Malaria Girls 3

This is a very small collection, and it ends with these final four photos.  The top two are dated "NOV 60," just like all the ones already posted.  The bottom two, "FEB 61"  I've titled these photos malaria girls because of a visible poster about malaria in the first of the three posts.  The reality is that I have no idea what these women are doing.  I've speculated that they're public health workers because of the shoulder patches on their uniforms.  I've seen lots of photos of hospital nurses, and I've never seen an emblem of any kind.  And as far as malaria goes, it's just as possible that these nurses (I stand by that guess.) are dealing with anything from cholera to the common cold.

Now, back to malaria.  According to the CDC, from 1957 to 2011,  there have been 63 local outbreaks of malaria in the United States.  According to a 2012 article in the SF Gate, while outbreaks of malaria have been declining in tropical countries, they've been increasing in the United States, with 1,925 reported cases in 2011.   And no, they're not concentrated in our own tropical areas like south Florida and Louisiana.  U.S. cases have their origin in international travel.  It's New York City that's  ground zero for American malaria outbreaks.

Malaria Girls 2

The woman in the top photo seems to be wearing a somewhat different outfit than the rest of the malaria girls.  Is she a research subject?  The bottom picture is a bit frustrating.  I'm not sure if it's supposed to be a vertical.  I keep thinking she's looking into a microscope.  But what's really maddening is the shoulder patch.  If it wasn't out of focus I'd know who these women were.

Dated "NOV 60"

Malaria Girls 1

My first thought when I looked at this collection, nursing school, but then I took a closer look at the third photo in this post and saw a few women that were a bit old to be students.  There's a poster that can be seen in the first two photos. (They're not the same.  Slightly different poses.)  "The malaria cycle."  So, lab technicians or public health workers?  I'm leaning towards some sort of public health team made up of nurses.  If these women were lab rats, I doubt they'd be wearing uniforms.  All dated, "NOV  60."

Any all girl punk bands searching for a name, feel free to use Malaria Girls.

Barbecue Season

Yesterday was the first day of summer, so it's officially barbecue season.  A quick piece of advice.  It's not the fifties anymore, so you don't have to dress up.  Although those cat's eye sunglasses still work.

Dim

I look at this man and see a dim witted serial killer.  I know that's unlikely, but it's what I imagine.

Studio Portrait

Collect photographs long enough, and you'll run into a lot of these old studio portraits.  No name, no date and no studio name.  Can't remember where or when I bought this one.  Best guess, from the twenties.

R.M.S. Aquitania

Both of these photos are labeled, "Aboard Aquitania."  There are no names or dates on these two pictures, so there's nothing for me to look up about the passengers, but it was pretty easy to find information about the ship.

R.M.S. Aquitania, owned by The White Star Line, was launched in 1913, and had it's maiden voyage between England and New York in May 1914. Along with the Mauretania and Lusitania, it was one of the grand trio of White Star liners, and was known as the ship beautiful.  It completed only three round trips before being taken over by the British Admiralty during World War 1.  Aquitania's war service started as an armed merchant cruiser, then as a hospital ship, and finally a troop transport.  After the war, it was returned to The White Star Line, and resumed passenger service on the north Atlantic run.

 The 1920s was the last great age of express ocean passenger service.  While the United States had begun restricting emigration, a major profit center for ocean liners, Aquitania had enough first and second class passengers, as well as mail contracts, to operate in the black.  After the stock market crash of 1929, Aquitania became more of a cruise ship, taking passengers on holiday to the Mediterranean.  It was quite popular with Americans and, during prohibition, became famous as a booze cruiser.

 In 1940, Cunard White Star (The two companies had merged in 1934.) had planned to retire Aquitania and replace it with R.M.S. Queen Elizabeth, but the second world war gave the ship a few extra years of service as a troop transport, mostly in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.  After the war, Aquitania was used to transport war brides and their children to Halifax, Canada.  In 1949, the ship was once again returned to it's civilian owners.  Poor maintenance during the depression and the war had taken it's toll.  The deck plating leaked in rough seas, some of the bulkheads were so corroded that a fist could be pushed through the metal.  During a party, a piano fell through the floor.  In December of 1949, Aquitania was taken out of service, and was scrapped in 1950.  Aquitania was the last four stacker (smoke stacks)  in regular service.