[Keith]

Listening to the 4th of July themed Nancy For Frank show and I was reminded of these photos I saw last week which I thought were fascinating:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...ered-time.html

[Matt Fapresto]

Very impressive! thank you for sharing.

[Gregory]

Amazing!!!

[marydaly]

Thanks for sharing those pictures. I have seen some of those places in recent years, but they are not nearly as dramatic now.

[johnofphilly]

Of course they named this land mass after Amerigo Vespucci, a man who lived in the fifteenth century. But one has to wonder what it was called by the honest natives prior to its existence even being recognized by the Europeans.
Columbus thought it was Asia.

Ponce de Leon came to the southeast peninsula, which the natives called "Biminy". He renamed it Florida. The Glades were more solid and full of Seminole huts, and there were buffalo up in the panhandle.

I know the average youth will snivel "imlike whocares".

[Nick_Bradley78]

Great shots Keith, from a true pioneer country; then, and often now, I studied history at uni and read a lot of modern history to this day and never failed to be amazed by the innovation and bravery shown by American troops against ridiculous odds, both in the far east and Western Europe during WW2. The middle ranks frequently outshone their Generals for innovation and fast-thinking. From a tradition of both immigrants I guess from all over the world and early Americans who fought a hostile terrain to build a nation from scratch.
PS never had you down as a Daily Mail reader but mail online is ridiculously addictive!!

[Savatri]

Keith - Many thanks; loved those pictures.

And Philly John:

<<Of course they named this land mass after Amerigo Vespucci, a man who lived in the fifteenth century. But one has to wonder what it was called by the honest natives prior to its existence even being recognized by the Europeans.
Columbus thought it was Asia.>>

Why hadn't you heard, John? The American Indians ran into Eric the Red in Newfoundland and they called in Erica before it got the name America!

[MikeHOU]

Fantastic photos!

[Ace917]

A picture is worth a thousand words. Amazing photos.

[Susan]

Shoshone Falls then and now

[irene soggia]

Keith, really fascinating photos, They have the flavor of the time slips away but leaves intact the beauty! Thanks !

Susan, thank you too! it's nice to see the world, especially for me who do not know ! See on the Internet is not the same thing, because here in the SFF the pictures for me to have more value!

[Nancy]

Clarence King was a 25-year-old Yale graduate, who hired Irish tough guy O'Sullivan for his Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel. Funded by the War Department, the plan was to survey the unexplored territory that lay between the California Sierras and the Rockies, with a view toward finding a good place to lay railroad tracks while also looking for mining possibilities and assessing the level of Indian hostility in the area.

The pictures are magnificent but the story of Mr. O'Sullivan is heartbreaking.

Thank you, Keith, for sharing something I knew nothing about.

[Jake]

The West is a treasure trove of history... I think Ken Burns did a good documentary on it, "The West", with Peter Coyote narrating.

The West was also part of America's darkest era, with regards to almost exterminating the Buffalo, the Indians, the Mexicans, even displacing the Mormons.

However, there are great stories as well, like the National Park System.

[Nick_Bradley78]

Originally Posted by Jake

The West is a treasure trove of history even displacing the Mormons.

Seems to be working out fine at the mo. Dare I call it a cult? Either way, it has a marvellous future.

[BrianFStevenson]

Terrific photographs, Keith, and thank you for the link.

[Jake]

Originally Posted by Nick_Bradley78

Seems to be working out fine at the mo. Dare I call it a cult? Either way, it has a marvellous future.

Brigham Young and those he led to Utah Territory had enough hardships to last quite a few generations.

By far the treatment of the Indians by the US at the time was very dark. Andrew Jackson's policies which led to the "Trail of Tears" led even many Indian reservations to this day in refusing to accept the 20 dollar bill, the one with Jackson's portrait on it.

The West is an amazing place. I was born in the West.

[Nick_Bradley78]

I think your boys were crowding Trafalgar Square yday afternoon. Was it Canada Day? Typically they all seemed very good natured and chilled out.

[Jake]

We Canadians are the best! Yes, it was Canada Day, and yes, we have a West too!

O'Sullivan was a student of Matthew Brady's, which has a direct link to the American Civil War, as many of the photos you have from that War came either from Brady himself or his assistants.

It takes forever to make and then develop those photos, but they are certainly crystal clear and great to look at!

[Nick_Bradley78]

Originally Posted by Jake

We Canadians are the best! Yes, it was Canada Day, and yes, we have a West too!

Alaska? No that's someone else's...true though Jake, Canada's one of the only countries no one moans about! Was at Charing Cross earlier yesterday before the Bennett concert and was full to the brim of cheery Canadians.

[Jake]

We don't want to see Russia from our houses....