a small state, Arizona produced several national leaders for both the Republican and Democratic parties. Two Republican Senators were presidential nominees: Barry Goldwater in 1964 and John McCain in 2008; both carried Arizona but lost the national election. Senator Ernest McFarland, a Democrat, was the Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate from 1951 to 1952, and Congressman John Rhodes was the Republican Minority Leader in the House from 1973 to 1981. Democrats Bruce Babbitt (Governor 1978–87) and Morris Udall (Congressman 1961–90) were contenders for their party's presidential nominations. In 1981 Sandra Day O'Connor became the first woman on the U.S. Supreme Court; she served until 2006.

 

Retirement communities

Warm winters and low cost of living attracted retirees from the so-called snowbelt, who moved permanently to Arizona after 1945, bringing their pensions, Social Security, and savings with them. Real estate entrepreneurs catered to them with new communities with amenities pitched to older people, and with few facilities for children. Typically they were gated communities with controlled access and had pools, recreation centers, and golf courses.

 

In 1954, two developers bought 320 acres (1.3 km2) of farmland near Phoenix and opened the nation's first planned community dedicated exclusively to retirees at Youngtown. In 1960, developer Del Webb, inspired by the amenities in Florida's trailer parks, added facilities for "active adults" in his new Sun City planned community near Phoenix. In 1962 Ross Cortese opened the first of his gated Leisure Worlds. Other developers copied the popular model, and by 2000 18% of the retirees in the state lived in such "lifestyle" communities.

 

The issues of the fragile natural environment, compounded by questions of water shortage and distribution, led to numerous debates. The debate crossed traditional lines, so that the leading conservative, Senator Barry Goldwater, was also keenly concerned. For example, Goldwater supported the controversial Colorado River Storage Project (CRSP). He wrote:

 

I feel very definitely that the [Nixon] administration is absolutely correct in cracking down on companies and corporations and municipalities that continue to pollute the nation's air and water. While I am a great believer in the free competitive enterprise system and all that it entails, I am an even stronger believer in the right of our people to live in a clean and pollution-free environment. To this end, it is my belief that when pollution is found, it should be halted at the source, even if this requires stringent government action against important segments of our national economy.

 

Water issues were central. Agriculture consumed 89% of the state's strictly limited water supply while generating only 3% of the state's income. The Groundwater Management Act of 1980, sponsored by Governor Bruce Babbitt, raised the price of water to farmers, while cities had to reach a "safe yield" so that the groundwater usage did not exceed natural replenishment. New housing developments had to prove they had enough water for the next hundred years. Desert foliage suitable for a dry region soon replaced grass.

 

Cotton acreage declined dramatically, freeing up land for suburban sprawl as well as releasing large amounts of water and ending the need for expensive specialized machinery. Cotton acreage plunged from 120,000 acres in 1997 to only 40,000 acres in 2005, even as the federal treasury gave the state's farmers over $678 million in cotton subsidies. Many farmers collect the subsidies but no longer grow cotton. About 80% of the state's cotton is exported to textile factories in China and (since the passage of NAFTA) to Mexico.

 

Super Bowl XXX was played in Tempe in 1996 and Super Bowl XLII was held in Glendale in 2008. Super Bowl XLIX was also held in Glendale in 2015.

 

Illegal immigration continued to be a prime concern within the state, and in April 2010, Arizona SB1070 was passed and signed into law by Governor Jan Brewer. The measure attracted national attention as the most thorough anti-illegal immigration measure in decades within the United States.

 

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords was shot in the head during a political event in Tucson on January 8, 2011. The shooting resulted in six deaths and several injuries. Giffords survived the attack and became an advocate for gun control.

 

On June 30, 2013, nineteen members of the Prescott Fire Department were killed fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire. The fatalities were members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots, a hotshot crew, of whom only one survived as he was working in another location.

 

Border crisis: by 2019 Arizona was one of the states most affected by the border crisis, with a high number of migrant crossings and detentions.

Developed using darktable 4.0.0

Decided the other day to work on other things, but I have this one hanging around....

 

Crease pattern available.

BSG training for Countries (SG1) for SG Effectiveness. 19-01-2016

 

©ITU/A.Mhadhbi

Developed using darktable 3.0.0 und Gimp

Developed and scanned years after being shot on a Holga GN. Remember to clean out the bags. ;)

05/05/2023. London, United Kingdom. Bilateral meeting between Andrew Mitchell, Minister of State in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and President of Comoros Azli Assoumani at the Small Island Developing States Coronation Event at Lancaster House. Picture by Lauren Hurley / DHSC

Camera: FED 3B with Skink Pinhole Pancake, 24mm, f110. Film: Kodak Ultramax 400, home-developed with the Rollei DIGIBASE C41 Film Kit.

One of the first places grass was laid as the site developed. This is Alongside Harrow Manorway. It would end up between there and the flyover. I believe it may have recently had housing built on it.

 

July 1967.