A web log, an æthereal scrap-book if you will, with a somewhat vintage flavour. News items, occurrences, experiences, thoughts and opinions related to Victoriana through to Fifties Americana can all be found here.
I'm going to let you in on a little behind-the-scenes secret to the workings of Eclectic Ephemera in this next post. If any of you were ever wondering where I find all these vintage-inspired news items from around the massive network that is the World Wide Web, well, I'll tell you - <whispers> I do make a fair bit of use out of Mr Google's Alert function. In case you don't know what that is, it's a handy little tool that allows you to set up e-mail alerts every time a specified keyword appears in news reports (or other sources of your choice) on any website that shows up through Google. It's jolly clever and I have quite a few on the go to help supplement the more traditional surfing methods that I also employ. Without giving too much more away one of those keywords is "typewriter" and over the last couple of month in particular it has resulted in the motherlode of all related news items. So, rather than publish each article separately - in which case I would still have been posting them well into next year - I thought I would do what I believe in modern blogging parlance is called a "linkdump" and combine them all into one post. ("Oh no, not another massive essay Bruce!" I hear you cry. Well, I'm afraid so. Sorry.)
Stand by then for a selection of typewriter-based reports, featuring various typosphereans from across the North American continent - all of whom still work to repair and restore these wonderful machines so that they can continue to be used and enjoyed by young and old alike.
We begin with this wonderful story from Saskatoon, Western Canada, where local typewriter repairman Tom Cholowski has been busy restoring typewriters and related machinery for both the local and national typer community. Clearly a man after our own hearts - and not just in the matter of typewriters, as his attire and overall demeanour in all of his appearances makes clear! - Mr Cholowski has been fortunate enough to be recognised for his work by one of the most famous proponents of the typewriter - actor and collector Tom Hanks.
Having written to Mr Hanks to express his gratitude in helping to preserve and further the cause of the humble typewriter as a well-known aficionado, Mr Cholowski was surprised and delighted to receive a response from the great man himself thanking him in turn for his work keeping the typewriters of Canada in a functioning state for the people of that country to enjoy. Confirming the widely-held opinion (shared by this blogger, who has featured his typewriter-related deeds on here before) that Tom Hanks is an all-round splendid fellow as well as a fine actor, the charming letter is full of praise as well as the promise of a visit to Mr Cholowski's shop the next time the former is in the neighbourhood.
The story doesn't end there, though, I'm pleased to say, for in addition to his kind words Mr Hanks offered up one of his own typewriters as thanks for Mr Cholowski's work repairing Western Canada's broken typing instruments.
Thus a few weeks after the initial correspondence began, by now one of Canada's most famous typewriter repairmen was thrilled to receive a 1940 Remington Noiseless portable - complete with original manual and typewritten provenance - that was once part of Tom Hanks' collection and which is now safely ensconced in Saskatoon, where it rightly takes pride of place even among the hundreds of other machines that form Mr Cholowski's own collection.
This has been a heart-warming story from start to finish, featuring two topping gents - including one who from all appearances especially embraces the Chap spirit - with a shared interest in keeping the marvellous machines that are typewriters alive and in the public consciousness for years to come. Quite apart from the celebrity factor of Mr Hanks' involvement, Tom Cholowksi simply comes across as a jolly nice gentleman who has been able to turn his hobby into a business to the benefit of his local community as well as typewriter enthusiasts throughout the country and beyond. His attitude is a welcome one in this day and age and his very existence makes the world a better place, not only for typosphereans and Chaps but for everyone. Well done, sir!
We head to Nashville, Tennessee for this next article where once again we find a passionate typewriter repairman intent on rescuing as many machines as he can from his local area and around the country. This is Kirk Jackson, whose ethos is remarkably similar to that of Tom Cholowski's - and, indeed, seems to be a common thread linking many a typewriter enthusiast together. Like so many of us a fan of mechanical items, old-fashioned ephemera and antiquated technology, Mr Jackson was inevitably drawn to the workings of manual typewriters following a chance encounter in 2016 with a 1954 Remington (the model isn't specified) at an antique shop in the nearby city of Goodlettsville. From then on it has clearly been a journey of discovery resulting in a new-found love for these old machines that has led to him becoming Tennessee's premier typewriter repairer with his own shop and Instagram page. Not only is it a gladdening tale, but the appeal of typewriters to Mr Jackson on a personal level is clearly apparent and the way in which he speaks of them, of their tangibility, their clarity of purpose and their ability to provide an intimate connection to the act of writing is a familiar theme that pops up throughout the Typosphere and among collectors the world over. It is as ever good to see another younger person with the skills and the mindset to keep typewriters going, as well as appreciating similar devices from the same eras. I applaud Mr Jackson for being so ardent an advocate for their cause; the city of Nashville - and the wider typewriting world - is fortunate to have him.
Moving a little further south now to the state of Alabama we're invited to meet William Lee, a typewriter repairman operating out of a little shop in the capital city of Montgomery. Once again his story mirrors in many respects that of Messrs. Cholowski and Jackson, with the same sentiments coming to the fore and a clear love of typewriters and their mechanical nature very much in evidence. Unlike the other chaps mentioned so far, however, Mr Lee's introduction to typewriter repair took place much earlier at a time when they were still a commonplace technology and this - combined with the attraction to and enthusiasm for his work, something which is shared with his fellow repairers - has understandably stood him in good stead over the years. While that work has changed somewhat from when he first started out in 1973 it is nevertheless still pleasing to note the number of younger people coming to him either with typewriters for repair or to buy a restored one from him and even more of a welcome surprise to find that there are businesses in the area still in need of his services. He is certainly providing a valuable resource to the people of the south-eastern United States and I can only hope he is wrong in his lament that he will be the last of his profession. Mr Lee's passion, knowledge and experience is a credit to him and judging from what we've seen so far, I remain positive that with his help the folks of Alabama will continue to have a typewriter repairman handy for some time to come.
Having met Mr Lee of Alabama we head back north of the border to Canada - this time to the south-east and the city of Kitchener, Ontario where we are encouraged again to make the acquaintance of Manfred Aulich, known throughout the region as "The Typewriter Guy".
Here once more we see the same story of a fellow typewriter aficionado who got bitten by the bug as a young boy and in the intervening years has used his skills to provide an increasingly valuable service to typewriter owners across the Canadian south-east. Despite his advancing years I'm pleased to note that Mr Aulich has no intention of stopping any time soon and I only hope that as with the other older repairmen featured in this post he is able to continue for some time to come and maybe even impart some of his knowledge to the younger generation (who again get a positive mention as showing an interest in old typewriters). It's cheering to see in how high esteem Mr Aulich is held not only by the locals but folk as far away as Toronto and Waterloo, so much so that - as the article states - his business is booming. Tom Hanks even gets another mention (the man's fast becoming part of the thread of the typewriter story) with Mr Aulich intending to send him a machine he is currently restoring (the Continental Wanderer 35 pictured in the report). I now have visions of typewriters flying back and forth through the mail to and from Mr Hanks and other collectors around the world! Has a new version of the hobby just been invented - typewriter exchanges, perhaps? Either way, Mr Aulich also gets my approbation for being a further champion of the typewriter in his corner of Canada.
We're over on the west coast of the United States for this next story now and yet another "Typewriter Guy" - enthusiast Simon Kiefer. A slightly different take on the sort of typewriter narratives we have seen so far, but by no means any less commendable, Mr Kiefer's efforts see him lend out restored typers to his local community for use in creative workshops (type-ins, in other words), that I'm happy to note are [currently] sponsored by various local Santa Barbara institutes. Here then is another aspect to typewriter collecting and repairing, similar in experience to that of Kirk Jackson in Nashville - the sharing of this supposedly "outdated" technology with the wider community as a means of reconnecting with the art of writing and of using these delightful machines for the singular purpose for which they were intended. It is a thoroughly laudable enterprise and one that I hope Mr Kiefer can continue to provide especially through these difficult times. Although no mention is made in this particular case of any typewriter repair skills per se, the tale of how Mr Kiefer came to love these old machines (once more very much an echo of Mr Jackson's introduction to the world of typewriters), the fact that he has over 100 in various conditions dotted throughout his home (with people even leaving examples on his doorstep!) and his experience growing up with them gives me to think that he must be adept at repairing them as well. In any event, once more I applaud Mr Kiefer for his work in bringing the joys of typewriters and the typewritten word to the people of California.
Up to the very north-east of the United States and on the border with Canada again for this penultimate article from the town of Winthrop, Maine and the story of the state's only typewriter repairman, Pat Costigan. Like Mr Lee in Alabama Mr Costigan started out servicing typewriters as a young man in the 1970s when the machines were still prevalent and has continued to provide a sterling service to the people of Maine and beyond to this day, having seen the fortunes of the typewriter wax and wane down the years. But as we have seen throughout all these news items (and know well) the fascination with and enduring quality of typewriters is undying and transcends the generations, with Mr Costigan also speaking of younger people showing an interest in these timeless machines and providing him with a welcome and hopefully long-lived fresh clientele. It's nice to read of the interest that exposure to typewriters creates manifesting itself as a desire to study journalism or a similar writing-based vocation, as again we see much made of the intrinsic, hands-on aspect of typewriter use. While he may be styled, like so many of his cohorts, as "the last typewriter repairman...[north of Boston]" the fact that his business is also doing well and with 20% of it accounted for by typewriters means I am sure Mr Costigan will be providing his services to those still reliant on and enjoying the use of typewriters for many years to come. Another hearty "well done!" comes from this side of the Pond.
We end this post in New York City with another heartening typewriter-based story with a bit of a difference, in this case highlighting the work of English Literature professor and self-styled "performance artist" Brandon Woolf, who has spent the last few weeks sitting on a street corner in Brooklyn with a chair, a table, a 1940s Remington portable typewriter and reams of paper, envelopes and stamps offering a free letter-writing service for passers-by. This is part of his latest concept art which he calls "post-dramatic theatre" but which again also owes much to type-ins and especially the idea of condolence notes (from which Professor Woolf's performance - The Console - derives its name) and letter-writing in general. All in all it sounds a most intriguing exercise, yet one which again brings the typewriter and its unique abilities into the public consciousness in a direct and engaging way. While the theory may be to tap in (see what I did there?) to the uneasiness and melancholia that seems so much a part of the world at the moment I like to see the personal nature of this performance as providing a much-needed boost to people's interactions especially in this time of Covid - and there is nothing better than a typewriter for that.
Seven uplifting typewriter stories from around America and Canada, then, which prove that there are many out there still devoted to keeping these terrific contraptions going well into the 21st century. My only disappointment is that there is not nearly enough similar coverage of typewriter repairers here in Britain (well-known typospherean Richard Polt's website has a very handy list not only of British-based menders but worldwide ones too, which is a great resource) - perhaps something for this enthusiast to investigate for a future post...! I hope you have enjoyed reading these pieces as much as I have (and of blogging about them) and that - especially for my fellow typosphereans out there - it serves as a reassurance that for every "last repairman" one hears about there is doubtless another out there carrying on what Tom Hanks rightly describes as "God's labour".
Staying in 1930s Canada for this next post we head 1,700 miles east to Ontario and the frozen wilds north of that province where bush pilots plied their trade delivering mail & supplies, mapping & photographing new areas of land and spotting forest fires (the latter still carried out today by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry's Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services division). Now a link to those early days of wilderness flying in the 1920s and '30s has been created by the son of one of those pioneering bush pilots, who has been busy converting his father's old 8mm cine footage into a series of short, digitised documentaries.
Fairchild 82, similar to one used by Charles R. Robinson/ Starrat Airways
source - Wikipædia
Taking advantage of lock-down Phil Robinson and his son have set about editing family footage of the former's father Charles R. Robinson, who was a bush pilot in Ontario during the 1930s, into a series of fascinating glimpses of life flying around the lakes and settlements in the northwest of that province. Not only is the result a wonderfully preserved personal family archive that the Robinsons can look back on in the years to come but also a valuable document of a unique aspect of Canadian aviation history, featuring one of this author's favourite types of aircraft - the floatplane!
Ideally suited for use on the myriad lakes dotted around northwest Ontario and to the mining communities that were based on their banks the floatplane has long been the backbone of the bush plane service, as can be seen in the Robinsons' footage where we see multiple variants in use - from the heavy Fairchild 82 freighter that features prominently in the 8-minute footage to the lighter Waco ZK-S6 and Noorduyn Norseman types that were also employed regularly on the smaller/ passenger routes (with many of the latter two types still airworthy and in use today), as well as the first Beechcraft 18 to be fitted with floats.
Noordyun Norsemans in Alberta, Canada, ca. 1930s
source - Wikimedia Commons
The concept of bush flying is a thrilling and enthralling one, although the images from the Robinsons' 1930s video (as well as the son's own comments) show just how challenging and physically demanding a job it was (and no doubt still is) - not to mention the dangers that could be encountered such as those that feature in Charles Robinsons' later exploits (still to be shown). It's no wonder that adventure films such as 1947's Bush Pilot proved popular at showing just the sort of experiences that took place in the business of bush flying. Now with the added value of the Robinsons' material the story of those early Canadian bush flying pioneers has been further expanded to the benefit of anyone - be they local/ aviation historians or just those of us with a passing interest - to whom the history of bush flying in Canada appeals. I am glad Mr Robinson and his son were able to find the time to conserve this important film andlook forward to the next instalment of Charles R. Robinson's experiences as a 1930s bush pilot.
From across the Pond in Canada comes this poignant story, once again featuring the surprisingly common instance of old documents - in this case letters from over 80 years ago - being found during a building renovation and nearly thrown away before being rescued by an understanding individual.
Unlike most other long-lost photographic rediscoveries I've blogged about in the past this one has a much more personal angle, being as these were love letters written by courting couple between 1938 and 1940 and as such they go far beyond any socio-historical aspect. As the chap who found them rightly asserts, they were an important part of two people's lives - so much so, in fact, that the man Len was moved to keep them in what was undoubtedly felt to be (and as events proved to be) a safe place. I find this to be a particularly moving part of the story, in that to my mind he obviously believed that they might one day be found by a subsequent family member living in the house.
For whatever reason, however, this was not to be quite the case and it was only thanks to the good sense of the builder who unearthed them that these touching letters were saved from oblivion. What is perhaps even more remarkable is Mr Trampus's perseverance in attempting to track down the relatives of Mim and Len, seeing as the original discovery took place nearly fifteen years ago! His patience ultimately paid off last month, though, and here again we see the positive benefits of social media and how it can work to the advantage of times past as well as the present; for it was through a Facebook group that he was finally able to locate the couple's daughter and reunite her with her parents' letters. So in a roundabout way Len's intention came to pass in that his letters eventually made it in to his family's possession, although no doubt not in the way he would have expected!
One can clearly see from the accompanying video just how much this means to Mrs Pennell and I am so glad that she has been given this opportunity to reconnect with her parents even in this small way, 30 years after they passed. I am equally pleased that there are people out there like Dario Trampus who recognise the importance of documents like these and appreciate them enough to hold on to them for over 10 years as they try to reunite them with their rightful owners and I feel sure this will not be the last time I feature a post like this on Eclectic Ephemera.
Yet another worthy - if slightly convoluted - aircraft restoration project is the subject of this interesting article from the B.B.C, featuring a transatlantic variant of a now-rare World War Two British bomber.
The Bristol Blenheim can trace its origins back to 1935 and a Daily Mail-sponsored specification for a high-speed business aircraft. The Bristol Aeroplane Company responded with the Type 142, which first flew on the 12th April 1935. Not only did it meet the requirements of Daily Mail owner Lord Rothermere as the fastest civilian aeroplane in Europe, it was also found to be considerably faster than any fighter 'plane then in service with the Royal Air Force! As a result the RAF quickly moved to have Bristol create a fighter-bomber version, which became the Blenheim MkI.
Blenheims consequently formed part of the backbone of both Fighter and Bomber Command in the early years of the war, although even by 1939 they were outclassed by newer fighters like the Spitfire and Messerschmitt 109. Nevertheless they performed many vital, if now largely forgotten, roles in the first three years of the conflict. Blenheims were the first British aircraft to cross the German coast following the declaration of war. They formed part of the Free French Air Force after the fall of France. During the Battle of Britain they undertook bombing and reconnaissance raids on German airfields, often sustaining high casualties. When the Blitz began, Blenheims fitted with radar became night-fighters to battle the German bombers. The aircraft eventually served in several theatres of war including North Africa and the Middle & Far East, over time evolving into new designs including the Beaufort torpedo-bomber and the Beaufighter. It was also the basis for the aircraft featured here - the Bolingbroke.
The Bolingbroke was merely a variant of the Blenheim rather than an evolution - in fact the original Bolingbroke MkI was almost identical to the Blenheim MkIV. The alterations to the Blenheim design by this stage had attracted the attention of the Royal Canadian Air Force, who were looking for a new aircraft to undertake the maritime patrol role. Fairchild Canada was awarded the license to build under contract in Quebec and so the Bolingbroke was born. From 1940-44 Bolingbrokes provided patrol bomber service on the Atlantic & Pacific coasts and were later mainstays of the the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan.
source Bolingbroke wreck in a Manitoba scrapyard, 2006
After the cessation of hostilities the RAF scrapped its entire fleet of Blenheims. The RCAF took a slightly different tack, as mentioned, and sold their surplus airframes for scrap - with local farmers taking advantage of the valuable aluminium, fuel and other parts (or, as in this case, for target practice!). As it turns out this was something of a blessing in disguise for, while there are only 2 or 3 extant examples of original Blenheims left in the world, there are currently thirteen Bolingbrokes - in Belgium, the USA, UK, and Canada - four of which (including this one) are undergoing restoration either to original or Blenheim specification.
The difficulty in restoring such a rare aeroplane is made apparent in the article, but I have no doubt the team at the Bristol Aero Collection will do a good thorough job in bringing Bolingbroke 9048 back to fighting trim. In the same hanger where Concorde was constructed, no less! It's splendid to see yet more dedication from aviation enthusiasts and museum volunteers, as well as the sporting assistance of Rolls-Royce; I'm sure 9048 will sit proudly alongside Concorde and the other exhibits at the Collection as a testament to the men who flew Blenheims and Bolingbrokes.
More Bomber Command commemoration news now, and this one is exciting almost beyond words (well, I'll try anyway)!
The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight has been thrilling airshow crowds and remembrance parades around the country for decades and the undisputed jewel in its crown is the Avro Lancaster bomber PA474. Joining the Flight in 1973 it has become a much-loved feature; one of only two airworthy examples left in the world it is highly valued in its own right.
source Avro Lancaster Mk X FM213"Mynarski Memorial" of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum
The other Lanc in flying condition - FM213 - performs a similar office for the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum in Ontario, having been rescued from the scrapheap by The Royal Canadian Legion in 1978 (and restored to airworthiness by 1988). A familiar sight on the North American display circuits the Canadian-built FM213 was, like PA474, completed just too late to see service in World War II - spending 20 years with the RCAF's Maritime Air Command Search & Rescue division.
source Avro Lancaster B I PA747 "City of Lincoln" of the BBMF
Now in a series of special one-off events FM213 and PA474 are scheduled to meet in the skies of Britain this summer in what is rightly being billed as a "once-in-a-lifetime event". For the first time in 60 years two Avro Lancasters will fly together over two weeks in August (including, I note, my birthday - hmmnn, now there's an idea...!).
The CWHM will fly its Lancaster, in stages, across the Atlantic to meet up with the BBMF at RAF Coningsby. That in itself is more than worthy of comment, since a Lancaster has not undertaken an Atlantic crossing since 1975 and we should remember that we are talking about a near 70-year-old machine here! Just that flight alone will be testament to the aircraft's durability and the hard work of the museum engineers who work strenuously to keep this wonderful aeroplane flyable (the same can be said, of course, for PA474 and the BBMF).
source
Avro Lancaster B VII NX611 "Just Jane"
of the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre
Once FM213 has made it across and is checked over a number of displays and events are planned for that second fortnight in August. Flypasts with the BBMF will commence on the 14th August with a series of as-yet unspecified shows to follow. A tour of the country seems to be suggested; hopefully we shall know more nearer the time. A visit to the taxiing Lanc undergoing restoration in Lincolnshire, perhaps (three of them, albeit on the ground, would surely be a sight to see)? Hopefully a show near you will see both bombers in the air together. Furthermore if you live near the Humberside Airport and have £3,500 going spare you can even pay to have a flight in one of the Lancasters (£7,000 for a cockpit seat), which are due to take place on the 18th-20th and 26th-27th August.
All-in-all then this sounds like an absolutely amazing opportunity and a fantastic way to commemorate the numerous martial anniversaries that abound this year (WWI 100th, WWII 75th, Bomber Command etc.). I very much hope to get a chance to see the two Lancs in formation together some time, somewhere, this August. Watch and listen to the footage at the top of this post, then try to imagine two (or even three if NX611 is involved!) instead of one - what a beautiful sight (and sound!) that will be!
It is amazing how the Internet can shrink the world to such an extent that a humble little vintage blogger in Great Britain can stumble across a news item from Bermuda, of all places. That is what has happened, though, with this article from the Bernews website which has somehow managed to come within my purview.
And it's just the kind of thing I like for this blog, containing as it does film shot in the 1920s of Bermuda when the island was beginning to undergo a sea change from a simple British Company colony settlement into a tourism hot spot. As such it contains not only a myriad of period detail, with well-heeled Americans, Canadians and Britishers holidaying on the island but also the occasional glimpse of an already fast-disappearing colonial way of life. It's a fascinating snapshot of Twenties travel to a tourist location we now think of as quite "usual" and is thoroughly deserving of a wider audience.
Indeed, the entire Novia Scotia Archives look like a treasure-trove of 1920s and '30s delightfulness, which I shall look forward to viewing in more detail. And all thanks to a Bermudan website I happened to chance across. Splendid tool, the Internet, eh?
Well, after quite a few personal posts of late it's nice to get back to some vintage news from elsewhere on the interweb. This story originally broke a month ago but due to the aforementioned posts and a dearth of retro news items recently, I'm blogging about it now.
Allard cars were originally produced in Britain for 30 years between 1936 and 1966, the company having been founded by one Sydney Allard. Primarily a sports car manufacturer, although a few saloon models were also sold, Allard produced its own designs in London and used big American Ford V8 engines and mechanicals to create lots of power in a lightweight body making the cars ideal for racing. Indeed Allards driven by Sydney Allard himself won the 1949 British Hillclimb Championship, the 1952 Monte Carlo Rally, came third in the 1950 Le Mans endurance race and were owned by the likes of Steve McQueen and Carroll Shelby (almost certainly influencing the latter in the creation of the Shelby Cobra). The zenith of Allard's race-bred motor cars could be said to be the J2X Roadster (above) but somewhat paradoxically it is one of the rarest, only 83 being produced between 1951 and 1954.
However it has been possible for some time to buy an accurate "recreation" of the J2X from the new Allard Motor Works, based in Montreal, Canada. Staying true to Sydney Allard's original ethos, the J2X MkII is painstakingly hand-built by Allard in Canada (and north-east America) and still uses a big 'ol American V8, albeit this time a GM unit (the same engine that's in the Corvette, as it happens). So accurate and traditional are the product and methods that the British Allard Register recognises these cars as though their own and awards each finished vehicle a certificate and fully-sanctioned serial number. Although it has always been possible to unofficially import one of these "new" Allards into the British Isles as this article explains they will now be available through a proper UK dealer.
It is always a delight (for me, anyway) to see a successful marriage of classic vintage style with modern practices and this car is another perfect example of that. Now they will become [slightly] more readily available in Europe and hopefully ensure the continued success of Allard Motor Works and the memory of Sydney Allard.
A mightily impressive creation here from the Canadian Mint as they produce what is both the largest and highest-denomination coin in the world. Too big (and too expensive!) for my collection I'm afraid! Too big and expensive for the company that originally commissioned it too, it seems. I suppose though that it's just as good as gold bars and is certainly a novel use for 100 kilograms of top grade bullion. I'm sure it will make a good conversation piece for whoever ends up buying it, although I don't think they'll be using it to buy their groceries!
