IT'S THE FOURTH OF JULY....

 Here we are celebrating our Nations Independence once again...

I could post about how wonderful our country is...
and no matter what, IT IS...

Or I could post about how wonderful our Military is,
and all they do...and THEY DO...

Or I could post some awesome Vintage pictures of both...
and I WILL...

If you haven't see these already, look closely....

In the picture of the Statue of Liberty there are 18,000 men: 12,000 of them in the torch alone, but just 17 at the base. The men at the top of the picture are actually half a mile away from the men at the bottom.

The Human Liberty Bell, formed by 25,000 officers and men at
Camp Dix, New Jersey, 1918.

The Human American Eagle: 12,500 officers, nurses and men at
Camp Gordon, Atlanta, Georgia, 1918.

Living insignia of the 27th Division, New York’s Own, breakers of the Hindenberg Line. Formed of 10,000 officers and enlisted men, March 18, 1919.

The living emblem of the United States Marines, formed by 100 officers and 9,000 enlisted men at the Marine Barracks, Paris Island, South Carolina.

The Human US Shield: 30,000 officers and men at Camp Custer,
Battle Creek, Michigan, 1918.

A portrait of President Woodrow Wilson, formed of 21,000 officers and men at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio, 1918.

22,500 officers and men, 600 machine guns at Machine Gun Training Center,
Camp Hancock, Augusta, Ga, December 10, 1918.

Indoctrination Division, Air Training Command, Lackland Air Base,
San Antonio, Texas, July 19, 1947.

The Living Uncle Sam: 19,000 officers and men at Camp Lee, Virginia,
January 13, 1919.



Maybe you already know about Arthur S. Mole and his living pictures. If not, here's a little information from Wikpedia...



Arthur S. Mole (born 1889 in England - died 1983 in the United States) was an English commercial artist who became famous for a series of "living photographs" made during World War I, in which tens of thousands of soldiers, reservists and other members of the military were arranged to form massive compositions. Although if viewed from the ground or from directly above, these masses of men would appear meaningless, when seen from the top of an 80-foot viewing tower, they clearly appeared to be various patriotic shapes. The key was to photograph the people from the one place where the lines of perspective would resolve themselves into intelligible images. His partner in this endeavor was John D. Thomas.
Mole worked as a commercial photographer in Zion Illinois, north of Chicago. During World War I, he traveled to various Army, Marine and Navy camps to execute his massive compositions. He is considered a pioneer in the field of performed group photography.  Executing photographs using such large numbers, and relying on lines of perspective stretching out more than a hundred meters, required a week of preparation and then hours to actually position the formations.
Ten images are most famous from this period. They include images of Woodrow Wilson, the Liberty Bell, Statue of Liberty, an American eagle as well as emblems of the flags.  
Mole's work is featured in the collections of the Chicago Historical Society, Metropolitan Museum of Art, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and the Library of Congress.





I hope you'll have a safe and wonderful weekend.

Enjoy your freedom....








See ya Yesterday...