Thursday Door
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References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Buttermilk Falls Source
Tom Knight, “has been delighting children and their grown-ups with his original, interactive, musical puppet show since 1988,” in 2018 Pam, myself and the grandchildren were lucky enough to catch his act at Cornell University Johnson Museum. His CD, “Purple Pumpkin Pie” is in the car and, pre-Covid, I’d play it in the car while riding with the grandchildren.
“Jennings Pond,” a song on that CD, mentions a local town, Danby. Until last week I did not think twice about it. Driving into Ithaca, heading north on Route 13, there’s a compelling view down a valley. I’ve taken exploratory drives down there on the West Danby-Spencer road, seeing what there is to see. A week ago last Sunday, turning left at West Danby, up the hill forming the east valley wall, on Station Road, then Bald Hill Road, passing by the Finger Lakes Trail through Danby State Forest, on the right I spied a compelling open area, a pond, and this sign….
I proceeded onto a footbridge over the pond outlet, the source for Buttermilk Creek,…….
…and continued to a footpath, southeast and away from the pond. Toward the Finger Lakes Trail? I left this adventure for another day.
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Dive In
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References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
worn, defiled
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References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Ghosts from when time stood still
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References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Tower and Architectural Details
United States of America has its own closed mining towns. Read about Empire, Nevada in Chapter Three of Jessica Bruder’s 2017, “Nomadland.” Empire thrived on gypsum mining until economic changes forced it to close. December 2, 2010 the entire town was informed June 20, 2011 was the deadline for all to leave the company provided housing. 100% of housing was owned by United States Gypsum. In Humberstone, as in Empire, Nevada, housing stands empty. Here, wo stopped clocks of the wooden tower overlooking the main Humberstone square emblemize the situation.
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An hexagonal bandstand, area lighting on the electric poles.
Ramada with table and benches.
View from the main square.
Water, the source of life pumped from where? We saw here and there hoses for watering plants. I did some research and there are three methods for supplying water (1) tankers (2) pipe hundreds of miles long and (3) harvesting fog. Yes, fog. It never, never rains but some locations are swept by fog. There plants there harvest the fog on branches and people are now doing the same. Follow the above link to learn more.
A few details from the main square.
References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
In a bubble
Pam and I, not fluent in the Spanish language, depended upon our guides and bus drivers for negotiating our on land exploration of South American. Here is our guide for this trip, providing insights as we stand in the main square of the village.
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A guide for another Oceania group.
Children accompanied…
the men and women who kept open air sales kiosks providing….
…refreshments and souvenirs. I purchased a handmade collection of minerals from the region.
We never learned why these people were dressed in period costumes. Most certainly descendants of the people who worked here.
References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Prison Break
Mullioned windows along the nave provide brilliant illumination, into the side aisles where we see, in the following photograph, a chapel devoted to a Marian Apparition.
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The framed image is the appearance of the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus Christ, appearing to six native children. The event, called a Marian Apparition, does not correspond to any such event I am aware of. Nor did one come up in my researches. The most famous appearance of Mary in the Americas if the Virgin of Guadalupe who appeared to a man, a recent convert to Catholicism from the Aztec religion, Saint Juan Diego, and is Uncle, Juan Bernardino, in the year 1531, Mexico. I provided a list of Marian Apparations under references.
The left aisle hosts another Marian chapel, a Madonna.
The most accessible Marian Devotion is the rosary, here in the form of crystal beads.
Instead of an arch, the central aisle is a flat roof with some additional support from wood beams. We will explore the side aisles in later posts.
References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Prison Break
Iglesia, from the Ancient Greek ἐκκλησία (ekklēsía, “assembly”) by way of Latin, is the Spanish language word for church, announced on this charming hand lettered sign. This church served the needs of up to the 5,000 souls of Humberstone.
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Unlike other places, this church was build for the mine owners to serve the needs of workers, to make it unnecessary to leave the settlement to attend services.
Made from the simplest materials, this cross of the church facade is three pieces of 2 x 6 lumber.
Here is our tour guide, a resident of Iquique in front of the alter, with an elaborate crucifix
Instead of an arch, the central aisle is a flat roof with some additional support from wood beams. We will explore the side aisles in later posts.
References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
No Roads Crossed
What happens when a railroad engine runs out of track?
It stands still. In the case of the following photograph, a urban trolley car is moved to the open air museum of Humberstone. The stenciled words, “F.C. de Iquiqud – P. Hundido” translate to Iquique Railroad, Hundido Park. “Hundido” means “sunken” in the Spanish language. There is no such park in Iquique today. Mexico City has a Parque Hundido, an elaborate garden park.
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Almost certainly a steam locomotive for transporting saltpeter.
References
Websites
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works World Heritage page
Copyright 2020 Michael Stephen Wills All Rights Reserved
Michael Stephen Wills Photography 