I will have to continue with loading more of these later.

 

Just taking a shot of a tree and a bird flew by….

  

Trouble with loading a few more mining shots now, they would clash with these peaceful scenes.

 

I'm currently in a tight fight with another contestant on a photo contest on Facebook. The deadline is tomorrow night. I need a maximum of likes on my picture (because the other one is really fugly) All you need to do to help me is to like the picture right here : www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=624857164205520&set=a...

 

Thanks ! ♥

 

Je suis actuellement aux coudes à coudes avec une concurrente à un concours photo sur Facebook .. J'ai besoin d'un maximum de "j'aime" sur ma photo. La fin c'est demain soir, donc s'il vous plait, aidez moi, allez aimer ma petite photo : www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=624857164205520&set=a... Merci !!!

A .338 Sniper rifle, modified by Bullseye® for maximum accuracy and firepower. Uses steel cased rounds with a titanium penetrating core with a HE outer tip for maximum power.

 

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***Shipping and taxes not included

Well I've had a nice time rendering images of hamilton´s. Been busy working on an accompanying story about the cafe, created a "draft" on Ideas, when I suddenly remember that I had read somewhere that there was a maximum number of stones for an idea. Spent some time on googled and yes: max 3000 stones.

 

I'm slightly above that with this design. and that "slightly" is an understatement in this case. In other words: I cannot place it on LEGO ideas because then it will be rejected due to the number of bricks or simply removed afterwards. Just like what happened with the Artists Cafe – The University House.

 

The model is based on the Hamilton´pool from my Brickton Harbor layout

 

In any case, here are the renders of the interior and the story that should have gone with it:

 

Hamilton´s Pool Cafe

 

Fifty years ago, no one could have predicted that an abandoned corner building in a sleepy town would grow into one of the region's most beloved spots. But Dave Hamilton, a man with a keen eye for the overlooked, saw something others didn’t.

 

It was a dreary, rainy day when Dave first stood face to face with the dilapidated building. The windows were cracked, the roof sagged, and the walls were covered in ivy. Yet, he felt an inexplicable pull. He didn’t just see an old building; he saw the potential to create something extraordinary.

 

Determined to bring his dream to life, Dave bought the building and embarked on an ambitious restoration project. He worked day and night, resolute in his mission to transform the space into a haven of peace and warmth. Inspired by the calmness of the sea, and after weeks of deliberation, he chose a light aqua color for the exterior. The color quickly became a neighborhood landmark, a symbol of the fresh start Dave had given the place.

 

The café, which he named "Hamilton’s Pool Café," became a cozy gathering spot with soft lighting, vintage furniture, and a warm ambiance. Above the café, Dave made his home—a two-story apartment with a charming balcony. Here, he often spends evenings with friends, barbecuing and enjoying the view of the town.

 

Downstairs, beneath the inviting awning, guests settle in to enjoy a drink in peace. Whether on a sunny afternoon or a rainy evening, the awning always provides shelter, and the sound of rustling leaves in the wind blends with the murmurs of contented visitors.

 

Now, fifty years later, Hamilton’s Pool Café is an institution. People come from far and wide to experience the unique atmosphere and escape modern life's hustle and bustle. Dave’s vision, attention to detail, and hospitality are embedded in the café’s soul. The light aqua exterior, the yellow storefront sign, the small balcony above, and the cozy awning below are all part of the story Dave began—a story that, with 10,000 votes, might one day find its way onto the LEGO Store shelves.

The time is 21:14 UTC (22:14 local time), exactly at the middle of the total lunar eclipse. The moon is very dark, reddish and details are difficult to observe. Also focusing is getting increasingly more difficult.

 

Taken from the Sosus Dune Lodge, 15-Jun-2011, Namibia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

LocationSan Francisco Bay, California

Coordinates37°49′36″N 122°25′24″W[1]

StatusClosed (now a museum)

Security classMaximum

Capacity312

Opened11 August 1934; 85 years ago

Closed21 March 1963; 57 years ago

Managed byFederal Bureau of Prisons, Department of Justice

Director

Wardens[2]

James A. Johnston (1934–48)

Edwin B. Swope (1948–55)

Paul J. Madigan (1955–61)

Olin G. Blackwell (1961–63)

 

The Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary or United States Penitentiary, Alcatraz Island (often referred to as Alcatraz or The Rock) was a maximum security federal prison on Alcatraz Island, 1.25 miles (2.01 km) off the coast of San Francisco, California, United States, which operated from 11 August 1934, until 21 March 1963.

 

Alcatraz had been the site of a fort since the 1850s; the main prison building was built in 1910–1912 as a United States Army military prison. The United States Department of Justice acquired the United States Disciplinary Barracks, Pacific Branch, on Alcatraz on 12 October 1933, and the island became a prison of the Federal Bureau of Prisons in August 1934 after the buildings were modernized and security increased. Given this high security and the island's location in the cold waters and strong currents of San Francisco Bay, prison operators believed Alcatraz to be escape-proof and America's strongest prison.

 

Alcatraz was used to hold prisoners who continually caused trouble at other federal prisons. One of the world's most notorious and best known prisons over the years, it housed some 1,576 federal inmates, including some of America's most ruthless, such as Al Capone, Robert Franklin Stroud (the "Birdman of Alcatraz"), George "Machine Gun" Kelly, Bumpy Johnson, Rafael Cancel Miranda,[3] Mickey Cohen, Arthur R. "Doc" Barker, Whitey Bulger, and Alvin "Creepy" Karpis (who served more time at Alcatraz than any other inmate). The Bureau of Prisons' staff and their families lived on the island as well. 36 prisoners made 14 escape attempts during the prison's 29-year history; most notable were the violent attempt of May 1946 called the "Battle of Alcatraz" and the possibly successful June 1962 attempt by Frank Morris, John Anglin, and Clarence Anglin, which was marked by careful planning and execution. Faced with high maintenance costs and a poor reputation, Alcatraz closed on 21 March 1963.

 

The three-story cellhouse included the four main cell blocks, A-block through D-block, the warden's office, visitation room, the library, and the barber shop. The prison cells typically measured 9 feet (2.7 m) by 5 feet (1.5 m) and 7 feet (2.1 m) high. The cells were primitive and lacked privacy, with a bed, desk, and washbasin, and a toilet on the back wall, and with few furnishings except a blanket. African-Americans were segregated from other inmates in cell designation due to racial abuse. D-Block housed the worst inmates, and six cells at its end were designated "The Hole," where badly behaving prisoners would be sent for periods of often brutal punishment. The dining hall and kitchen extended from the main building. Prisoners and staff ate three meals a day together. The Alcatraz Hospital was above the dining hall.

 

Prison corridors were named after major U.S. streets such as Broadway and Michigan Avenue. Working at the prison was considered a privilege for inmates and many of the better inmates were employed in the Model Industries Building and New Industries Building during the day, actively involved in providing for the military in jobs such as sewing and woodwork, and performing various maintenance and laundry chores.

 

Today, Alcatraz is a public museum and one of San Francisco's major tourist attractions, attracting some 1.5 million visitors annually. Now operated by the National Park Service's Golden Gate National Recreation Area, the timeworn former prison is being restored and maintained.

 

History

Construction

Alcatraz Cellhouse

 

The main cellhouse was built incorporating some parts of Fort Alcatraz's citadel, a partially fortified barracks from 1859 that had come to be used as a jail. A new cellhouse was built from 1910–1912 on a budget of $250,000, and upon completion, the 500 feet (150 m) long concrete building was reputedly the longest concrete building in the world at the time. This building was modernized in 1933 and 1934 and became the main cellhouse of the federal penitentiary until its closure in 1963.[4]:76 When the new concrete prison was built, many materials were reused in its construction. Iron staircases in the interior and the cellhouse door near the barber's shop at the end of A-block were retained from the old citadel and massive granite blocks originally used as gun mounts were reused as the wharf's bulkheads and retaining walls. [5] Many of the old cell bars were used to reinforce the walls, causing structural problems later due to the fact that many placed near the edge were subject to erosion from the salt air and wind over the years.[5][dubious – discuss]

Entrance

 

After the United States Army's use of the island for over 80 years, it was transferred to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, which hoped an escape-proof jail would help break the crime wave of the 1920s and 1930s.[6] The Department of Justice acquired the Disciplinary Barracks on Alcatraz on 12 October 1933, and it became a Federal Bureau of Prisons facility in August 1934. $260,000 was spent to modernize and improve it from January 1934.[7][8] George Hess of the United States Public Health Service was appointed chief medical officer and Edward W. Twitchell became a consultant in psychiatry for Alcatraz in January 1934.[8] The hospital was checked by three officials from the Marine Hospital of San Francisco.[8] The Bureau of Prisons personnel arrived on Alcatraz in early February; among them was acting chief clerk Loring O. Mills. In April 1934, the old material was removed from the prison; holes were cut in the concrete and 269 cell fronts were installed, built using four carloads of steel ordered from the Stewart Iron Works.[8] Two of four new stairways were built, as were 12 doors to the utility corridors and gratings at the top of the cells. On 26 April, an accidental small fire broke out on the roof and an electrician injured his foot by dropping a manhole cover on it.[8] The Anchor Post Fence Company added fencing around Alcatraz and the Enterprise Electric Works added emergency lighting in the morgue and switchboard operations.[8] In June 1934, the Teletouch Corporation of New York began the installation of an "electro-magnetic gun or metal detecting system" at Alcatraz; detectors were added on the wharf, at the front entrance into the cellblock, and at the rear entrance gate.[8] The correctional officers were instructed how to operate the new locking devices on 30 July 1934, and both the United States Coast Guard and the San Francisco Police Department tested the new radio equipment on the same day.[8] Final checks and assessments were made on the first two days of August.[8]

Early history

Alcatraz laundry service

 

Alcatraz was intended for prisoners who continuously caused trouble at other federal prisons, a "last resort prison" to hold the worst of the worst who had no hope of rehabilitation.[9][10] At 9:40 a.m. on 11 August 1934, the first batch of 137 prisoners arrived at Alcatraz from the United States Penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas, having travelled by rail to Santa Venetia, California. Before being escorted to Alcatraz, they were handcuffed in high-security coaches and guarded by some 60 Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) special agents, U.S. Marshals, and railway security officials.[8][11] Most of the prisoners were notorious bank robbers, counterfeiters, murderers, or sodomites.[11] Among the first inmates were also 14 men from McNeil Island, Washington.[8] On 22 August 43 prisoners arrived from Atlanta Penitentiary and 10 from North Eastern Penitentiary, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.[8] On 1 September, one prisoner arrived from Washington Asylum and Jail and seven from the District of Columbia Reformatory in Virginia, and on 4 September, another batch of 103 prisoners arrived by train from Leavenworth.[8] Prisoners continued to arrive, mainly from Leavenworth and Atlanta, into 1935 and by 30 June 1935, the penitentiary's first anniversary, it had a population of 242 prisoners, although some inmates such as Verrill Rapp had already been transferred from Alcatraz some months earlier.[8] On the first anniversary, the Bureau of Prisons wrote, "The establishment of this institution not only provided a secure place for the detention of the more difficult type of criminal but has had a good effect upon discipline in our other penitentiaries also. No serious disturbance of any kind has been reported during the year." The metal detectors often overheated and had to be turned off. After the Teletouch Corporation failed to address the problem, their contract was terminated in 1937 and they were charged over $200 for three new detectors supplied by Federal Laboratories.[8]

 

On 10 January 1935, a severe storm caused a landslide on Alcatraz, causing the Model Industries Building to slide.[8] This began series of changes to the structures on the island. A riprap was built around Model Industries Building, it was strengthened, and a guard tower added to the roof in June 1936. That same month, the barracks building was remodeled into 11 new apartments and nine single rooms for bachelors; by this time there were 52 families living on Alcatraz, including 126 women and children.[8] The problems with the Model Industries Building and continuing utility problems with some of the old buildings and systems led to extensive updates in 1937, including new tool-proof grills on the ventilators of the cell house roof, two new boilers installed in the power house, and a new pump for salt water sanitation and guardrails added to stairways.[8] In 1939–40, a $1.1 million redevelopment was begun, including construction of the New Industries Building, a complete overhaul of the power house with a new diesel engine, the building of a new water tower to solve the water storage problem, new apartment blocks for officers, improvements to the dock, and the conversion of D-block into isolation cells.[8] The changes were completed in July 1941. The workshops of the New Industries Building became highly productive, making army uniforms, cargo nets, and other items in high demand during World War II. In June 1945, it was reported that the federal penitentiaries had made 60,000 nets.[8]

 

Alcatraz gained notoriety from its inception as the toughest prison in America, considered by many the world's most fearsome prison of the day. Former prisoners reported brutality and inhumane conditions which severely tested their sanity.[12][13][14] Ed Wutke was the first prisoner to commit suicide in Alcatraz. Rufe Persful chopped off his fingers after grabbing an axe from the firetruck, begging another inmate to do the same to his other hand.[14] One writer decried Alcatraz as "the great garbage can of San Francisco Bay, into which every federal prison dumped its most rotten apples."[15] In 1939, the new U.S. Attorney General, Frank Murphy, attacked the penitentiary, saying, "The whole institution is conductive to psychology that builds up a sinister ambitious attitude among prisoners."[8] The prison's reputation was not helped by the arrival of more of America's most dangerous felons, including Robert Stroud, the "Birdman of Alcatraz," in 1942. He entered the prison system at age 19, and never left, spending 17 years at Alcatraz. Stroud killed a guard, tangled with other inmates and spent 42 of his 54 years in prison in solitary confinement. Despite its reputation, with many former inmates calling it "Hellcatraz," some prisoners reported that the living conditions there were much better than most other prisons in the country, especially the food, and many volunteered to come to Alcatraz.[6]

 

On 3 December 1940, Henri Young murdered fellow inmate Rufus McCain. Running downstairs from the furniture shop to the tailor's shop where McCain worked, Young violently stabbed McCain's neck; McCain died five hours later.[8] Young had been sent to Alcatraz for murder in 1933, and was later involved in an escape attempt during which the gangster Doc Barker was shot to death. He spent nearly 22 months in solitary confinement as a result, but was eventually permitted to work in the furniture shop. Young went on trial in 1941, with his attorneys claiming that their client could not be held responsible for the murder, since he had allegedly been subjected to "cruel and unusual punishment" by prison guards prior to the act. The trial brought Alcatraz into further disrepute.[8] Ultimately, Young was convicted of manslaughter and his prison sentence was only extended by a few years.

 

By the 1950s, conditions at Alcatraz had improved, and inmates were gradually permitted more privileges, such as playing musical instruments, watching movies on weekends, painting, and radio use; the strict code of silence became more relaxed, and prisoners were permitted to talk quietly.[14] However, it was by far the most expensive prison in the United States, and many still perceived it as America's most extreme jail.[16][8] In his annual report for 1952, Bureau of Prisons director James V. Bennett called for a more centralized institution to replace Alcatraz.[8] A 1959 report indicated that the facility was over three times more expensive to run than the average American prison; $10 per prisoner per day compared to $3 in most other prisons.[17] The problem was made worse by the buildings' structural deterioration from exposure to salt spray. It would need $5 million to fix. Major repairs began in 1958, but by 1961 engineers evaluated the prison as a lost cause. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy submitted plans for a new maximum-security institution at Marion, Illinois.[8] The June 1962 escape from Alcatraz led to acrimonious investigations. Combined with the major structural problems and expensive operation, this led to closure on 21 March 1963.[17] The final Bureau of Prisons report said of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary: "The institution served an important purpose in taking the strain off the older and greatly overcrowded institutions in Atlanta, Leavenworth and McNeil Island since it enabled us to move to the smaller, closely guarded institution for the escape artists, the big-time racketeers, the inveterate connivers and those who needed protection from other groups."[8]

 

Today a museum and one of San Francisco's major tourist attractions, Alcatraz drew some 1.5 million visitors annually (2010).[18][19] Visitors arrive by boat, and are given a tour of the cellhouse and island, and a slide show and audio narration with anecdotes from former inmates, guards and rangers on Alcatraz.[20] The atmosphere of the former penitentiary is still considered to be "eerie", "ghostly" and "chilling".[20] Protected by the National Park Service and the National Register of Historic Places, the salt-damaged buildings of the former prison are now being restored and maintained.[21]

 

According to the prison's correctional officers, once a convict arrived on the Alcatraz wharf, his first thoughts were on how to leave.[22] During its 29 years of operation, the penitentiary claimed that no prisoner successfully escaped. A total of 36 prisoners made 14 escape attempts, two men trying twice; 23 were caught, six were shot and killed during their escape, two drowned, and five are listed as "missing and presumed drowned".[23]

 

The first escape attempt was made on 27 April 1936, by Joseph Bowers, who was assigned to burn trash at the incinerator. He was scaling a chain link fence at the edge of the island when noticed. When he refused orders of the correctional officer located at the West Road guard tower to come down he was shot. He was seriously injured in the fall from over 15 m (50 ft) and consequently died.[6]

 

The second escape attempt was on 16 December 1937, by Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe. During their work assignment in one of the workshops, they cut the flat iron bars of the window and climbed into the bay. It was a stormy day and the sea was rough. They were thought dead by the prison authorities, who believed that they drowned in the bay and their bodies were swept out to sea.[6]

 

The most violent escape attempt occurred on 2–4 May 1946, when a failed attempt by six prisoners led to the Battle of Alcatraz, also known as the "Alcatraz Blast out". Bernard Coy, Joseph Cretzer, Sam Shockley, Clarence Carnes, Marvin Hubbard and Miran Thompson daringly took control of the cell house by overpowering correctional officers, and were able to enter the weapons room, where they then demanded keys to the outside recreation door. A quick-thinking guard, William Miller, turned over all but the key to the outer door, which he pocketed. The prisoners' aim was to escape by boat from the dock, but when they were unable to open the outside door, they decided to battle it out. They held Miller, and a second guard hostage. Prompted by Shockley and Thompson, Cretzer shot the hostages at very close range. Miller succumbed to his injuries while the second guard, Harold Stites, was also killed at the cell house. Although Shockley, Thompson, and Carnes returned to their cells, the other three, Coy, Cretzer and Hubbard, persisted with their fight. The U.S. Marines intervened to help the correctional officers and killed the three prisoners. In this battle, apart from the guards and prisoners killed, 17 other guards and one prisoner were also injured. Shockley, Thompson, and Carnes were tried for the killing of the correctional officers. Shockley and Thompson were sentenced to death via the gas chamber, which was carried out at San Quentin in December 1948. However, Carnes, who was only 19 years of age, was given a second life sentence.[6][24]

 

On 11 June 1962, Frank Morris, John Anglin, and Clarence Anglin, in contrast, attempted to escape using careful planning. Behind their cells in Cell Block B was an unguarded 3-foot (0.91 m) wide utility corridor. The prisoners chiseled away the salt-damaged concrete from around an air vent leading to this corridor, using tools such as a metal spoon soldered with silver from a dime and an electric drill improvised from a stolen vacuum cleaner motor. The noise was disguised by accordions played during music hour, and the progress was concealed by false walls which, in the dark recesses of the cells, fooled the guards.[6]

Side view of model head found in Frank Morris's cell

 

The escape route led up through a fan vent; the prisoners removed the fan and motor, replacing them with a steel grill and leaving a shaft large enough for a prisoner to enter. Stealing a carborundum abrasive cord from the prison workshop, the prisoners then removed the rivets from the grill. In their beds, they placed papier-mâché dummies made with human hair stolen from the barbershop. The escapees also made an inflatable raft over many weeks from over 50 stolen raincoats, which they prepared on the top of the cell block, concealed from the guards by sheets which had been put up over the sides. They escaped through a vent in the roof and departed Alcatraz.[6][24]

 

The FBI investigation was aided by another prisoner, Allen West, who was part of the escapees' group but was left behind. West's false wall kept slipping so he held it in place with cement, which set. When Morris and the Anglins accelerated the schedule, West desperately chipped away at the wall, but by the time he got out, his companions were gone. Hundreds of leads and theories have been pursued by the FBI and local law enforcement officials in the ensuing years, but no conclusive evidence has ever surfaced favoring the success or failure of the attempt. The FBI's investigation from 1962 to December 1979 was finally treated as closed.[25] The official report on the escape concludes that the prisoners drowned in the cold waters of the bay while trying to reach the mainland, it being unlikely that they made it the 1.25 miles to shore due to the strong ocean currents and the cold sea water temperatures ranging between 50 and 55 degrees Fahrenheit.[6][24]

 

The U.S. Marshals Service case file remains open and active, however. Morris and the Anglin brothers remain on its wanted list.[26] Circumstantial evidence uncovered in the early-2010s seemed to suggest that the men had survived, and that contrary to the official FBI report of the escapee's raft never being recovered and no car thefts being reported, a raft was discovered on nearby Angel Island with footprints leading away, and a 1955 blue Chevrolet had been stolen on the night of the escape by three men, who could have been Morris and the Anglins, and that officials then engaged in a cover-up.[27] Relatives of the Anglin brothers presented further circumstantial evidence in the mid-2010s in support of a longstanding rumor that the Anglin brothers had fled to Brazil following the escape; a facial recognition analyst concluded that the one piece of physical evidence, a 1975 photograph of two men resembling John and Clarence Anglin, did support that conclusion.[28][29]

Administration

Admin offices of Alcatraz

 

The prison initially had a staff of 155, including the first warden James A. Johnston and associate warden Cecil J. Shuttleworth, both considered to be "iron men".[11] None of the staff were trained in rehabilitation but were highly trained in security.[11] The guards' and staff's salaries varied. A new guard arriving in December 1948 was offered $3,024.96 per year, but there was a 6% deduction for retirement taxes a year (amounting to $181.50).[30] The guards typically worked 40-hour weeks with five 8-hour shifts.[30] Guards who worked between 6 pm and 6 am were given a 10% increase and guards doing overtime had to be reported and authorized by the warden.[30] Officers generally had to pay 25 cents for meals and were charged $10 to rent an apartment on the island, to include laundry service, although larger families were charged anything from $20–43 a month for larger quarters and charged additional for laundry.[30] In 1960, a Bureau of Prisons booklet revealed that the average prison population between 1935 and 1960 was 263; the highest recorded was 302 in 1937 and the lowest recorded was 222 in 1947.[31]

 

The main administration center was at the entrance to the prison, which included the warden's office. The office contained a desk with radio and telegraph equipment, typewriter, and a telephone.[32] The administrative office section also had the offices of the associate warden and secretary, mail desk, captain's desk, a business office, a clerk's office, an accounting office, a control room which was added with modern technology in 1961, the officer's lounge, armory and vault, and a visiting area and restrooms. The basement of Alcatraz prison contained dungeons and the showers. The main stairway to the dungeon lay along Sunrise Alley at the side of A-Block, but the dungeons were also accessible by a staircase in a trapdoor along the corridor of D-Block. All visits to Alcatraz required prior written approval from the warden.[33]

 

A hospital had originally been installed at Alcatraz during its time as a military prison in the late 19th century.[34] During its time as a federal penitentiary, it was located above the dining hall on the second floor. Hospital staff were U.S. Public Health Service employees assigned to the Federal Prison Service at Alcatraz.[35] Doctors often lasted fewer than several days or months at Alcatraz, because few of them could tolerate the violent inmates who would often terrify them if they failed to be given certain drugs.[35] Prisoners in ill health were often kept in the hospital, most famously Stroud and Al Capone, who spent years in it.[36][37]

Security

 

When the Bureau of Prisons established the Federal Penitentiary on 1 January 1934, they took measures to strengthen the security of the prison cells to make Alcatraz "escape-proof", and also to improve living conditions for their own staff. Up-to-date technologies for enhancing security and comfort were added to the buildings. Guard towers were built outside at four strategic locations, cells were rebuilt and fitted with "tool-proof steel cell fronts and locking devices operated from control boxes", and windows were made covered with iron grills. Electromagnetic metal detectors were placed at the entrances of the dining hall and workshops, with remote controlled tear gas canisters at appropriate locations, remote controlled gun galleries with machine gun armed guards were installed to patrol along the corridors. Improvements were made to the toilet and electricity facilities, old tunnels were sealed up with concrete to avoid hiding and escape by prisoners, and substantial changes and improvements were made to the housing facilities of guards, wardens and Captain to live with their families, with quality relative to rank. Warden Johnston, U.S. Attorney General Homer Cummings, and Sanford Bates first Director of the Bureau of Prisons, collaborated very closely to create "a legendary prison" suited to the times, which resulted in the Alcatraz Island Federal Penitentiary being nicknamed "Uncle Sam's Devil's Island.'[38]

Guards of Alcatraz

 

Despite Alcatraz being designed to house the "worst of the worst" of criminals who caused problems at other prisons, under the guidelines and regulations set by the strict prison administrators, courts could not direct a prisoner to be directly sent to Alcatraz, however notorious they were for misbehavior and attempted escape from other prisons.[38] Prisoners entering Alcatraz would undergo vigorous research and assessments prior to their arrival. Security in the prison was very tight, with constant checking of bars, doors, locks, electrical fixtures, and other physical security.[39] Prisoners were normally counted 13 times daily, and the ratio of prisoners to guards was the lowest of any American prison of the time.[40][41] The front door was made of solid steel, virtually impossible for any prisoners to escape through.[42] The island had many guard towers, most of which have since been demolished, which were heavily guarded at various points in the day at times when security may have been breached; for instance, there were guard towers on each of the industry buildings to ensure that inmates didn't attempt to escape during the work day shifts. The recreation yard and other parts of the prison had a 25-foot fence around it topped with barbed wire,[12] should any inmates attempt to escape during exercise. One former employee of the jail likened his prison job to being a zoo keeper or his old farm job, due to the fact that prisoners were treated like animals, sending them out to "plough the fields" when some of them worked during the day, and then counting them up and feeding them and so on.[39] He referred to those four years of his life working in the prison as a "total waste of his life".[39] The corridors were regularly patrolled by the guards, with passing gates along them; the most heavily trafficked corridor was "Broadway" between B and C Block, due to its being the central corridor of the prison and passed not only by guards but other prison workers.[43]

 

At the end of each 20-minute meal in the dining hall, the forks, spoons and knives were laid out on the table and carefully counted to ensure that nothing had been taken as a potential weapon. In the earlier years as a prison, prisoners were forbidden from talking while eating, but this was later relaxed, provided that the prisoners communicated quietly.[39] [44]

 

The gun gallery was situated in the Recreation Yard and mounted on one of the dining hall's exterior walls.[45] There was a metal detector outside of the dining hall for security purposes. The dining hall had tear-gas canisters attached to the rafters of the ceiling which could be activated by remote control, should prisoners riot or attempt to escape.[46][13] The first warden, James A. Johnston, always entered the dining hall alone and unarmed, due to heavy guarding around him.[47] Several riots did break out in the dining hall during Alcatraz's history. Those prisoners who were not involved in the fighting hid under the dining hall tables to escape possible gunfire.[48]

Wardens

 

James A. Johnston.jpg James A. Johnston 1934–48 James Aloysius Johnston (1874–1954) (nickname "Old Saltwater") [49] was the first warden of Alcatraz. The former Warden of Folsom and San Quentin, Johnston was instrumental to the creation of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary from conception to design. He was considered to be a highly strict disciplinarian and a devout reformist who imposed a number of rules upon the prison including a strict code of silence, which led to him being nicknamed the 'Golden Rule Warden' from his San Quentin days.[49] However, he was relatively popular among inmates and guards, known as "Old Saltwater" to the inmates, and is credited with challenging the barbaric tactics used in the prison when he was there, including strait jackets and solitary confinement in darkness and working towards the general improvement of the lives of prisoners. In 1937 he was attacked by Burton Phillips from behind in the dining hall who beat him in anger at a worker's strike, but he continued to attend meals unguarded.

 

Edwin B. Swope.jpg Edwin B. Swope 1948–55 Edwin Burnham Swope (1888–1955) (nickname "Cowboy") was the second warden of Alcatraz. His earlier posts as warden included New Mexico State Prison and Washington State's McNeil Island Federal Penitentiary. He was described as being approximately 1.73 meter (5 feet 9 inches) tall, of slender build, and was a fan of horse racing who dressed like a cowboy off-duty.[50] He was a strict disciplinarian but unlike his predecessor was considered the most unpopular warden of Alcatraz with his officers and the inmates.[51]

 

Paul J. Madigan.jpg Paul J. Madigan 1955–61

 

Paul Joseph Madigan (1897–1974) was the third warden of Alcatraz. He had earlier served as the last Associate Warden during the term of James A. Johnston. He was the only warden who had worked his way up from the bottom of the ranks of the prison staff hierarchy, having worked originally as a Correctional Officer on Alcatraz from the 1930s.[52][51] In 21 May 1941, Madigan was the key to quashing an escape attempt after being held hostage in the Model Industries Building, which later led to his promotion as associate warden.[53] He was a stout, ruddy-faced, pipe-smoking, devout Irish Catholic.[54] Unlike his predecessors, Madigan was known for being more lenient and softer in his approach to administering the prison and was better liked by the prison staff.[52]

 

Olin G. Blackwell.jpg Olin G. Blackwell 1961–63

 

Olin Guy Blackwell (1915–1986) was the fourth and final warden of Alcatraz. Associate Warden to Paul J. Madigan from April 1959,[53] Blackwell served as warden of Alcatraz at its most difficult time from 1961 to 1963 when it was facing closure as a decaying prison with financing problems, coinciding with the timing of the infamous June 1962 escape from Alcatraz. At the time of the 1962 escape he was on vacation in Lake Berryessa in Napa County, and he didn't believe the men could have survived the waters and made it to shore.[55] Blackwell was considered to have been the least strict warden of Alcatraz, perhaps in part due to him having been a heavy drinker and smoker, nicknamed "Gypsy" and known as "Blackie" to his friends.[53] He was said to have been an excellent marksman who had earlier served as Associate Warden of Lewisburg Federal Penitentiary.

Prison life and the cells

 

An inmate register reveals that there were 1,576 prisoners in total held at Alcatraz during its time as a Federal Penitentiary, although figures reported have varied and some have stated 1557.[56][57] The prison cells, purposefully designed so that none adjoined an outside wall,[13] typically measured 9 feet (2.7 m) by 5 feet (1.5 m) and 7 feet (2.1 m) high.[58] The cells were primitive with a bed, a desk and a washbasin and toilet on the back wall and few furnishings except a blanket.[58] An air vent, measuring 6 inches (150 mm) by 9 inches (230 mm), covered by a metal grill, lay at the back of the cells which led into the utility corridors. [58] Prisoners had no privacy in going to the toilet and the toilets would emit a strong stench because they were flushed with salt water. Hot water faucets were not installed until the early 1960s, shortly before closure.[58]

 

The penitentiary established a very strict regimen of rules and regulations under the title "the Rules and Regulations for the Government and Discipline of the United States Penal and Correctional Institutions" and also a "Daily Routine of Work and Counts" to be followed by the prisoners and also the guards; copies of these were provided to the prisoners to read and follow. Inmates were basically entitled to food, clothing, shelter, and medical attention. Anything else was seen as a privilege. Inmates were given a blue shirt, grey pants (blue and white in later years[56]), cotton long underwear, socks and a blue handkerchief; the wearing of caps was forbidden in the cellhouse.[58] Cells were expected to be kept tidy and in good order. Any dangerous article found in the cells or on inmates such as money, narcotics, intoxicating substances or tools which had the potential to inflict injury or assist in an escape attempt was considered contraband and made the prisoners eligible for disciplinary action.[56] It was compulsory for prisoners to shave in their cells three times a week. Attempting to bribe, intimidate, or assault prison officers was seen as a very serious offense.[56] African-Americans were segregated from the rest in cell designation due to racial abuse being prevalent.[59] Toilet paper, matches, soap, and cleanser were issued to the cells on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and inmates could request hot water and a mop to clean their cells.[56] The bars, windows and floors of the prison were cleaned on a daily basis.[59] In earlier years there was a strict code of silence but by the 1950s this had relaxed and talking was permitted in the cellhouse and dining hall provided conversations were quiet and there was no shouting, loud talking, whistling or singing.[56]

 

Prisoners would be woken at 6:30 am, and sent to breakfast at 6:55 am. After returning to the cell, inmates then had to tidy their cell and place the waste basket outside.[56] At 7:30 am, work started in the shifts for those privileged enough to do so, punctuated by a whistle, and prisoners would have to go through a metal detector during work shifts.[39] If assigned a job, prisoners had to accept that line of work; prisoners were not permitted to have money in their possessions but earnings went into a prisoner's Trust Fund.[56] Some of the prisoners were assigned duties with the guards and foremen in the Laundry, Tailor Shop, Cobblers Shop, Model Shop etc. and in gardening and labor. Smoking, a privilege, was permitted in the workplace providing there wasn't any hazardous condition, but inmates were not permitted to smoke between the recreation yard and work. Lunch was served at 11:20 am, followed by a 30-minute rest in the cell, before returning to work until 16:15.[39] Dinner was served at 16:25 and the prisoners would then retire to their cells to be locked in for the night at 16:50, and lights went off at 21:30.[39][60] After being locked in for the night, 6 guards usually patrolled the four cell blocks.[59] Many prisoners have compared their duration at Alcatraz to hell and would have preferred death to continued incarceration.[61]

 

Alcatraz Library was located at the end of D-Block. Upon entering Alcatraz, every inmate was given a library card and a catalog of books found in the library; inmates could place orders by putting a slip with their card in a box at the entrance to the dining hall before breakfast, and the books would be delivered to and from their cell by a librarian.[62][63][60] The library, which utilized a closed-stack paging system, had a collection of 10,000 to 15,000 books, mainly left over from the army days.[64][63][60] Inmates were permitted a maximum of three books in addition to up to 12 text books, a Bible, and a dictionary.[60] They were permitted to subscribe to magazines but crime-related pages were torn out and newspapers were prohibited.[63] Sex, crime and violence were censored from all books and magazines, and the library was governed by a chaplain who regulated the censorship and the nature of the reading material to ensure that the material was wholesome.[60][64] Failure to return books by the date given made the inmate liable to removal of privileges.[60] The average prisoner read 75 to 100 books a year.[65] Every evening, inmates would generally read books loaned from the library and usually an hour or 75 minutes was allocated to the practicing of musical instruments, from the guitar to the accordion. A prison band often practiced in the dining room or auditorium above it; Al Capone famously practiced the banjo in the shower block, although most prisoners were limited to playing in their cells alone.[66]

 

Alcatraz cellhouse had a corridor naming system named after major American streets and landmarks. Michigan Avenue was the corridor to the side of A-Block, and Broadway was the central corridor in which the inmates would assemble as they massed through Times Square (an area with a clock on the wall), before entering the dining hall for their meals. Broadway separated Block-B and Block-C and prisoners kept along it had the least privacy in the prison.[67] The corridor between Block-C and the library was called Park Avenue.[67] The corridor in D-Block was named Sunset Strip. Gun galleries lay at the end of each block, including the West and

 

A-Block was never modernized, so retained its "flat strap-iron bars, key locks and spiral staircases" from the original military prison.[68] No inmates were permanently held there during the years Alcatraz was a federal penitentiary. Several inmates, however, were held briefly in A-Block before a hearing or transfer.[68] In the later years, A-Block was mainly used for storage. A law library was set up at some point, where inmates could type legal documents.[68] A small barber's shop was located at the end of A-block where inmates would have a monthly haircut.[68]

B-Block

 

Most new inmates at Alcatraz were assigned to the second tier of B-Block.[69] They had "quarantine status" for their first three months in confinement in Alcatraz, and were not permitted visitors for a minimum of 90 days.[69][70] Inmates were permitted one visitor a month, although anybody likely to cause trouble such as registered criminals were barred from visiting. Letters received by inmates were checked by prison staff first, to see if they could decipher any secret messages.[10][71] Frank Morris and his fellow escapees escaped Alcatraz during the June 1962 escape from Alcatraz by entering a utility corridor behind B-Block.[4]:120

 

D-Block gained notoriety as a "Treatment block" for some of the worst inmates, with varying degrees of punishment, including Isolation, Solitary and Strip.[72] Prisoners usually spent anywhere from 3 to 19 days in Solitary.[72] Prisoners held here would be given their meals in their cells, were not permitted to work and could only shower twice a week. After a 1939 escape attempt in which Arthur "Doc" Barker was killed, the Bureau of Prisons tightened security in the D-Block. The Birdman of Alcatraz inhabited cell 42 in D-Block in solitary confinement for 6 years.

D-Block

 

The worst cells for confinement as a punishment for inmates who stepped out of line were located at the end of D-Block in cells 9–14, known as "The Hole".[73] Inmates held in the hole were limited to just one 10-minute shower and an hour of exercise in the yard a week.[74][72] The five cells of "The Hole" had nothing but a sink and toilet and the very worst cell was nicknamed "The Oriental" or "Strip Cell", the final cell of the block with nothing but a hole in the floor as a toilet, in which prisoners would often be confined naked with nothing else for two days.[67][72] The guards controlled the flushing of the toilet in that cell.[8] After completing the punishment in the hole, the prisoner could then return to his cell but be tagged; a red tag, third grade, denoted a prisoner who was restricted from leaving his cell for perhaps 3 months.[39] At second grade the prisoners could receive letters, and if after 30 days they remained behaved, they would then be restored full prison privileges.[39]

 

Its size was approximately that of a regular cell-9 feet by 5 feet by about 7 feet high. I could just touch the ceiling by stretching out my arm ... You are stripped nude and pushed into the cell. Guards take your clothes and go over them minutely for what few grains of tobacco may have fallen into the cuffs or pockets. There is no soap. No tobacco. No toothbrush, The smell – well you can describe it only by the word 'stink.' It is like stepping into a sewer. It is nauseating. After they have searched your clothing, they throw it at you. For bedding, you get two blankets, around 5 in the evening. You have no shoes, no bed, no mattress-nothing but the four damp walls and two blankets. The walls are painted black. Once a day I got three slices of bread—no—that is an error. Some days I got four slices. I got one meal in five days, and nothing but bread in between. In the entire thirteen days I was there, I got two meals ... I have seen but one man get a bath in solitary confinement, in all the time that I have been there. That man had a bucket of cold water thrown over him.

 

Alcatraz Dining Hall, often referred to as the Mess Hall, is the dining hall where the prisoners and staff ate their meals. It is a long wing on the west end of the Main Cellhouse of Alcatraz, situated in the center of the island.[76] It is connected to the block by a corridor known as "Times Square", as it passes beneath a large clock approaching the entrance way to the dining hall.[4]:93 This wing includes the dining hall and the kitchen beyond it. On the second floor was the hospital and the auditorium, which was where movies were screened to the inmates at weekends.[77]

 

Dining hall protocol was a scripted process, including a whistle system to indicate which block and tier of men would move into and out of the hall at any given time, who sat where, where to place hands, and when to start eating.[78] Prisoners would be awakened at 6:30 am, and sent to breakfast at 6:55 am.[39] A breakfast menu is still preserved on the hallway board, dated 21 March 1963. The breakfast menu included assorted dry cereals, steamed whole wheat, a scrambled egg, milk, stewed fruit, toast, bread, and butter. Lunch was served in the dining hall at 11:20 am, followed by a 30-minute rest in the cell, before returning to work until 16:15.[39] Dinner was served at 16:25 and the prisoners would then go to their cells at 16:50 to be locked in for the night.[39] Inmates were permitted to eat as much as they liked within 20 minutes, provided they left no waste; waste would be reported and may make the prisoner subject to removal of privileges if they made a habit of it.[79][40]

 

Each dining table had benches which held up to six men, although smaller tables and chairs later replaced these which seated four.[44] All of the prison population, including the guards and officials would dine together, thus seating over 250 people.[44][80] The food served at Alcatraz was reportedly the best in the United States prison system.[79]

 

The Recreation Yard was the yard used by inmates of the prison between 1934 and 1963. It is located opposite the dining hall south of the end of D-Block, facing the mainland on a raised level surrounded by a high wall and fence above it.[81][82][83] Guard Tower #3 lay just to the west of the yard.[84] The gun gallery was situated in the yard, mounted on one of the dining hall's exterior walls.[45]

 

In 1936, the previously dirt-covered yard was paved.[85] The yard was part of the most violent escape attempt from Alcatraz in May 1946 when a group of inmates hatched a plot to obtain the key into the recreation yard, kill the tower guards, take hostages, and use them as shields to reach the dock.[86]

 

Inmates were permitted out into the yard on Saturdays and Sundays and on holidays for a maximum of 5 hours.[87][88] Inmates who worked seven days a week in the kitchen were rewarded with short yard breaks during the weekdays.[88] Badly behaved prisoners were liable to having their yard access rights taken away from them on weekends.[88] The prisoners of Alcatraz were permitted to play games such as baseball, softball and other sports at these times and intellectual games such as chess.[87] Because of the small size of the yard and the diamond at the end of it, a section of the wall behind the first base had to be padded to cushion the impact of inmates overrunning it.[89] Inmates were provided gloves, bats, and balls, but no sport uniforms. In 1938, there were four amateur teams, the Bees, Oaks, Oilers, and Seals, named after Minor League clubs, and four league teams named after Major League clubs, the Cardinals, Cubs, Giants, and Tigers.[90] Many of the inmates used weekends in the yards to converse with each other and discuss crime, the only real opportunities they had during the week for a durable conversation.[91]

 

The Warden's House is located at the northeastern end of the Main Cellblock, next to Alcatraz Lighthouse. The 3-floor 15-room mansion was built in 1921 according to the Golden Gate National Recreational Area signpost,[92] although some sources say it was built in 1926 or 1929 and had 17 or 18 rooms.[93]

 

Between 1934 and 1963, the four wardens of Alcatraz resided here, including the first warden, James A. Johnston. A house of luxury, in stark contrast to the jail next to it, the wardens often held lavish cocktail parties here.[94] The signpost at the spot shows a photograph of a trusted inmate doing chores at the house for the warden and that the house had a terraced garden and greenhouse.[92] The mansion had tall windows, providing fine views of San Francisco Bay.[93] Today, the house is a ruin, burned down by Native Americans during the

 

Building 64 Residential Apartments was the first building constructed on the island of Alcatraz, intended entirely for the purpose of accommodating the military officers and their families living on the island.[95] Located next to the dock on the southeastern side of the island, below the Warden's House,[96] the three-story apartment block was built in 1905 on the site of a U.S. Army barracks which had been there from the 1860s. It functioned as the Military Guard Barracks from 1906 until 1933. One of its largest apartments in the southwest corner was known as the "Cow Palace" and a nearby alleyway was known as "Chinatown".[95]

 

The Social Hall, also known as the Officers' Club, was a social club located on the northwestern side of the island. Located in proximity to the Power House, water tower and Former Military Chapel (Bachelor Quarters), it formerly housed the post exchange.[97] The club was a social venue for the Federal Penitentiary workers and their families on the island to unwind after a hard week's work dealing with America's most hardened criminals after they'd been locked up at 17:30.[98][99] It was burned down by Native Americans during the Occupation of Alcatraz in 1970, leaving a shell which still remains.

 

The club had a small bar, library, large dining and dance floor, billiards table, ping pong table and a two-lane bowling alley, and was the centre of social life on the island for the employees of the penitentiary.[100][101][102] It regularly hosted dinners, bingo events, and from the 1940s onwards showed movies every Sunday night after they had been shown to the inmates during the day on Saturday and Sunday.[100][4]:128 The club was responsible for organizing numerous special events on the island (held either in the hall or the Parade Grounds) and the fundraising associated with it, anything from ice cream and watermelon feasts to Halloween fancy dress and Christmas parties.[100][103]

 

The Power House is located on the northwest coast of Alcatraz Island. It was constructed in 1939 for $186,000 as part of a $1.1 million modernization scheme which also included the water tower, New Industries Building, officers quarters and remodeling of the D-block.[69] The white powerhouse smokestack and lighthouse were said to give an "appearance of a ship's mast on either side of the island".[104] A sign reading "A Warning. Keep Off. Only Government permitted within 200 yards" lay in front of the powerhouse to deter people landing on the island at the point.

 

Between 1939 and 1963, it supplied power to the Federal Penitentiary and other buildings on the island. The powerhouse had a tower duty station which was guarded with a "30-caliber Winchester rifle with 50 rounds of ammunition, a 1911 semiautomatic pistol with three seven-round magazines, three gas grenades, and a gas mask."[105]

 

The water tower is located on the northwestern side of the island, near Tower No. 3, beyond the Morgue and Recreation Yard.[106] The water tank is situated on six cross-braced steel legs submerged in concrete foundations.[dubious – discuss][107]

 

As Alcatraz had no water supply of its own, it had to import it from the mainland, brought by tug and barge.[108] During the island's military years, there were in-ground water tanks and water tanks were situated on the roof of the citadel.[109] The water tower was built in 1940–41 by the Federal Bureau of Prisons,[110] after the island received a government renovations grant to supply the majority of the island's fresh water.[109][dubious – discuss]

 

It is the tallest building on the island, at a height of 94 feet (29 m) with a volume of 250,000 US gallons (950 kL) gallons of fresh water. It was used to store potable water for drinking, water for firefighting, and water for the island's service

 

The Model Industries Building is a three/four-story building on the northwest corner of Alcatraz Island. This building was originally built by the U.S. military and was used as a laundry building until the New Industries Building was built as part of a redevelopment program on Alcatraz in 1939 when it was a federal penitentiary. As part of the Alcatraz jail, it held workshops for inmates to work in.[112]

Inmates working in the sewing room

 

On 10 January 1935, the building shifted to within 2.5 feet from the edge of the cliff following a landslide caused by a severe storm. The warden at the time, James A. Johnston, proposed extend the seawall next to it and asked the Bureau for $6500 to fund it; he would later claim to dislike the building because it was irregularly shaped.[69] A smaller, cheaper riprap was completed by the end of 1935. A guard tower and a catwalk from Hill Tower was added to the roof of the Industries Building in June 1936 and the building was made secure with bars from old cells to bar the windows and grill the roof ventilators and to prevent inmates from escaping from the roof.[69] It ceased use as a laundry in 1939 when it was moved to the upper floor of the New Industries Building. Today the building is heavily rusted after decades of exposure to the salt air and wind, and neither the guard tower on top of the building nor the Hill Tower still exist.

 

The New Industries Building was constructed in 1939 for $186,000 as part of a $1.1 million modernization scheme which also included the water tower, power house, officers' quarters and remodeling of the D-block.[8]

 

The ground floor of the two-story 306 ft long building contained a clothing factory, dry cleaning plant, furniture plant, brush factory, and an office, where prisoners of the federal penitentiary could work for money.[8] They earned a small wage for their labour which was put into an account, known as a Prisoner's Trust Fund, which would be given to them upon leaving Alcatraz.[113] They made items such as gloves, furniture mats, and army uniforms.[112] The laundry room occupied the entire upper floor, the largest in San Francisco at the time.[8][112] Each window has 9 panes and there are 17 bays on each floor on either side.

 

Arthur Barker.jpg Arthur R. Barker ("Doc") #268 1935–39 Arthur Barker (4 June 1899 – 13 January 1939) was the son of Ma Barker and a member of the Barker-Karpis gang along with Alvin Karpis. In 1935, Barker was sent to Alcatraz Island on conspiracy to kidnap charges. On the night of 13 January 1939, Barker with Henri Young and Rufus McCain attempted escape from Alcatraz. Barker was shot and killed by the guards.[114]

Acaponeh.jpg Alphonse "Al" Gabriel Capone ("Scarface") #85 1934–39 When Al Capone (17 January 1899 – 25 January 1947) arrived on Alcatraz in 1934, prison officials made it clear that he would not be receiving any preferential treatment. While serving his time in Atlanta Federal Penitentiary, Capone, a master manipulator, had continued running his rackets from behind bars by buying off guards.[38] Capone generated major media attention while on Alcatraz, though he served just four and a half years of his sentence there[38] before developing symptoms of tertiary syphilis and poor mental health before being transferred to the Federal Correctional Institution at Terminal Island in Los Angeles in 1938. He tried his best to seek favors from warden Johnston, but failed, and was given work in the prison performing numerous menial jobs. Capone was involved in many fights with fellow prisoners, including one with an inmate who held a blade to his throat in the prison barbershop after Capone attempted to jump the queue. He was released from jail in November 1939 and lived in Miami until his death in 1947 at 48 years of age.[38][115]

Mickey Cohen.jpg Meyer Harris Cohen ("Mickey") #1518 1961–63 Mickey Cohen (4 September 1913 – 29 July 1976) worked for the Mafia's gambling rackets; he was convicted of tax evasion and sentenced to 15 years in Alcatraz Island.[116] He was transferred to the United States Penitentiary in Atlanta shortly before Alcatraz closed permanently on 21 March 1963. While at Atlanta, on 14 August 1963, fellow inmate Burl Estes McDonald clobbered[117] Cohen with a lead pipe, partially paralyzing the mobster. After his release in 1972, Cohen led a quiet life with old friends.[118]

BumpyJohnsonAlcatrazPrisonCropped.jpg Ellsworth Raymond Johnson ("Bumpy") #1117 1954–63 "Bumpy" Johnson (31 October 1905 – 7 July 1968), referred to as the "Godfather of Harlem", was an African-American gangster, numbers operator, racketeer, and bootlegger in Harlem in the early 20th century. He was sent to Alcatraz in 1954 and was imprisoned until 1963. He was believed to have been involved in the 1962 escape attempt of Frank Morris, John and Clarence Anglin.[119]

Alvin Karpis.jpg Alvin Francis Karpavicz ("Creepy Karpis") #325 1936–62 Alvin Karpis (10 August 1907 – 26 August 1979) was Canadian, of Lithuanian descent. He was nicknamed "Creepy" for his sinister smile and called "Ray" by his gang members. He was known for being one of the three leaders of the Ma Barker-Karpis gang in the 1930s; the other two leaders were Fred and Doc Barker of the Ma Barker Gang. He was the only "Public Enemy #1" to be taken personally by J. Edgar Hoover. There were only four "public enemies" ever given the title of "Public Enemy #1" by the FBI. The other three, John Dillinger, Pretty Boy Floyd, and Baby Face Nelson, were all killed before being captured.[120] He also spent the longest time as a federal prisoner in Alcatraz Prison at 26 years. Karpis was credited with ten murders and six kidnappings apart from bank robbery. He was deported to Canada in 1971 and died in Spain in 1979.[115][121][122]

MachineGunKelly.jpg George Kelly Barnes ("Machine Gun Kelly") #117 1934–51 "Machine Gun Kelly" (18 July 1895 – 18 July 1954) arrived on 4 September 1934. At Alcatraz, Kelly was constantly boasting about several robberies and murders that he had never committed.[123] Although his boasts were said to be tiresome to other prisoners, Warden Johnson considered him a model inmate. Inmate #139, Harvey Bailey was his partner. Kelly was returned to Leavenworth in 1951.

Robert Garcia visiting Rafael Cancel Miranda.jpg Rafael Cancel Miranda #1163 1954–60 In July 1954, Rafael Cancel Miranda (18 July 1930 – 2 March 2020) was sent to Alcatraz, where he served six years of his sentence. At Alcatraz he was a model prisoner,[3] where he worked in the brush factory and served as an altar boy at Catholic services. His closest friends were fellow Puerto Ricans Emerito Vasquez and Hiram Crespo-Crespo. They spoke Spanish and watched out for each other. On the recreation yard he often played chess with "Bumpy" Johnson.[3] He also befriended Morton Sobell; they developed a friendship that lasts to this day.[3]

 

His family made trips to San Francisco to visit him, but he wasn't allowed to see his children. His wife was allowed to talk to him through a glass in the visiting room, using a phone. They were not allowed to speak in Spanish and had to speak in English.[124] He was transferred to Leavenworth in 1960.

RobertStroud.jpg Robert Franklin Stroud ("Birdman of Alcatraz") #594 1942–59 Robert Stroud, who was better known to the public as the Birdman of Alcatraz (28 January 1890 – 21 November 1963), was transferred to Alcatraz in 1942. At a young age he took to pimping and was involved in a murder during a drunken brawl. After terms in McNeil Island and Leavenworth Federal Prison, where he had killed Officer Andrew Turner, he was transferred to Alcatraz, with his sentence extended.

 

A self-taught ornithologist, he wrote several books. His Digest on the Diseases of Birds is considered a classic in Ornithology. He was confined to D-Block in solitary confinement for most of his duration in Alcatraz.[125] and after a term in the prison hospital, was transferred to the Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Missouri, due to seriously detioriating health.[6] Although he was given the name "The Birdman of Alcatraz", he was not permitted to keep birds in his prison cell at Alcatraz, as he had at Leavenworth, because it was prohibited. He died in 1963.[6][24][126][127]

 

The Native Americans mentioned the evil spirits they purportedly encountered on the island long before it became a military prison.[128] Mark Twain visited it, found the atmosphere of the island eerie, and described it as "being as cold as winter, even in the summer months."[129] The alleged haunting of the prison has been documented in numerous paranormal television series.[130]

IMO 9321938

Vessel Type - Generic: Tanker

Vessel Type - Detailed: Oil/Chemical Tanker

Status: Active

MMSI: 353265000

Call Sign: 3FOP5

Flag: Panama [PA]

Gross tonnage: 30068

Summer DWT: 51,202 tons

Overall Length x Maximum Beam: 183.08 x 32.24 m

Year of construction: 2007

Base port: PANAMA

Valparaiso;Chile

Jaguar MkI "BUY 1" hard working to catch up the Alfa and the Austin A40 for the St Mary's lead !

 

Great action from Goodwood Revival 2017.

Bevels and frames - my new way to play!

Queso elaborado de modo artesanal con leche cruda de ovejas, de coagulación enzimática, mediante el empleo de coagulante vegetal.

En su aspecto externo presenta una forma rectangular con la corteza un poco rugosa, delgada y lavada con baños de aceite de oliva virgen, totalmente comestible.

En el interior presenta una pasta con una cremosidad media, pequeños ojos y color marfil.

Su olor es ligero, con pequeños recuerdos a oveja, pero nunca desagradable.

En boca es fundente, con sabor pronunciado y con personalidad, con toques lácticos equilibrados entre sal y acidez, con pequeños toques amargos y grasos en el retrogusto muy agradable.

El queso se presenta en formato rectangular con un peso aproximado de 3,400 Kg.

Este queso lo elaboran los hermanos Cesáreo y José María Sánchez López propietarios de la quesería Castrum-Erat, ubicada en el municipio español de Castuera, perteneciente a la provincia de Badajoz (comunidad autónoma de Extremadura).

S Exposure

Kingston Penitentiary,. maximum security cell block 2G1.

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Made for LeLUTKA Eon Head 4.0 EvoX

 

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- [ INITHIUM ] KARIO

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- [Signature] Gianni - Mesh Body - v6.1

 

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COMPLETE STYLECARD INCLUDED

 

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www.brook-ward.com/blog/2021/8/16/maximum-security

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Made for LeLUTKA Luka Head 4.0 EvoX

 

This shape fits the bodies:

 

- [LEGACY] Meshbody (m) Athletic Edition (1.6)

- -Belleza- Mesh Body Jake

- [ INITHIUM ] KARIO

- [Signature] Davis - Mesh Body - v1.2

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Minimal motion. Maximum drama.

Shot during a Leica Akademie fashion shoot with @markdepaolo. A study in texture, posture, and mood—styled in classic trench, captured with Leica’s 75mm Noctilux.

 

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The 2019 Kentucky Derby winner (then DQ'd to be 17th) finished his career in the 2020 Breeders' Cup Classic. The son of New Year's Day enters his first season at srud in 2021.

Chassis n° 4607

 

Les Grandes Marques du Monde au Grand Palais 2020

Bonhams

Parijs - Paris

Frankrijk - France

February 2020

 

Estimated : € 1.050.000 - 1.400.000

Sold for € 870.000

 

All the sophistication of Ettore Bugatti's famously thoughtful design ethic is embodied within this wonderfully well-presented ex-works racing Bugatti Type 39, as manufactured at the charismatic Molsheim factory in 1925...

 

Mr Bugatti built his reputation upon creating rapid and reliable motor cars endowed with competitively powerful engines in light, compact, and nimble chassis. Above all he clearly grasped the over-riding importance of a high power-to-weight ratio in contrast to some other quality car constructors to whom overall weight seemed irrelevant compared to achieving the highest possible power not necessarily out there on the open road, nor race circuit, but in the engine test-house...

 

While combining in so many of his sporting models high power, minimal mass and a good-handling, driveable chassis, Ettore Bugatti also manufactured most of them in sufficient numbers to attract, and to satisfy, broad demand from a moneyed and dashingly competition-minded market.

 

In 1924 Mr Bugatti had launched his 2-litre Type 35 design, and by 1925 the Type 39 followed to comply with maximum 1500cc Voiturette racing regulations – effectively the Formula 2 of the time. Use of a short-stroke crankshaft in the straight-8 cylinder engine provided bore and stroke measurements of 60mm x 66mm, displacing 1493cc. Possibly Mr Bugatti was anticipating the overall Grand Prix capacity limit rule change for 1926-27 which would cut maximum permitted engine capacity from 2-litres to 1½.

 

The Type 39s made their debut in the Grand Prix de Tourisme at Montlhéry south of Paris, France, in June 1925. The four new works team cars promptly finished 1-2-3-4 in their class, and in 3rd place was '4607' now offered here, driven by Giulio Foresti.

 

Of course the pinnacle of road racing competition during the 1920s was the Grand Prix arena, and when the1925 Italian Grand Prix at Monza Autodrome was run concurrently with the 1500cc Gran Premio delle Vetturette the Bugatti company contested it with a full team of five Type 39s.

 

The race was run over 80 laps of the Milanese Autodrome's 10km combined road and high-speed track. Bugatti's team captain was Bartolomeo 'Meo' Costantini, teamed to drive with Jules Goux, Pierre de Vizcaya, Count Carlo Masetti and Count Aymo Maggi, who was replacing Ferdinand de Vizcaya, the Spanish banker – and backer of the Bugatti company - who arrived late from Barcelona. And when Count Masetti had to stand down due to a leg injury, it was Giulio Foresti who took his place to drive '4607' in the long race...

 

As the Gran Premio developed, the Bugattis not only dominated the Voiturette category but also climbed the leader board amongst the full 2-litre Grand Prix cars. Finally – after 5hrs 44mins 40.91secs to be precise (the Italian lap-scorers immensely proud of their then-new hundredth-second timing equipment) the Gran Premio delle Vetturette was decided with Costantini's Bugatti Type 39 winning from the sister cars of Ferdinand de Vizcaya and Giulio Foresti, respectively 2nd and 3rd. Pierre de Vizcaya's Type 39 placed fourth while Jules Goux's engine had failed after 64 of the 80 laps. Overall, the Bugatti Type 39s had proved so fast and reliable that Costantini finished the Grand Prix 3rd overall, Ferdinand de Vizcaya 6th and Foresti in '4607' now offered here, 7th.

 

A record survives of this car and its sister '4604' both being sold soon after to the British importer, Colonel Sorel in London, and it is thought that Giulio Foresti – an accomplished 'wheeler-dealer' in his own right – then found an eager buyer for the pair – one A.V.Turner - in Australia, although alternative reference suggests that '4607' was imported there by prominent Vauxhall driver Boyd Edkins.

 

On June 19, 1926, the car certainly appeared upon Sydney's high-banked Maroubra Speedway driven by a friend and colleague of Edkins, Dick Clarke. While the Type 39s – or 'Monzas' as they became known in Australia – became particularly noted for their wonderfully high-pitched exhaust note, they were not well-suited to Maroubra, since they were over-geared for the tight Speedway. Clarke was still able to win a heat there on September 4, 1926, and '4607' lapped the speedbowl at 86mph. At Penrith Clarke won a heat and a semi-final before taking 2nd and 3rd places in two further events. Then back at Maroubra for the January, 1927 meeting Clarke won two heats and took 2nd in a final.

 

The car later passed to 20-year-old Sid Cox, son of a wealthy building magnate. The young man also had a Bugatti Type 40 which he used as a tender when he took '4607' to Philip Island, Melbourne, Victoria, to race in the 1928 Australian Grand Prix. With friend Ken McKinney alongside him Sid Cox practised for the great race only for bronze filings to be found in the oil filter, a sign that the power unit's bronze roller-bearing cages were failing. On race day, sure enough, '4607's engine broke a connecting rod.

 

A new crankcase and sump were bought for the car, but the old sump was used in the rebuild, mated to the new crankcase. Cox then sold '4607' to poster-artist Reg St John who became noted for maintaining the Bugatti in utterly pristine, highly polished and well-cherished condition. He reportedly used it to parade up and down Swanston Street, Melbourne, admiring his reflection in the shop windows. And why not?

 

However, Australian racer Carl Junker then acquired the car and – with Reg Nutt as his riding mechanic – he entered it in the 1931 Australian GP again at Philip Island. They were running second behind Hope Bartlett's Bugatti Type 37A on the penultimate lap when its engine failed, Junker and Nutt joyously inheriting outright Grand Prix victory for '4607'. Ernie Nutt had tuned the car and he would recall that Junker used 7,000rpm through the gears, '4607' achieving 55mph in 1st, 72mph in 2nd and 103mph in 3rd.

 

Racing again in the 1932 Australian GP, Junker improved his lap times but fell victim to spark-plug trouble which meant he could finish only 5th. Completing the long race ahead of him that day was Merton Wreford in his Brescia Bugatti, and he later bought '4607' from Junker, reputedly after it had suffered another engine failure.

 

Mert Wreford fixed the problem and then entered the Type 39 in the 1933 Australian GP in which he found himself confronted by Carl Junker in the sister 1925 Bugatti 'Monza' – chassis '4604'. These two Type 39s proved to be the class of that Grand Prix field and after Junker's engine blew-up, Wreford moved into the lead, only for '4607's engine to fail on the third-last lap. Evidently the two broken 'Monzas' were left parked together at trackside – but Mert Wreford had recorded the race's fastest lap.

 

A new owner was then found for '4607' in specialist Jack Day of the Ajax Pump Works who fitted '4607' with his own 'Day' supercharger, driven from the crankshaft nose. He made his debut with the supercharged car in the August, 1933, Frankston hill-climb. But when the forced-induction experiment disappointed, Jack Day removed the Bugatti engine and fitted instead a Ford V8. This Type 39 thus became the first Australian special to be powered by a 'black iron' American Ford V8. The resultant Day Special proved very successful through 1936, setting new hill-climb records at Mitcham and Rob Roy. Reg Nutt raced the car in monoposto form at Phillip Island, 1937, and in the South Australian GP in 1938.

 

After World War 2, Bondi Beach surf life-saver, water-skier and amateur wrestler 'Gelignite' Jack Murray bought '4607' in its Day Special form from Jack Day, the price £1,100.

 

'Gelignite Jack' would earn his nickname from blowing up rural dunnies with sticks of gelignite during the RedeX Round Australia Trials. Every man needs a hobby....

 

The car "was given the full Murray red paint and chrome treatment" and in it he set fastest time and finished 5th on handicap in the 1946 New South Wales GP at Bathurst. Returning there n 1947 he was tipped to win, but failed to finish. The car was clocked at 106mph. At the 1948 Bathurst 100 the Day Special was recorded at 117mph and placed 3rd on handicap in the over 1500cc class. Overheating often afflicted the car in its Ford V8-engined form, but 'Gelignite Jack' continued to campaign the ageing special into 1954 when he was an amazing 4th fastest and 7th on handicap at the Bathurst Easter Meeting.

 

Subsequently the car survived in storage at Murray's Bondi garage, until he sold it – accompanied by a mass of related Bugatti components – to marque enthusiast Ted Lobb. While the original Type 39 chassis survived within the Day Special, Ted Lobb also had its original engine 'No 7' – which was fitted in his sister car '4604' – so now he also owned the blown-up engine 'No 6' – originally in '4604' – from Jack Day. Around 1974, Ted Lobb sold the Day Special and engine 'No 6' plus numerous other related Bugatti parts to Bob King, who later decided to rebuild '4607' to its 1925 Italian Grand Prix 'Monza' form.

 

He would later write: "The monumental rebuild was completed in the early 1980s, using a Type 39 crankshaft which came from Lance Dixon's Type 51A '4847'. The crankshaft – numbered '27' – was in perfect ex-factory condition, all parts carrying matching factory numbers. A gearbox casing was obtained in England from Ian Preston. The differential is Type 38, suitably altered, from the Nuttbug (BC4)". He concluded "'4607' was sold to Art Valdez of California in 1986...".

 

This restored Bugatti Type 39 was then shipped to Bangkok, Thailand, in time for new owner Art Valdez to drive it in the December 5, 1987, Prince 'Bira' commemorative Bangkok Grand Prix meeting. Anton Perera reported in 'The Nation' newspaper: "There in the parade was the oldest car of them all, a Bugatti Type 39 – all of 62 years with a 1493cc engine. And didn't the smooth engine purr with noise, indicating that it could be a danger on the 2.5km Pattaya Circuit next week...Yes, the 1931 Australian Grand Prix winner looked in perfectly good trim and ready to turn on the speed..."

 

John Fitzpatrick of the Australian Bugatti Register later reported how at Pattaya, where the Vintage race "ended an absolutely magical fortnight...Art Valdez was euphoric after his first race in a GP Bugatti...as Neil Corner wrote recently '...To have your GP Bugatti motoring well is to live with the gods...'".

 

The car was preserved within Mr Valdez's Californian ownership until in April 1993 he telephoned former owner Bob King to declare his intention to sell it. However, it was not until 2017 that the car subsequently passed from Art Valdez into the ownership of the present vendor.

 

Today '4607' presents very well indeed, having recently benefited from a mechanical inspection, strip-down and rebuilt by Tony Ditheridge's renowned Hawker Racing concern in Milden, Suffolk, England. This work included thorough cleaning and re-commissioning - even to the extent of fitting new valve springs. This ex-works Bugatti warhorse was then unleashed successor on the open road. Now, subject to the usual inspections and personal set-up adjustments, '4607' is poised for an active 2020 motoring season.

 

The car is accompanied by a comprehensive historical overview and inspection report compiled by the highly respected British Bugatti specialists David Sewell and Mark Morris.

 

In summary they confirm that "Type 39 chassis '4607' presents itself today as a recognised and well recorded example of the 8-cylinder GP Bugatti". They continue: "One key factor that must be recorded is that the major components are of Molsheim manufacture". The chassis frame is No 61 – while they report that the Molsheim lower (engine) crankcase is '7' ex-'4604' – the Molsheim upper (engine) crankcase is '114' – the Molsheim cambox 'No 7' – the Molsheim gearbox 'No 113' – the Molsheim gearbox lid No '856' – while the Molsheim rear axle centre casing has been modified from that of a touring car, ratio 12x54, 'No 284'.

 

So here BONHAMS is delighted to commend to the market this Bugatti Type 39 – the eminently useable (and potentially so enjoyable – and so raceable) winner of the 1931 Australian Grand Prix – and previously works driver Giulio Foresti's works team car, with third place in the 1925 Grand Prix de Tourism –third place in the 1925 Italian Gran Premio delle Vetturette at Monza – and 7th in the overall Italian Grand Prix, all so prominent within its history.

 

Just one decisive bid, and this fine example of Le Pur Sang – which such a jam-packed history on both road and track - could be yours...

👉 BUY IT HERE

 

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SPONSORS:

 

The skin used is the BRABOS - Cassian Skin., available exclusively at ALPHA event until tomorrow December 17th!!!! Run to get yours!!!

👉 @Taxi_ALPHA

 

The hairbase used in the UNLEASH - Solik shaved hairbase, it's available in UNLEASH mainstore!

👉 @Taxi_UNLEASH

 

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Made for LeLUTKA Kris Head 4.0 EvoX

 

This shape fits the bodies:

 

- [LEGACY] Meshbody (m) Athletic Edition (1.6)

- -Belleza- Mesh Body Jake

- [ INITHIUM ] KARIO

- [Signature] Davis - Mesh Body - v1.2

- [Signature] Gianni - Mesh Body - v6.1

 

This shape is a LIMITED EDITION, with only 03 items available!

 

COMPLETE STYLECARD INCLUDED

 

If you have any doubt feel free to question me in world!

 

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Another from HECC victory over Thurrock CC

👉 BUY IT HERE

 

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ALL THE STUFF (unless the jeans, shoes, nails and the body skin) USED ARE GIFS!!!!

 

Specially, the face skin used is the Camden Skin. BRABOS feature all colos of the Not Found and Velours skins System, with the options of growing and shaved beard!!!! Go and get your one and meet the the New BRABOS store!!! 👉TaXi

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

 

Made for LeLUTKA Camden Head 4.0 EvoX

 

This shape fits the bodies:

 

- [LEGACY] Meshbody (m) Athletic Edition (1.6)

- -Belleza- Mesh Body Jake

- [ INITHIUM ] KARIO

- [Signature] Davis - Mesh Body - v1.2

- [Signature] Gianni - Mesh Body - v6.1

 

COMPLETE STYLECARD INCLUDED

 

If you have any doubt feel free to question me in world!

  

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

 

📌 FACEBOOK POST

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Baggage compartment in a Lockheed Lodestar that has been cannibalized for parts. A total of 625 them were built and these being the last Lockheeds to have only 2 engines...so a rare find indeed! Location not disclosed at owners request.

 

181 second exposure, green gelled flashlight.

 

Click on the image, because it's best BIG on BLACK!!!

www.easternstate.org

@ Katase-Enoshima Beach, Kanagawa / Japan

 

The maximum view size was changed to 4K.

Check out my photostream!

Thanks.

 

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Thank you for visiting.

Don't use this image without my explicit permission.

Please refer to tag about equipments.

 

2次利用の際は事前に声をかけて下さい。

使用機材に関してはタグを参照してください。Early autumn -5-

Maximum View !

  

_DSC5547 copy Color burn sharp HPL 24 pxl

Collegium Maximum of the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Poland

pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collegium_Maximum_Uniwersytetu_Miko...

Pennington County Jail Inmate

 

These hinged maximum security cuffs feature a pick resistant wafer lock. When double locked, these are the worlds most difficult cuffs to pick. Utilizing a wafer lock that requires a separate special key, the HSS9 cannot be opened with any other handcuff key. Not even other HSS9 keys.

Maximum security chicken prison full of innocents according to acclaimed activist.

Atlanticwall Regelbau S75 & S80 - 38 cm S.K.C/34 Naval Gun - The Adolf Gun Bunker.

 

YouTube Video

YouTube Video in 360°

YouTube Channel

 

S75 is the ammunition depot of the Bunker and

The S80 is the for machine room and room for crew.

 

The 38 cm SK C/34 naval gun was developed by Germany mid to late 1930s. It armed the Bismarck-class battleships and was planned as the armament of the O-class battlecruisers and the re-armed Scharnhorst-class battleships. Six twin-gun mountings were also sold to the Soviet Union and it was planned to use them on the Kronshtadt-class battlecruisers, however they were never delivered. Spare guns were used as coastal artillery in Denmark, Norway and France. One gun is currently on display at Møvig Fortress outside Kristiansand.

 

Ammunition

It used the standard German naval system of ammunition where the base charge was held in a metallic cartridge case and supplemented by another charge in a silk bag. Both cartridges were rammed together.

 

Propellant charge

Main charge: 38 cm HuelsKart34 – GefLdG – 108 kg (238 lb) RPC 38 (16/7)

 

Fore charge: 38 cm VorKart34 – GefLdG – 104 kg (229 lb) RPC 38 (16/7)

 

Shell

Four types of shells were used by the 38 cm SK C/34 although the Siegfried-Granate could only be used by the coast defense versions. Almost 40 percent lighter, this latter shell could be fired with a reduced charge at 920 metres per second (3,000 ft/s) out to 40 kilometres (44,000 yd). With a full charge it reached 1,050 metres per second (3,400 ft/s) and could travel 55.7 kilometres (60,900 yd) – over 34 miles.

 

Naval gun

The data given is according to Krupp datasheet 38 cm S.K.C/34 e WA52-453(e). This gun was mounted in pairs in the Drh.L. C/34e turret which allowed elevation from -5° 30' to +30°. Each gun had an individual cradle, spaced 3.5 metres (11 ft) apart, but they were normally coupled together. In general the turret was hydraulically powered, but the training gear, auxiliary elevation, auxiliary hoists and some loading gear was electrically powered. The turrets weighed 1,048 tonnes (1,031 long tons; 1,155 short tons) to 1,056 tonnes (1,039 long tons; 1,164 short tons), rested on ball bearings on a 8.75 metres (28.7 ft) diameter track, could elevate 6° per second and traverse 5.4° per second. The guns were loaded at +2.5° and used a telescoping chain-operated rammer. According to German manuals the required permanent capacity for the loading equipment for ammunition was 2.5 shells per minute. During testing period at the Baltic Sea the AVKS Report states an output of the ammunition delivery system up to 3.125 shells per minute. Under battle conditions Bismarck averaged roughly one round per minute in her battle with HMS Hood and Prince of Wales.

 

These guns were modified with a larger chamber for coast defense duties to handle the increased amount of propellant used for the special long-range Siegfried shells. Gander and Chamberlain quote a weight of 105.3 tonnes (103.6 long tons; 116.1 short tons) for these guns, presumably accounting for the extra volume of the enlarged chamber. An armored single mount, the Bettungsschiessgerüst ("Firing platform") C/39 was used by these guns. It had a maximum elevation of 60° and could traverse up to 360°, depending on the emplacement. The C/39 mount had two compartments; the upper housed the guns and their loading equipment, while the lower contained the ammunition hoists, their motors, and the elevation and traverse motors. The mount was fully powered and had an underground magazine. Normally these were placed in open concrete barbettes, relying on their armor, but Hitler thought that there was not enough protection for the guns of Battery Todt emplaced on Cap-Gris-Nez in the Pas de Calais near Wimereux and ordered a concrete casemate 3.5 m (11 ft) thick built over and around the mounts. This had the unfortunate effect of limiting their traverse to 120°. Other C/39 mounts were installed at the Hanstholm fortress in Denmark, and the Vara fortress in Kristiansand, Norway.

 

Four Drh LC/34 turrets, three of which were originally intended to re-arm the Gneisenau and one completed to the Soviet order, modified for land service, were planned to be emplaced at Paimpol, Brittany and on the Cap de la Hague on the Cotentin Peninsula, but construction never actually began. Construction for two of those turrets was well underway at Blaavand-Oksby, Denmark when the war ended.

 

how is a Regelbau

Before and during World War II, the Wehrmacht built several standardised bunkers and weapon positions in Germany and German-occupied countries. These buildings were called Regelbau, i.e. standardised buildings.

 

The Regelbau (German for "standard design") were a series of standardised bunker designs built in large numbers by the Germans in the Siegfried Line (German: Westwall) and the Atlantic Wall as part of their defensive fortifications prior to and during the Second World War.

 

#Bunker #WorldWar2 #Atlanticwall

Beach life in June.

 

This is a long exposure photo taken at ISO 50 for capturing the maximum dynamic range. Should I have had the A7Riii back then I would have got 1.2 stops more of that range, compared to the A9's DR. Still ISO50 is a tiny bit better than ISO 100.

 

The above might not mean anything to you so let's just enjoy the view. Missing summer already?

 

Connect with me at jimmakos.com/photography

++++++++ FROM WIKIPEDIA ++++++++++

 

Kalimpong is a hill station in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located at an average elevation of 1,250 metres (4,101 ft).[2] The town is the headquarters of the Kalimpong district.[3] The Indian Army's 27 Mountain Division is located on the outskirts of the town.[4]

 

Kalimpong is known for its educational institutions, many of which were established during the British colonial period.[5] It used to be a gateway in the trade between Tibet and India before China's annexation of Tibet and the Sino-Indian War. Kalimpong and neighbouring Darjeeling were major centres calling for a separate Gorkhaland state in the 1980s, and more recently in 2010.

 

The municipality sits on a ridge overlooking the Teesta River and is a tourist destination owing to its temperate climate, magnificent Himalayan beauty and proximity to popular tourist locations in the region. Horticulture is important to Kalimpong: It has a flower market notable for its wide array of orchids; nurseries, which export Himalayan grown flower bulbs, tubers and rhizomes, contribute to the economy of Kalimpong.[2] Home to Nepalisindigenous Lepchas, other ethnic groups and non-native immigrants from other parts of India, the town is a religious centre of Buddhism. The Tibetan Buddhist monastery Zang Dhok Palri Phodang holds a number of rare Tibetan Buddhist scriptures.[6]

 

The Kalimpong Science Centre, established under the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) in 2008 is a recent addition to its many tourist attractions. The Science Centre, which provides for scientific awareness among the students of the town and the locals sits atop the Deolo Hill.

Contents

 

1 Name origin

2 History

3 Geography

4 Economy

5 Transport

6 Demographics

7 Civic administration

8 People, culture, and cuisine

9 Media

10 Education

11 Flora and fauna

12 Notes

13 References

14 External links

 

Name origin

 

The precise etymology of the name Kalimpong remains unclear. There are many theories on the origin of the name. One widely accepted theory claims that the name "Kalimpong" means "Assembly (or Stockade) of the King's Ministers" in Tibetan, derived from kalon ("King's ministers") and pong ("stockade"). It may be derived from the translation "ridge where we play" from Lepcha, as it was known to be the place for traditional tribal gatherings for summer sporting events. People from the hills call the area Kalempung ("the black spurs").[7]

 

According to K.P. Tamsang, author of The Untold and Unknown Reality about the Lepchas, the term Kalimpong is deduced from the name Kalenpung, which in Lepcha means "Hillock of Assemblage";[8] in time, the name was distorted to Kalebung, and later further contorted to Kalimpong. Another possible derivation points to Kaulim, a fibrous plant found in abundance in the region.[9]

History

Katherine Graham Memorial Chapel, Dr. Graham's Homes

The Clock Tower of Kalimpong.

 

Until the mid-19th century, the area around Kalimpong was ruled in succession by the Sikkimese and Bhutanese kingdoms.[8][10] Under Sikkimese rule, the area was known as Dalingkot.[11] In 1706, the king of Bhutan won this territory from the Sikkimese monarch and renamed it Kalimpong.[11] Overlooking the Teesta Valley, Kalimpong is believed to have once been the forward position of the Bhutanese in the 18th century. The area was sparsely populated by the indigenous Lepcha community and migrant Bhutia and Limbu tribes.

 

After the Anglo-Bhutan War in 1864, the Treaty of Sinchula (1865) was signed, in which Bhutanese held territory east of the Teesta River was ceded to the British East India Company.[8] At that time, Kalimpong was a hamlet, with only two or three families known to reside there.[12] The first recorded mention of the town was a fleeting reference made that year by Ashley Eden, a government official with the Bengal Civil Service. Kalimpong was added to district of Darjeeling in 1866. In 1866–1867 an Anglo-Bhutanese commission demarcated the common boundaries between the two, thereby giving shape to the Kalimpong subdivision and the Darjeeling district.[13]

 

After the war, the region became a subdivision of the Western Duars district, and the following year it was merged with the district of Darjeeling.[8] The temperate climate prompted the British to develop the town as an alternative hill station to Darjeeling, to escape the scorching summer heat in the plains. Kalimpong's proximity to the Nathu La and Jelep La passes (La means "pass"), offshoots of the ancient Silk Road, was an added advantage. It soon became an important trading outpost in the trade of furs, wools and food grains between India and Tibet.[14] The increase in commerce attracted large numbers of Nepali's from the neighbouring Nepal and the lower regions of Sikkim, the areas where, Nepali's were residing since the Gorkha invasion of Sikkim in 1790. The movement of people into the area, transformed Kalimpong from a small hamlet with a few houses, to a thriving town with increased economic prosperity. Britain assigned a plot within Kalimpong to the influential Bhutanese Dorji family, through which trade and relations with Bhutan flowed. This later became Bhutan House, a Bhutanese administrative and cultural centre.[15][16][17]

 

The arrival of Scottish missionaries saw the construction of schools and welfare centres for the British.[12] Rev. W. Macfarlane in the early 1870s established the first schools in the area.[12] The Scottish University Mission Institution was opened in 1886, followed by the Kalimpong Girls High School. In 1900, Reverend J.A. Graham founded the Dr. Graham's Homes for destitute Anglo-Indian students.[12] The young missionary (and aspiring writer and poet) Aeneas Francon Williams, aged 24, arrived in Kalimpong in 1910 to take up the post of assistant schoolmaster at Dr. Graham's Homes,[18] where he later became Bursar and remained working at the school for the next fourteen years.[19] From 1907 onwards, most schools in Kalimpong had started offering education to Indian students. By 1911, the population comprised many ethnic groups, including Nepalis, Lepchas, Tibetans, Muslims, the Anglo-Indian communities. Hence by 1911, the population had swollen to 7,880.[12]

 

Following Indian independence in 1947, Kalimpong became part of the state of West Bengal, after Bengal was partitioned between India and East Pakistan. With China's annexation of Tibet in 1959, many Buddhist monks fled Tibet and established monasteries in Kalimpong. These monks brought many rare Buddhist scriptures with them. In 1962, the permanent closure of the Jelep Pass after the Sino-Indian War disrupted trade between Tibet and India, and led to a slowdown in Kalimpong's economy. In 1976, the visiting Dalai Lama consecrated the Zang Dhok Palri Phodang monastery, which houses many of the scriptures.[12]

Most large houses in Kalimpong were built during the British era. In the background is Mount Kangchenjunga.

Morgan House is a classic example of colonial architecture in Kalimpong.

 

Between 1986 and 1988, the demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland and Kamtapur based on ethnic lines grew strong. Riots between the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) and the West Bengal government reached a stand-off after a forty-day strike. The town was virtually under siege, and the state government called in the Indian army to maintain law and order. This led to the formation of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, a body that was given semi-autonomous powers to govern the Darjeeling district, except the area under the Siliguri subdivision. Since 2007, the demand for a separate Gorkhaland state has been revived by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha and its supporters in the Darjeeling hills.[20] The Kamtapur People's Party and its supporters' movement for a separate Kamtapur state covering North Bengal have gained momentum.[21]

Geography

A view from the Deolo Resort, atop Deolo Hill, Kalimpong's highest point

 

The town centre is on a ridge connecting two hills, Deolo Hill and Durpin Hill,[12] at an elevation of 1,247 m (4,091 ft). Deolo, the highest point in Kalimpong, has an altitude of 1,704 m (5,591 ft) and Durpin Hill is at an elevation of 1,372 m (4,501 ft). The River Teesta flows in the valley below and separates Kalimpong from the state of Sikkim. The soil in the Kalimpong area is typically reddish in color. Occasional dark soils are found due to extensive existence of phyllite and schists.[22] The Shiwalik Hills, like most of the Himalayan foothills, have steep slopes and soft, loose topsoil, leading to frequent landslides in the monsoon season.[22] The hills are nestled within higher peaks and the snow-clad Himalayan ranges tower over the town in the distance. Mount Kanchenjunga at 8,586 m (28,169 ft) the world's third tallest peak,[23] is clearly visible from Kalimpong.[2]

View of the Himalaya range

 

Kalimpong has five distinct seasons: spring, summer, autumn, winter and the monsoons. The annual temperature ranges from a high of 30 °C (86 °F) to a low of 9 °C (48 °F). Summers are mild, with an average maximum temperature of 30 °C (86 °F) in August.[24] Summers are followed by the monsoon rains which lash the town between June and September. The monsoons are severe, often causing landslides which sequester the town from the rest of India. Winter lasts from December to February, with the maximum temperature being around 15 °C (59 °F). During the monsoon and winter seasons, Kalimpong is often enveloped by fog.[25]

Economy

Oranges grown in the hillsides are exported to many parts of India.

 

Tourism is the most significant contributor to Kalimpong's economy.[26] The summer and spring seasons are the most popular with tourists, keeping many of town's residents employed directly and indirectly. The town—earlier an important trade post between India and Tibet—hopes to boost its economy after the reopening of the Nathu La (pass) in April 2006.[27] Though this has resumed Indo–China border trades,[28] it is expected that Kalimpong will have a better chance of revival as a hub for Indo–China trades if the demand of local leaders for reopening of Jelep La pass also is met.[28]

 

Kalimpong is a major ginger growing area of India. Kalimpong and the state of Sikkim together contribute 15 percent of ginger produced in India.[29] The Darjeeling Himalayan hill region is internationally famous for its tea industry.[30] However, most of the tea gardens are on the western side of Teesta river (towards the town of Darjeeling) and so tea gardens near Kalimpong contribute only 4 percent of total tea production of the region. In Kalimpong division, 90 percent of land is cultivable but only 10 percent is used for tea production.[31] Kalimpong is well known for its flower export industry—especially for its wide array of indigenous orchids and gladioli.[32]

 

A significant contributor to the town's economy is education sector.[26] The schools of Kalimpong, besides imparting education to the locals, attract a significant number of students from the plains, the neighbouring state of Sikkim and countries such as Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Thailand.[26]

 

Many establishments cater to the Indian army bases near the town, providing it with essential supplies. Small contributions to the economy come by the way of the sale of traditional arts and crafts of Sikkim and Tibet. Government efforts related to sericulture, seismology, and fisheries provide a steady source of employment to many of its residents.

 

Kalimpong is well renowned for its cheese, noodles and lollipops. Kalimpong exports a wide range of traditional handicrafts, wood-carvings, embroidered items, bags and purses with tapestry work, copper ware, scrolls, Tibetan jewellery and artifacts.[32][33]

Transport

NH31A winds along the banks of the river Teesta near Kalimpong.

 

Kalimpong is located off the National Highway 31A (NH31A), which links Sevok to Gangtok. The NH31A is an offshoot of the NH 31, which connects Sevok to Siliguri.[34] These two National Highways together, via Sevok, links Kalimpong to the plains.[35] Regular bus services and hired vehicles connect Kalimpong with Siliguri and the neighbouring towns of Kurseong, Darjeeling and Gangtok. Four wheel drives are popular means of transport, as they can easily navigate the steep slopes in the region. However, road communication often get disrupted in the monsoons due to landslides. In the town, people usually travel by foot. Residents also use bicycle, two-wheelers and hired taxis for short distances.

 

The nearest airport is in Bagdogra near Siliguri, about 80 kilometres (50 mi) from Kalimpong. Air India, Jet Airways and Druk Air (Bhutan) are the four major carriers that connect the airport to Delhi, Kolkata, Paro (Bhutan), Guwahati and Bangkok (Thailand). The closest major railway station is New Jalpaiguri, on the outskirts of Siliguri,[2] which is connected with almost all major cities of the country.

Demographics

Population growth

 

At the 2011 India census,[37] Kalimpong town area had a population of 42,988, of which 52% were male and 48% female.[37]

 

At the 2001 census,[38] Kalimpong had an average literacy rate of 79%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy was 84%, and female literacy was 73%. In Kalimpong, 8% of the population was under 6 years of age. The Scheduled castes and scheduled tribes population for Kalimpong was 5,100 and 5,121 respectively.[39]

Civic administration

 

Kalimpong is the headquarters of the Kalimpong district. The semi-autonomous Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC), set up by the West Bengal government in 1988, administers this district as well as the Darjeeling Sadar and Kurseong subdivisions.[40] Kalimpong elects eight councillors to the DGHC, who manages the departments of Public Health, Education, Public Works, Transport, Tourism, Market, Small scale industries, Agriculture, Agricultural waterways, Forest (except reserved forests), Water, Livestock, Vocational Training and Sports and Youth services.[41] The district administration of Darjeeling, which is the authoritative body for the departments of election, panchayat, law and order, revenue, etc., also acts as an interface of communication between the Council and the State Government.[41] The rural area in the district covers three community development blocks Kalimpong I, Kalimpong II and Gorubathan consisting of forty-two gram panchayats.[42] A Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) presides over the Kalimpong subdivision. Kalimpong has a police station that serves the municipality and 18 gram panchayats of Kalimpong–I CD block.[43]

 

The Kalimpong municipality, which was established in 1945,[39] is in charge of the infrastructure of the town such as potable water and roads. The municipal area is divided into twenty-three wards.[44] Kalimpong municipality is constructing additional water storage tanks to meet the requirement of potable water, and it needs an increase of water supply from the 'Neora Khola Water Supply Scheme' for this purpose.[45] Often, landslides occurring in monsoon season cause havoc to the roads in and around Kalimpong.[46] The West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Corporation Limited (WBSEDCL) provides electricity here.[47] Renewable Energy Development Agency of the state has plans to promote usage of solar street lights in Kalimpong and proposed an energy park here to sell renewable energy gadgets.[48] The Public Works Department is responsible for the road connecting the town to the National Highway–NH-31A.[49] The Kalimpong municipality has a total of 10 health care units, with a total of 433 bed capacity.[50]

 

The Kalimpong assembly constituency, which is an assembly segment of the Darjeeling parliamentary constituency, elects one member of the Vidhan Sabha of West Bengal.[51]

People, culture, and cuisine

The Zang Dhok Palri Phodang monastery atop Durpin Hill

 

The original settlers of Kalimpong are the Lepchas, although the majority of the populace are ethnic Nepali, having migrated from Nepal to Kalimpong in search of jobs while it was under British rule.[52]

 

Indigenous ethnic groups include the Newars, Bhutia, Sherpas, Limbus, Rais, Magars,[53] Chettris, Bahuns, Thakuris, Gurungs, Tamangs, Yolmos, Bhujels, Sunuwars, Sarkis, Damais and the Kamis.[54] The other non-native communities as old as the Nepalese are the Bengalis, Muslims, Anglo-Indians, Chinese, Biharis and Tibetans who escaped to Kalimpong after fleeing the Communist Chinese invasion of Tibet. Kalimpong is home to Trinley Thaye Dorje—one of the 17th Karmapa incarnations.[55] Kalimpong is the closest Indian town to Bhutan's western border, and has a small number of Bhutanese nationals residing here. Hinduism is the largest religion followed by Nijananda Sampradaya, Buddhism and Christianity.[53] Islam has a minuscule presence in this region, The Oldest settlers include people residing since the mid of 19th Century and also mostly Tibetan Muslims who fled in 1959 after Chinese invasion of Tibet.[56] The Buddhist monastery Zang Dhok Palri Phodang holds a number of rare Tibetan Buddhist scriptures.[6] There is a Mosque, Kalimpong Anjuman Islamia Established in 1887 in the bazaar area of Kalimpong.[57]

 

Popular Hindu festivals include Dashain, Tihar, Cultural Programme and the Tibetan festival of Losar. Languages spoken in Kalimpong include Nepali, which is the predominant language; Lepcha, Limbu, Tamang, Kirat, Hindi, English and Bengali.[2] Though there is a growing interest in cricket as a winter sport in Darjeeling Hills, football still remains the most popular sport in Kalimpong.[58] Every year since 1947, the Independence Shield Football Tournament is organized here as part of the two-day-long Independence Day celebrations.[59] Former captain of India national football team, Pem Dorjee hails from Kalimpong.[60]

 

A popular snack in Kalimpong is the momo, steamed dumplings made of pork, beef or vegetable cooked in a wrapping of flour and served with watery soup. Wai-Wai is a packaged Nepalese snack made of noodles which are eaten either dry or in soup form. Churpee, a kind of hard cheese made from yak's or chauri's (a hybrid of yak and cattle) milk, is sometimes chewed.[61] A form of noodle called Thukpa, served in soup form is popular in Kalimpong.[62] There are a large number of restaurants which offer a wide variety of cuisines, ranging from Indian to continental, to cater to the tourists. Tea is the most popular beverage in Kalimpong, procured from the famed Darjeeling tea gardens. Kalimpong has a golf course besides Kalimpong Circuit House.[2][63]

 

The cultural centres in Kalimpong include, the Lepcha Museum and the Zang Dhok Palri Phodang monastery. The Lepcha Museum, a kilometre away from the town centre, showcases the culture of the Lepcha community, the indigenous peoples of Sikkim. The Zang Dhok Palri Phodong monastery has 108 volumes of the Kangyur, and belongs to the Gelug of Buddhism.

Media

 

Kalimpong has access to most of the television channels aired in the rest of India. Cable Television still provides service to many homes in the town and it's outskirts, while DTH connections are now practically mandatory throughout the country. Besides mainstream Indian channels, many Nepali-language channels such as Dainandini DD, Kalimpong Television KTv, Haal Khabar (an association of the Hill Channel Network), Jan Sarokar, Himalayan People's Channel (HPC), and Kalimpong Times are broadcast in Kalimpong. These channels, which mainly broadcast locally relevant news, are produced by regional media houses and news networks, and are broadcast through the local cable network, which is now slowly becoming defunct due to the Indian government's ruling on mandatory digitization of TV channels. The movie production houses like JBU films produces the movies on the nepali and other languages.[64]

 

Newspapers in Kalimpong include English language dailies The Statesman and The Telegraph, which are printed in Siliguri,[65][66] and The Economic Times and the Hindustan Times, which are printed in Kolkata.

 

Among other languages, Nepali, Hindi and Bengali are prominent vernacular languages used in this region.[25] Newspapers in all these four languages are available in the Darjeeling Hills region. Of the largely circulated Nepali newspapers Himalay Darpan, Swarnabhumi and some Sikkim-based Nepali newspapers like Hamro Prajashakti and Samay Dainik are read most.[67] The Tibet Mirror was the first Tibetan-language newspaper published in Kalimpong in 1925.[68] while Himalayan Times was the first English to have come out from Kalimpong in the year 1947, it was closed down in the year 1962 after the Chinese aggression but was started once again and is now in regular print. Internet service and Internet cafés are well established; these are mostly served through broadband, data card of different mobile services, WLL, dialup lines,[69][70] Kalimpong News, Kalimpong Online News, Kalimpong Times and KTV are the main online news sites that collect and present local and North Bengal & Sikkim news from its own agencies like KalimNews and other newspapers. Besides this there are others like kalimpong.info, kalimpongexpress.blogspot.com and several others. All India Radio and several other National and Private Channels including FM Radio are received in Kalimpong.

 

The area is serviced by major telecommunication companies of India with most types of cellular services in most areas.[71]

Education

 

There are fifteen major schools in Kalimpong, the most notable ones being Scottish Universities Mission Institution, Dr. Graham's Homes, St Joseph's Convent, St. Augustine's School, Rockvale Academy, Saptashri Gyanpeeth, Springdale Academy, St. Philomenas School, Kalimpong Girls' High School, Kumdini Homes, Chandramaya High School, Lolay Sampu High School and Gandhi Ashram School. The Scottish Universities Mission Institution was the first school that was opened in 1886. The schools offer education up to high secondary standard, following which students may choose to join a Junior College or carry on with additional two years of schooling.

 

Kalimpong College, Cluny Women's College and Rockvale Management College are the main colleges in the town. Former two are affiliated to the North Bengal University and the latter affiliated to West Bengal University of Technology and apart from these, Good Shepherd IHM (Hotel management Institution) offers courses on hospitality sectors. Most students however, choose to further their studies in Siliguri, Kolkata, and other colleges in the Indian metropolis. The Tharpa Choling Monastery, at Tirpai Hill near Kalimpong, is managed by Yellow Hat sect and has a library of Tibetan manuscripts and thankas.

Flora and fauna

Heliconia

 

The area around Kalimpong lies in the Eastern Himalayas, which is classified as an ecological hotspot, one of only three among the ecoregions of India. Neora Valley National Park lies within the Kalimpong subdivision and is home to tigers.[72] Acacia is the most commonly found species at lower altitudes, while cinnamon, ficus, bamboo and cardamom, are found in the hillsides around Kalimpong. The forests found at higher altitudes are made up of pine trees and other evergreen alpine vegetation. Seven species of rhododendrons are found in the region east of Kalimpong. The temperate deciduous forests include oak, birch, maple and alder.[73] Three hundred species of orchid are found around Kalimpong.[74]

 

The Red panda, Clouded leopard, Siberian weasel, Asiatic black bear,[75] barking deer,[76] Himalayan tahr, goral, gaur[76] and pangolin are some of the fauna found near Kalimpong. Avifauna of the region include the pheasants, cuckoos, minivets, flycatchers, bulbuls, orioles, owls, partridges, sunbirds, warblers, swallows, swifts and woodpeckers.[77]

 

Kalimpong is a major production centre of gladioli in India,[78] and orchids, which are exported to many parts of the world. The Rishi Bankim Chandra Park is an ecological museums within Kalimpong.[79] Citrus Dieback Research Station at Kalimpong works towards control of diseases, plant protection and production of disease free orange seedlings.[80]

 

Kalimpong is also famous for their rich practice of cactus cultivation. Its nurseries attract people from far and wide for the absolutely stunning collection of cacti they cultivate. The strains of cacti, though not indigenous to the locale, have been carefully cultivated over the years, and now the town boasts one of the most fascinating and exhaustive collections of the Cactaceae family. The plants have adapted well to the altitude and environment, and now prove to be one of the chief draws of tourism to the township.[81][82]

www.flickr.com/groups/k-spheres_k-fractals/discuss/721576...

Fractal type:mandelbrot

Plot size (w,h):2210,2210

Maximum iterations:24000

Center Point (real, imaginary):-0.7529054987924,0.04708153071452 i

Plot Width (real):2.4E-11

 

Color scheme name:Colorcode

Fractalworks plot Feb03wmd1d

The above link will work if you have a mac and the newest version of FractalWorks. If you copy the FractalWorks link then in the program under file select "New fractal from URL in clipboard" the plot will have these parameters including colors.

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Taken Early July 2nd from the light overnight snowfall above 1200m on the Central Tablelands

 

Oberon is located in the east and at the very top of the Central Tablelands region of New South Wales with the Oberon township at 1113 metres above sea level. Elevation of the region is generally above 1,000 metres with a maximum height of 1395 metres near Edith. The area is a (relatively) flat plateau with rolling hills and grazing land and vast areas of a renewable resource, radiata pine plantations.

 

Oberon has four distinct seasons. Frosts occur regularly during autumn, winter and spring. Several snowfalls can be expected each year. Visitors should always be prepared for a sudden cool change at high altitudes.

 

Chassis n° ZFF76ZHB000203343

 

Estimated : CHF 2.600.000 - 2.800.000

Sold for CHF 2.185.000 - € 2.000.183

 

The Bonmont Sale

Collectors' Motor Cars - Bonhams

Golf & Country Club de Bonmont

Chéserex

Switzerland - Suisse - Schweiz

September 2019

 

"The LaFerrari is very possibly the world's fastest, most exciting hypercar. Which is some statement to make when there are machines such as the McLaren P1 and Porsche 918 Spyder to contend with. The bottom line, however, is that LaFerrari has more power (a whopping 950bhp) and less weight to carry around than its prestigious rivals so figuratively, if nothing else, it quite clearly has the upper hand. Either way, this is the ultimate Ferrari..." – Autocar.

 

In today's increasingly environmentally conscious times, even supercar manufacturers have felt the need to polish up their 'Green' credentials. Seeking better fuel economy and reduced emissions, they have brought 'hybrid' technology to this previously exclusively fossil-fuels-only sector of the market. This has resulted in a 'win win' situation: these latest hypercars being more environmentally friendly while at the same time considerably more powerful than before.

 

Ferrari's first offering in this expanding category was the LaFerrari, a limited-edition coupé that entered production in 2013. Ferrari's last model with a mid-mounted 12-cylinder engine, LaFerrari was the distillation of no fewer than nine design studies created during the process of its development. The car was unveiled at the 2013 Geneva Auto Show. Unusually, its styling had no input from Ferrari's long-term collaborator, Carrozzeria Pinifarina.

 

Clearly, a car evocatively titled 'LaFerrari' would have to have a V12 engine, a type of power unit used in the very first Ferrari of 1947 and for a glorious succession of the Italian factory's most famous models. The LaFerrari V12 displaced 6.3-litres and produced 789bhp, supplemented by an electric motor producing 161bhp for a combined output of 950 horsepower, the highest power output of any Ferrari road car. With the car is in motion, the electric motor's lithium-ion battery pack is charged by a KERS (Kinetic Energy Recovery System) as used in the current generation of Formula 1 cars. Power reaches the rear wheels (there's no four-wheel drive) via a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. And if you didn't use those 950 horses all the time, there was also a useful decrease in fuel consumption, not that that would have interested the typical LaFerrari owner.

 

Designed by Ferrari's F1 technical director, Rory Byrne, the LaFerrari has a carbon fibre monocoque chassis with suspension at the front by double wishbones and at the rear by a multi-link system - pretty much the norm for the current generation of supercars. Any car with a 200mph-plus maximum needs plenty of stopping power, and the LaFerrari was equipped with Brembo's finest carbon-ceramic brakes. Ferrari claimed a top speed exceeding 349km/h (217mph), similar to the Enzo's top speed; however, the LaFerrari could accelerating from 0-100km/h (0-62mph) in under 2.4 seconds and reach 300km/h (186mph) in 15 seconds, comfortably out-performing its predecessor. The factory also claimed that LaFerrari had lapped its Fiorano test track in 1:19.7, faster than any other road-legal Ferrari.

 

Electronic systems abound in even the humblest of modern hatchbacks, and as one would expect, the LaFerrari boasts just about every bit of automotive electrickery imaginable: electronic stability control; high performance ABS/EBD (anti-lock braking system/electronic brake distribution), EF1-Trac F1 traction control integrated with the hybrid propulsion system; E-Diff 3 electronic differential; and magnetorheological suspension dampers - all controlled by 21 computers. There was also active aerodynamics, the front and rear wings being adjustable on the move to provide either high or low downforce while also controlling cooling of the engine, gearbox, batteries, and brakes. More electronics were deployed in the cockpit in the form of a 12.3" (310mm) TFT digital dashboard display with a choice of three optional layouts capable of relaying data from the telemetry system. The steering wheel featured integrated controls, while the gearchange paddles were fixed directly to steering column.

 

One of the fortunate few to have driven a LaFerrari, Autocar's Steve Sutcliffe was mightily impressed when let loose in one at Fiorano. "The ride instantly feels spookily smooth and calm, the steering surprisingly light but bursting with a delicious, old school kind of feel. The brake pedal also feels light underfoot but is again rippling with feel. And the throttle response, the first time I go anywhere near the loud pedal is just outrageous; the car explodes down the back straight even on half throttle in fourth gear.

 

"And that's what you get when you integrate electric power with a thumping great V12. At low revs the electricity provides the torque, and provides it instantly, and from there on up – at about 3000rpm – the V12 takes over. Yet the transformation is so smooth you are never actually aware that it takes place. Instead, it feels like the car is powered by a 10-litre V12 that somehow has massive low rev response at the same time.

 

"And yet, in their way, the gearchange, the brakes, the steering, the turn in, the handling balance and the ride... they are all every bit as incredible as the engine – sorry the power source – and the acceleration it can produce."

 

Putting a 950 horsepower car weighing only some 1,255kg dry in the hands of mere mortals, as opposed to professional racing drivers, might be considered somewhat reckless, but in designing LaFerrari, its makers ensured that whatever the car did it did predictably. "You always know where you are with this car," declared Autocar. "And considering just how insanely fast it is, that is arguably its greatest achievement; being manageable."

 

Despite a price of £1 million each, all 499 examples planned had sold before the first had been delivered. However, merely having pockets of limitless depth was not alone sufficient for you to acquire a LaFerrari, which was only available to loyal customers vetted by Ferrari.

 

Representing a possibly once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own one of these fabulous Ferrari hypercars, the LaFerrari offered here was delivered new to Germany and is currently registered on a temporary Swiss plate. The car has covered only 894km from new and is presented in generally excellent condition, reflecting its sparing use. Finished in yellow with black interior, this spectacular LaFerrari comes complete with charger, tool kit, and Equatorial Guinea registration document and technical inspection.

A little patch I embroidered while listening to Alan Partridge... I'm obsessed with chain stitch, can you tell?

Copyright © 2007 Mark Rogers Photography All Rights Reserved...

 

Springer Spaniel - San Francisco...

 

See more of my dog photos at Give a Dog a Bone, a quality of life program for long-term shelter dogs in San Francisco, and at the DogTails Blog.

Highlight of the Weekend was without doubt the appearance of Maude on a short four coach train on May 28th. After much and hard work and burning of mid night oil by support team with help from staff at the paper mill, the veteran is passed fit to run for an 8.30. departure from Fort William. A second day of unbroken sun is welcome by the chasers, but only enhances an already perceived fire risk.

 

The four coach load proves a bit too much for Maude who proceeds manfully only as far as Arisaig cutting short its planned destination of Mallaig. Results of the hard work are evident with a large number of lineside fires. The return was to bring more drama including taking water from Loch Dubh and stopping on the climb a couple of times to raise steam on the climb above Loch Eilt.

 

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