Google has recently published several volumes of photographs from LIFE magazine. I've spent the last hour looking at many of these fascinating, depressing, and bizarre pictures dating back to the 1870s. Every picture I see, seems to flood my mind with more blogging ideas than I can possibly write - pictures of the Great Depression and if it relates to current economic conditions - pictures of Congress from decades ago and how odd it is to see no women and all whites - pictures of windmills from the 1800s and how odd it is to think that this "technology" is part of the future - and the list goes on...
The picture that caught my attention the most was of the Washington Monument under construction in 1876. Construction on the monument began, nearly 30 years prior, in 1848 and the monument was not completed until 1884. Funding problems and the Civil War were two of the primary reasons for the lengthy construction.
© Time Inc.
For some reason, the picture is calming to me, especially in our country's economic crisis. It reminds me of the simple adage - plan your work and work your plan. 1876 was nearly 3 decades after construction began on the monument, nearly 1 decade away from the monument's completion and 1876 was not much more than a decade beyond the Civil War, our country's biggest crisis. There's a lot more pictures and a lot more monuments 132 years later. However, I can't help but wonder what Americans in 2140 will think of our generation. Will we leave behind more than shopping malls?
What are your thoughts?
Best regards,
Jay
Jay Allen
MovieVoice
jay@movievoice.net
Jay,
I am afraid the only things we are leaving them is a huge national deficit of both money and morals
How refreshing to be able to agree with Hugh and Jay in the same post.
Good job, guys !
Jay - a better appreciateion for history would do us all a world of good.
It looks like a wasp's nest at the bottom.
Our generation isn't leaving much behind but a financial mess and a lot of steel and glass.
I see it like this, we started with a blank slate. Sort of like building a house from the ground up. There's all kinds of excitement, pain and trials while building a new home. When it's finally finished you move in and make it all homey and personalize it. Then what? Then you sit and wait for it to start to fall apart so you can start making repairs and remodelling things you've realized weren't quite right.
Our forefathers built our "house". We got it all comfy and lived in it for awhile. Things started to fall apart and we ignored it. Now the roof is caving in and we are all getting wet and miserable. Now it's time to rebuild and make it more solid than it ever was before.
Jay - I have always loved old pictures and the ones on this link are great. Thanks
Cheri' - Great comment! I'll start re-roofing.
Jay, I think people of the future will think we squandered what our fore fathers left us to protect. Interesting picture. Did you know that most of the old monuments and buildings in Washington, including the White House, were built using slave labor? Looking back, it could be said those slaves were building the White House for a black president, one they wouldn't live to see inaugurated, but possibly dreamed about.
Hugh, it's sad and if we're not careful, true.
Ted, it's only taken about 100 blogs to make it happen!
Cheri', your comment is very poignant. I actually like it better than my original blog!
Brian, I can spend far too much time, looking at these old pictures and then imagining what the people in the pictures were thinking - did they have any idea the pictures would last for well over a century?
Terry, it is unfortunate how many structures have been built by slave labor. Apparently there is a great deal of slave labor being used to build the Burj Dubai - the world's tallest building in the UAE.
Jay - old pictures are addictive! I had a similar experience visiting Mount Rushmore for the first time last summer. The pictures and the video of its creation are fascinating and added so much character to a monument that didn't seem important to me before that. Cheri' does have an excellent point. I'm afraid the roof is falling in on our heads. I just hope we have the skills and fortitude to re-build and do it right. Happy Thanksgiving!
Hi Jay, What an amazing collection ! Started me thinking also. Maybe we should figure that everything we do will be a " Time Capsule " to someone !
Jay - I've had the same reaction looking at great historical accomplishments. Most recently I toured the water infrastructure of California from the North to the South. What an amazing accomplishment that was requiring decades, millions of dollars and man-hours as well as great foresight and persistence. It seems our ancestors had more vision, more patience and the understanding of what it was to leave a legacy. Today if something requires more than 6 months to build, we lose interest. If a war isn't 'won' in a year - it's not worth fighting. Bush is busy 'burnishing his legacy' in just 60 days. What a crock. On the other hand, we will leave our kids some damn nice shopping malls.
I am overly fascinated by the history of building construction and engineering and can stare at these photos in a hypnotic trance .
and how if planned and executed properly some things can last forever! :-)
Wow Jay, pretty impressive and thanks for the post!