Back When Ankles Were Scandalous

deco0400:

Hornsby Chain Track Tractor

This steam-powered tractor has been in Canada since it was shipped as a new machine from England in 1910. Built by R. Hornsby & Sons of Grantham England, the crawler track principle was patented in 1904. The following year, the device known as a “chain track” was fitted to a Hornsby oil tractor built in 1896. Several other Hornsby oil powered tractors were completed with crawler tracks, but despite energetic promotion, including the first film ever made for commercial purposes (1908), and demonstrations for high-ranking military personnel, the idea did not catch on. This machine was originally sold to the Northern Light Power & Coal Company for hauling coal to Klondike gold fields in the Yukon. After this lone sale, the Hornsby company became disillusioned and sold the patent rights of the “chain track” to the Holt Manufacturing Company in 1914. Holt later combined with Best to become the Caterpillar Tractor Company. This was the only steam powered machine built and is the only steam crawler existing today.

(via my-ear-trumpet)

adanvc:

Group of teenagers pushing an old car. St Louis, 1944.

by Nina Leen

(via lostsplendor)

monetizeyourcat:

yourfutureleader:

Just a horribly confused, pickelhaube-wearing dachshund I came across in a World War I documentary.

nature is beautiful

(via deftponk)

my-ear-trumpet:

deutschemark:

{Baron Peter von Wrangel (Russian: Pyotr Nikolayevich Vrangel), General of the Imperial Army, Commander-in-chief of the White Army in Crimea - c. 1920}

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyotr_Nikolayevich_Wrangel

absentmindedfools:

We all know that Rasputin was one handsome devil. Don’t kid yourself. 

“There’s no disputin, I just love Rasputin. When our teacher told us to turn our books to his chapter, and a big picture of him popper up, I just couldn’t concentrate on the rest of the lesson. I couldn’t take my eyes off his beautiful bearded face. When I heard that he solicited sexual favors from women, I felt an extreme uncontrollable jealousy. That night I went to bed with my history book and read the chapter on Rasputin, curtains drawn, candles lit and a Barry White record playing” 

Yahoo Answers “I feel a strange sexual attraction to Rasputin of Russia?” 

fyeah-history:

Picasso with an owl, c. 1948

fyeah-history:

ON THIS DAY: 1905 – Las Vegas was established as a railroad town, after 110 acres owned by the San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad was auctioned off. Pictured are SPLA&SL railroad workers, during the early 1900s.

thevictorianlady:

Lord Byron’s Orthopedic Boot.

Byron was born with a club foot, and was forced to wear painful corrective footwear, like the shoe shown above. As a child, he hated wearing his brace, and even threw one of his boots into a pond. The small size (10cm) of this shoe indicates that he wore it as a child.

(via my-ear-trumpet)

fyeah-history:

Nicholas Alexandrovich, Tsarevich of Russia (later Emperor Nicholas II of Russia) in Nagasaki, prior to the Otsu Incident, 1891
The Ōtsu incident was a failed assassination attempt on Nicholas Alexandrovich, Tsarevich of Russia (later Emperor Nicholas II of Russia) on 11 May [O.S. 29 April] 1891, while Nicholas was visiting Japan during his eastern journey.

fyeah-history:

Soviet soldier feeding an owl during World War II