Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #32 of 32

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Liquid Air Plant

This is possibly my favorite of all the lithographs. Fantastic use of perspective and evocation of lighting.

This concludes what has been an adventure for Marianne and me. We discovered the lithographs in an auction, were astonished by their size at the viewing, and won them when nobody else realized what they were. And then began a long search for an institution with flatbed scanners (putting paper that was over a century old through rollers is a recipe for disasters) that would be willing to do the scanning.

Long story short, we found one. And now these images belong to you and the world.

These images have been downsized to fit Blogger's requirements and limitations. On Monday, I'll post info on how you can download high-definition versions of all of them

Thank you, Chesley, for giving Marianne and me a wonderful experience.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #31 of 32

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Chimney in the Rain

If you've been following this series, you'll recognize the chimney. It's in the background of a lot of the lithographs. It's the signature image of the nitrates plant.

And this lovely image is the penultimate lithograph. The last one will be published tomorrow. It's a stunner.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #30 of 32

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Base of Boiler-House Stack

Another dark and Biblical image. It helps to remember that World War One was going on during the plant's construction, and that its purpose was to create munitions. It was a time of high seriousness for the United States.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #29 of 32

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Carbide Furnace, Upper Level

Once again, Bonestell demonstrates his mastery of perspective. I love how the building recedes into  shadow in the distance.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #28 of 32

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Carbide Furnace Room, Lower Level

It's hard not to marvel at how we've lost touch with the epic scale of the structures that make the things a society needs. (In this case munitions, alas; but later, fertilizer.) Chesley Bonestell made these images back when such things were still celebrated.

This series will conclude on Friday.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Celebrating America! The Capture of Fort Ticonderoga

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250 years ago yesterday, the first American victory in the War for Independence took place when Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys took Fort Ticonderoga.

Factors favoring the Americans include that the fort was in disrepair and that it was manned only by a small British force of fifty soldiers. However, there was a honking big lake between Vermont and New York, where the fort was situated. Ethan Allen gathered together all the boats that could be found and launched a sneak late-night raid. But there were not enough boats for all the soldiers he had gathered together and dawn was coming. So, rather than lose the element of surprise, the raid commenced with eighty-three men and two commanders.

Complicating matters was Benedict Arnold, who had independently come up with the idea of a raid, gotten authorization from the governor of Massachusetts, and arrived in Vermont with a smaller force of men. He demanded to be put in charge but was hooted down by the Green Mountain Boys, who refused to follow anybody but their favorite native son. At last, an agreement was struck that he would march alongside Allen. Later, he claimed to be a co-commander, but documentation of this has never been found and, given Allen's personality, seems unlikely.

The attack was swift and sudden. A lone British sentry essayed one musket shot, which misfired, and fled. The Americans took over the fort and, when asked in whose authority he acted, Ethan Allen supposedly said, "In the name of the Great Jehovah and the Continental Congress!" However, given that Allen was an atheist and that Vermont was at the time a functioning anarchy with no official ties to the Continental Congress, it is likely that he said something equally colorful by far less printable.

No soldiers on either side were killed or injured, save for one American who received a minor bayonet wound. The cannons and other munitions stored at the fort were later used to push the British out of Boston. And Benedict Arnold had suffered the first of many humiliations that would later lead him to turn traitor. When the Green Mountain Boys went home, he was left in command of the fort and a small number of troops--until Connecticut sent their own men up to claim the weaponry and make him subordinate to an officer who had seen no action. Arnold who had spent over a thousand pounds of his own money and received no glory at all, resigned his commission and went home.

Above: Image found at Warfare History Network, which has a far more detailed description of the battle here. It is disputed whether Lieutenant Feltham was actually forced to surrender with his trousers in his hand. But true or not it makes a great story.

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #27 of 32

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There's only a week more to go and every one of the Bonestell lithographs will be online. When that happens, Marianne and I will create a BitTorrent and you'll be able to download all the images at high resolution.

Then, because the images were made over a century ago and were commissioned by the United States government, which placed them immediately in the public domain... You can use them for any purpose you wish. Post them on your blog, use them for book covers, put your favorites on t-shirts and sell them on Ebay. It's all legal and ethical.

I'll give you the link when it's up.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #26 of 32

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Nitric Acid Absorbtion Towers

This is one of Marianne's favorites. Not that small light at the top left of the towers. And if you look carefully, you can see the horizon in the distance.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #25 of 32

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W

 End View Absorbtion Tower Building

Doesn't this look like a scene from the Old Testament? Construction of the Tower of Babel, maybe. Or the furnace that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were thrown into. I wouldn't be surprised to learn that Bonestell has studied the illustrations in the family Bible when he was a child.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #24 of 32

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Looking Along Absorbtion Tower Building

We're three-quarters of the way through the lithographs and, though they're only very loosely organized, you can see that the plant is nearing completion. What a great sense of scale Bonestell created here!

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #23 of 32

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The Boiler House

One thing I love about Bonestell's lithographs is how much extra work he put into each one to make it visually appealing. He didn't have to render a reflection of the boiler house in that pond. But it really makes the image stand out.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #22 of 32

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Concrete Chute and Rock Crusher at Power House

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #21 of 32

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Power House

It's well worth clicking on this image so you can see it in greater detail. But, then again, it's worth viewing all the Bonestell lithographs that way.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #20 of 32

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View Toward Boiler House

Does it strike you that some of these lithographs have similarities to Bonestell's representations of manmade structures in his speculative astronomical paintings? Well, you're not alone. Here's what artist Ron Miller had to say about yesterday's lithograph, over on Facebook:

Bonestell's architectural work and his astronomical art are related. What he learned---and employed---in his architectural drawings and paintings: light and shadow, perspective, etc., was directly employed in his space art. This is especially the case with his depiction of spacecraft, where perspective was often of immense importance. For instance, in this painting, not only is the perspective of the spacecraft convincing, look at the light and shadows. The shadows cast by the spherical tanks on the wing. Or take that near vertical fin, where light is reflected back onto its shaded side by the illuminated wing...and the reflection in the fin of its own shadow. This is complex stuff and he learned it from doing work such as the drawings he created for the the Muscle Shoals project.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

Above: Ron Miller's comments have been reproduced with his permission. If you'd like to see a selection of his astronomical paintings, they can be found here.

 

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3 Hard Shots at the Moon

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Look what came in the mail! 3 Hard Shots at the Moon is a signed and numbered limited edition (300 copies) hardcover containing three hard-sf novellas set on the Moon. It contains John Kessel's "Stories for Men," Ian McDonald's "The Menace from Farside," and my own "Griffin's Egg," along with an introduction by James Patrick Kelly. With a cover and full-color interior illustrations by Maurizio Manzieri.

Also available in paperback and e-book formats from the publisher, Infinivox. You can find their page with complete information about the book--and Manzieri's interior illustrations--here.

And since I have the opportunity to talk about it . . . 

"Griffin's Egg" was originally published in hardcover format by Century/Legend in Britain in 1991. The triggering incident for the novella is a nuclear war on Earth that leaves its Lunar research colony isolated. At the time I was writing, it only made sense that such a war would be a confrontation between East and West--between the USSR and the United States, essentially. Only...

That was a war that SF writers had been predicting since shortly after Hiroshima. The very thought of it bored me. So I created a conflict whose origins were obscure and which no one really understood. The ideologies involved were of no relevance to the story anyway, so why not? And between the time I wrote the story and when it came out in print, a funny thing happened...

The Soviet Union collapsed.

It happened very suddenly, essentially because the people of East Germany were as bored by the East-West Cold War universe as I was. (I oversimplify greatly; feel free to read a few books of history.) If I had gone with the conventional wisdom of the times, "Griffin's Egg" would be painfully dated today. But because I didn't, the future I imagined is still conceivably one we might have.

There's a lesson to be learned here, but I'm not sure I can put it into words. Other than that it's usually better to imagine things differently than everybody else does.

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #19 of 32

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Constructing the Power House

Ron Miller, who is not only a very fine astronomical artist in his own right but also co-author of The Art of Chesley Bonestell, has most kindly provided a link to the Library of Congress's page about the United States Nitrate Plant No. 2, including a brief history of the plant and what became of it:

Significance: Built as a war measure for the production of ammonium nitrate, a key component in high explosives, United States Nitrate Plant No. 2 became one of the largest plants of its kind with a capacity to produce 110,000 tons of ammonium nitrate per year. The plant and its adjoining industrial town were hurriedly constructed in a nine month period between February and November of 1918 with little regard to cost. After two brief periods of production, one toward the end of 1918, the other in the February of 1919, the 348 acre manufacturing site lay idle for the next fourteen years while Congress and private industry wrangled over bids that had less to do with the nitrate plant than they did with the hydro-power of the adjoining Wilson Dam. As a chemical plant for the production of ammonium nitrate, U.S.N.P. No. 2 was actually a series of discreet plants, each producing an intermediate product in a lengthy and mechanically complex industrial process. On an unprecedented scale, U.S.N.P. No. 2 assembled state of the art technologies for the production of calcium carbide, liquid air, cyanamide, ammonia gas, nitric acid, and ammonium nitrate.

More information and diagrams can be found here.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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A Field Guide To Writing Fiction by A. B. Guthrie, Jr.

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I picked this up at a library sale the other day, and I'm glad I did. There are a lot of books out there on how to write. Most of them are overlong and many are a complete waste of time. A. B. Guthrie, Jr.'s slim volume is neither. It is less than a hundred pages long and close to every word of it is useful to an aspiring or beginning author.

From the Introduction:

Bear in mind that I am addressing myself not to people who want to write but to those who will write or are already writing. Too often I encounter men and women, young and old, who speak of the wish to write and the intention of doing so sometime. They populate the meadows of forlorn hopes.

From a brief chapter (all Guthrie's chapters are brief) on beginning lines, after giving several examples of especially effective openings:

But be careful. You can overdo it and strain the reader's credulity. And don't be upset if you can't come upon a novel beginning. If your story is good, a clear opening is enough.

And here's the opening to the chapter on adjectives and adverbs:

Maxim: The adjective is the enemy of the noun and the adverb the enemy of damn near everything else. Nouns and verbs are the guts of language. That's another engraving for your skull.

I could go on. But these examples tell you everything you need to know about this book: It's terse. It's aphoristic. The language is vivid and direct. The advice is all practical. And, oh yes, every word of it is true.

This is not a volume for the experienced writer. If heeded, however, it can spare a newcomer a lot of anguish and frustration on the road to becoming the writer they wish to be.

And I hear you ask . . .

Is there a better book on how to write? Yes, there is, and both Mr. Guthrie and I agree on what it is. John Gardner's The Art of Fiction is extraordinary. Read this volume first, however. It touches on all the basics.

If you don't have the ready cash, both books are readily available via interlibrary loan.

 

Above: The cover blurb says, "A Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist shares a lifetime of secrets on the art of writing fiction." They're not secrets, unless you're just starting out. But they're all things every writer needs to know.

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #18 of 32

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The Lime Nitrogen Oven Building

To appreciate this one, you have to click on the picture and see it in detail.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #17 of 32

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Ammonia Gas Columns by Autoclave Building

Is this great or what? (I apologize that I have so little to contribute, other than fanboy gush. But as a product of the American education system, I've never had an art class in my life.)

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #16 of 32

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 Lime Kilns

Half of the Chesley Bonestell industrial lithographs have been posted. Those of you who may be interested in the purpose and history of the plant, may find detailed information at the Library of Congress website:

United States Nitrate Plant No. 2, Reservation Road, Muscle Shoals, Colbert County, AL | Library of Congress

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #15 of 32

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Working on Power House at Night

One thing that strikes me strongly about these lithographs is the artistic ambition of them, as demonstrated by the variety of techniques and approaches Bonestell employed. I seriously doubt anybody said to him, "Go out and at night and get an image of the work being done under difficult conditions." But there he was. Because he knew the result would be striking.

A lesson to us all: If you want to make your mark, you don't always get to sleep late. Or work under comfortable conditions.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #14 of 32

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Power House Steel and Base of One of Power Stacks

What is particularly striking in this series of lithographs is the variety of techniques that Bonestell employed. The images vary so greatly from one another!

I don't have the language to say more than that. But an artist could talk your ear off about the skill shown in these images. And they would be well worth listening to.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #13 of 32

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The Ditcher 

Isn't that a great machine? It really was an age of heroic construction back then.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Starting the Semiquincentennial Celebrations Early: The Shot Heard Round the World

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These are grim times for those of us who love America and everything that makes it great. But I'm going to resist that grimness by celebrating the hell out of our 250th anniversary and giving a shout out to as many of its virtues and achievements as I can.

Starting today, the 250th anniversary of "the shot heard round the world"--the first gun fired in the Battles of Lexington and Concord, which turned a series of heated protests into an actual revolution. That revolution freed us from the tyranny of foreign rule.

The battle began when the Royal Governor of Massachusetts sent British soldiers to seize arms and powder stored in Concord and thus deprive the colonists of the means of rebellion. Long story short, it backfired terribly and at the end of the night, the War of Independence was begun.

What makes this worth celebrating is that the revolution was not ordered from above. It was an uprising of local patriots--a war of the people, by the people, and for the people.

There have been rocky times for the Union in the quarter of a millennium since. But in all that time Americans have never had to bend the knee to a monarch, whether foreign or domestic. That's worth celebrating--and preserving.

And while we're talking about tyranny . . .

This is an accomplishment that some presidents, strangely enough, do not seem to value particularly highly. Ronald Reagan accepted a British knighthood, which his wife Nancy had campaigned for. And less than a month ago Donald Trump declared his support for a plan for the United States of America to join the British Commonwealth.

In which event, America would have a king for the first time in a quarter of a millennium and all the blood spelled by patriots during the Revolutionary War would be dishonored. All to gratify the ego of one evil man.

But let's not let that happen.

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #12 of 32

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Setting of Lime Kiln

Just look at this! The skeletal twin towers look Old Testament. The figures down below them might as well be the Israelites in exile, laboring in the service of the Pharaoh.

Don't think that didn't occur to everyone there who got to see this lithograph, either.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #11 of 32

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Lime Nitrogen Oven Room

As with so many of these images, I encourage you to zoom in and admire the details. In this one, you should particularly admire all the small human figures and the whimsical (but accurate!) motor vehicles in the bottom right corner.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #10 of 32

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Locomotive Crane

The image speaks for itself.

So I'll mention instead that, years after we married each other, Marianne Porter and I both discovered that we were early fans of Mike Mulligan's Steam Shovel. I because my name was "Mike," and she because the steam shovel's name was "Marianne."

It was fate.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #9 of 32

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Coffer Dam and Intake Canal at Power House

Isn't this a wonderful image? It is! I hope you click on it so you can admire the fine detail.

This is a good time to pause and explain what the purpose of this enormous project was. It was 1918 and World War I, "the War to End All Wars," was ongoing. Lots and lots of ammunition was needed. And to create that ammunition, the armorers needed nitrates.

And here I will pause in the middle of the previous pause to mention that my father, whom I loved and of whom I was and am proud, was an engineer for General Electric. He worked on the space program and he worked on ICBMs--intercontinental ballistic missiles. Which is to say, he was front and center on the best and worst projects of the twentieth century.

The nitrates plant was finished just in time for the Great War to end. So it was never used for munitions. But nitrates were still needed for fertilizer. Swords were beaten down into plowshares.

So, like my father, Chesley Bonestell was front and center on the best and worst projects of the twentieth century.

 And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Books I Own and You Don't: THE WRITER'S SIDEKICK

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I have compiled this book as a useful tool for the convenient use of both the amateur and the professional author. To collect these gems I have cream-skimmed the writing of myriad novelists, to whom grateful acknowledgment is hereby made. To quote Montaigne: "I have here only made a garland of choice flowers; I bring nothing of my own but the thread that binds them."

--Clifford Pierce Redden 

I discovered Redden's The Writer's Sidekick at a writing workshop I agreed to teach at during the1980s. Like many an indie author, he apparently had trouble finding a market and so he left a stack on the freebies table. Had I realized how entertaining my fellow writers would find it, I would have swiped a dozen on my way out.

TWS is a compilation of adjectives, mostly compound and hyphenated, that Redden found attached to various nouns. Under JOKES, for instance, he has:

age-worn

back-number

bad-taste

barnacle-encrusted

below-belt

chuckle-compelling,

corn-fed

corset-busting

and so on, all the way to X-rated. The nature of the books the author consulted really shows in his categories of women, including B-GIRL (one page), BLONDE (two pages), HARLOT (one page), and NYMPHO (two). Some of them are pretty funny. TEEN-AGE SEXPOT includes:

sweater-bulging cheerleader

back-seat popularity

under-age sexcitress

butt-sprung usherette

haymow-taught sex

slumber-party gossip

and hand-knitted socks.

The unintentional comedy of "under-age sexcitress" and the like is amusing at first. But after a while, the sexism of the project makes reading it dreary and depressing.

 Still, in short bursts it's a hoot. And I'm absolutely certain you don't own a copy.

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #8 of 32

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Looking from Coffer Dam to Power House

If you've been following this series of lithographs, I hope you've been clicking on the images to admire them in detail. There's a lot of it.

Note that in the background of this image is the smokestack of the powerhouse. This will pop up again and again in the series. It's the metaphoric North Star of the construction project.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #7 of 32

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 .Intake Canal and Coffer Dam

 

Look at the size of this project! The human figures quietly bring out the massive scale of it.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #6 of 32

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The Drainage Canal

 The same scene as yesterday, but a different artistic take on it.

What is extraordinary about the nitrates plant is that the entire project, from start to finish, took less than a year. Chesley Bonestell was there for the beginning and he was there at the end. People knew how to build things fast back then. Also--as you'll soon see--huge.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #5 of 32

 The Drainage Canal

As a kneejerk, pro-ecology liberal, I'm supposed to be appalled by big industrial builds, especially when they're for the munitions industry. But this is majestic. Look at the beauty Bonestell found in those curves!

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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Chesley Bonestell's Lost Industrial Lithographs #4 of 32

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Site Looking from River Road

While we cannot prove it and, indeed, have no evidence it is so, Marianne and I are both convinced that one of the equestrians must surely be John Fetherston, the project head/chief engineer for the nitrates plant. 

After retirement, Fetherston and his wife lived in Packwood House in Lewisburg, parts of which dated back to the eighteenth century. Edith filled the house with antiques bought at auction. She "enjoyed arranging her objects in charming and whimsical combinations." After her death, in accordance to her will, a trust was created and in 1976 the Packwood Museum opened, displaying her collection of ceramics, glass, textiles, furniture, paintings, Pennsylvania German decorative arts (in this part of the world it is almost obligatory for rich people to collect fraktur and redware), and Oriental art.

Two of Bonestell's lithographs were framed and so, presumably, available for view at the auction. So they were not technically "lost." But they were not seen by anybody who had any idea what they were.

Alas, this by all accounts charming museum closed in 2020, when the Covid Isolation drove down its attendance and it could no longer pay its own way. The building went to the local historical society and its possessions, in accord with Edith's will, went to her parish church. Which had no earthly use for the and so put them for sale in several auctions. One of which was held by Pook & Pook.

"I don't know what that is, but I hope you win them," the lady at the auction house told Marianne when Marianne said that the only thing she really wanted was the Bonestells.

We had two reasons for wanting them. First, because they're terrific. Second, because we knew that if an interior decorator got hold of them, they'd be slapped in chrome frames and sold into dentists' and doctors' offices to be ignored for a few decades and then thrown away.

Luckily for us, nobody with deep pockets knew what they were, and we were able to buy them for less than what they must surely be worth.

And because we were aware of what they were, we understood that we had an obligation to share them with the world.

And for those who came in late . . .

In 1918, Chesley Bonestell was commissioned to create a series of lithographs chronicling the construction of the government cyanamide nitrates plant in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It would be many years before he began painting the astronomicals that made him famous, but he already had tremendous technique.

The lithographs disappeared from public view not long thereafter.

Recently, my wife, Marianne Porter, and I bought what we think is a complete set of 32 at an auction. We had electronic files made of them, which we'll be posting here, one every weekday until they're all online. Then we'll make a torrent containing the complete collection in high density form, for whomever wants them.

All the images are in public domain. You don't have to ask anybody for permission to download them and you may employ them however you wish.

 

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