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A balloon apron is suspended to defend London from air attacks. 1915. Observation was an incredibly important role in aerial warfare in World War I. All major combatants used observation balloons to observe their enemies’ trench lines and troop movements. These hovering mammoths were used for directing artillery, which required spotters and observation well beyond the visual range of ground-based observers. As much as planes were able to record enemy positions and movement on film, having real time spotters and observational balloon baskets linked to the ground by telephone was essential....

The late 19th century marked a significant period of transformation for Moscow, as the city underwent rapid modernization and urban development. As a testament to this pivotal era, a collection of rare photographs provides a unique glimpse into the Moscow of yesteryears. Architecturally, Moscow was also undergoing a metamorphosis. In 1812, Napoleon’s army had set fire to the city, causing widespread destruction. However, by the late 19th century, ambitious reconstruction projects were well underway....

Originally the idea for a flight expedition over Mount Everest was proposed in 1918 by a British mountaineering physiologist, Alexander Kellas in his journal “The Possibility of Aerial Reconnaissance in the Himalaya.” As a skilled mountaineer and expert in physiology, Kellas believed that with the right precautions and the right equipment, given time, they could establish a means to not only fly planes competently at such extreme altitudes but also take useful reconnaissance photographs....

Before smartphones became the center of modern life, an entire era of cell phones defined how people communicated and connected. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, flip phones, sliders, and the once-dominant BlackBerry represented cutting-edge technology and personal style. It was the age when text messaging emerged as a cultural phenomenon, and each new model promised sleeker designs, better cameras, and more inventive features. Yet, everything changed in 2007 when Apple introduced the iPhone, transforming the industry overnight and rendering the old icons of mobile communication obsolete almost instantly....

These old color photos, part of Albert Kahn’s collection, were captured by photographer Stefan Passe in 1913 and depict everyday life scenes in Mongolia. At the time of Passe’s journey, Mongolia was under the protectorate of the Russian Empire with full autonomy and its own theocratic leaders. In 1909, Kahn traveled with his chauffeur and photographer, Alfred Dutertre to the Far East on business and returned with many photographs of the journey....

Suspended beneath the bomber’s fuselage, exposed to enemy fire and the freezing air of high altitude, the ball turret gunner occupied one of the most unforgiving positions of World War II. Assigned to the underside of American heavy bombers such as the B-17 Flying Fortress and the B-24 Liberator, these airmen served as the aircraft’s primary defense against fighters attacking from below, operating in conditions that demanded both physical endurance and steady nerve....

These street pictures of the City of a Thousand Minarets capture the rapid growth and transformation of Old Cairo at the turn of the 20the century. The foundations of Cairo were laid in AD 969 by the Fatimid dynasty, but the city’s history goes further back than that. There was an important ancient religious center at On (modern-day Heliopolis). The Romans built a fortress at the port of On, which they called Babylon, while Amr Ibn Al-As, the general who conquered Egypt for Islam in AD 642, established the city of Fustat to the south....

A tattooed man’s back, c. 1875. Tattoos have an extensive history in Japan, and to truly understand the stigma behind them it is essential to be aware of their significance. The first records of tattoos were found in 5000 B.C., during the Jomon period, on clay figurines depicting designs on the face and body. The first written record of tattoos in Japan was from 300 A.D., found in the text History of the Chinese Dynasties....

This is what defiance looks like. Himmler and a prisoner of war, 1941. Heinrich Himmler looks at a young Soviet prisoner of war during an official visit to Shirokaya Street Concentration Camp in Minsk, Belarus, on or about August 15, 1941. You had to be a hard man to look Himmler in the face like that. This is standing for what’s right, this is a single man who, after losing so much, stands up and stares at Himmler himself....

Poverty often drives individuals to commit desperate acts out of necessity, like obtaining food, clothing, and sustenance. In their desperation, they may act recklessly. During the Edwardian era in North Shields, England, women were frequently apprehended for “Larceny.” This encompassed a wide array of offenses under common law, defined as the “unlawful taking of personal property from an individual or business.” Alice Caush arrested for larceny, 31st October 1903....

Gas stations have long been a familiar sight on American roadways, serving as crucial pit stops for motorists on their journeys. However, the gas stations we encounter today bear little resemblance to their early counterparts from the 1920s and 1940s. In this article, we delve into the past through a captivating collection of old photos, providing a fascinating glimpse into the appearance and atmosphere of gas stations in the United States during these transformative decades....

KKK Washington Parade of 1926. The early 1920s were the gilded age for the Ku Klux Klan, as many successful and powerful people were either openly Klansmen or sympathetic to the cause. The organization boasted a membership of 3 million nationwide, including prominent community leaders from coast to coast. The growth was fueled by the 1915 release of the silent film Birth of a Nation, which portrayed members as heroes, coinciding with the widespread xenophobia following the devastation of World War I....

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, farms started to use new machinery and fertilizers that transformed them from small-scale enterprises into food factories. Entrepreneurs selling products designed to increase a farmer’s production were anxious to get their brands in front of these new rural customers. Thus the proliferation of farm signage and advertising from this period. Vintage farm and agriculture signs ran the gamut from tasteful or humorous notices on lithographed paper to bold proclamations on embossed tin and porcelain enamel....

Disneyland was dedicated at an “International Press Preview” event held on Sunday, July 17, 1955, which was open only to invited guests and the media. Although 28,000 people attended the event, only about half of those were invitees, the rest having purchased counterfeit tickets, or even sneaked into the park by climbing over the fence. A reporter noticed all the construction still ongoing and asked Walt Disney if Disneyland would ever be finished....

Embark on a delightful journey as we delve into the heart of the kitchen, where humble appliances have quietly transformed the way we start our day. In this article, we’ll uncover the captivating evolution of vintage toasters, unearthing the magic behind these cherished culinary companions. The primary technical problem in toaster development at the turn of the 20th century was the development of a heating element which would be able to sustain repeated heating to red-hot temperatures without breaking or becoming too brittle....

In the early 20th century, a unique and mobile form of housing emerged —the so-called wooden homes on wheels. These structures, colloquially known as mobile homes, offer a captivating glimpse into a bygone era, when flexibility, craftsmanship, and the open road beckoned to a generation yearning for adventure. The concept of mobile living was not entirely novel during this era. However, it was during the early 20th century that it gained significant traction....

Tibetan Skeleton Dance, 1925. The photo originally appeared in the November 1928 issue of National Geographic. The original caption was: “With huge cadaver masks, imitation tiger-skin skirts, and enormous claws, this performer and his seven similarly garbed companions strike terror to the hearts of spectators in the Old Dance. They are assistants of Showa the Deer, the messenger of Yama” . The picture was taken in 1925 and is an autochrome which was an early color photography process....

In 1953, a simple walk through a busy market street in Mexico City became an unexpected social experiment that revealed much about public behavior, gender dynamics, and the everyday culture of the time. What began as a routine photo assignment quietly turned into a candid observation of how a young woman was seen—and judged—in public space. The resulting images would spark debate, attract international attention, and later be recognized as one of the most significant photographic works of the 20th century....

Alice Liddell: the real Alice in Wonderland. Alice Liddell was the middle daughter of Henry George Liddell, Dean of Christ Church at Oxford. Alice, along with her sisters Edith and Lorina, first met Lewis Carroll on April 25, 1856, as he and a friend were setting up to photograph Christ Church Cathedral from the garden of the Dean’s residence. Over the next few years, Carroll would become a close friend of the Liddell family....

Ten Mauser C96 pistols arranged to defend an Austro-Hungarian reconnaissance aircraft, 1917. The Austro-Hungarian aircraft gunner in the picture is seen using a Mauser C96 pistol combination, probably just for demonstration. Each pistol held a clip of ten bullets and the device attached to them fired them in unison, giving the gunner the ability to rapidly fire 100 rounds in volleys of 10. Two bars passed through the five uppers and five lower trigger guards and were attached to the single aiming grip that can be seen in his hand....