Private photos from World War 1

[patchbunny]

I am not quite sure how to translate "Abfahren" - it is a little ambiguous. "Drahtspulen" is "wire bobbins" or "wire rolls" at any rate. "Abfahren" could mean that someone drives along them (for an inspection?), or that they are unspun.

I would say "Unspinning of wire spindles"

Apparently, they are heavy and need 4 hourses drawn together to be unspun.
I wonder what that row of little crater is at the top left.

Most likely they are deploying communication wires, possibly to the front lines or between command posts.

 

[Oystein]

Equipement is either british or american and I'd hazard a guess at the photo being taken during the Spring Offensive of 1918.

Which equipment are you specifically looking at? Rifles, helmets, uniform?

 

[Oystein]

47. 6645, 26.917.900 - That could well be latitude and longitude. If so that would place it in modern day Moldova, north west of Chisinau

That's quite a long way away from the Rivne-area where the other photos were taken, and I can't find after a quick search any activities of the German army there.

Hmm...

 

[Oystein]

I'm no expert, but the casualty's uniform and gear look British to me, too. A reminder of how easy most of my generation have had it. This is a treasure trove .

I am sure there are tens of thousands such treasures yet to be lifted

No help in identifying the photos just a "thanks for putting them up here" - very interesting.

YW - I was worried that the size of the images might be considered "disruptive formatting"

 

[Oystein]

Wonderful photographs. Thanks for posting.

I think the aircraft may be an LVG C.VI^WP. Can't find any really good pictures but this ain't bad: http://www.aviastar.org/air/germany/lvg_c-6.php

The wingtips are very distinctive (flaring out on the upper and curling in on the lower wings) and the slightly raised observer's cupola (mg mounting ring, presumably) seem to fit, though the cylinder visible above the engine is odd. I'm guessing that's a silencer of some kind on the exhaust manifold. Maybe to make the plane more stealthy for low level reconnaissance. That's just a guess though as i can't find any evidence it was used.

On second thoughts, this photo: http://airmuseumsuk.org/airshow/2003/Shut030823/800/pages/037 LVG C.VI.htm is a bit off. There's no radiator in the centre of the top wing of the plane in your pictures. Maybe a different engine variant, though.

Phew, I am not good with these things... But thanks! To me, the resemblance would be good enough

 

[Oystein]

I would contact Gawdzilla, he is involved in an online WW2 project and is an historian. I am sure he could give you some ideas of who to contact with these amazing photos

Different war

I am not yet near the process of doing serious research with these pictures. I put them here mainly to be shared and enjoyed.
More important to me is to contact those in my family who knew my grand-uncle and may know a bit more about his personal history.

This is great stuff, Oystein. Thanks for making sure it doesn't get lost or forgotten.

Dave

You're welcome - JREF is not yet the right place to present them for posteriority. But a good, quick and easy way for me to get some first ideas.

Those are barbed wire barricades. The long sticks are for future construction of more. The long pole forms the center, and the crossbars at the ends and middle support the wire.

I would think that these are much more quickly removed than erected - but who said war isn't frustrating?

No, that cross identified a German plane.

Thanks. I just wasn't sure.

 

[Jack by the hedge]

On second thoughts, I was wrong about the round object being a cylindrical silencer on the exhaust manifold. It's just the drum magazine on the observer's machine gun.

Here's a picture of one on a DFW. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:DFW_C.V_(Av)_banking.jpg

In fact, the DFW isn't a bad candidate for the plane in the pictures, although the raised ring around the observer's cupola doesn't look quite right. If there weren't such a gaggle of people obscuring the tail in both shots, there might be a better chance of identifying it with confidence.

 

[patchbunny]

Which equipment are you specifically looking at? Rifles, helmets, uniform?

The rifle. It's definitely a Lee-Enfield, so it's a UK/Canadian soldier.

 

[patchbunny]

Those are barbed wire barricades. The long sticks are for future construction of more. The long pole forms the center, and the crossbars at the ends and middle support the wire.

I would think that these are much more quickly removed than erected - but who said war isn't frustrating?

You can fasten adjacent systems together to secure them, and remember that the owners do get itchy trigger fingers when you try to take them down.

 

[coalesce]

This is utterly astounding. Thanks so much for sharing.

Michael

 

[One Skunk Todd]

The helmets and rifles are British/Canadian. There's also a Lewis gun magazine to the right of the helmet.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_gun

I can't tell what other equipment is there. I'll keep looking.

Reference photo of helmets and rifles:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Royal_Irish_Rifles_ration_party_Somme_July_1916.jpg

 

[One Skunk Todd]

Now this is interesting, if you go straight left from the soldier's feet, to the left edge of the picture, there is a round object with a straight piece sticking off of it. It looks like a German Luger drum magazine.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Arty08.jpg

http://www.proxibid.com/AuctionImages/1290/8913/Detail/1563.jpg

Why there would be a piece of German kit in the photo I don't know.

Also, I was looking at the "Doughboy" entry on wikipedia and they have a picture of an American receiving a medal and the uniform and gear look very similar.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Doughboy_award.jpg

 

[geni]

Which equipment are you specifically looking at? Rifles, helmets, uniform?

Helmets. Its these:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brodie_helmet

 

[BenBurch]

A suggestion; the tag IMGW=width will let you scale images so as not to create grief for viewers;

[imgw=800]http://www.maraite.net/jean-pierre/DSC_3459.JPG[/imgw]

 

[BenBurch]

This, eh?
http://ru.wikipedia.org/w/index.php...tive_Ks_(Ok).jpg&filetimestamp=20090513162557

A type 66 O

Yes. I've seen the type before.

 

[BenBurch]

Another suggestion. Would you be comfortable with giving the whole collection to archive.org?

These should be preserved.

 

[One Skunk Todd]

I had a hunch that all the little bits near the Luger magazine might be tools or parts for the Lewis gun. I google Lewis Gun toolkit and came up with this:

http://www.ima-usa.com/product_info.php/manufacturers_id/3/products_id/1706

Which looks very much like the spanner in the photograph.

 

[Alferd_Packer]

The subtitel to this image means "Russian transport train"

Can anybody identify the train type?
I don't know what the markings mean:

• There is a small white arrow in the upper left corner.
• The number "3" in the upper right corner is probably prefabricated on the film
• That scale below it may be a feature of the surveillance camera. From bottom to top, I see the number "10", then a strange wiggle, then "0". Could this be from a compass or something similar?

[qimg]http://www.maraite.net/jean-pierre/DSC_3459.JPG[/qimg]

These were alomost certainly shot on glass plate negatives. The Number "3" was part of the negative holder and was trasfered to the negaive on exposure.

I suspect that the scale is part of a range finder type focusing device.

 

[Alferd_Packer]

Rail station Rivne (Rowno is russian-to-german transliteration. Polish would be Rowne).

Can someone identify the locomotive?

There are plenty of people in the picture. Many wear hats, some seem to wear uniforms. I don't think the look German. More like Russian, huh? Or is this my biased eyes?

ETA: It's half past 1 on the station clock, and pretty overcast, I can't discern any shaddows

[qimg]http://www.maraite.net/jean-pierre/DSC_3463.JPG[/qimg]

Is that Dr. Zhivago standing on the platform?

 

[Alferd_Packer]

Conflagration Airfield Kowel

(Abraham Zapruder of the famous JFK film is from that town )

[qimg]http://www.maraite.net/jean-pierre/DSC_3468rot.jpg[/qimg]

There does seem to be a shadowy figure lurking behind right side of the building.