John Crandall's Blog
Posted by John Crandall
Abraham Lincoln, the Great Emancipator, is a very complex historical picture. Some say his lifelong dislike of and opposition to slavery led directly to the Emancipation Proclammation. That is an oversimplified and rather narrow view. In fact, as President he held his duty to the Constitution and established traditions of republican government and "states' rights" to exceed his views on slavery in importance.
Not only this sworn duty, but the need to pacify the barder states where slavery was still somewhat prevalent led to his initial policies of supporting slavery by upholding the existing laws. This made little or no difference in the states that had seceded, because to them his Presidency was invalidated by their declaration of indepence from the old union and formation of a new confederacy.
The course of the war, and his personal determination that the union must prevail, along with the eventual realization that the slaves were actually one of the great strengths of the south, and its primary labor force led him to believe that depriving his enemies of this resource was not only an obvious, but a crucial step to winning the war. Thus the Emancipation proclamation, with its qualification that it only applied to states that were "in rebellion" againt the United States. Hence many historians proclaim that he only freed those who he technically had no jurisdiction over. However the emotional response, and the acceptance of negro soldiers that found their way to union lines made a huge impact on both the outcome of the war and the reconstruction period which followed.
Posted by John Crandall
Thomas Malthus was famous in Elizabethan England for theorizing that the population of a country, or an island such as Britain, was determined by definite factors such as geographical space, and food production capabilities. Population pressures unabated were certain to lead to emigration. In the England of the time of colonizing America there was surplus population. Many of the unemployed, under-employed, or impoverished emigrated to America as indentured servants. This acted as an outlet valve for excess population in the British Isles.
Once settlements in America had developed productive agricultural communities, America was more than just an outlet valve it was large unsettled country drawing on population surpluses of not only Britain, but Germany, the Low Countries, and even France and other countries to a lesser extent. The land use patterns and agricultural capacities of the native North American Indians were far different, and even the population they were capable of supporting was decimated by imported European diseases.
This trend continued throughout the colonial period, and on into the the mid 1800s accelerating dramatically through this later period. Time was to come when America despite being sparsley settled would consider immigration to be burdensome. Although I believe Malthus was largely correct in his theories, urbanization, and mechanized farming were to dramatically increase the amount of population that could be supported.
Posted by John Crandall
I am in the process of moving to new living accomadations. I am going to be very busy adjusting to my new choice of living on my 28 ft. cabin cruiser. It is apparently going to be something of a challenge to get a slip convenient to where I want to be, and get internet, phone, cable, and all those sorts of things. I am moving along on getting everything set up, but it will be another week or two before I am comforatably typing blogs and articles from my own home.
One note on the bright side is that I currently have more time to read history books, and am reading both for articles planned on here, and to get acquainted with certain books I have always meant to read. I'm readinf some James McPherson, David, Donald, Bernard Bailyn, Gordon Wood, and going some Charles and Mary Beard. I hope no one is too upset that I am unable to participate on the discussion forums as much as i might like to, but I promise to try and catch up as soon as possible.
Posted by John Crandall
I've been going back through some of my old books, and rereading with a focus on Colonial America. There is so much to cover, and my articles are so short that I could spend months on this period, but in the interest of keeping a diverse and interested audience, I may try to move forward and come back a little bit more. My real specialty and area of greatest personal knowledge is the 1850s, secession, and civil war. My second major area of interest is the Revolution and founding of the United States. I may try to begin a rotation doing an article from each period as I refresh my colonial knowledge and get my favorite views of the Revolution, the Constitution, and the Founding Fathers into article form. With installments from my mid 19th Century researches.
I really love the ideologies, and like to seek paralells and differences in ideology from one period to another. It is very informative to seek the consistencies from widely divergent periods, and also the differences. I am very much a believer that there are always different ways of perceiving the same information, and how the historiography of various ideals and beliefs demonstrates the perspectives of the Historians and their times. History itself is both the facts of the past that have been recorded in various ways, and the perspectives of Historians who have lived in differingt time periods..
Posted by John Crandall
It's propbably all the historical study of the Founding Fathers that did it to me, but I'm not a liberal or a conservative in the modern American sense. I do tend to beleive that our government is somewhat off of its ideal course, and that our history could teach us some important lessons if we would but pay attention. Ideologically I have always been opposed to communism and socialism on the basis that they have never proven themselves viable systems, and that their sttempts to regulate the economy are rarely if ever as efficient as Adam Smith's "invisible hand." Economies are hugely complex and unpredictable things, but for any planned economy to work the predictions must be close enough to reality that the system does not totally break down. If the whole ideological point of the system is equity for all citizens, i would hold that inequities resulting from party favoritism, and government subsidies and priorities generally displace the concept of equity in such systems.
For that reason i cannot place myself in the liberal camp today, nor can I place myself in the conservative camp since the "conservatives" have in general embraced large portions of such a system with the caveat that they have also retained ties to business and industrial interests, and tend to use the government to aid those interests.
The Libertarians make the most sense to me from the perspective of governmental ideology (i.e. limited government at the federal level, low taxes, no corporate welfare, etc.) However, on social issues they tend to rub me the wrong way coming very near to what James Madison might have called license instead of Liberty. So, it is a complicated thing, but when I watch C-span (as us old school historians who haven't totally given up and turned completely to social history sometimes do) I find myself most convinced by the arguyments of Independents in Congress. So for these reasons I would classify myself as a Independent with Libertarian leanings.
Posted by John Crandall
My naming FDR as one of our worst Presidents, is of course, sparking some debate. I feel rather strongly that the government of our country was drastically changed, and not necessarily for the better by FDR and the New Deal. I'll let the economists argue whether mechanized farming and mechanized industry causing mass unemployment of the unskilled (or removing the need for many skills), or the Federal Reserve rather drastically shrinking the money supply, or other factors, or a combination of all of the above was responsible for the Great Depression.
I was taught in school as a youngster that FDR was among our greatest Presidents, and told as much by my Parents and Grandparents, and I used to believe it until I studied the man and the period seriously. I was fresh off a study of the Early Republic and my mind was full of Jeffersonian and Madisonian quotations as well as the words of men like George Washington and Benjamin Franklin, and I was stricken at how drastically everything that America under FDR did seemed diametrically opposed to the beliefs and reccomendations of the founding period. Not only that, but the warnings as to what would undo the value of our system of government from the founders were often exactly what was being done. Now those are simple enough facts, and can be confirmed by anyone who takes the time to check them, but the usual answer from the modern History Professor is that the world became different and the maxims of the founders no longer held true. I tend to disagree with that point of view on the basis that the whig and republican ideologies of the founding generation were the keys to America's rise to greatness, and that under the current set of beliefs America is in a state of decay and/or decline. The reasons that I believe this are rather simple. America since 1940 has become a strange hybrid social democracy with a few vestiges of the original system to be found here and there. It wasn't just the government structure that changed in the mid-20th Cenury it was the economic system.
The socialist element of a social democracy scares me from my laissez-faire capitalist point of view because it rewards non-producers thus discouraging production which is the direct basis of economic strength. In a totally unregulated free market without what the British call "the dole" these non-producers would be forced to produce something for whatever wage the market would bear. This would automatically set the minimum wage at what an unskilled worker could produce, and the wages of skilled workers would go up from that minimum in a graduated way based on the value of their skills in the market. Under the dole, a semi skilled worker who feels self sufficient enough to not apply to programs he may be technically eligible for is actually producing more, but may be recieving less economic benefit than the unskilled worker who does not work at all. To this worker unemployment is actually a more intelligent choice than employment, and he may discover as much during an ecomonic downturn that puts him out of work. The loss of this production actually reduces the economic strength of the nation while increasing the cost of social programs. Unchecked such a scenario would lead to a spiraling cycle where production on which the government's source of income depends upon is eroded while the burden of its payouts are increased.
I'm trying to make this as clear as possible, FDR and the New Deal didn't just get us out of the Depression (although WWII may be more responsible for that) and change our government's style. They changed the economy from a free market to a subsidized regulated system wherein inequities can easily exist that the free market itself would prevent by its natural mechanisms of supply and demand. Another such inequity is the medical profession. Before 1940 it was not at all unusual for a country doctor or dentist to perform their services on an as needed basis with the understanding that the patient would pay by whatever means they could until the two agreed that the debt was settled. Under such a system there is no need for health insurance, the doctors are more likely to use their skills pro bono in their communities based on observed human needs and a non-mercenary outlook, and prices are locked to what the patients themselves can actually pay. Under the current system the only control on price is what the government and/or insurance companies will pay, doctors are more mercenary, and expect to maintain two or three residences, travel globally, and otherwise enjoy the priviliges of their favored economic staus. The value of the services of the doctor did not change, the laws and regulating forces upon the market in which those skills were employed did change.
After much thought, and for these and many more related reasons, I changed my views on FDR and the New Deal, and I would welcome more discussion of this topic or related topics although it is far ahead chonologically of where the focus of my articles is at this point.
Posted by John Crandall
As I look at all the discussions and contributing writer articles on the site, I find myself very tempted to spend more hours than I have available responding and writing articles on topics related to the contributed articles. I do want to participate in the discussions, but I will try to make my posts count, and may not have something to say in every thread.
I am browsing new shelves at the libraries around here, thinking about a lot of things I learned a few years ago working on my Masters. It will take me some time to get organized enough to jump around, and so for now I am going to stick to a roughly chronolgical plan for my articles. I may jump back and get Christopher Columbus and maybe even the Consquistadors, but right now I am working on the first settlements, and plan to soon have a piece ready on both Jamestown and the lost colony at Roanoke.
I'll try also to cover the Powhatans, and other native American tribes and stories. I should be through precolonial in about a month and a half, and will then move on to Colonial America. I'm enjoying this even more than the Transportation, so far, and I look forward to hearing from everyone in discussions or e-mails.
Posted by John Crandall
I am transferring from transportation history where I have been writing for over a year. I find it very approriate that I got my final notice of this transfer on July the 4th. Like Thomas Jefferson and John Adams who both managed to fight illnesses until they saw one more July Fourth I hold this day to be very important to America and Americans.
It's not just about fireworks displays and picnics, it's also about remembering the hard fight our forefathers made to win our Rights. It's about Life, Liberty, and Property; it's about Liberty and Justice for all. It's about all that and so much more that it would be impossible to put it all into a short blog. It really is America's Birthday, and although our great country may be well over 200 years old it is still a great country. There may be things I think have changed for the worse since the days of Jefferson, Adams, Washington, Franklin, Madison, and their contemporaries, but America is my home, and I hope to do her justice when I write about her history. I may point out a few things I think are shortcomings from time to time, but I will always be writing as a proud American Citizen.
I notice that the two articles I had previously written for American History are on my new front page. They are both Southern History, and both somehwat controversial from the political correctness point of view. I wrote them because I felt they touched on issues not then being addressed. I hope no one gets the impression that I am somehow ideologically promoting a South that is long gone. I am a Southerner, and I am trying to understand that part of America's past, but it is by no means my only interest. I do have fairly long college papers on both of these topics, but my interests tend to range widely, and my research focuses on new areas as new ideas or information catch my interest.
Posted by John Crandall
American History is my actual Degree field, and is the subject I hope to teach in a College one day. Transportation History has been very good to me, and I have had a lot of fun, and made some interesting contacts, but I feel American History is a topic that will really challenge me to think and write interesting and informative articles.
I have a lot to say on that topic, and I will do my best to keep it interesting to the readers as I pursue both my own interests, and thoise topics readers are searching for. I mean let's face it a lot more people are sitting in front of their computers wondering what Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson were all about than are wondering about James Watt or Otto Lilienthal.
This inrerased seachability and exposure should be great for my writing, and I will do my best to live up to the position of Feature Writer for American History. I hope someone else enjoys writing for Transportation History as much as I did, and I hope they can understand the framework which I was building on, and continue to explore this fascinating topic.
Posted by John Crandall
Working on my recent article about the Diolkos and whether or not it should be considered the world's first railroad I ran across an interesting tidbit of lexicon and usage concerning the terms railroad and railway. The Diolkos was a granite road with grooves cut 1.5 meters apart to guide wooden cars carrying portaging ships and their cargo across the isthmus of Corinth. There is some question in the minds of a few who have examined it whether the grooves were cut or worn in from long use, but their general uniformity on remaining sections would tend to imply some sort of engineered design.
Anyway, to get to the point. In America the terms railroad and railway are synonymous with railroad often being the preferred term. The same can be said for Canadian usage with slightly less preference, and the caveat that railway is generally used in legal documents. In British English, railroad is an outdated usage, and from about 1850 railway became the proper term to use when discussing transportation systems made up of tracks and locomotives.
Historically horse drawn coal railroads (I’m an American, and I‘m talking about before 1850) have often been named as the first railroads, but the ancient Greek Diolkos portage road on the Isthmus of Corinth may indeed be the world’s first railway (I’m an American so I can throw caution to the wind and use either term even though this is way before 1850).
Posted by John Crandall
I am nearing one year as the feature writer for transportation history. During that time my life has changed a lot. I have moved from Tennessee to Virginia seeking that ever elusive thing called success. I have become very well aware that getting a teacher's certificate rather than a Master's in History would have made me much more employable in about a year less of schooling. I do not agree with this policy by schools, but I am faced with the reality that a four year degree in education will land a person a far better paying job much more easily than a six year intensive course in History. Nonetheless, I am thankful for my education, and I appreciate the perspective and knowledge my studies have given me even if I do not appreciate being devalued in the job market.
Here on suite, I have been seeking to write about, and seek for, the meaning of the history of transportation. I have learned much and learn more every day, but like so many academic pursuits it seems that the true meaning is in the quest more than in the conclusions. No one can definitively and finally answer a question such as "What is Transportation History?" but in seeking such an answer one can give focus to a pursuit of knowledge, and produce a body of writing that may speak for itself. I hope those who visit my site go away with a feeling of satisfaction with regard to what they were searching for. This is primarily a site entered via search engines, and for that reason much of the writing becomes focused upon the goal of providing content that readers are searching for.
Nonetheless, I have striven to maintain a basic focus within the topic, and to write articles that have common threads binding them back into a cohesive whole. I may not always have been successful, but in the end, I hope that my writing for suite will stand as a body of work that has both informational content value and an overall message about the significance of transportation to humaity and human cultures.
Thank you for visiting, and I hope to be here with you for at least another year.
Posted by John Crandall
The steam engine made the locomotive and railroads possible. The internal combustion engine was the power source that allowed men like the Wright Brothers to take flight, the power source for Henry Ford's Model T, and for Chis Smith's Chris Craft speed boats and pleasure boats. There are new advances on the way, and these will almost certainly lead to new vehicles such as SWATH or HARTH boats, hydrogen fuel cell powered cars, solar electric cars, mag lev trains, and much more in the relatively near future.
Solar power has been a reality for decades, but it has not become the motive force for vehicles because the space (square feet of solar panels) needed to produce enough electricity to move a fairly heavy vehicle is too large at the current efficiency of photovoltaic technology.
Electric cars are viable, and have seen limited use, but the amount of battery storage space needed, and the costs of good batteries have combined to make automobiles that can compete with gasoline powered internal combustion vehicles on the basis of operating efficiency and cost slow in coming.
Hydrogen fuel cells are thought by many to have great promise for the automobile of the future, but problems with the volatility of hydrogen and oxygen in combination seem to have stalled this technology.
Internal combustion engines running on methane or other fuels may soon compete with gasoline, and gas electric hybrids are of course a reality already seeing use on the roads. Hybrid technolgies employing two or more of the technologies mentioned above are very likely. A solar electric car, with a decent battery bank, and electric charging or fueling stations, and a small internal combustion engine for emergency charging is a very buildable and realistic option.
Barring intense economic hardships new technologies are often slow to reach the mainstream, and gas prices may have to rise even more to make some of the other the better option, but many of the possibilities are better for our environment than the cars now on the road, so despite the "pain at the pump" perhaps it is all for the best in the long run.
Posted by John Crandall
Britney said that she was just running from the papirazzi and did not have time to buckle her baby up. A U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary got into the act, and said Britney Spears was setting a bad example for her fans. He used the incident as an opportunity to try to pressure State Legislatures to pass more stringent car seat laws.
I know it's old news, having happened in 2006, but it relates to a discussion for my seatblet laws blog where I was asked did I support infant car seats. I do think it is a good idea to protect your children as much as possible from the dangers of our modern world, but I am old enough to remember when driving with your child on your lap would not have caused the slightest notice from most people. I, personally, support the parents rights to make decisions for their children, but I do understand that in the modern world which continues to move at a faster and faster pace the dangers are perhaps greater than they once were.
But I am, and always will be, opposed to the government making laws telling people what to do with their own life, liberty, and property, or interfering with their pursuit of happiness (i.e. their own safety, their right to sit in their own car unrestrained if it makes them happier, their indefeasible property rights in the seatbelt and car they own) when other people's safety is not involved. That is the key concept, from a legal standpoint, running stop signs is wrong, and there can be a law against it because it endangers others. Not wearing a seatbelt cannot be legally outlawed because there is no threat to the safety of others, just the free individual is involved, and he cannot be legally coerced to give up his rights by any power including, or perhaps especially, the federal government. The States are supposed to remain strong enough vs. the feds to protect our rights. I am not strongly opposed to infant car seat laws, but I am opposed to mandatory seatbelt laws, especially those which allow a person to be stopped by police for no other violation.
My opinions are based strictly upon valid Constitutional Law, and the idea that freedom for all is more important than the loss of a few to accidents while living as they choose. I am relalistic enough to realize that the big isurance company lobby is the driving force behind seatbelt laws, and federal highway funding cut threats from the federal level have forced State Legislatures to give in on this issue. It is a sad state of affairs for a country founded upon a beautiful concept of decentralized limited federal government when the laws of the State Legislatures are dictated from above for the financial benefits of a few super rich men, but then our republic has had several centuries to reach this level of foolishness. Wake up America, the parties in power (both of them) belong heart and soul to the big money interests, and are ceasing to care about even our Constitutionally guaranteed rights if important campaign funders will be let down.
Posted by John Crandall
Fouled hulls are bad because they cause the once smooth surface of the ship's hull to be rough. This rough surface causes drag as the ship moves through the water. This drag casuses reduced top speed, and a need for more power to perform the same as a ship with a clean hull.
This fact that marine life see ship's hulls as a place to make their home has long been a problem to mariners. Antifouling goes back at least as far as the Pheonicians who attached copper bars to the hulls of their ships. Copper, as it breaks down in contact with water produces a chemical which is deadly to barnacles and similar organisms. Copper based powders were later added to marine paints to have a similar biocide effect. Of course, the 20th century saw advanced chemical biocides which were very effective at killing the unwanted organisms. Unfortunately, over time these deadly chemicals built up in coastal waters, and began to kill off oyster beds, and other desirablke life. This had the effect of having most of these "advanced" biocides banned by law, and put men back to using copper based powders in paint.
Scientists are scrambling for a new way to deal with this problem. Organic and earth friendly methods are being tried. The United States Navy is using powdered chemicals delivered by small tubes surrounding the ship's hull beneath the waterline through tiny holes. As water touches the chemical concoction natural biocides are produced that not only keep the hulls clean, but are also biodegradeable and earth friendly.
Posted by John Crandall
Boats over 4000 or 5000 lbs, are beyond the towing capacity of the standard pickup truck, and require something with a little more power. For your average weekend pleasure boat this may not be a consideration, but for a cabin cruiser over 22 ft. or more you will need professional towing, or a bigger truck. If you are like me and look in the phone book, and on the internet, and call the companies advertising this service you will find that the rates can be rather steep.
If you are buying a project boat fixer upper and you have found that price that makes you sure you can't lose, stop and check on the towing first, and add $900 to $1600 to the price even if it is within 3 or 4 hours driving distance from where you need it to be. If it is further, the cost will be more. This becomes an important consideration as soon as the initial elation of finding that perfect boat wears off.
There are a few options, of course. If you have a friend with a powerful oversized pickup that doesn't mind helping you out, and the boat is on a trailer you are in the clear. If you don't have that, there is still a really cool site on the net called uship.com which will let you post your towing job for bidders who move boats professionally. This can be a more cost effective option than calling the services listed in the phone book. There are probably more options as well, but look before you leap, and have a plan before you buy, or you could end up with a lighter wallet right when you need that money for paint and other supplies to make your dreams become reality.
Posted by John Crandall
Well, as usually happens my interests have managed to convince me to spend money. I'm even a little late posting this week because I have so much to do. I bought a fixer upper type boat built by Owens Yacht Company in 1963. It's a real pretty boat. It doesn't have the resale value of a Chris Craft (which is probably why I could indulge my whim on buying it), but it is a genuine antique boat from a very reputable and respected manufaturer.
I envision hours of fun in the sun and relaxing voyaging aboard her, but I am already aware that getting her into good shape is going to be quite a lot of work. All in all it is a sound boat with a running engine, and it has beautiful lines, and very pretty wood topside that will refinish beautifully. I'm not fully restoring her as an antque, but I am leaving a lot of original equipment aboard, so that one day she may be restored to her original 1963 glory.
Owens boats were manufactured in the Chesapeake region, and there are still many to be found on the water. They have a very good reputation among boat enthusiasts, and original brochures and information can be found at the Mariner's Museum here in Yorktown. I am very proud to be her new owner. I am trying to think of a good name. The hull is painted a pretty green color that contrasts beutifully with the natural wood topside, and I have toyed with names reminding me of my childhood like Green Lantern or Green Arrow. I considered giving in to the curent popularization of Tolkien lore since the movies came out and naming her Anduril (Aragorn's reforged sword) which has just always seemed like a really cool name to me, or Silmarillion, or Gandalf, or something like that, but in truth my days as a Tolkien afficianado were years ago and over long before the movies came out. Anyway, boats are supposed to be female, right? How about Viking Princess (I kinda like that one), or Valkarie, aw heck, I can't even spell that one without looking it up, and I'm sure there are a lot with that name. It's like having a kid, having to think of a name. I dunno Green Arrow isn't bad, and Viking Princess is cool, short, and sweet, but there are probably a lot of those already, and if I add something like Viking Princess of the Dawn for distinctivness I have a mouthful to spout out on the radio. Decisions, decisions.
Posted by John Crandall
I'm addicted to Chris Craft boats at the moment. Maybe it's just spring in the air, but I'm ready to sell the furniture, move out of the apartment, and buy a boat to live aboard. It just seems so much more pleasant than apartment living. You don't need a swimming pool, you always have a place to swim right at hand. You don't need to take a drive into the country to relax, just untie her, and follow your heart to beautiful views, relaxing waves, and of course - speed and the wind in your face.
I know Chris Craft is famous for speed launches as well as the cabin cruisers that I love. But you can't live aboard a launch, or dream of leaving it all behind to sail the seven seas in a launch. They are great for a feeling of exhilaration and fun in the sun, but my heart yearns to retire young, and travel the world captain of my own destiny.
It's only boats that make me wax this sappy. Maybe it's that same feeling that brought my ancestors to America, led Christopher Columbus to cross the Atlantic, of inspired Christopher Columbus Smith to build these great boats that I love. I'm definitely buying a project boat, since I like it when my dreams take work instead of money to achieve. After a couple of years of fixing her up, I can either sell her and start again, or weigh anchor and see the world. Who knows what I might do, or where I might go. That's part of the wonder of it.
Posted by John Crandall
Although I am the Transportation History Feature Writer, I am now allowed to post to other topics I feel qualified to write about, so I have done several articles about the U.S. Marine Corps. I served for 5 years, and was discharged honorably. I was an "airwing Marine", one of those aircraft technicians infantry Marines really enjoy making fun of. I worked on F/A-18 Hornet Jets, and I loved it sometimes and hated it others. There's something about the Corps that makes you forget the bad times, and remember your service however humble you may have been in the big picture with pride.
It all starts in bootcamp where they take your cigarettes and candy bars away from you and whip you into shape to run 8-10 miles whenever they tell you too, and to march 25 miles in a day with a full pack weighing somewhere in the nieghborborhood of 75 lbs. While all that is going on they shave all your hair off, and call you a recruit. They then inform you that recruits are among the lowest lifeforms on the planet. Along with invaluable new perspective you learn that there have been great Marines in the past. Men like Dan Daly who killed over 200 Boxer Rebels in one night almost singlehandedly, Smedley Butler who had the Eagle Globe and Anchor (EGA), the symbol of the Marine Corps tatooed larger than life on his chest, Chesty Puller who led his Marines to many victories in WWII, and Korea, including the now famous fighting withdrawal of the Marines at the Frozen Chosin (Chosin Reservoir), and about Tun Tavern and the Marine Corps Birthday.
You learn about the Devil Dogs who fought so bravely at Belleau Woods, about Archibald Henderson, the Grand Old Man of the Marine Corps who served from the early 1800's until his death just before the Civil War, about A.A Cunnigham who was the first Marine pilot, Gaudacanal, Iwo Jima, and much much more. Every Marine knows a lot of this History, and it is important to remember these men and their deeds and lives, and the many who died fighting for American Liberty.
Posted by John Crandall
I'm posting these thoughts in relation to my Railroads and the Market Economy Article. In that article I mention how profits of the railroads due to economy of scale were deemed offensive, and brought on the first real regulation of the American economy through the institution of the Interstate Commerce Commission to fix rail passenger prices. There will always be new economy of scale businesses, they are the most profitable kind. I don't think I have to say Gates or Walton for readers to get the picture that such things as made the robber barons still go on, or that such things are a natural phenomenon of a free economy. I think that's the grass roots of the profit motive, and not a bad thing. Now, when such businesses get special priveleges, take advantage of programs for the poor by paying their laborers so little that the government (i.e. the taxpayers) supports their workers for them, or get special legislation to protect them something is wrong, but in a real free market they would get my applause.
In, 2007, if you want to see a large scale business making huge profits, go to the local "discount" department store chain. If you dislike the idea of the rich getting richer stop shopping there, or if you must shop there refuse to buy goods where the price jumps a huge percentage in a short span of time. Should this chain be regulated? Yes it should, by the customers. You can't get good grapes, oranges, or tomatoes these days, and the green ones they sell are priced extremely high relative to their quality. I'm growing my own tomatoes on the back deck, maybe I should plant grape arbors and an orange tree this spring as well. The grapes couldn't be any worse than the early picked and shipped from South America kind, and they'll only cost a few hours of my own labor. It might even be fun. Just remeber, they have over 500 million customers, and every penny extra they charge you adds around 5 million dollars to their bottom line, every extra dime they charge you adds $50,000,000 to their profits, and so on.
I was buying baked beans and tomato soup for under 50 cents a can less than a year ago. The prices of both have doubled, and I no longer buy either one. It's not that I stopped liking to eat them. It's that the price is higher than the value. But then, I'm living in a world where 6 to 8 dollars for a prepared burger meal that costs about a dollar to make at home is not considered prohibitively expensive by most. Lets see, the typical fast food place pays their help about 7 to 8 dollars an hour, employing maybe 5 to 6 people thats 5 or 6 sales an hour to pay labor. One dollar retail (probaly 50 cents or less wholesale) for the product. Even if we are generous and give them an additional 2 dollars for overhead, thats 4 to 5 dollars profit on every sale after 6. If they sell 50 an hour on the average thats 176 to 220 dollars an hour profit on a fast food joint. Thats 8800 on a 40 hour week, and their weeks are more like 133 hours if they open at 7 am and close at midnight 7 days a week. 133X$220=$29260/wk. What's the average annual household income of their customers? I bet its less than one million five hundred twenty thousand five hundred and twenty one a year. Sure, some of it goes to the franchise, but still . . .
I don't know maybe I'm leaving out insurance and taxes even with a generous overhead, but my point is I don't eat there anymore because I believe the price is too high. I cook my own hamburgers and french fries, in most cases they are better, and they are always cheaper costing me about 1 dollar for ingredients and maybe a half hour to 45 minutes of my time. In this case I am earning in the neighborhood of 10 to 12 dollars an hour during that time usually in my shorts and t-shirt with the TV or radio on with nothing better to do instead except maybe veg out on the couch. I am still a sucker for ordering pizza though. It's the only food place where the prices are still what they were when I started shopping there, maybe they were overcharging me then, maybe they have more mom and pop competition. Whatever the case as long as its $9.99 with a coupon for a medium pepperoni delivered they have my business. If it goes to $14.99, I'm calling my mother for her pizza crust recipe. Maybe profits can be obscene, but only when the majority of consumers have no brains, options, or initiative to do for themselves, or when the government grants special privileges to special businesses or sectors of the economy (a practice in direct oppostition to equality under the law, I might add).
Posted by John Crandall
Building railroads was back breaking work. Hard work for thousands of Americans in the golden age of rail. Songs like John Henry, I've been Workin' on the Railroad, and more remeber these men and their lives and work.
"John Henry" is an especially loved rail ballad because it not only commemorates rail laborers (John Henry was a Hammerman), but his race against the steam shovel (or drill) also remembers how workers faced with losing their jobs to mechanization felt. John Henry might have outrun the steam shovel, but he burst his heart and died in the effort. Not many today can fully appreciate that kind of effort, or the pride working men felt in this legend. Working yourself to death is a cliche today, often used sarcastically, but for men who identified with John Henry his was a valiant effort to validate the work of their lives even if only in the spirit.
"I've Been Workin' on the Railroad" is another song that brings home both the pride of hard work and a sense of the commaraderie of rail crews who traveled with the newly laid rails living and eating together in camps ever on the move. Rail labororers were from a variety of groups, but Irish immigrants in the east, and Chinese immigrants in the west are especially rmembered from the time when the first transcontinental tracks were laid. As everybody knows they met at Promontory Point Utah, but fewer remember that there were still thousands of miles of spur lines to be laid, and men continued working on the railroad all the live long day for decades afterward.
Posted by John Crandall
Two sank quickly, and the third had a repeated bad luck as well. The Olympic was the first launched in June 1911. She had a collision with a Royal Navy Ship, and limped in to port to be repaired using components of her sister ship the Titanic which was then under construction. As everyone probably already knows, the Titanic struck and iceberg and sank on her maiden voyage with a high death toll due to a lack of lifeboats. The Olympic was then refitted to carry more lifeboats.
The third ship, the Britannic was originally to be named the Gigantic, but due to bad luck which many thought stemmed from arrogance the name was changed to Britannic which was deemed to be a luckier name. She was fitted with the largest steam turbine in the world at 18,000 horsepower. Launched in 1914 she was Commissioned as a hospital ship in 1915 for WWI. She was sunk almost immediately by a mine or torpedo off the Greek Island of Kea. Attempts to beach her on the island failed, and she sank in a fashion similar to the Titanic. Two lifeboats launched without orders from the port side were sucked into the propellers. There were no survivors from these two boats.
The Olympic survived the war, and even sunk a German U-boat by ramming. She then returned to commercial service, and operated until 1934 with only one further mishap involving a Nantucket lightship where seven lives were lost in a collision. She even earned the affectionate nickname “old reliable”, but was scrapped in 1935. Of the three “unsinkables”, only the Olympic did not quickly find her way to the bottom of the sea.
Posted by John Crandall
"
Roundhouses in general were buildings used to turn steam locomotives around at the end of a rail line. I became interested in them on a recent train trip. I had a layover at a station with a matched pair of old roundhouses. One was still standing but the other was half collapsed, and appeared to be under rennovation. With that memory in mind I began researching roundhouses. It turns out that most roundhouses still in existence now serve purposes different from those for which they were originally designed. There are museums, restaurants, art galleries, factories, and much more in old rounhouses.
I soon came across interesting information about "The" Roundhouse in London. It started its life serving the conventional purpose for which such buildings were constructed, but from just before WWII until October 15, 1966 it sat empty. Being a large well built structure, someone eventually thought of a new use for The Roundhouse. On that October day, it was used by a promoter to launch an underground paper the International Times. Pink Floyd, Soft Machine, and other bands played at that event. The underground/alternative movements of the 60s and 70s were generally of the radical left wing variety, and can often be linked directly to 60s drug culture. Most only survived for about a decade.
Not long after its 1966 debut The Roundhouse began to be used regularly as a concert venue. A lot of big name bands from the late 60s and early 70s played there including the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Doors, and Motorhead. It's popularity slacked off in the mid 70s, but some consider it a birthplace for "alternative culture" and maybe even British Punk.
As time went on The Roundhouse became a venue for art and theatre shows and presentations. It was again unused for a short period, but has recently been rennovated and reopened as a flexible venue which can accomodate over 3000 spectators for various events.
The" Roundhouse
Posted by John Crandall
Air transportation has long been an expensive travel option for Americans. In many cases you can spend a couple of hours on the interstate, and be where you want to be cheaper than taking a plane, although gas prices are going up, and the planes are faster if you do not have to detour to a major hub and layover for connecting flights. Transportation from major airport to major airport is being made much cheaper by carriers like Jet Blue. However, they recently made the news for failing to meet their flight schedules and entangling thousands of passengers in delays. Unlike the old established carriers who try to make their profits by keeping fares high. Jet Blue is employing an age old strategy once used by Cornelius Vanderbilt on his steamship lines, and later his railroads. The theory is that lower prices with higher volume will yield profits superior to low volume at high prices. It will be interesting to see how this new contender for air travel dollars will fare. Unlike Jet Blue, Vanderbilt made a fortune with high priced food and beverages on his steamships. He enticed them aboard with low fares, and made a killing on taking care of them once they were there.
Personally, I’m always for lower prices, so I’m rooting for Jet Blue, but it remains to be seen whether business travelers who can write their airfares off as a tax deduction will take a fancy to this new idea. Jet Blue may only fly to certain places, but in many cases their prices beat out even Greyhound bus fare without the long hours on the road with stops in every tiny little town on the map. Naturally, the consumer has to be rather determined to get prices as low as advertised, and the best deals usually require jumping through a few hoops. Also, if you have to depart and arrive at a certain time you may find yourself in modest accommodations for a price not too far below the competition.
I’m a capitalist at heart, so I’m watching with interest to see how the consumers decide to spend their dollars in the airport transportation market.
Posted by John Crandall
Being the bargain hunter that I am, both in the stock market and in the real world, I recently gambled on purchasing a used vehicle on e-bay. I didn't really need it. I just wanted it, so I left the security of my own car, and deposited myself into the care of taxis, buses, and trains to go and pick it up. Naturally, it broke down almost immediately, and I was stranded about 4 hours (by car, from home). It took me a full day and a lot of frustration to make my way home after I returned the vehicle for a refund.
Being "lucky" enough to have two days off in the middle of the week, I decided not to burden any friends with driving me up. I left home in a taxi, and it cost $20 to get to the closest bus station. It cost $55 and eight hours overnight riding with frequent stops and multiple layovers at places with heartburn inducing eateries to get within 36 miles of my destination. Then $70 in a taxi in an inopportune snowstorm to get to the vehicle. I then travelled 41 miles on icy roads before dropping a transmission, and calling the seller to ask for a refund. Having worked all of that out. I managed to get to a motel where I could sleep and lick my wounded pride, and regret the situation I had gotten myself in, but I considered myself lucky because there was a Greyhound station listed in the phone book of the town where I ended up.
The next morning I began my trek. I called the Greyhound Station every 10 minutes for about an hour, and kept getting a busy signal. I finally gave up on that and located an 800 number for Greyhound which promptly told me that the local station had been closed. Inquiries informed me that the closest transportation option was an Amtrak station 40 miles away. $70 upfront, and a cab agreed to get me there. The train was supposed to leave at 11:20 am. I arrived at 9:40 am dreading an extended wait. I walked around the downtown of the little town, and found a good place to eat. I returned to wait for the train. When it failed to arrive as scheduled I called Amtrak for the first time that day, and was told there were "freight delays", and that the train would arrive at 1:44 pm. I walked and shopped some more, only to arrive back at the station to discover more people waiting who had already called and been told 2:00pm. I called twice more getting later times each time. The train finally arrived there at 3:10 pm. The fare was very reasonable, but half my day was lost.
I changed trains once and arrived at the end of the train line for that day still an hour by car from home. I proceeded to the Greyhound Station where I was told my delay had caused me to miss two buses and the next for that particular day was not until 3:45 am. I huffed out of the station in a rather bad mood, and asked a cab to take me home. $80 later I had arrived home poorer, but perhaps a little wiser. The train travel would actually have been pleasant had the schedule been accurate. The bus travel was tremendously unpleasant in a thousand ways. I appreciate my car more now, but I might ride the train occassionally on the weekends just for the different perspective it offers on everything, but only on days when time is not of the essence. I now know that there is a local Amtrak station, which I was totally unaware of before, but that trains only run there on certain days. It was an interesting learning experience for a guy who has almost always taken the car regardless of distance.
Posted by John Crandall
The oar powered river barge known as Le Canot Imperial in French has magnificent decoration. It shows the extravagance Napoleon was sometimes capable of in his Imperial capacity despite his long standing claims to be a representative of the people, and "a man of the Revolution." The nobility that he had invited to return to France upon taking power at the end of the Reign of Terror probably appreciated such splendor. From the time when Napoleon first became First Consul until the end of World War II France often exhibited the dual nature of its Republican ideals and its Monarchical and then Imperial Napoleonic past.
Whatever ideals they espouse, Nations such as France love such Imperial splendor. The pomp and circumstance of such a craft is impressive indeed. Napoleon I used this boat only once, but it was later used by Napoleon III in 1848, and by the President of the French Republic in 1903. It can be seen today in the Musee National de la Marine where it has been since 1943.
It is a beautiful piece of ship construction, and an interesting bit of history. Pictures of replicas of the barge can be seen on several web sites, although I have failed to find a link or information about the actual museum in English.
Posted by John Crandall
For easy reference here are the topics I've covered up to 2/26/2007 in a chronological format.
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Late 20th Century
Mid 20th Century
Early 20th Century
Late 19th Century
Nickolaus Otto (internal combustion)
Transcontinental RR and Suez Canal
Otto Lilienthal (first practical hang glider)
Mid 19th Century
The Secret of Rubber (Goodyear)
Early 19th Century
Steamboat and Steamship Firsts
Late 18th Century
16th Century
15th Century
The Tomato:a world traveler (OK, maybe tomatoes in transportation history is a bit of a stretch, and maybe this isn't the perfect date to put them, but it's a fun article)
Dark Ages
Vikings, Longboats, and Navigation
Pre-Historic and Ancient
So many great topics not covered, and so little time . . . They've opened the site for contributing writers, so if you are an expert on, or interested enough to research and write about, something in Transportation History click the "freelance writers wanted" button at the top of the screen. Only quality work, please, not that I don't write an ocassional boring or poorly constructed article just letting you know if you want to help out it is hard work requiring 4 or 5 proofreads and fact checks before getting anything worth posting.
Posted by John Crandall
I don’t know if anybody has ever posted this on the internet before, but here’s an old song inspired by the Model T Ford which has been sung in my family for generations. I can remember hearing both my Father and my Grandmother sing it to me, my brother, and my sister when we were children.
Bought myself a Ford machine, filled it up with gasoline
Cranked it up, and the darn thing got away
Didn’t wait ‘til I got in, now I own a pile of tin
But every month I go right up and pay
That’s all I can remember off the top of my head. I need to get my dad to put all his old songs on tape for me.
If anybody else knows more of this song I'd like to hear about it, or have a discussion started on that topic.
Posted by John Crandall
Known affectionately as "the Duke", John Wayne entertained us through several generations. In his later years he lived near Newport Beach, just south of Los Angeles where he had a beach house, and a yacht, The Wild Goose. His house has been torn down, but The Wild Goose sails on. It is now a tour boat offering dinner cruises to John Wayne fans young and old alike.
Built from a retired Navy minesweeper, the custom interior of the yacht has a stong masculine feel with polished wood almost everywhere you look. It was here that the Duke in his later years often entertained, and his card games with Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr, and other big name stars of the time remain a legend unto themselves. On cruises guides point out where his house used to stand, and tell tales of how the Duke enjoyed himself and entertained in the sunny waters off the Southern California Coast before his death in 1979.
Everybody of my generation will always remember John Wayne, and gladly settle down in front of the TV on a Saturday afternoon to watch one of his great movies for the hundreth time, and it pleases me to know that The Wild Goose goes on as well. There was a fairly popular book on this subject published in the early 90's by two men named Bert Minshall and Clark Sharon. I haven't read it. They want a hundred bucks for it on Amazon.com. So if you come across a copy, hang on to it, and I'll be watching for it myself in my favorite used book stores.
Posted by John Crandall
If you visit my pages regularly, you may have noticed a few changes. Rather than merely having one page for all of Transportaion History, now we have a number of categories. I am still working on moving my articles to the proper categories. The new categories here are Automotive, Maritime, Aviation, General, and Inventions. Inventions currently has zero posts, although there are probably a few things I could move there. I think this is a great step forward for organizing the information presented on Suite101. It will also give me direction towards filling gaps I was previously unaware of. This site is a never ending work in progress, and I've only been writing here since late July of last year, so there are a lot of untouched topics.
For this reason, I am also looking forward to reading posts from contributing writers. As I understand it, if you are an expert on a particular topic, and you are a Suite101 Member you will now be able to write and post on the site in the appropriate category. This can be a very good thing in that it will help to fill the gaps the feature writers for any category miss by focusing on their own particular interests. I am also hoping it will provide interesting and potentially inspiring content for me to read and learn from, giving me new direction and energy should I get a case of the dreaded "writer's block." For the reader, it also offers an opportunity to write, and maybe even make a few dollars from what you have written.
From my point of view, at this point, these appear to be mostly changes for the better. Maybe having contributing writers will help increase discussions as well.
Posted by John Crandall
I'm currently working on a set of articles about Henry Ford, the Model T, etc., etc. It is rather striking when one takes a look at Henry Ford and his life that although he was one of the prime movers in shaping the world of the 20th Century, he was also one of the first to realize and have an averse reaction to many of the changes wrought by "a car in every driveway."
Ford grew up on a farm in rural Michigan. Although he is said to have decided early on that farm life was not for him, he nonetheless felt a nostalgia for the world that was being lost in the progression toward the modern world. In later life he formed a notion of creating an ideal community where everyone could walk to get the things they needed, and meet and greet their neighbors.
Road Rage, gridlock, and highway shootings were barely even thought of yet, but already Ford was perceiving an ill effect on his ideal world from the automotive transportation revolution he was so instrumental in bringing into being. He is also instumental in making many modern workers semi-skilled single taskers rather than skilled craftsmen. Ford is a hugely interesting man, and my research on him will stretch on for quite some time. Come back occasionally, as this is the first installment of a larger work in progress.
Posted by John Crandall
Besides starring in such 70’s hits as Grease, Saturday Night Fever, and The Urban Cowboy; John Travolta is also a licensed pilot who owns his own 707 jet which makes the news more than he did before his resurgence in Pulp Fiction and other recent movies.
He reportedly parks the jet in his driveway at his home in Florida which happens to also be a runway complete with a replica 1950s airport/lounge. He flies his family, Including starlet wife Kelly Preston all over the world, and even had one close call with his family aboard. Engine and electrical systems failures forced him to crash land. A dangerous task which he managed to pull off safely. He also flew his plane in a humanitarian effort to deliver medicines to victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.
The plane is painted with the Qunatas logo; that airline is famous in America for being mentioned as never having crashed in the movie Rain Man. The jet shows up in press photos from time to time, and most recently made the news when Travolta was photographed kissing a man beside the plane. I’m not touching the question of whether or not that makes him gay. I think it was in Europe, and some European men still kiss each other as a customary greeting, so despite body language experts' judgments, I’m not drawing any conclusions.
I guess having your own plane in the driveway is a better cure for gridlock than most of us can aspire to.
Posted by John Crandall
Many have tried to find definitive evidence of what happened to Amelia E arhart over the Pacific. There have been rumors that she lived out the rest of her life with natives on a little known Pacific Island, and all sorts of other explanations. However, the most plausible story remains that she simply lost radio communications for navigation, ran out of fuel, and crashed into the Pacific.
In her time she was as famous as Charles Lindbergh had been before her. In the press she was sometimes called Lady Lindy for her aerial exploits. Unlike Linbergh she did not live to old age. The facts of her disappearance will likely always remain a mystery, and her story will continue to capitivate for generations to come.
Here are some links to the articles mentioned here.
Posted by John Crandall
If we didn't have these trucks we'd have to live close to a rail terminal or port to get many of the things we take for granted. Think of a world in which toilet paper, soap, shampoo, and deoderant were not available just down the street. Farms just one hundred years ago were like that. Would it change your lifestyle if you had to go 100 miles to get these items?
Businesses also depend upon truck transportation to get things to where the consumer can buy them. Depending on the size and weight of an item shipping to the store where you buy it can be anywhere up to 50% of the price you pay. Retailers and wholesalers have to take shipping costs into account, and set prices so that these costs get paid.
I know it sounds simple, but just shopping on the internet these costs become much more noticeable. Using any one of multiple internet price comparison services you can find the lowest price, only to soon realize that the next lowest price if it includes shipping may be significantly less total. I was buying some used books on a site and was really pleased to find them for a few dollars apiece. I had about 10 picked out,and my total said $16 or so. Then, I clicked checkout, and they added shipping. Instantly, my great bargain disappeared because with shipping my new total was almost $50. Being your average tight fisted bargain hunter, I soon deleted about half of my selections, and brought the grand total under $30. It wasn't that I didn't want to read those books. I just didn't want to read them bad enough to pay the shipping. Off the internet, bargains are bargains. The shipping was already paid before anybody realized your particular town didn't have demand for 5000 copies of book X,Y, or Z at the cover price, and that it was cheaper to sell them for a couple of bucks than to ship them back out.
Highway shipping is hugely important to our way of life, food, clothing, "the latest" of anything, electronics, almost everything we buy comes to us "over the road." So those big trucks aren't just a nuisance blocking you from seeing the next red light, or slowing you down. They're also a crucial lifeline for your lifestyle.