100 Years Ago: July 1915

[George Thomas Wilson]

This article is the seventh in a series of brief postings on a National Geographic as it reaches 100 years of age.

The first item listed on the cover is the "New Map of Europe in Four Colors" that was announced in the June issue to allow members to follow the locales of the Great War as the battles happen.  Here it is courtesy of Philip Riviere:

The first article in this issue is another in a series of European travelogues written by Florence Craig Albrecht.  This one is on England, more specifically on the harbors and ports along the English Channel.  The photographs are by her husband, Emil Poole Albrecht, and A. W Cutler.

It starts with the arrival by steamer in Cornwall and then travels along the coast to various harbors both large and small: Penzance, Breage, Germoe, Mousehole, Newlyn, Marazion (dating back to the Phoenicians), St. Michaels, Cormoran (where the giant that Jack slew hailed from), St. Keone, Falmouth, Megavissey, Fowey (from whence the Crusaders sail to siege Calais), Dartmouth, Polperro, Clovelly, Lynmouth (in the land of Lorna Doone), Tintagal (with the ruins of King Arthur's castle), Port Isaac, St. Ives, Looe, Plymouth (of Mayflower fame), Southampton, and finally Portsmouth (and its importance in the current war).

The second article is about California and written by Herman Whitaker.  It starts with the history of "El Dorado" and quickly moves to Death Valley (the land of little rain).  A train ride up the coast takes us to Santa Barbara and Monterey.  Next up the San Joaquin Valley.  From the town of Merced, "midway of the valley", we take a detour to Yosemite National Park.  Next are the giant Sequoia unbroken for 70 miles.  A brief stop at Lake Tahoe and then on to San Francisco Bay.  The article then moves to the history and people of San Francisco, the rebirth after the earthquake a mere 10 years before, and it as the melting pot of Spanish, Chinese, and Scandinavian peoples.  The impact of the Panama Canal on commerce is also discussed.  The Panama-California Exposition in San Diego highlights this phenomenal growth.

The issue ends with nine orphaned photographs with caption covering Mt. Rainier, Glacier National Park, the Spokane River, and Lake McDonald.

Tom Wilson

[George Thomas Wilson]

Here's a photo of Dr. Syntax at Land's End, Cornwall from this issue courtesy of Philip Riviere.  Ironically Land's End is where the tour of the Channel ports begins.