RAF Recovery

Flying for Britain in the Second World War was probably one of the most dangerous things you could do, even in a wartime context. Thousands of very young men (literally; the average age for pilots was 22) went up into the air night after night to defend their country, and many of them never came back.

These photographs are slightly less depressing; taken at an RAF rehabilitation centre in 1942, they show the various aspects of recovery for lucky (ish) pilots. Naturally this is the nicer side of the process, for public consumption; but even so.

Exercising an injured leg. [The captions use 'damaged'; I dislike this, it makes the men sound like machines.] Source

Pilot taking a bike ride as part of his post-broken leg rehab. Source

Exercising injured legs. Source

Night

A nighttime walk through streets of the past. 

Sydney Town hall, at the Inauguration of the Australian Commonwealth, Jan. 1, 1901. Source

Jefferson Street, Richmond, Virginia, 1960. Source

Indooroophilly Bridge, Brisbane, Aus.... undated, my guess is 20s-40s. Source

Lights on a street in Washington, DC, c. 1910. Source

A snowy night in Woodstock, Vermont, 1940. Source

The Royal Naval College, Greenwich, London, lit up for the coronation, 1937. Source

Train yard in Los Angeles, 1943, with lights shaded from above as per blackout regulations. Source

The Tivoli amusement park, Copenhagen, 1952. Source

The Palace of Industries at an exhibition in Auckland, NZ, 1913. Source

Night view of the Seattle World's Fair, 1962. Source

Lava flowing into the town of San Sebastiano al Vesuvio, Italy, during the 1944 eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. Source

And Mt. Vesuvius itself, during the 1944 eruption. Source

Auckland Town Hall, NZ, lit up for a (the?) Peace Celebration, 1919. Source

Fireworks on the harbour, possibly Sydney, Australia, c. 1930. Source

The lights of New York-- 52nd Street, 1948. Source

Assorted Photos II

Finally, a post again! Many apologies-- I do hope I shall be able to post every couple days for the next couple weeks, then we shall be back to our regular schedule!

Another themeless post (here is the first). I come across so many photographs that are fascinatng, beautiful, interesting, or all of the above, and some of them just don't fit into any categories...some of them, I think, never could! 

Boating party, c.1904. Source

Watching a 3-D film... in 1951. London. Source

The first car on this road. Washington State, US, 1911. Source

Young woman reading a sign, 1938, Sydney, Australia. Source

The most popular girl at the St. Patrick's Day Dance, Oswestry, Wales, 1955. Source

Girls in wood veneer bathing suits, c. 1929, Washington State, US. Source

High school girl wearing bobby socks as curlers, US, 1947. Source

Lighting a cigarette, Sydney, Australia, 1930s. Source

Feeding birds on top of his head. 1900-1908. Source

Aviatrix in a cheetah-print coat, c. 1930. Source

Two men fencing, c. 1900. Source

Mountaineering in Washington State, US, c. 1900. Source