Fountains: Great River Project Cascading Fountains - Westfield, MA

Interesting Places I've Photographed

Great River Project Cascading Fountains

Westfield, MA

Topic: Fountains

GPS: N42° 07.761; W072° 44.733

Quick Description: 

A cascade of fountains is located between the bridges that cross the Westfield River in Westfield, MA.

Long Description:

The construction of a new bridge, parallel to the older bridge, across the Westfield River along Route 10/202 was accompanied with a redevelopment of the area. On the slope between the bridges on the north side of the river a series of cascading fountains were constructed. They serve as the centerpiece of a new park.

The fountain complex has five elements arranged in a linear array. The water from circular fountain at the top of the slope flows down a series of steps. On occasion a stream of water shoots up and back from the cascade. The water reaches a large circular basin the bottom of which is lined with colorful river stones. The overflow from the basin flows down another series of steps, identical to the one above and finally into a larger circular fountain at the bottom.

The whole complex has a dramatic setting on the slope, between the bridges, enhanced by Westfield River cascading over as series of bare rocks in the background.

National Parks: Thomas Jefferson Memorial - Washington, DC

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Thomas Jefferson Memorial

Washington, DC

Topic: National Parks

GPS: N38° 52.922; W077° 02.194

Quick Description: 

The Thomas Jefferson Memorial is regarded by many as Washington's most beautiful monument. Its beauty is enhanced when the cherry blossoms are in bloom.

Long Description:

The Thomas Jefferson Memorial is a neoclassical building in the style of the Pantheon in Rome and was influenced by Jefferson's Rotunda at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. It was designed by John Russell Pope. Construction began in 1939 and completed in 1943. The bronze statue of Jefferson in the center of the rotunda was added in 1947.

In 1934, at President Franklin Roosevelt's behest, Congress appropriated $3 million for a memorial to Jefferson. Pope's design was for a 129 foot high pantheon-like structure, sitting on a square platform, and flanked by two smaller, rectangular, colonnaded buildings. The Jefferson Memorial was dedicated by President Roosevelt on April 13, 1943, the 200th anniversary of Jefferson's birthday.

Over 2 million people a year visit the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. It is located on the southeast side of Tidal Basin and is open 24 hours a day. Admission is free.

Revolutionary War: Nathan Hale Statue - New Haven, CT

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Nathan Hale Statue

New Haven, CT

Topic: Revolutionary War

Nathan Hale

GPS: N41° 18.495; W072° 55.717

Quick Description: 

A statue of Nathan Hale is located outside Connecticut Hall on the campus of Yale University in New Haven, CT.

Long Description:

Nathan Hale was born in Coventry, Connecticut on June 6, 1755. He attended Yale University and graduated in 1773. In 1775, he joined a Connecticut militia as a first lieutenant. After the battle of Long Island in, August 1776, Washington retreated to Manhattan. He desperately needed information on British troop movements. On September 8, 1776, Captain Nathan Hale volunteered to go behind enemy lines to obtain the information and report back to General Washington.

He was secretly ferried into Long Island. Subsequently, lower Manhattan was captured by the British and Washington fled to Harlem Heights. Hale was captured in Flushing Bay, Queens and brought to Manhattan where, on September 22, 1776, twenty-one year old Nathan Hale was hanged as a spy. In 1985, he was officially designated the state hero of Connecticut.

A 6.5' high bronze sculpture of Nathan Hale stands in front of Connecticut Hall, the dormitory he lived in while attending Yale University. The statue rests on a 3' high by 2.25' square granite base. He is shown in the moments before he was hanged as a spy in 1776. He is wearing a long coat, vest, open color shirt, knee-length pants and long stockings. He is looking straight ahead with his feet tied together and his hands tied behind his back.

The sculpture was created by Bela Lyon Pratt and cast at the Roman Bronze Works in 1913. It was a gift to Yale from its graduates and friends.

The front of the base is inscribed:

NATHAN HALE
1755-1776
CLASS OF 1773 The back of the base is inscribed:

A GIFT TO YALE COLLEGE
BY GRADUATES AND FRIENDS
ANNO DOMINI MCMXIV
The edge of bronze base is inscribed with the famous quote:

I ONLY REGRET THAT I HAVE BUT ONE LIFE TO LOSE FOR MY COUNTRY

National Register of Historic Places: Connecticut Hall - Yale University

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Connecticut Hall

Yale University

New Haven, CT
Topic: National Register of Historic Places

N 41° 18.479 W 072° 55.729

Quick Description: 

Connecticut Hall is located on the Old Campus of Yale University in New Haven, CT.

Long Description:

The symmetrical Georgian style Connecticut Hall was built from 1752 - 1753 to serve as a dormitory; it is the oldest surviving building on the Yale campus. All the other 18th century structures of the Old Brick Row were razed after Civil War.

Connecticut Hall was built under the direction of the President of Yale University, Thomas Clap. The Georgian design, by Francis Letort and Thomas Bills, was inspired by Massachusetts Hall on the campus of Harvard University. The original building is 100' long by 40' wide, and three storeys high. It was later enlarged to its present day four storeys.

The building was slated for demolition early in the 20th century but was saved by the efforts of the Alumni in 1905. Many famous persons lived in Connecticut Hall while attending Yale University. The patriot Nathan Hale is perhaps the most famous. The inventor Eli Whitney, artist John Trumbull, and dictionary publisher Noah Webster also lived there.

Street address: Yale University 1017 Chapel Street New Haven, CT United States 06510 County / Borough / Parish: New Haven Year listed: 1966 Historic significance: Education, Architecture Period of significance: 1750-1799 Historic function: Education Current function: Education Privately owned?: yes

Literary Sites: Emily Dickinson Homestead - Amherst, MA

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Emily Dickinson Homestead

Amherst, MA

Topic: Literary Sites

N 42° 22.555 W 072° 30.873

Quick Description: 

The house where Emily Dickinson was born, lived all her life, wrote her poems, and died is located at 280 Main Street in Amherst, MA

Long Description:

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (1830-1886) lived in this house in Amherst all her life. She was born into a prominent Massachusetts family. Her father was a lawyer and her grandfather was one of the founders of Amherst Academy and Amherst College. Emily attended Amherst Academy and entered nearby Mount Holyoke College Female Seminary for one year. In her thirties she became very reclusive and spent most her her time in her bedroom writing poetry. Nonetheless, she was well informed by virtue of the family subscriptions to literary journals and her own correspondence.

Emily Dickinson began writing poetry in her early twenties and and was very prolific by the time she was thirty. She eventually wrote 1800 poems. Her poems were stories in meter and rhyme drawn from everyday life. They were noted for their insight into human nature, concise style, brilliant imagery, and use of varied meter and irregular rhymes. The first book of her poetry was published in 1890, four years after her death. Publication was through the efforts of her sister Lavinia and editors Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd. Emily Dickinson is among the most read, admired, and loved poets in the world of literature.

In 1963, the Home of Emily Dickinson was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Ships: U.S.S. Constitution - Charlestown, MA

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U.S.S. Constitution

Oldest Commissioned Warship Afloat

Charlestown, MA
Topic: Ships

GPS: N42° 22.350; W071° 03.387

Quick Description: 

The Frigate U.S.S. Constitution is the world's oldest commissioned warship afloat. It is docked at the Charlestown (Boston) Navy Yard in Charlestown, MA

Long Description:

The Frigate U.S.S. Constitution, the world's oldest commissioned warship still afloat. In 1954, Congress passed and President Eisenhower signed a law to authorizing the Secretary of the Navy to repair, equip, and restore the U.S.S. Constitution to her original appearance and to maintain the ship in Boston, MA.

The U.S.S Constitution is a wooden-hulled, three-masted frigate designed by Joshua Humphreys. It was launched in 1797 and it first saw action against the Barbary pirates during the First Barbary War. She gained her famous reputation during the War of 1812 by capturing numerous merchant ships and defeated five British warships: HMS Guerriere, Java, Pictou, Cyane and Levant. It was after she defeated the Guerriere that she was given the nickname of "Old Ironsides" and has won the favor of the American people ever since.

The ship is constructed of white pine, long-leaf pine, white oak, and southern live oak, a very dense wood. The ship's hull is 21 inches thick at a time when 18 inches was most common. She is 204 feet long and a 43 feet wide. Its copper bolts were forged by Paul Revere.

The ship's mission is to promote the United States Navy and America’s naval heritage through educational outreach, public access and historic demonstrations, in port and at sea. In view of this mission, the Constitution is open for free guided tours throughout the year. The tours are conducted by U.S. Navy sailors assigned to the USS Constitution.

Philatelic Photographs: Tower Bridge over the Thames River - London, UK

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Tower Bridge over the Thames River

London, United Kingdom

Topic: Philatelic Photographs

GPS: N51° 30.436; W000° 04.628

Quick Description: 

London's iconic bridge over the Thames River.

Long Description:

The Tower Bridge gets its name from its proximity to the Tower of London. The embankment walkway below the Tower of London offers a fine view of the bridge and the Thames River.

Tower Bridge has an unusual design, its a combination of a central drawbridge (bascule) and two side suspension bridges. The two towers are connected by two horizontal walkways 143 feet above the river. Construction started in 1886. The bridge was opened on June 30, 1894. Five different contractors were required for various aspects of the bridge. The resident engineer was E. W. Crutwell. The Victorian Gothic style façade gives the bridge its unique appearance and places it in harmony with the architecture of the Tower of London.

The bridge is 800 feet (244 m) in long, the towers are 213 feet (65 m) high and 200 feet apart. Each of the counterbalanced bascules weighs over 1,000 tons. The two side-spans are suspension bridges, each 270 feet (82 m) long.

The stamp is part of a five stamp set issued by Great Britain (U.K.) in 2002 depicting bridges over the Thames River.