david_oconnor4

Rob:

This may get to you far too late but there is a mansion (castle really) open to the public called Casa Loma. Former home of railroad (?) baron. High on a hill with beautiful views of the city and once you go inside it like passing through a time warp back to the early 1900's

Great city. Enjoy it. (Hope Delta is good. I always use Delta in Toronto or Montreal)

I did know one man who wore a nazi belt buckle. Insignia was small and not too noticable. A older cop in Cambridge, MA. He is now deceased. He wore it for years and I never knew why. One day a city councilor spotted it in City Hall and challenged him "Why are you wearing a Nazi Buckle, do you admire them" His honest (somewhat salty response was: "No, I hate the bastards. This came from a guy who had killed two guys in my squad. After I killed the son of a bitch I took it as a way to remember my buddies" Sounds OK to me!

I do wish the on-line places would not list fakes with the real Leica's. When looking for accessories for my genuine (non-Nazi!!) Leica II I have to wade through a lot of junk

E. Phillip Levine on Drydock Ave in the South Boston Industrial Park is really good photo shop. Check theri website.

Harvard University has many beautiful old buildings. People in Harvard Sq are nicer that the self absorbed folks at MIT (Sorry Phil<grin>) . From Harvard Square walk down Brattle Street. Many old beautiful homes from before the revolution. Longfellows house is national park. You will walk past a new vacant lot on your right. The former home of the late Dr Edwin Land (Poloroid) burned down a few weeks ago.

On left is Elmwood Ave. Last house on right is home of Harvard President, Former home of Elbridge Gerry, Mass Governor, then Vice President of US. Gerry's redistricting of districts in Mass was origin of "Gerrymander" Same home was also home of Lt. Gov. Sir Thomas Oliver. In 1774 a mob assembled outside his home and threw rocks until he reesigned and fled to Quebec,

Another nice place to visit is the Adams house in Quincy, just south of Boston. Home of 2 presidents.

MIT should have good exhibit of high speed phoyo's by Doc Edgerton. Dead now but really nice man. He lived in same apt building when I was in high school and college. Several times chatting in elevator or lobby he gave me photo's. I think they went out when my mom died. Wish I still had them.

by the way, Cambridge website is www.cambridgema.gov they have historical info and maps to download

My dad was an avid photographer. In 1937 he started taking Kodachrome photos and shortly thereafter, having bad luck with color with his Argus C2. He moved to a Leica II (black) with a Hektor f2.5 5cm lens. (I still have camera and it works well). He took a lot of pictures of family, flowers and shrubs and travel pictures in US. All the kodachrome slides still have great color but my Ektachrome slides from the late 50's early 60's are badly faded. I still have my dad's pictures of the 1939 worlds fair. One picture shows the trylon and perisphere on Halloween night with the perisphere lit up like a Jack o lantern.

During the war Kodachrome became virtually unobtainable as all was going to the war for intel and aerial photo's. Strangely, my dad was drafted in 1943 at age 42. Too old to be sent overseas, and being a photographer he was assigned to Headquarters 1st Service Command in Boston and commuted to war via trolley car from his mother's home in the Dorchester section of Boston. He had 3 main duties: ID photos, public relations photos and shipping all the 35mm Kodachrome to the European theatre. The Kodachrome was packed in round Quaker Oats boxes. He would go to the mess hall in the morning and take the empty Quaker Oats boxes and some full ones and send the film off to London packed in oats. Dad being dad, none of the Army film went home to his leica.

By good fortune HQ 1st Service was in a building just across the bridge (now the BU Bridge) from my mothers parents home in Cambridge and was able to court my mom as soon as he went off duty.

Sorry to ramble but thought to add some second hand memories of early days of color