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DOCUMERICA: Images of America in Crisis in the 1970s
NOV 16, 2011
As the 1960s came to an end, the rapid development of the American postwar decades had begun to take a noticeable toll on the environment, and the public began calling for action.
In November 1971, the newly created Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a massive photo documentary project, called DOCUMERICA, to record these changes. More than 100 photographers were hired not only to document specific environmental issues, but to capture images of everyday life, showing how we interacted with the environment and capturing the way parts of America looked at that moment in history.
By 1974, more than 80,000 photographs had been produced. The National Archives has made 15,000 of these images available, and I've spent much of the past week combing through those to bring you these 46 glimpses of America in the early 1970s, with an eye toward our then-ailing environment.[46 photos]
Use j/k keys or ←/→ to navigate Choose: 1024px 1280px
Water cooling towers of the John Amos Power Plant loom over a home located across the Kanawha River, near Poca, West Virginia, in August of 1973. (Harry Schaefer/NARA)
3
Clark Avenue and Clark Avenue bridge, looking east from West 13th Street, obscured by industrial smoke, in Cleveland, Ohio, in July of 1973. (Frank J. Aleksandrowicz/NARA) #
7
Construction on Lower Manhattan's West Side, just north of the World Trade Center, May 1973. (Wil Blanche/NARA) #
8
Off-shore oil wells in Galveston Bay, off the Texas shore, in June of 1972. (Blair Pittman/NARA) #
14
Smoke and gas from the burning of discarded automobile batteries pours into the sky near Houston, Texas, in July of 1972.(Marc St. Gil/NARA) #
22
A "closed" sign appears in front of this Portland, Oregon, gas station in June 1973, due to a gasoline shortage. (David Falconer/NARA) #
33
Manhattan Bridge tower in Brooklyn, New York City, framed through nearby buildings, in June of 1974. (Danny Lyon/NARA) #
34
An illegal dumping area, seen just off the New Jersey Turnpike, facing Manhattan across the Hudson River, in March of 1973. To the south is the landfill area of the proposed Liberty State Park -- which was built and opened in 1976. (Gary Miller/NARA) #
38
A Crown Zellerbach pulp mill dumps solid waste into a pond it formerly used for log storage in June of 1973. (Doug Wilson/NARA) #
45
One of the daughters of Jerry Rainey, a miner who was out on strike against the Brookside Mining Company in Brookside, Kentucky, for several months during 1974. She stands on the back porch of the house Rainey rents from the company. Notice the outhouses in the background. The family was threatened by eviction during the lengthy and sometimes violent strike despite a st
Source:
http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/11/documerica-images-of-america-in-crisis-in-the-1970s/100190/
DOCUMERICA: Images of America in Crisis in the 1970s
NOV 16, 2011
As the 1960s came to an end, the rapid development of the American postwar decades had begun to take a noticeable toll on the environment, and the public began calling for action.
In November 1971, the newly created Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a massive photo documentary project, called DOCUMERICA, to record these changes. More than 100 photographers were hired not only to document specific environmental issues, but to capture images of everyday life, showing how we interacted with the environment and capturing the way parts of America looked at that moment in history.
By 1974, more than 80,000 photographs had been produced. The National Archives has made 15,000 of these images available, and I've spent much of the past week combing through those to bring you these 46 glimpses of America in the early 1970s, with an eye toward our then-ailing environment.[46 photos]
Use j/k keys or ←/→ to navigate Choose: 1024px 1280px
Water cooling towers of the John Amos Power Plant loom over a home located across the Kanawha River, near Poca, West Virginia, in August of 1973. (Harry Schaefer/NARA)
3
Clark Avenue and Clark Avenue bridge, looking east from West 13th Street, obscured by industrial smoke, in Cleveland, Ohio, in July of 1973. (Frank J. Aleksandrowicz/NARA) #
7
Construction on Lower Manhattan's West Side, just north of the World Trade Center, May 1973. (Wil Blanche/NARA) #
8
Off-shore oil wells in Galveston Bay, off the Texas shore, in June of 1972. (Blair Pittman/NARA) #
14
Smoke and gas from the burning of discarded automobile batteries pours into the sky near Houston, Texas, in July of 1972.(Marc St. Gil/NARA) #
22
A "closed" sign appears in front of this Portland, Oregon, gas station in June 1973, due to a gasoline shortage. (David Falconer/NARA) #
33
Manhattan Bridge tower in Brooklyn, New York City, framed through nearby buildings, in June of 1974. (Danny Lyon/NARA) #
34
An illegal dumping area, seen just off the New Jersey Turnpike, facing Manhattan across the Hudson River, in March of 1973. To the south is the landfill area of the proposed Liberty State Park -- which was built and opened in 1976. (Gary Miller/NARA) #
38
A Crown Zellerbach pulp mill dumps solid waste into a pond it formerly used for log storage in June of 1973. (Doug Wilson/NARA) #
45
One of the daughters of Jerry Rainey, a miner who was out on strike against the Brookside Mining Company in Brookside, Kentucky, for several months during 1974. She stands on the back porch of the house Rainey rents from the company. Notice the outhouses in the background. The family was threatened by eviction during the lengthy and sometimes violent strike despite a st
Source:
http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/11/documerica-images-of-america-in-crisis-in-the-1970s/100190/
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