In April of 2012 I posted about Oak Ridge, Tenneesee, one the U.S. government’s secret Manhattan Project sites that was established to produce the fuel for the first Atom bomb. The post was spurred by the Department of Energy and the digitization of their photo archives, which included a lot of long classified photos of the secret town. You can read all about it here.

That post got a lot of attention and people all over the world were curious to see the photos and learn about how a town of over 80,000, which was home to the largest building in the world at the time (the K-25 enrichment building at CEW, which is pictured above and below), had the 10th largest bus network in America and used more power than the whole of New York City managed to remain a closely held secret.

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It took a lot of coaxing to get me to visit San Diego. Having spent so much time in L.A. and San Francisco for work and increasingly for fun, I had honestly relegated San Diego near the bottom of my list of places to visit in the Golden State. My girlfriend of nearly two years, who grew up in La Jolla, was determined to change my thinking (a talent girlfriends wield skillfully) on the subject of San Diego. Her weapon of choice? The historic La Valencia Hotel in La Jolla. Knowing my appreciation for provenance, this was a shrewd and ultimately successful move.

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Going through the John F. Kennedy archives I came across this recipe for New England Fish Chowder. Apparently, chowder was the favorite dish of JFK —pictured here sailing on the Presidential yacht Manitou near Hyannis Port, Mass. which was one of his favorite activities.

Could this be the beginning of an archival food section for ACL? Unlikely. But nevertheless it’s an amusing little piece of history. Someone please follow this recipe and report back.

Images via the John F. Kennedy Library, Boston, MA.

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The Boston Public Library has a massive and impressive digital photo archive, which is open for all to enjoy via Flickr. The collection has yielded other interesting ACL posts in the past, and an image search recently led to this collection of old Georgia post cards from roughly 1930-1945.

I’ve spent the past few days in Southeast Georgia (Jekyll, St. Simons & Sea Island) and it got me looking around for old pictures and along came these nearly 600 great old postcards from all over the state of Georgia. Nice stuff here from the BPL as usual.

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Eddie Bauer —the original expedition outfitter of American Everest explorers— recently sent a team of mountaineers to return to the deadly peak’s West Ridge to commemorate the historic anniversary of the 1963 climb of Jim Whittaker who is credited as the first American to summit the world’s tallest peak.

The short video below helps tell the story of the first Americans to stand on the summit. Eddie Bauer also created this beautiful web feature that highlights the adventure that Whittaker and his comrades shared, along with the gear that took both the 1963 team and the 2013 teams to the top.

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The U.S. Geological Survey has a nice collection of photos from the national parks of the American West, including a bunch of images from the various surveys of Yellowstone National Park from late 1800s that eventually led to the land being protected forever by the government. These early black and white photographs capture the beautiful natural landscape of an area that has gone on to become one of the most celebrated and a widely visited places in America.

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I came across an interesting article recently about the Phillips screw and its inventor Henry F. Phillips. It was surprising to learn that in a moment of innovation in the late 1930s, Cadillac was the first company to use the Phillips screw. As someone who has the collectively random interests of history, WWII and and U.S. manufacturing, this story is a gold mine.

My friend Mark was telling me the other day that his four-year old son is at the stage in his development that he is constantly asking questions about everything. Apparently, the most common query is — why? In a way, I think I never really grew out of that phase (and I’m sure many of you are the same way). I look at an everyday object and wonder what the story is behind it. What went into it becoming what it is? Because everything has a story, even something as simple as a Phillips screwdriver.

From the Wall Street Journal:

The screw was invented in the early 30’s by Henry F. Phillips, a Portland, Oregon businessman. He knew that car makers needed a screw that could be driven with more torque and that would hold tighter than slotted screws. Car makers also needed a screw that would center quickly and easily, and could be used efficiently on an assembly line. The Phillips screw was designed so that it could be driven by an automated screw driver with increasing force until the tip of the driver popped out without ruining the screw head. So what many consider a design flaw is actually a feature (at least if you’re a car manufacturer).

The Phillips screw first gained acceptance with Cadillac in the late 30’s. Although there is a Phillips Screw Co. today, the company never actually made Phillips screws or drivers. They were produced under license by other companies. Unlicensed knockoffs proliferated, so that in 1949, Mr. Phillips was stripped of his patent.

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