Captured: America in Color from 1939-1943

[bakubo]

These images, by photographers of the Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information, are some of the only color photographs taken of the effects of the Depression on America’s rural and small town populations. The photographs are the property of the Library of Congress and were included in a 2006 exhibit Bound for Glory: America in Color.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/captured/20 ... 1939-1943/

[Birma]

Thanks for the links Henry. Really interesting pictures. I am amazed by the quality. I find it slightly eerie when you see pictures from 'history' which are of such fine quality and that look so realistic - it is like being transported back in time.

[Dusty]

Interesting that a lot of them are from Pie Town, New Mexico. That's a sleepy little hole-in-the-wall that we passed thru in 1989 on the way to Phoenix. Very nice friendly people, good pie, at the shop descended form the the town's namesake and not much else.

As to quality, Kodachrome was available then around ASA 8. My uncle took a few pics using it back then. I reprinted some for his many years ago.

Dusty

[peterottaway]

Interesting photos as I was a long term admirer of Kodachrome 11 and 25 ( and Fuji 50 ) all now long gone.

I wonder what DPR would have made of them if they had Sony labels on them ?

[Greg Beetham]

Those photos have some great historical content, I was impressed with the B25 assembly line especially.
Greg

[roysmith]

Amazing pictures. Really interesting to see how people lived at that time.
If anyone knows of more old photos please post the link

[UrsaMajor]

Those photos have some great historical content, I was impressed with the B25 assembly line especially.

If you were interested in that photo of the B25 assembly line, you might be interested in a book with the title, "The American Aircraft Factory in World War II". More information about that book can be found at:

http://www.amazon.com/American-Aircraft ... 201&sr=1-1

I have the hard cover version of this book and have found it very interesting. I thought that I was already very familiar with the subject, but I found that this book contains some material that was completely new to me - and was also quite interesting to this aviation enthusiast.

FWIW, several decades ago I was discussing the war years with some of my older engineering colleagues who had been with the company (Douglas Aircraft) during the war years. They said that during the war we were rolling an aircraft out the door of the Long Beach plant every hour of every day - and Long Beach was just one of many Douglas plants. The other aircraft companies (Boeing, Grumman, etc.) were producing at similar rates - which is why over 300,000 aircraft were produced in the US during the war.

With best wishes,
- Tom -

[Greg Beetham]

Yes Tom, that is exactly what I'm referring too. The incredible instant assembly line manufacturing on a vast scale (and not just aircraft either), that the US did in WWII...awesome. Too echo Admiral Yamamoto's words (after an underling congratulated him on his 'great victory' at Pearl Harbour), "I fear we have just woken a sleeping Tiger."
Yamamoto was no dill.
Regards
Greg