Technology & Engineering

The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair was the largest international exhibition ever built in the United States.

More than one hundred fifty pavilions and exhibits spread over six hundred forty-six acres helped the fair live up to its reputation as "the Billion-Dollar Fair." With the cold war in full swing, the fair offered visitors a refreshingly positive view of the future, mirroring the official theme: Peace through Understanding. Guests could travel back in time through a display of full-sized dinosaurs, or look into a future where underwater hotels and flying cars were commonplace. They could enjoy Walt Disney's popular shows, or study actual spacecraft flown in orbit. More than fifty-one million guests visited the fair before it closed forever in 1965. The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair captures the history of this event through vintage photographs, published here for the first time.

Held in Philadelphia from May 10 through October 10, the 1876 Centennial Exhibition celebrated the 100th anniversary of American independence.

Philadelphia hosted 37 nations in five main buildings and 250 additional structures on 285 acres of land. The celebration looked backward to commemorate the progress made over the 100-year period, and it announced to the world that American invention and innovation was on a par with that of our foreign counterparts. Patriotism abounded, as did messages of industrial and commercial prowess that promised a brighter future for all. Over nine million people attended this awesome consumer spectacle, an event that set the tone for a long series of world's fairs yet to come.

Four distinct anthracite coal fields encompass an area of 1,700 square miles in the northeastern portion of Pennsylvania. Early Coal Mining in the Anthracite Region is a journey into a world that was once very familiar.

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, underground coal mining was at its zenith and the work of miners was more grueling and dangerous than it is today. Faces blackened by coal and helmet lamps lit by fire are no longer parts of the everyday lives of miners in the region. These vintage photographs of collieries, breakers, miners, drivers, and breaker boys illuminate the dark of the anthracite mines. The pictures of miners, roof falls, mules, and equipment deep underground tell the story of the hard lives lived around the hard coal. Above ground, breaker boys toiled in unbearable conditions inside the noisy, vibrating, soot-filled monsters known as coal breakers.

Falling in between the dark days of the Great Depression and World War II, the 1939–1940 New York World's Fair offered a refreshing prediction for the World of Tomorrow.

There were exciting demonstrations of robot servants, computerized highways, color photography, and a new invention called television. Visitors could tour the latest in model homes, enjoy the marvel of air-conditioning, and watch the newest streamlined steam locomotive in action. America's largest corporations joined forces with nations from around the world to showcase the wonders of a future that was sure to come. There were also displays of past technical marvels, international culture and cuisine, and plenty of the innovative architecture that is a large part of these international expositions. Vintage photographs, most never published before, showcase what has been lauded as the most memorable world's fair of all time.

Bill Cotter is a longtime world's fair enthusiast and his collection of world's fairs photographs, the world's largest, has been featured in museum exhibits.

After enduring 10 harrowing years of the Great Depression, visitors to the 1939-1940 New York World's Fair found welcome relief in the fair's optimistic presentation of the ""World of Tomorrow."" Pavilions from America's largest corporations and dozens of countries were spread across a 1,216-acre site, showcasing the latest industrial marvels and predictions for the future intermingled with cultural displays from around the world. Well known for its theme structures, the Trylon and Perisphere, the fair was an intriguing mixture of technology, science, architecture, showmanship, and politics. Proclaimed by many as the most memorable world's fair ever held, it predicted wonderful times were ahead for the world even as the clouds of war were gathering. Through vintage photographs, most never published before, The 1939-1940 New York World's Fair recaptures those days when the eyes of the world were on New York and on the future.

The 1964-1965 New York World's Fair: Creation and Legacy uses rare, previously unpublished photographs to examine the creation of the fair and the legacies left behind for future generations.

When the gates of the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair swung open on April 24, 1964, the first of more than 51 million lucky visitors entered, ready to witness the cutting edge of worldwide technology and progress. Faced with a disappointing lack of foreign participants due to political contention, the fair instead showcased the best of American industry and science. While multimillion-dollar pavilions predicted colonies on the moon and hotels under the ocean, other forecasts, such as the promises of computer technology, have surpassed even the most optimistic predictions of the fair.

The story of firefighting in New York City is one of danger, tradition, pride, excitement, and tragedy. It is also the story of man's triumph over destructive forces.

From the gaslight days of horse-drawn steam engines to the World Trade Center tragedy of 2001, the heroic men and women who make up the city's most dynamic public service have risked and often lost their lives in order to protect and serve the people of New York City.New York City Firefighting: 1901-2001 chronicles the proudest fire department in America. The proximity of buildings in the city streets and the construction materials made each fire especially dangerous, but determined firefighters never hesitated to battle the flames and rescue the victims. Later, facing unprecedented heights and unparalleled danger, firefighters in New York City were called upon to battle infernos in the first skyscrapers, often using the most rudimentary equipment and barely protected from the flames. In its most trying moments, the Fire Department of New York responded to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in 1993 and 2001, dutifully rushing into the towers to save as many lives as possible and ultimately losing hundreds of their own.

Steel portrays the growth of the iron and steel industry in smoke-filled Pittsburgh during America's industrial age.

Pittsburgh's story is the fast-paced saga of millionaire barons Andrew Carnegie, Ben Franklin Jones, Henry Clay Frick, Henry Phipps, and Charles Schwab. These strong-willed leaders of industry often plotted and schemed against one another yet united against their underpaid and undervalued pro-union immigrant workforce. Author Dale Richard Perelman recounts this struggle of bloody battles throughout Western Pennsylvania's plants, mines, and railroad yards. Pittsburgh's story is not just about the men whose names we remember, but the countless men who gave their blood and sweat to build the city we know today.

The story of the bridge that transformed Maryland's Eastern Shore from a sleepy backwater to a major tourism destination and caused an economic boom in Baltimore in the west.

When it opened to traffic in 1952, the William Preston Lane Jr. Memorial Bridge - simply called the Chesapeake Bay Bridge - was the third-longest bridge in the world. The four-mile long span was constructed over the Chesapeake Bay in a dramatic 2.5-year period of progress that became known to the workers as Operation Link, because it would be the first physical connection between the two widely separated parts of Maryland. Today, the two spans - the original Bay Bridge from 1952 and the parallel span built alongside it in 1973 - are towering architectural landmarks along the East Coast of the United States.

Through original journal and newspaper accounts, J. Stuart Richards's Death in the Mines revisits Pennsylvania's most notorious mining accidents and rescue attempts from 1869 to 1943.

Since 1870, mining disasters have claimed the lives of over 30,000 men and boys who toiled underground in the anthracite mines of Pennsylvania. Sometimes they survived; many times they did not. The constant threat of fire, explosion, collapsed rock and deadly gas brought miners face to face with death on a daily basis. Through original journal and newspaper accounts, J. Stuart Richards's Death in the Mines revisits Pennsylvania's most notorious mining accidents and rescue attempts from 1869 to 1943. From the fire at Avondale Colliery that resulted in the first law for regulation and inspection of mines, to the gas explosion at Lytle Mine in Primrose that killed fourteen men, Richards reveals multiple facets of Pennsylvania's most perilous profession. Richards, whose family has worked in the mines since 1870, offers a startling yet sensitive tribute to an industry and occupation that is often overlooked and underappreciated

In this engaging pictorial history, discover the relationship between the exposition and its host city of Buffalo, and the triumphs and tragedies it endured.

One of a series of popular turn-of-the-century international expositions, the Pan-American Exposition of 1901 emphasized Western Hemisphere production and trade. William McKinley on its grounds in September. The Pan-Am flaunted America's status as a leading international power after the victory from the 1898 Spanish-American War. In this engaging pictorial history, discover the relationship between the exposition and its host city of Buffalo, and the triumphs and tragedies it endured. Discover the booming Buffalo of 1900, with its links to midwestern agriculture and eastern markets. The city had abundant electric power, was home to several important industries, and had a wealthy and influential leadership. A logical venue for the exposition, Buffalo became home to a fair that paid tribute to the nation's industrial, agricultural, and commercial dominance. Along with Chicago in 1893 and other fairs that followed, the Pan-Am combined high-toned self-promotion in the formal exhibits with midway displays that made sport of other cultures and races. The exposition came to a shattering close with the assassination of Pres. Neither the fair nor the city fully recovered. Buffalo's Pan-American Exposition explores a unique time in American history. Historians, scholars, and residents alike will delight in this fascinating collection of images from Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society.

Syracuse Television features the zaniness of Baron Daemon, lessons from the Magic Toy Shop, and live fun from Jim Deline and the Gang and The Markert Place.

Central New Yorkers have been treated to many memorable television moments since December 1, 1948, when WHEN-TV Channel 8 signed on the air for the first time. In a record 16 days after equipment arrived at its 101 Court Street site, the station was miraculously up and running. Syracuse's pioneer broadcasters were eager to explore this bold, new world with programs that would entertain, educate, and inform. Over the years, personalities and programs became familiar to Central New Yorkers. There was news coverage from Fred Hillegas, Ron Curtis, Rod Wood, and Carrie Lazarus and weather forecasts from Stormy Meredith, Big Al Roker, Dave Eichorn, and Wayne Mahar.

Chronicling the visual history of the design, construction and launch of the lunar module - one of the most historic machines in human history.

In 1961, President John F. Kennedy announced his plans for landing a man on the moon by 1970 - despite the fact that the United States had a total of just 15 minutes of spaceflight experience up to that point. With that announcement, the space race had officially begun. In 1962, after a strenuous competition, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced that the Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation of Bethpage, Long Island, had won the contract to build the lunar module - the spacecraft that would take Americans to the moon. This was the first and only vehicle designed to take humans from one world to another.

Although much has been written about the first men to set foot on the moon, those first hesitant steps would not have been possible without the efforts of the designers and technicians assigned to Project Apollo. Building Moonships: The Grumman Lunar Module tells the story of the people who built and tested the lunar modules that were deployed on missions as well as the modules that never saw the light of day.

From its art deco architectural design to its historic integrity and preservation, Floyd Bennett Fieldis a must-have for, aviation, and New York history enthusiasts.

Although New York City was slowly recognizing the need for a municipal airport in the late 1920s, it sought to regain prominence by constructing the most advanced airport of its day.

Construction in the far reaches of Brooklyn was started on October 29, 1929, the day of the stock market crash that heralded the Great Depression. The airport was named posthumously for Floyd Bennett, a Brooklyn native, Navy pilot, and Medal of Honor winner. Unfortunately, because of many factors--including poor timing, politics, and remoteness from Manhattan--the airfield was a commercial failure. Its advanced features, however, made it a mecca for private aircraft and the site of numerous record-breaking flights.

Aviation historian Richard V. Porcelli, author of Arcadia Publishing's NAS Atlantic Cityand numerous articles, tells how the Navy became an early tenant in a move that would impact the airfield's destiny. In 1941, the Navy's presence led to the establishment of NAS New York, which played a key role in the wartime delivery of planes from numerous area factories. After the war, it served as an important Naval Air Reservebase until its closure in 1971.

Brooklyn Navy Yard details the beginnings and history of this significant military site.

Not much larger than a few city blocks (219 acres, plus 72 acres of water), the Brooklyn Navy Yard is one of the most historically significant sites in America. It was one of the U.S. Navy's major shipbuilding and repair yards from 1801 to 1966. It produced more than 80 warships and hundreds of smaller vessels. At its height during World War II, it worked around the clock, employing some 70,000 people. The yard built the Monitor, the world's first modern warship; the Maine, whose destruction set off the Spanish-American War; the Arizona, whose sinking launched America into World War II; and the Missouri, on whose deck World War II ended. On June 25, 1966, the flag at the Brooklyn Navy Yard was lowered for the last time and the 165-year-old institution ceased to exist. Sold to the City of New York for $22.4 million, the yard became a site for storage of vehicles, some light industry, and a modest amount of civilian ship repair.

The Queen of New Jersey Lakes

Only 40 miles from Manhattan, Lake Hopatcong is the largest lake in the Garden State. An early colonial pioneer in damming, the lake was formed by the flooding of Great Pond, Little Pond and the Musconetcong River. It became a luxury destination for wealthy New Yorkers looking for a cool retreat as a cadre of celebrities frequented its glamorous hotels. Though the Golden Age of the lake's history has passed, it remains a vibrant source of revitalization, community and environmental enjoyment for the region today. Join author Peter Astras as he recounts the history of New Jersey's Lake Hopatcong.

The Hudson River bridges, iconic structures of the New York State Bridge Authority, are the cornerstone of the Mid-Hudson Valley.

Opened in 1924, the Bear Mountain Bridge was the first vehicular crossing of the Hudson River, south of Albany. Twentieth-century growth in the Hudson Valley can be traced to each bridge opening, the result of grassroot efforts by local residents. The Mid-Hudson Bridge, named for the region these bridges span, was designated an “Engineering Epic” following the tipping of the east caisson that delayed construction for a year while engineers and laborers struggled to right that caisson in the waters of the Hudson River. The plan for the Rip Van Winkle Bridge required the creation of the New York State Bridge Authority, when funding was otherwise impossible during the Great Depression. Three more bridges were built connecting remaining areas of the Mid-Hudson region.The last crossing became the “twin spans” of the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge, the New York State Bridge Authority’s most traveled span. In 2010, the New York State Bridge Authority gained ownership of the bridge structure of the Walkway Over the Hudson, a pedestrian walkway built on the old Poughkeepsie Bridge, which opened for trains in 1889.

Kathryn W. Burke, educator, author, and director of Historic Bridges of the Hudson Valley, shares her appreciation and knowledge of these bridges through photograph archives of the New York State Bridge Authority; the Modjeski & Masters, Inc., engineering firm; and the Smithsonian Museum of American History. This is Burke’s second book on the Hudson River bridges.

Pittsburgh's Bridges takes a comprehensive look at the design, construction, and, sometimes, demolition of the bridges that shaped Pittsburgh, ranging from the covered bridges of yesterday to those that  define the skyline today.

Pittsburgh is the City of Bridges, and what remarkable bridges they are! The area's challenging topography of deep ravines and mighty rivers - the Monongahela, Allegheny, and Ohio - set the stage for engineers, architects, and contractors to conquer the terrain with a variety of distinctive spans. Many were designed to be beautiful as well as functional. While other cities may have one signature bridge, Pittsburgh has such a wide variety that no single bridge can represent it.

The remarkable story of the people who built the Conowingo Dam brick by brick and bill by bill, and the impact that goes on today.

Second in size only to the massive hydroelectric works at Niagara Falls, the Conowingo Dam across the Susquehanna River was celebrated as a miraculous feat of modern engineering when it opened in 1928. The dam was built with astonishing speed and efficiency and completed on budget and ahead of schedule, and its generators came on line at the very crescendo of the Roaring Twenties, when the race toward electrification was changing American life. The hydro dams of the Tennessee Valley Authority, the Bonneville and Grand Coulee Dams in the Pacific Northwest, and the great colossus of Hoover Dam were all constructed in the next two decades, but handsome, indomitable Conowingo Dam preceded them all and remains in effective operation to this very day.

Explore the complex, heroic and sometimes tragic history of firefighting in Washington, D.C., with images and oral histories gathered over the past century.

From the burning of Washington by the British in 1814 to the Sept. 11 attack on the Pentagon in 2001, firefighters in Washington, D.C., have always known they are the defenders of one of the most important cities in the world. Written by a worthy group of authors from The Capitol Fire Museum of Washington, this book covers the creation of the paid fire department during the Civil War, construction of new firehouses for the fledgling city in varying international designs, the heyday of firefighting before World War II, the turbulent times of the 1960s, and the modern department today.

As the twentieth century dawned on western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio, the region's steel industry faced a struggle for unionism. Strong managers like Judge Elbert Gary and Tom Girdler opposed every move forward.

Regardless, unionists like Philip Murray, John L. Lewis, Samuel Gompers and Gus Hall battled for fair wages, hours and working conditions. Tensions from issues of immigration, class, skill and race erupted throughout the industry. The tribulations led to widespread steel strikes directed by the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers and the Steel Workers Organizing Committee. Author Dale Richard Perelman charts the struggle and decline of the nation's most prominent regional steel industry.

The innovative Benjamin Franklin Bridge, originally named the Delaware River Bridge, was constructed to connect the cities of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Camden, New Jersey.

For a time after its opening on July 1, 1926, it was the longest suspension bridge in the world, with a main span of 1,750 feet. The Benjamin Franklin Bridge contains many rarely seen images of the bridge's planning and construction, the individuals who helped make the concept of the bridge a reality, and the workers who built it. The bridge has undergone many changes in the decades since its opening, and these vintage photographs trace its evolution, illustrating the bridge's endurance as a symbol of the Philadelphia-Camden metropolitan area.

Hudson River Bridges documents how these structures remain beautiful testaments to cooperative efforts during trying times in America's history.

The Hudson River Valley, an invaluable connection between New England and the rest of the colonies during the American Revolution, continues to be a major crossroads today. The Hudson River bridges were architectural marvels of their time. The Bear Mountain Bridge was the longest suspension bridge, while the Newburgh Beacon second span was built with a new type of weathering steel. The bridges were constructed during important times in history. The Bear Mountain Bridge was built as the automobile became an integral part in the country's development, and the Mid-Hudson Bridge was built during the Depression. Labor disputes helped develop labor laws, and world wars led to changes in activity on the bridges.

Join former forest manager Champ Zumbrun as he traverses hidden trails to tell the remarkable story of Green Ridge State Forest.

Green Ridge State Forest is a haven of calm and natural beauty among the Appalachians of western Maryland. This land was once the frontier of the nation, and trailblazers such as Thomas Cresap and George Washington were among the first Europeans to discover its wonders: the swift Potomac, the flowering dogwood and pine in the mountain reaches and the nighttime calls of the bobcat and the barred owl. The vision and stewardship of people like forester Fred W. Besley preserved the forest for future generations of hikers, explorers and families. Join former forest manager Champ Zumbrun as he traverses hidden trails to tell the remarkable story of Green Ridge State Forest.

Navigate the treacherous waters of Lake Erie, Lake Huron and the Georgian Bay to discover the fates of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry and his fleet.

Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry's defeat of the British at the Battle of Lake Erie was a defining moment both in the War of 1812 and American naval history. Yet the story of Perry's fleet did not end there. Come aboard as author David Frew chronicles the years and decades after Perry's victory. Heroic acts and bitter defeats unfold as Frew details the lives of fleet surgeon Usher Parsons, shipwright Daniel Dobbins and fleet commander Oliver Hazard Perry and his successors. The adventure moves from the tribulations of Misery Bay and a crafty British victory in the Lake Huron Campaign to the closing of the naval base in Erie and the raising of the Niagara in the twentieth century. Navigate the treacherous waters of Lake Erie, Lake Huron and the Georgian Bay to discover the fates of Perry and his fleet.

Many Americans are familiar with Thomas Edison's invention factory in Menlo Park, where he patented the phonograph, the light bulb and more than one thousand other items. Yet many other ideas have grown in the Garden State, too.

New Jerseyans brought sound and music to movies and built the very first drive-in theater. In addition to the first cultivated blueberry, tasty treats like ice cream cones and M&Ms are also Jersey natives. Iconic aspects of American life, like the batting cage, catcher's mask and even professional baseball itself, started in New Jersey. Life would be a lot harder without the vacuum cleaner, plastic and Band-Aids, and many important advances in medicine and surgery were also developed here. Join author Linda Barth as she explores groundbreaking, useful, fun and even silly inventions and their New Jersey roots.

Guardian Dams. Today, most people remember Johnstown for a cataclysmic flood, but the city was also once known for steel.

From the early 1900s through much of the 1970s, millions of gallons of water per day were necessary to keep the city’s main industry alive. This is the story of the dams that didn’t fail, safely keeping the people of Johnstown and its steel industry prosperous for decades. It is also the story of transformation, for the dams built by an extinct steel company still stand and now safeguard areas of great natural resources and ecological importance in the highlands of Northern Appalachia. Surveying more than a century of wars, labor strife and economic catastrophe, author Joshua Penrod interweaves the story of these dams with the history of Johnstown itself.

Lost Coal Country of Northeastern Pennsylvania documents the region's disappearing anthracite history, which shaped the legacy of the United States of America and the industrial revolution.

The coal mines, breakers, coal miners' homes, and railroads have all steadily disappeared. With only one coal breaker left in the entire state, it was time to record what would soon be lost. Unfortunately, one piece of history that persists is underground fires that ravage communities like Centralia. Blazing for over 50 years, the flames of Centralia will not be doused anytime soon. Images featured in the book include the St. Nicholas coal breaker, Huber coal breaker, Steamtown National Historic Site, Lackawanna Coal Mine Tour, Eckley Miners' Village, Centralia, and the Knox Mine disaster. A hybrid history book and travel guide, Lost Coal Country of Northeastern Pennsylvania is one final recounting of what is gone and what still remains.

The story of firefighting in Frederick, Maryland, is a complex tale of heroism, sacrifice, and duty that dates back to 1818.

Firefighters play a vital role in any time, but it's almost easy to forget the days before mandatory fire safety practices, when most buildings were made of wood, how often the fire department was the only thing to prevent a fire from destroying an entire city. This volume describes the heroic role the fire department has played in defending the city of Frederick for close to two centuries. Highlighted in this work are the Independent Hose Company, Junior Fire Company, United Steam Fire Engine Company, Citizen's Truck Company, Fort Detrick Fire Department, as well as historic fires, emergency medical services, and major disasters throughout the region.

With the opening of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in 1964, Staten Island was changed forever.

Sewers, schools, roadways, and even the politicians of New York City were not prepared for the onslaught of relocating Brooklyn residents who sought a rural lifestyle. Houses were bought as quickly as they were built. Schools were scrambling to find seats for thousands of newly arriving students. The antiquated sewer system of Staten Island could not handle the overload and there simply wasn't enough room for all of the septic tanks needed.

Who were the allies or adversaries of development? Who sought to make a meaningful plan for Staten Island's future?

Author Patricia Salmon examines the preparation, design, and opening of "The Bridge," as well as how it impacted the citizens of Staten Island during the next decade. 

Explore the history of our nation's capital through this history of its bridges.

In the late 1700s, the first bridges, now completely gone, connected the new Federal City to the outside world. Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, more and bigger crossings arose to support industry, allow the expansion of suburbs, commemorate cultural and civic leaders, and enhance the aesthetics of the District’s waterfronts and parks. Although the city abandoned civic-minded, commemorative, and monumental constructions for utilitarian highway monoliths in the mid-twentieth century, a recent renaissance has seen a welcome shift to walkability and beauty instead of brute utility.

Using the city’s bridges as an index of the times, author and D.C. native Bob Dover tracks the growth, decay, and rebirth of the District from the 1750s to today.