Photographs of a Woman’s Dream of Becoming America’s First Police Woman, 1909

Vintage photographs of a suffragette posed to illustrate woman police concept in Cincinnati, Ohio, 1909.

In 1854, the first police matrons were hired by New York City to search and guard female prisoners, but they were civilians with no law enforcement powers. From this beginning, women became encouraged to apply for similar positions in various parts of the United States.

In 1910, the Los Angeles Police Department appointed the first regularly rated policewomen, Mrs. Alice Stebbins Wells. Her appointment refuted the popular notion of matrons as being masculine and not very bright, because she was a college graduate, a social worker, and had deliberately sought the position of police officer.

Mrs. Wells soon became a pioneer in the national movement to have police departments hire women as officers. However, from the inception of this movement, women were hired by quotas and encountered discrimination, silent contempt, and double standards. Several court cases are discussed to illustrate the hurdles women had to fight to reach equality of employment in police agencies.

Today policewomen are involved in all aspects of police work. Cases in which policewomen have been prominent in various police departments are enumerated.

Many people could not even imagine what a female police officer would look like so this Ohio suffragette demonstrated what a policewoman would look like making an arrest.

(Photos: Library of Congress)

Amazing Historical Photos of the Great Patriotic War

The Great Patriotic War is a term used in Russia and some other former republics of the Soviet Union to describe the conflict fought during the period from June 22, 1941 to May 9, 1945 along the many fronts of the Eastern Front of World War II, primarily between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany.

The Great Patriotic War

For some legal purposes, this period may be extended to May 11, 1945 to include the end of the Prague Offensive.

The end of the Great Patriotic War is commemorated on the 9th of May. Here below is a set of amazing historical photos of the Great Patriotic War from 1941 to 1945.

The first day of the war. Moscow, June 22, 1941. October 25 Street, 12.00. Citizens listen to Vyacheslav Molotov about the beginning of the war

Ashes of the houses burnt by Germans, November 1941

Children hide from bombing, somewhere in the southwest of the USSR, June 22, 1941

During the air raid. Muscovites at one of the metro stations, 1941

Marines, the Subarctic, 1941

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Snow Goggles Were Used Thousand Years Ago by the Inuits

Generations of snow-bound Arctic Circle people, including the Inuit, have been protecting their eyes from snow blindness for over 4,000 years with snow goggles. Snow blindness is scientifically known as photokeratitis.

These snow goggles’ protect the eyes from the harmful ultraviolet light that gets amplified after getting reflected off the whiteness of the snowy landscape within the Arctic Circle. Just as bright and sunny days could damage a person’s eyes, even the diffuse light on cloudy days can be equally dangerous.

Like other Inuit language words, such as inukhuk/inuksuk, a different word may be used in different dialects. In the Kivalliq dialect, ilgaak is used, while the North Baffin dialect uses iggaak. Both words are also used to refer to sunglasses.

The Inuit goggles are traditionally made of driftwood (especially spruce), bone, walrus ivory, caribou antler, or in some cases seashore grass. The workpiece is carved to fit the wearer’s face, and one or more narrow horizontal slits are carved through the front. The goggles fit tightly against the face so that the only light entering is through the slits, and soot is sometimes applied to the inside to help cut down on glare. The slits are made narrow not only to reduce the amount of light entering but also to improve the visual acuity. The greater the width of the slits the larger the field of view.

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Vintage Photos of Type B Bus “Pigeon Loft” During World War I

From its start in the summer of 1914, the demands of the First World War provided the impetus for the development of the latest developments and technologies. It was at this time that the first warplanes, tanks and submarines appeared. In the context of hostilities over large areas, the problem of coordination between individual units became increasingly important, as the means of communication at that time still remained relatively imperfect.

The telegraph already existed, but mobile devices were relatively heavy and unreliable, and their use was accompanied by constant technical problems. Faced with the question of communication, military commanders compromised and decided to use a tool often employed in earlier conflicts, namely birds, as a connection to the location of previous deployment. The amazing ability of certain species of birds, pigeons in particular, to return to their homes from a great distance would once again save the lives of many soldiers in the coming years of the Great War.

A special miniature container was attached to the bird’s foot, in which a note with a message could be placed. Given the fact that the speed of the pigeon could be up to 60 miles per hour (almost 100 km per hour), despite this rather archaic method the message could be delivered to its destination quite quickly.

Another factor was the possible destruction of the bird – for example, by heavy fire from enemy positions. This problem was overcome by the widespread use of pigeons, sending messages of the same content at the same time, carried by a large number of birds.

As early as 1914, during an intense German offensive towards Paris near the River Marne, pigeons released from their “lofts” delivered an important message to the command headquarters about the critical situation in this area, which allowed troops to regroup and prevent calamitous developments for the Allies.

In the following years of the Great War, despite the fact that the field telegraph continued to improve, communication with the help of birds still played an important role. Thus, in October 1918, when the conflict was almost at its end, a unit of American troops surrounded by the Germans released several birds with a note calling for immediate help. One of the birds named Cher Ami brought this urgent message to the headquarters in half an hour, and the unit was soon freed from the enemy's encirclement. For this act, the bird was given one of France’s highest awards – the Order of the Croix de Guerre, which by any measure is a remarkable achievement.

To transport a large number of birds together special mobile carriages were used, the so-called “pigeon lofts”. Initially, they were horse-drawn trailers, and later double-decker B-type buses were used as mobile bird shelters, which had now changed scene from the streets of London to the front lines of contact with the enemy on the Western Front.

Some of the two-story vehicles were rebuilt in order to perform their new task; the passenger seats on both levels were removed, the windows on the first floor were shuttered with boards, and the fence on the second floor was replaced by windows, cut out and covered with nets through which birds could fly simultaneously at the required time.

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Amazing Vintage Photographs of Fountain of Ice on Washington Boulevard in Detroit From the Early 20th Century

One of the unique features of Detroit in winter is the famous ice fountain on Washington Boulevard. Several jets of water are allowed to play all winder, and the result is a massive berg of ice which sometimes reaches a height of nearly thirty feet, and contains many tons of the crystal.

The tradition of forming ice sculptures in the city dates back to at least the early 1900s. These amazing vintage photographs show winter scene on Washington Boulevard in Detroit from between the 1900s and 1920s.

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Portraits of Members of the London Handlebar Club, 1947

“The object of the Handlebar Club was, and still is, to bring together mustache wearers (beards being strictly prohibited) socially for sport and general conviviality.”

We take off our hat to – the members of the Handlebar Club, for their determined co-operative self-denial in the use of the razor.

The first public announcement of the Handlebar Club was on April 17, 1947, when an item appeared in the News Revue under the heading “The Smashers’ Club”. It was based on a press release produced by Windmill Theatre comedian Jimmy Edwards. Its flowing mustachio appeal is directed primarily to serving and ex-members of the Forces, particularly those of the Prune school. Readers will remember his loose brushlike appendage.

The London Handlebar Club, which in the 1940s offered a safe space for those who sported exuberant whiskers. At meetings, members shared tips for preventing an upsweep (clip-on weights!) and dealing with a mustache misshapen from sleep (sleep on your back, not your face). One particularly troublesome ailment was the “Boozer’s Droop,” a side effect of “too much immersion in alcohol during the mustache’s early development.” The cure? “Stop drinking. Short of that, shave.”

Many of the founder members are former R.A.F. men; including famous personalities. The President is Raymond Glendenning, B.B.C. commentator. Bill Hooper created the wartime character Percy Prune. Other members include – Captain Hare; Allan Edwards; Raymond Glendenning; George Hoffman; Baron de Bere; Anita d’Ray; Bill Hooper; H. Lestocq; Jimmy Edwards; Russ Allen; and Founder Frank Muir, of the B.B.C.

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Here’s the First Semi-Truck Which Was Invented in 1898 by Alexander Winton

The semi-truck was invented by Alexander Winton in 1898. He lived in Cleveland, Ohio. Winton sold his first semi-truck in 1899 and from that year onward, this product became a symbol of American freight transport.

The story goes that Winton was perfectly happy building cars to sell to people in his home state of Ohio, but realized he could reach more customers if he had some way of easily transporting his product. He didn’t want any wear-and-tear on his new cars before they got to customers, though, so he had to figure out something that didn’t involve driving them.

Winton came up with a way of loading the car onto a flat cart, which he modified to sit on top of the engine of a modified truck platform. The connection was supposedly similar to the removable gooseneck on trucks today. The setup could only transport one car at a time, and it required at least three people to load and unload the vehicle being transported.

Alexander Winton was a serial entrepreneur; his first product was a bicycle. His next product was a car, the Winton Six. The Six was perhaps the first car that crossed the North American continent from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast. To popularize this brand, Winton participated in several car races and even hired acclaimed race drivers.

Veronica Lake Demonstrating How Her Peek-a-Boo Hairdo Could Get Caught in Machinery for LIFE Magazine, 1943

During World War II, Veronica Lake (1919–1973) changed her trademark peek-a-boo hairstyle at the urging of the Government to encourage women working in war industry factories to adopt more practical, safer hairstyles. Although the change helped to decrease accidents involving women getting their hair caught in machinery, doing so may have damaged Lake’s career. She also became a popular pin-up girl for soldiers during World War II and traveled throughout the United States to raise money for war bonds.

Actress Veronica Lake with her hair twisted in a drill press, demonstrating potential dangers to women in factories during World War II. November, 1943.

In 1941, Veronica Lake caught her break and rocketed to stardom with her role in I Wanted Wings. LIFE captured her appearance in minute 49 for posterity thus: It was the moment when [she] walked into camera range and waggled a head of long blonde hair at a suddenly enchanted public. The article then devoted two pages to discussing the actress’ distinctive hairdo and that lock dropping over one of her eyes. It detailed the number of hairs, their diameter and their length. Every beauty parlor in the United States advertised that haircut and women flocked in. Veronica Lake became “the girl with the Peek-a-boo bang.”

The US was at war nine months later. The Government encouraged women to work en masse in factories making weapons. Some of them, however, had accidents because their hair styled after the star’s got caught in the machines.

In 1943, the War Manpower Commission, asked Veronica Lake to change her hairdo for the remainder of the armed conflict. She was flattered that she could do something for the war effort and willingly obliged. The Office of War Information, the Government’s propaganda agency at the time, filmed the scene and broadcast it extensively.

Veronica Lake’s hairstyle change.

The star was all the happier since she only sported her hairdo on sets. Moreover, well-known humorists mocked it. In Stage Door Canteen by Frank Borzage (1943), Ray Bolger sang, “She has hair that she wears like Veronica Lake, so that 50% of her is blind.” Her decline after the war probably partly explains why the peek-a-boo style faded shortly thereafter.

(via Brune Blonde)

The Tacoma Narrows Bridge Collapse in 1940

The Tacoma Narrows Bridge was a suspension bridge in the U.S. state of Washington that spanned the Tacoma Narrows strait of Puget Sound between Tacoma and the Kitsap Peninsula. It opened to traffic on July 1, 1940, and dramatically collapsed into Puget Sound on November 7 the same year. The bridge’s collapse has been described as “spectacular” and in subsequent decades “has attracted the attention of engineers, physicists, and mathematicians.”

 

Before the collapse, it was the world’s third-longest main span behind the Golden Gate Bridge and the George Washington Bridge. ⁠

Leonard Coatsworth, a Tacoma News Tribune editor, was the last person to drive on the bridge. He recalled:

“Around me I could hear concrete cracking. I started back to the car to get the dog, but was thrown before I could reach it. The car itself began to slide from side to side on the roadway. I decided the bridge was breaking up and my only hope was to get back to shore. On hands and knees most of the time, I crawled 500 yards [1,500 ft; 460 m] or more to the towers… My breath was coming in gasps; my knees were raw and bleeding, my hands bruised and swollen from gripping the concrete curb… Towards the last, I risked rising to my feet and running a few yards at a time… Safely back at the toll plaza, I saw the bridge in its final collapse and saw my car plunge into the Narrows.”

Tubby, Coatsworth’s cocker spaniel, was the only fatality of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge disaster; he was lost along with Coatsworth’s car. Professor Farquharson and a news photographer attempted to rescue Tubby during a lull, but the dog was too terrified to leave the car and bit one of the rescuers. Tubby died when the bridge fell and neither his body nor the car was ever recovered. Coatsworth had been driving Tubby back to his daughter, who owned the dog.

Coatsworth received $450.00 for his car (equivalent to $8,300 today) and $364.40 ($6,700 today) in reimbursement for the contents of his car, including Tubby.

The Tacoma Narrows Bridge on its opening day.

The main bridge span falling into the strait.

 Leonard Coatsworth’s car on the bridge.

Group Portraits of Women’s Ice Hockey Teams From the Early 20th Century

Ice hockey is believed to have evolved from simple stick and ball games played in the 18th and 19th centuries in the United Kingdom, Ireland and elsewhere, primarily bandy, hurling, shinty and lacrosse. Arguably the games most influential to the early design of ice hockey were early forms of an organized sport today known as bandy, a sport distinctly separate from ice hockey. These games were brought to North America and several similar winter games using informal rules developed, such as shinny and ice polo, but would later be absorbed into a new organized game with codified rules which today is ice hockey.

Women’s hockey teams started forming early in the 20th century, though there wouldn’t be a professional league for a long time. Women still played casually hockey for fun, and so before long, they started getting organized.

The first formal women’s match happened in Ontario in 1891; however, women’s teams didn’t really get going until the 1910s and 1920s when college teams started to form in the US and especially in Canada. Below are some vintage photos of women’s ice hockey teams from between the 1900s and 1920s:

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Harvey Ross Ball: The Man Behind the Famous Smiley Face Symbol

Harvey Ross Ball (July 10, 1921 – April 12, 2001) was an American commercial artist. After World War II, Ball worked for a local advertising firm until he started his own business, Harvey Ball Advertising, in 1959. He designed the smiley in 1963.

The State Mutual Life Assurance Company of Worcester, Massachusetts had purchased Guarantee Mutual Company of Ohio. The merger resulted in low employee morale. In an attempt to solve this, Ball was employed in 1963 as a freelance artist, to come up with an image to increase morale. What he created was a smiley face, with one eye bigger than the other. In less than ten minutes, Harvey Ball came up with the simple yet world-changing smiley face. The simplicity of the image brought smiles to the faces of the executives, who paid him $45 (about $400 today) for his creation.

“I made a circle with a smile for a mouth on yellow paper, because it was sunshiny and bright,” he later told the Associated Press.

The use of the smiley face became part of the company’s friendship campaign whereby State Mutual handed out 100 smiley pins to employees. The aim was to get employees to smile while using the phone and doing other tasks. The buttons became popular, with orders being taken in lots of 10,000. More than 50 million smiley face buttons had been sold by 1971, and the smiley has been described as an international icon.

Ball never applied for a trademark or copyright of the smiley. State Mutual, similarly, did not make any money from the design. Ball’s son, Charles, is reported to have said his father never regretted not registering the copyright.

The phrase “Have a happy day” became associated with the smiley although it was not part of Ball’s original design. Philadelphian brothers Bernard and Murray Spain designed and sold products with the phrase and logo in the early 1970s. They trademarked the combination and later changed the phrase to “Have a nice day”, which itself has become a phrase in everyday use in North America.

The smiley was introduced to France in 1972 as a signal of a good news story in the newspaper France Soir. Frenchman Franklin Loufrani used the image this way and made swift moves to trademark the image. His company now turns over $100 million a year.

Ball founded the World Smile Foundation in 1999 a non-profit charitable trust that supports children’s causes. The group licenses Smileys and organizes World Smile Day, which takes place on the first Friday of October each year and is a day dedicated to “good cheer and good works”. The catchphrase for the day is “Do an act of kindness - help one person smile”.

Harvey Ball died on April 12, 2001 as a result of liver failure following a short illness. He was 79.