Archive for the ‘linkage’ Category
All Business- linkage, feed, and community
The considerable deductive powers of the unstoppable Forgotten-NY team are applied to the farthest extant of the Newtown Creek’s rusty borderlands. Check out scenes and scrying from the far, far east here
Our friend and colleague, Bob Singleton (of Greater Astoria Historical Society fame) is presenting a lecture tonight on the history and construction of the Queensboro Bridge in Middle Village. This lecture is the first in a series being presented by the burgeoning and recently organized Newtown Historic Society.
Tonight, part 3 of our Masonic lodge series will go live, but I came across someone on Flickr who did an amazing job of commenting on her gorgeous photos (with a lot of detail that I missed) – check out ChristiNYC’s photos from the Masonic Lodge tour sponsored by Open House New York at flickr.
Over at bigskybrooklyn, Adam E. shares the products of his poetic ambles around the former Dutch colony. Check him out, and don’t miss his story about Triangle 54.
I’m still gathering info on the Newtown Creek superfund story, but am not ready to talk about it. Recent missives from the Newtown Creek Alliance suggest that the Federal Government’s redoubtable EPA will be holding a public meeting on November 5th at 7PM in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
Quoth: The US Environmental Protection Agency will be holding a community information session regarding the nomination of Newtown Creek to the Federal Superfund Program.
Where: St Cecilia’s Auditorium, Located on North Henry St midway between Herbert and Richardson
When: Thursday November 5th at 7:00 pm
Halloween week is here, and I would be remiss if I didn’t shill for the Greater Astoria Historical Society Halloween tour, led by its president Richard Melnick. I’ll be there, and Our Lady of the Pentacle plans on assumption of full holiday regalia for both herself and our little dog.
Also, for the pure Geek of it all, I’ve been playing around with the “rss feed” syndication settings on the Newtown Pentacle. Our feed page is located here. Experimental “mirrors” of the site can be found here, and here. Messing around with different layouts and blog services has been my main desire, and I’m intrigued by the notion of the raw text and code flowing into different layouts automatically (to subscribe to our feed, click the appropriate links on the sidebar). I’m a newbie at programming this sort of thing, if you’re not and there’s something obvious and clever I’m missing, please contact me.
Don’t miss the Shunned House of Williamsburg
Forgotten-ny, masters of New York’s hidden past and the gold standard for urban exploration, has posted a great “forgotten-slice” about a “Shunned House” observed in Williamsburg.
Vulcanalia
In addition to being “the night of the Living Dead“, August 23rd is also Vulcanalia.
from wikipedia:
Vulcan’s oldest shrine in Rome, called the “Volcanal”, was situated at the foot of the Capitoline in the Forum Romanum, and was reputed to date to the archaic period of the kings of Rome, and to have been established on the site by Titus Tatius, the Sabine co-king, with a traditional date in the eighth century BC. It was the view of the Etruscan haruspices that a temple of Vulcan should be located outside the city, and the Volcanal may originally have been on or outside the city limits before they expanded to include the Capitoline Hill. The Volcanalia sacrifice was offered here to Vulcan, on August 23. Vulcan also had a temple on the Campus Martius, which was in existence by 214 BC.
The Romans identified Vulcan with the Greek smith-god Hephaestus, and he became associated like his Greek counterpart with the constructive use of fire in metalworking. A fragment of a Greek pot showing Hephaestus found at the Volcanal has been dated to the 6th century BC, suggesting that the two gods were already associated at this date. However, Vulcan had a stronger association than Hephaestus with fire’s destructive capacity, and a major concern of his worshippers was to encourage the god to avert harmful fires. His festival, the Vulcanalia, was celebrated on August 23 each year, when the summer heat placed crops and granaries most at risk of burning. During the festival bonfires were created in honour of the god, into which live fish or small animals were thrown as a sacrifice, to be consumed in the place of humans. Vulcan was among the gods placated after the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64. In response to the same fire, Domitian (emperor 81–96) established a new altar to Vulcan on the Quirinal Hill. At the same time a red bull-calf and red boar were added to the sacrifices made on the Vulcanalia, at least in that region of the city.
August 23rd is also Mitch’s Birthday, look for him down on Newtown Creek today, or perhaps Calvary. He’ll be the one throwing small fish into a fire.
Catching up with the Pentacle
Newtown Creek Bulkhead Fungus – photo by Mitch Waxman
Terms coined by the Newtown Pentacle in recent posts for future usage by the Real Estate Industry when the economy cycles back up-
DUPBO– Down under the Pulaski Bridge Onramp
DUGABO– Down under the Greenpoint avenue Bridge Onramp
DULIE– Down under the Long Island Expressway
DURFKO- Down under the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge Onramp
aka
DUTBO– Down under the Triborough Bridge Onramp
DUKBO– Down under the Kosciuszko Bridge Onramp
DUTZBO– Down under the Tappan Zee Bridge Onramp
DUGWO– Down under the George Washington Bridge Onramp
Sorry for the “clip show” today, I’m running a little late on my schedule, and the next “Astoria to Calvary” photowalk installment will be ready tomorrow.
also: Click here for a fascinating experience one pedestrian had down by Gantry Plaza Park. This is precisely the sort of thing that I’m constantly droning on about…
Also, something I found while doing research on Northern Blvd.- or how Robert Moses almost did to western Queens what he did to the South Bronx.
reflections of…
check these out at ebay.com. I’m posting this on 8/08/09, and the auction says its got four days to go. I can never afford to buy these, but one of you people reading this might be rich and can. If you do, please let me publish them… please?
I’ve got no affiliation with these folks by the way, this isn’t an ad or anything.
For offer, a rare archival collection of original photographs! Fresh from a prominent estate in Upstate, NY. Vintage, Old, Original – NOT a Reproduction – Guaranteed !!
22 photos, numbered in the photo. Some say Complete Electrical Installation, Newtown Creek B/T by Friedman Electric Company. Looks like they are building an oil or gasoline / gas company. Shows trucks, cars, men working, buildings, advertising signs, etc. Nice views! Others have writing on back with the same location, dated Jan., 1931, with names identifying people in the photos. Include Max Bresnick, J. McMasters, H. Decker, Walter Buck, William Besterman. 17 photos are 8 x 10 inches. 5 are 6 x 8 inches. In good condition overall. Some photos do have light damage at edges, a few have creases. Please see photos below for more information. NOTE: Photos look better than shown below! If you collect 20th century Americana history, American / United States of America photography, occupation, industry, advertisement ad, etc. this is a treasure you will not see again! Add this to your image or paper / ephemera collection. Important genealogy research importance too. Combine shipping on multiple bid wins! Insurance is extra, international s/h is more. No reserve. Good luck bidding.
The Newtown Pentacle 