78 replies to this topic

[centurion]

There are some British and French tanks that seem to have been favourites to have one's photo taken with. This seems to have been one!

[apwright]

Reverse of the tank postcard, post #23:

Meine Lieben,
Sende Euch von ?Metz,
woselbst ich seit gestern
zum Einkauf weile,
die besten Grüße
Euer Emanuel

My Dears,
Sending you my fondest regards from ?Metz, where I have been staying since yesterday for shopping. Your Emanuel

#############
Reverse of Light Ammunition Column men at rest, post #24:

Meine Lieben!
Beifolgend sende Euch
ein Bild vom 8ten Wagen
+ bin ich auch darauf. Schön ist
es nicht, aber mieß.
Später mehr. Gruß + Kuß
Emanuel
der der neben mir steht mit
der Schirmmütze ist unser Zugführer

My Dears,
I'm sending you a photo of the 8th waggon, & I am on it too. It's not nice [i.e. not a nice photo] - it's rotten. More later. Love & kisses, Emanuel.
The man standing beside me with the peaked cap is our section commander.

[egbert]

ph0ebus, on 08 June 2012 - 10:02 PM, said:

Egbert, Centurion, do we know where this photo was taken?  What specific tank this is?  Approximately when the photo was taken?  It looks like the auto-strippers got to the tank before your photographer did, egbert!

-Daniel

I have several pictures from same tank and they are taken 1916, most likely Somme-Py

[anthony ozzy]

Daniel,
brilliant photos - thanks for sharing them.

Ant

[munster]

Thanks Daniel, it is nice to see photos that are not the everyday items we see.You are right about the auto strippers getting to work the guns are missing on most of the tank pics.john

[egbert]

ph0ebus, on 08 June 2012 - 12:12 PM, said:

Photograph of a photographer?



The caption:



I will have to post the others later...time to change trains and get to work!

I hope you enjoy these and for the ones that are hard to read, any pointers on what they say would be greatly appreciated.

The rest I will post later, as soon as I am able.

-Daniel

My French friend, who explores the Vosges extensively, sent me an interesting link from his buddy who is specialized on Blinkerstation archeology. Even if you do not understand the language it is worth watching the short video sequence here:
http://www.tlva.fr/v...hp?cat=2&id=389

[ph0ebus]

The tank card, unless my eyes deceive me, though the Absender block is smudged, appears to have my grandfather's rank starting with a G, which, given he was promoted to Gefreiter on May 20, 1917, would suggest it was sent after that date.  Would you agree?

Can anyone decode the postmark on the other feldpost postcard?

-Daniel

[GarryWeston]

great pics

[centurion]

ph0ebus, on 09 June 2012 - 03:49 PM, said:

The tank card, unless my eyes deceive me, though the Absender block is smudged, appears to have my grandfather's rank starting with a G, which, given he was promoted to Gefreiter on May 20, 1917, would suggest it was sent after that date.  Would you agree?

Given that the Schneider didn't see action until mid April 1917 and, looking at the state of the tank, the photo was taken some time after that [as well as the time necessary to produce post cards] it's difficult to see how it could be earlier.

[ph0ebus]

apwright, on 09 June 2012 - 05:27 AM, said:

Reverse of the tank postcard, post #23:

Meine Lieben,
Sende Euch von ?Metz,
woselbst ich seit gestern
zum Einkauf weile,
die besten Grüße
Euer Emanuel

My Dears,
Sending you my fondest regards from ?Metz, where I have been staying since yesterday for shopping. Your Emanuel

#############
Reverse of Light Ammunition Column men at rest, post #24:

Meine Lieben!
Beifolgend sende Euch
ein Bild vom 8ten Wagen
+ bin ich auch darauf. Schön ist
es nicht, aber mieß.
Später mehr. Gruß + Kuß
Emanuel
der der neben mir steht mit
der Schirmmütze ist unser Zugführer

My Dears,
I'm sending you a photo of the 8th waggon, & I am on it too. It's not nice [i.e. not a nice photo] - it's rotten. More later. Love & kisses, Emanuel.
The man standing beside me with the peaked cap is our section commander.

Adrian,

Thanks you again!  I can only hope to one day be able to return  your kind assistance!

I wonder if in consulting the unit history if I can figure out the commander's name?

Daniel

[ph0ebus]

GarryWeston, on 09 June 2012 - 05:12 PM, said:

great pics

Thanks Garry!  I feel quite fortunate to have them.  I'm glad Emanuel and my dad kept them, and I look forward to sharing them with my own son once he's old enough.

Daniel

[apwright]

ph0ebus, on 09 June 2012 - 03:49 PM, said:

Can anyone decode the postmark on the other feldpost postcard?

K[aiserlich] D[eutsche] Feldpostexped[ition] = Imperial German Field Post Office
d[er] 14. Infanterie-Div[ision] = of 14th Infantry Division
28.8.16 10-11 V[ormittag] = franked on 28 Aug 1916, between 10 and 11am

S[oldaten]B[rief] = Soldiers' Mail
1. Kol[onne] II./43. = 1st Column of IInd Battery of 43rd Field Artillery Regiment

Adrian

[centurion]

ph0ebus, on 08 June 2012 - 10:02 PM, said:

So, finally, the tank.



Tanks for your patience!

It appears to be an identical picture to the one that appears in the link provided to flickr, though of course, my photo is in much worse shape.

The reverse:



Egbert, Centurion, do we know where this photo was taken?  What specific tank this is?  Approximately when the photo was taken?  It looks like the auto-strippers got to the tank before your photographer did, egbert!

-Daniel

Probably one of the French Schneiders knocked out on either April 16th 1917 (Chemin des Dames) or May 5th 1917 (Laffaux Mill)

[centurion]

ph0ebus, on 08 June 2012 - 12:12 PM, said:

Photograph of a photographer?



The caption:



I will have to post the others later...time to change trains and get to work!

I hope you enjoy these and for the ones that are hard to read, any pointers on what they say would be greatly appreciated.

The rest I will post later, as soon as I am able.

-Daniel

Interesting that the man with the Iron Cross ribbon also appears to have the "1,000 mile stare" (the others look quite cheerful). The guy to the left of the photo (as you look at it) seems a giant compared to the others.

[ph0ebus]

centurion, on 09 June 2012 - 06:02 PM, said:

Interesting that the man with the Iron Cross ribbon also appears to have the "1,000 mile stare" (the others look quite cheerful). The guy to the left of the photo (as you look at it) seems a giant compared to the others.

Indeed...quite a photo!  Am I correct in guessing what the fellow has in the center is in fact signalling equipment and not a camera?

Daniel

[munster]

ph0ebus, on 09 June 2012 - 08:30 PM, said:

Indeed...quite a photo!  Am I correct in guessing what the fellow has in the center is in fact signalling equipment and not a camera?

Daniel

You are correct in that Daniel i watched Egberts friends film about the signal lamp it appears to be the same as your picture.john

[ph0ebus]

egbert, on 09 June 2012 - 02:09 PM, said:

My French friend, who explores the Vosges extensively, sent me an interesting link from his buddy who is specialized on Blinkerstation archeology. Even if you do not understand the language it is worth watching the short video sequence here:
http://www.tlva.fr/v...hp?cat=2&id=389

Great video...very interesting and certainly put my French to the test!

-Daniel

[ph0ebus]

I am somewhat amazed that not only is this thread the only thread to mention a Blinkstation before on the GWF (unless they are known by some other name), Google came up with almost nothing about them!  Until it came up here, I had never even heard of them before, and find the whole thing fascinating, based on what little info I have been able to glean so far.  Are photos like this common?

[ph0ebus]

apwright, on 08 June 2012 - 12:41 PM, said:

Great stuff, Daniel!

Post #9
Zum toten Mann
Gänserücken
Arrow pointing "To the Dead Man", and "Gooseback" marking the ridgeline . Hill (Mort Homme) and ridge (Côte de l'Oie) features NW of Verdun. Village is Forges-sur-Meuse.

Adrian

Hi Adrian, all...

In re-examining the photo taken near The Dead Man, I have in Emanuel's paperwork that on March 3, 1917, Emanuel and his unit were operating in Forges-sur-Meuse near Verdun.  I strongly suspect that this was when this photo may have been taken.  It was the same date that he took a photo of an exploded French gun and sent it to his sister.

-Daniel

[centurion]

ph0ebus, on 10 June 2012 - 12:52 AM, said:

I am somewhat amazed that not only is this thread the only thread to mention a Blinkstation before on the GWF (unless they are known by some other name), Google came up with almost nothing about them!  Until it came up here, I had never even heard of them before, and find the whole thing fascinating, based on what little info I have been able to glean so far.  Are photos like this common?

I think the correct name was Sonnenfotografiergerät but Heliograph (just as in English) was more common. Suspect Blinkstation was a form of slang description.

[egbert]

Daniel, I know a German national with profound German language knowledges. He assures you that it is Blinkstation or Blinkerstation, no slang, nothing else! Scientifically it is also known as Heliograph, but Blinkstation it is!
There was a thread here on GWF about a Blinkerstation in Adinfer Wood, named "Hollunder Lichtspielhaus"

[egbert]

Forges positions with Gänserücken and Toter Mann August 1917

[ph0ebus]

egbert, on 10 June 2012 - 04:06 PM, said:

Daniel, I know a German national with profound German language knowledges. He assures you that it is Blinkstation or Blinkerstation, no slang, nothing else! Scientifically it is also known as Heliograph, but Blinkstation it is!
There was a thread here on GWF about a Blinkerstation in Adinfer Wood, named "Hollunder Lichtspielhaus"

Thanks, Egbert!  I want to try and learn all I can about this.  I also want to try and do a high resolution scan of the photo to see if I can make out what is on the shoulderboard of the fellow in the front.

Daniel

[ph0ebus]

egbert, on 10 June 2012 - 04:14 PM, said:

Forges positions with Gänserücken and Toter Mann August 1917

This is quite helpful...thank you!

Daniel

[healdav]

The picture of the aircraft crash at Thiaucourt may be solveable.

In the German cemetery at Thiaucourt there are some French graves. I think at least one of them is of a pilot shot down in 1917. I'm speaking from memory, so will have to check when I'm there next (goodness knows when).

If anyone goes there, to find the graves, go through the entrance and bear left. The ground slopes down and there are a lot of sandstone German crosses. One of them is the pilot (in a line leading down the slope, and facing a an area which is an 1870 cemetery. The strange big concrete block over a mass grave right down at the bottom of the cemetery is a World War Two memorial to Germans who died in a POW camp in the next field.

Do you mind if a take a copy of that photo? It will all ad to something to say when I'm there.

In fact, I think there is another photo of that crash lurking on the internet somewhere, but there may have been several.