Monday, June 8, 2015
Sunday, June 7, 2015
Lex Anteinternet: UW Foundation intent on cashing-in gift of Y Cross...
This past week the respective Wyoming and Colorado university benefactors (or actually the Colorado one, in what I read) of this substantial ranch land gift indicated that, having prevailed in their lawsuit with the donor, and having failed to reach an accommodation that would have otherwise helped preserved the donor's intent, announced that it's going up for sale.
And people wonder why the Wyoming average citizen and sporting public is skeptical about the state acquiring the Federal domain.
Lex Anteinternet: UW Foundation intent on cashing-in gift of Y Cross...: UW Foundation intent on cashing-in gift of Y Cross ranch We've commented on this before , but an ongoing "boo hiss" is in or...Well, once again, but Boo Hiss.
And people wonder why the Wyoming average citizen and sporting public is skeptical about the state acquiring the Federal domain.
Monday, June 7, 1915. Reinforcing Gallipoli. Leaving Mexico.
The French 2nd Army attacked German positions around Hébuterne, France to support the 10th Army efforts further north at Artois.
The Dardanelles Committee met in London and decided to reinforce the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force of General Ian Hamilton with three divisions from Kitchener's Army.
British pilot Reginald Warneford of No. 1 Squadron shot down a Zeppelin over Ghent, Belgium in hte first instance of an airship being taken on in that fashion.
Foreigners were leaving Mexico.
Last edition
Saturday, June 6, 2015
Sunday, June 6, 1915. Switzerland approves a war tax. The Great War comes to Wyoming.
The Allies reorganized at Gallipoli and beat back an Ottoman offensive.
The French Army captured the main road leading to Neuville-Saint-Vaast, France.
The Swiss population overwhelmingly approved a war tax, the first time which a Swiss referendum passed in every canton.
Today In Wyoming's History: June 6: 1915 British commissioners began to purchase remounts in Wyoming. The purchase of horses for British service in World War One created a boom in horse ranching which would continue, fueled both by British and American service purchases, throughout the war, but which would be followed by a horse ranching crash after the war.
U.S. Army Remounts, Camp Kearney California, 1917.
Last edition:
Saturday, June 5, 1915. German forces retook Przemyśl.
Friday, June 5, 2015
William G. McAdoo, Former Secretary of the Treasury – 1919
William G. McAdoo, Former Secretary of the Treasury – 1919
From when 78s were a means of mass communication. Really weird to think of people buying or recording a political speech such as this, let alone one by somebody who was the "former Secretary of the Treasury".
From when 78s were a means of mass communication. Really weird to think of people buying or recording a political speech such as this, let alone one by somebody who was the "former Secretary of the Treasury".
Saturday, June 5, 1915. German forces retook Przemyśl.
German forces retook the lost Austro Hungarian fortress of Przemyśl.
British forces repulsed a major Ottoman counter attack at Gallipoli.
Women obtained the franchise in Denmark and Iceland.
The U-14 was sunk in the North Sea by the HMT Oceanic II.
The HMS E-11 slipped back through the Dardanelles.
Last edition:
Friday, June 4, 1915. Bring Your Horses.
Labels: 1910s, 1915, Animals, British Army, Equine Transportation, French Army, Gallipoli, Indian Army, Ottoman Army, World War One, Wyoming
Thursday, June 4, 2015
Friday, June 4, 1915. Bring Your Horses.
British, French, and Indian forces made a third and final attempt to capture Achi Baba on the Gallipoli peninsula but were repulsed. Both side, sustained heavy casualties.
World War One was impacting Wyoming's economy:
Thursday, June 3, 1915. Battle of León.
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
Thursday, June 3, 1915. Battle of León.
Troops under the command of Constitutionalist Álvaro Obregón fought those under Pancho Villa at León, Guanajuato in Mexico.
Obregón lost his right arm in a grenade attack but Villa was decisively defeated in the battle.
The British Indian Army defeated Ottoman troops on the Tigris between the towns of Amara and Qurna, Mesopotamia (now Iraq).
Austro Hungarian troops drove the Russians back to the Dniester.
Last edition:
Wednesday, June 2, 1915. Wilson: 'Form a Government'.
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Wednesday, June 2, 1915. Wilson: 'Form a Government'.
President Wilson was growing irritated at the inability of Mexico to form a government.
The French commenced a pre attack three day barrage on German defenses around Neuville-Saint-Vaast, France.
Armenians began a month long resistance against the Ottoman Empire due to the genocide using a fort in the Giresun Province of Turkey. The uprising was sparked by news that the genocide was coming their way.
Ceylon's Governor Robert Chalmers declared martial law in the colony to arrest violence between Muslims and Buddhists.
Last edition:
Tuesday, June 1, 1915. Przemyśl.
Monday, June 1, 2015
Visiting the battlefield
"Last Stand Hill", Little Big Horn.
Now that's a dispiritiing thing for a writer to admit, but it's quite true. You just can't. Yet some try to do it.
Fetterman Fight battleground.
Relatively recently work took me on a trip which put me within easy driving range of a very famous Civil War battlefield. I'd read about it many times before, but I'd never seen it. Quite a shock to actually see the field, it wasn't really what I'd expected, even after having read the books, seen it depicted in film, and having reviewed the maps many times. Seeing, I realized what a desperate confusing affair it was, and what the overall conditions must have been like.
Likewise, there's several Indian Wars battlefields I'm quite familiar with, and several of those are repeatedly written about, not always very intelligently. The prime example of that would be the Battle of the Little Big Horn, which is oddly subject to a lot of discussion about "why did this happen?". Well, visit the battlefield and what happened is pretty obvious.
Today In Wyoming's History: The Casper Star Tribune decides to put out a book ...
Today In Wyoming's History: The Casper Star Tribune decides to put out a book ...: The Casper Star Tribune is collection pre 1940s photographs for a book on Casper's history up through 1939 that it's putting out. I...
An example of your public lands
The Trapper's Route landing, a location on Bureau of Land Management property.
This land of multiple use is leased for grazing, and is near a trail still used by cattlemen. The area is frequented by hunters and fishermen, and there are camping spots not far off.
Here, however, is a boat landing, used extensively by fishermen on this blue ribbon trout stream.
Federal land. The land that some in Wyoming want to take away from the Federal government and have the state administer. Or even own. There's no reason that to believe the state could do any better.
Tuesday, June 1, 1915. Przemyśl.
German infantry occupied three large forts around Przemyśl.
Last edition:
Monday, May 31, 1915. An Armenian provisional state.
Monday at the Bar: Courthouses of the West: Sheridan County Drug Court, Sheridan Wyoming
Courthouses of the West: Sheridan County Drug Court, Sheridan Wyoming:
This court is now the "drug court", but it was pretty clearly an early courthouse in Sheridan that was preserved and later converted t this use. As the existing courthouse in Sheridan is quite old, my guess that this one doesn't predate the other (maybe) but that it might have served some other court rather than the district court.
This court is now the "drug court", but it was pretty clearly an early courthouse in Sheridan that was preserved and later converted t this use. As the existing courthouse in Sheridan is quite old, my guess that this one doesn't predate the other (maybe) but that it might have served some other court rather than the district court.
Sunday, May 31, 2015
Friday, May 29, 2015
Movies In History: Band of Brothers
Band of Brothers
Before
reading this entry, a person probably ought to read the entry for
Saving Private Ryan. This film isn't revolutionary in being highly
materially accurate, as it followed in the wake of Saving Private Ryan
which was revolutionary in those regards. Still, this movie not only met
the standard (which isn't surprising given the involvement of the same
people) but it mastered them. This includes odd material details,
such as German horse usage, which is typically omitted from World War
Two movies.
The film is of course based on the work of straight history by Ambrose, and it covers it very well, even including some things that were omitted in the book. It undoubtedly stands as the most accurate single work on World War Two in Europe by leagues, and is a monument to both the American Army of World War Two and to this genera of film. If a person was to see only one movie about the war in Europe (which would be a mistake), and if you wanted that movie to depict an American topic, this would be it. And if a person is doing a study of films on the war that portray it accurately, this is a must see.
Postcript
I just noted in my review of Battleground that I was going to review this, and going back and looking at my earlier entries on "Movies In History", I saw that I already had.
I"m actually suprised to see how short this entry was, as this is such a major cinematic work. but the summation is a good one. This film surpasses any other in historical accuracy and accuracy of material details. It's excellent.
Indeed, in thinking about it, it occurs its so excellent that it might slightly skew the field in some ways. Taking one single company of the 101st Airborne, the movie might properly be viewed in context as representative of about any American infantry company of the war. I think it is generally viewed that way, but the fact that the film portrays paratroopers of the 101st Airborne, and is a true story, has caused a degree of over focus on this particular company in this particular division. The title said it well, Band of Brothers, but it's important to note that the same could be said of about any single ground combat unit of the US Army during the war, and the fact that this story is focused on this particular unit doesn't mean that this particular unit was truly unique. As the only film following an American Army infantry unit from training all the way through past the German surrender, the film is not only excellent, but probably best regarded as representative of the entire class of American soldier during the war.
Again, excellent by any measure.
The film is of course based on the work of straight history by Ambrose, and it covers it very well, even including some things that were omitted in the book. It undoubtedly stands as the most accurate single work on World War Two in Europe by leagues, and is a monument to both the American Army of World War Two and to this genera of film. If a person was to see only one movie about the war in Europe (which would be a mistake), and if you wanted that movie to depict an American topic, this would be it. And if a person is doing a study of films on the war that portray it accurately, this is a must see.
Postcript
I just noted in my review of Battleground that I was going to review this, and going back and looking at my earlier entries on "Movies In History", I saw that I already had.
I"m actually suprised to see how short this entry was, as this is such a major cinematic work. but the summation is a good one. This film surpasses any other in historical accuracy and accuracy of material details. It's excellent.
Indeed, in thinking about it, it occurs its so excellent that it might slightly skew the field in some ways. Taking one single company of the 101st Airborne, the movie might properly be viewed in context as representative of about any American infantry company of the war. I think it is generally viewed that way, but the fact that the film portrays paratroopers of the 101st Airborne, and is a true story, has caused a degree of over focus on this particular company in this particular division. The title said it well, Band of Brothers, but it's important to note that the same could be said of about any single ground combat unit of the US Army during the war, and the fact that this story is focused on this particular unit doesn't mean that this particular unit was truly unique. As the only film following an American Army infantry unit from training all the way through past the German surrender, the film is not only excellent, but probably best regarded as representative of the entire class of American soldier during the war.
Again, excellent by any measure.
Friday Farming: Guest workers in sheep ranching
I haven't been following the story, but apparently the Federal government is about to impose a rule, maybe this week, which would redefine certain things about the "guest workers" which sheep ranchers rely upon. Specifically, it would have the impact of increasing their wages several fold. The industry is opposed to it.
Now, I like sheep and I like sheep ranching, although my direct exposure to it is fairly low. So this may sound surprising, but I don't really buy off on the industries argument here.
The industry is really opposed to this change as they view it as economically devastating. I don't buy it.
What I do think is the case is that we've seen a real evolution in sheep ranching since World War Two. Up until the Second World War, and indeed for some time there after, we saw a lot of immigrant labor in sheep ranching to be sure, but we saw a lot of family labor too. Almost anyone who had sheep in that period, and well into the 1980s, can tell you about spending plenty of time on sheep trails and in sheep trailers. My wife, for example, can relate those stories. Ranches had hired herders if they had enough sheep, but family members also spent a lot of time doing the same thing. The herders themselves included a lot of Europeans, quite frankly, including Basque and Irish herders. I can well recall Basque herders from my youth and at one time I sort of naively assumed that all sheep herders were Basque.
An interesting thing about this is that it was sort of commonly assumed that the European herders were born into this line of work, but that was never true. The Basque in particular tended to have no experience in sheep tending until they got to the US. Rather, for cultural reasons it was easy for them to take the sheep herding jobs and for many years this was a step into sheep ranching. In later years it wasn't, as acquiring a ranch became too expensive, but it was a step into some other line of work. The same is true of the Irish tenders, who typically were working for somebody they were related to in the US.
Now, there are no more Basque and Irish sheepherders. Economic conditions have changed in Europe and with that the desire, probably, to move to a foreign country and herd sheep had gone. Most of the herders now are foreign, and they're mostly from South America. Some are from Mexico, but I'd guess that right now there are more Peruvian herders than Mexican ones (and it's worth noting that economic conditions in Mexico have so improved over the last 20 years that the same story with Irish and Basque herders is likely playing itself out with Mexican herders).
Anyhow, the story always is that the ranchers rely on these guest workers and implicitly, they have to be paid very low wages in order to make this work out. The extended argument is that Americans won't do this work.
Well, I doubt much of that is fully accurate.
For one thing, I've tended to notice in recent years that sheep ranchers leave a lot of sheep untended. They never would have done that in the past. As I see family members heavily involved in cattle ranching, I wonder what's going on with sheep ranching. I'm sure that most family members on a sheep ranch don't want to live out their existence in a trailer, but as plenty have and do on cattle trails, I'd bet that they would for a time on sheep ranches too.
And I'm skeptical that no Americans will take these jobs. Indeed, I've seen the phenomenon of young idealist college grads taking low paying agricultural jobs just to be part of it. And I've also noted that there are quite a few young, and even old, men who take ag jobs as it suits them, even with the wages in the basement. So, by paying really really low wages, the effect I think is to actually exclude Americans who would take the jobs if they could.
Of course, that would mean some changes to the industry to be sure, but part of that change might men more, but smaller, bands of sheep, on more family places. That might very well be how the economics of that would work out. And that would be okay.
The Big Speech: Aldo Leopold on farming.
Aldo Leopold
Movies In History: Battleground
This movie was filmed in 1949 and released in 1950, making it one of the immediate post World War Two films. It not only is a good one, it's one of the very best films about World War Two ever made.
The film follows a fictional squad in the 101st Airborne during the Battle of the Bulge. Character development is excellent. Minor details about the squad are highly accurate, which is perhaps because the film's director was a veteran of the battle (but not of the 101st). Very unusual for its time, the characters are in fact somewhat cynical and display some probably typical emotions for any unit, even the 101st, including some degree of cowardliness in one character, and war weariness in many.
Also unusual for a film of this era, material details are highly accurate. This is surprisingly uncommon for a film of the period, but this film gets them right. Uniforms and equipment are not only correct, they're correct for an airborne unit of this period.
One of the best World War Two films made, this film stands with later small unit films like Saving Private Ryan or Platoon. It's one of the few films of this era that doesn't suffer from the Saving Private Ryan effect, however, in that its material details are correct. Well worth seeing.
The film featured a cast, it might be noted, that was excellent, but not featuring any of the huge stars of the era. It made a star out of one of the characters, Denise Darcel, for her supporting role, but other actors in the film, like John Hodiak and Van Johnson were known, but not big names like John Wayne or Errol Flynn, for that era. In some ways, that actually makes the film better, as there are no big names that dominate the ensemble cast.
Postscript
Because this blog has a history focus, and because the purpose of even mentioning movies here is to analyze them from an historical point of view it occurred to me that I missed something in this review that's actually quite significant. Indeed it occured to me as I'm adding a selection of films here that are well known, but also all ran over the recent Memorial Day holiday. One of those films was Band of Brothers.
Now, I'll get around to Band of Brothers, but one thing that a person might note is that Band of Brothers is a story about a unit within the same division, the Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne. So it'd be easy to think that as both movies concern the 101st Airborne, both movies are about paratroopers. They aren't.
Battleground's fictional soldiers are part of the 327th Glider Infantry.
The airborne units of the US Army (and the British Army) during World War Two included parachute infantry and glider infantry. In the case of the glider infantry, their make up was considerably different, which is easily forgotten. Because almost all attention to airborne units has focused on paratroopers, and in fact it did at the time, it's easy to forget that glider infantry was a huge airborne element.
Paratroopers were all volunteers in that role. Glider infantrymen, however, were not. Gilder infantrymen were simply regular infantrymen that had been assigned to those units and then trained as glider infantry. Unlike paratroopers, therefore, the volunteer element was missing. Indeed, until the end of the war, the extra pay that paratroopers drew was not drawn by glider infantrymen. Their role was ever bit as dangerous, and indeed it might have been even more dangerous as glider landings in combat were notoriously dangerous and lethal. As Ambrose recounts in the book,. Band of Brothers, one paratrooper who rode with the glidermen in one operation was horrified by the experience.
An interesting thing, however, is that their effectiveness is revealing about some things. While paratroopers were regarded as elite as they were all volunteer, and indeed some joined the paratroopers in order to avoid being in units made up mostly of draftees, glider infantry proved to be ever bit as combat effective. So, while they were often conscripts and had no role in their assignment to airborne units, every positive thing you can say about paratroopers you can also say about glider infantry.
Anyhow, as this movie is about men in the 101st Airborne, it'd be easily to believe that it's a movie about elite all volunteer paratroopers. It isn't. It's a movie about regular soldiers assigned to the glider infantry, the only movie about them specifically of which I'm aware.
The film follows a fictional squad in the 101st Airborne during the Battle of the Bulge. Character development is excellent. Minor details about the squad are highly accurate, which is perhaps because the film's director was a veteran of the battle (but not of the 101st). Very unusual for its time, the characters are in fact somewhat cynical and display some probably typical emotions for any unit, even the 101st, including some degree of cowardliness in one character, and war weariness in many.
Also unusual for a film of this era, material details are highly accurate. This is surprisingly uncommon for a film of the period, but this film gets them right. Uniforms and equipment are not only correct, they're correct for an airborne unit of this period.
One of the best World War Two films made, this film stands with later small unit films like Saving Private Ryan or Platoon. It's one of the few films of this era that doesn't suffer from the Saving Private Ryan effect, however, in that its material details are correct. Well worth seeing.
The film featured a cast, it might be noted, that was excellent, but not featuring any of the huge stars of the era. It made a star out of one of the characters, Denise Darcel, for her supporting role, but other actors in the film, like John Hodiak and Van Johnson were known, but not big names like John Wayne or Errol Flynn, for that era. In some ways, that actually makes the film better, as there are no big names that dominate the ensemble cast.
Postscript
Because this blog has a history focus, and because the purpose of even mentioning movies here is to analyze them from an historical point of view it occurred to me that I missed something in this review that's actually quite significant. Indeed it occured to me as I'm adding a selection of films here that are well known, but also all ran over the recent Memorial Day holiday. One of those films was Band of Brothers.
Now, I'll get around to Band of Brothers, but one thing that a person might note is that Band of Brothers is a story about a unit within the same division, the Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne. So it'd be easy to think that as both movies concern the 101st Airborne, both movies are about paratroopers. They aren't.
Battleground's fictional soldiers are part of the 327th Glider Infantry.
The airborne units of the US Army (and the British Army) during World War Two included parachute infantry and glider infantry. In the case of the glider infantry, their make up was considerably different, which is easily forgotten. Because almost all attention to airborne units has focused on paratroopers, and in fact it did at the time, it's easy to forget that glider infantry was a huge airborne element.
Paratroopers were all volunteers in that role. Glider infantrymen, however, were not. Gilder infantrymen were simply regular infantrymen that had been assigned to those units and then trained as glider infantry. Unlike paratroopers, therefore, the volunteer element was missing. Indeed, until the end of the war, the extra pay that paratroopers drew was not drawn by glider infantrymen. Their role was ever bit as dangerous, and indeed it might have been even more dangerous as glider landings in combat were notoriously dangerous and lethal. As Ambrose recounts in the book,. Band of Brothers, one paratrooper who rode with the glidermen in one operation was horrified by the experience.
An interesting thing, however, is that their effectiveness is revealing about some things. While paratroopers were regarded as elite as they were all volunteer, and indeed some joined the paratroopers in order to avoid being in units made up mostly of draftees, glider infantry proved to be ever bit as combat effective. So, while they were often conscripts and had no role in their assignment to airborne units, every positive thing you can say about paratroopers you can also say about glider infantry.
Anyhow, as this movie is about men in the 101st Airborne, it'd be easily to believe that it's a movie about elite all volunteer paratroopers. It isn't. It's a movie about regular soldiers assigned to the glider infantry, the only movie about them specifically of which I'm aware.
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