Mortgage Meltdown

News from the financial markets has been grim recently. This photo, taken in Jan. 1939, recalls the Great Depression. The caption supplied by photographer Arthur Rothstein is of particular interest:

"A shanty built of refuse near the Sunnyside slack pile, Herrin, Illinois. Many residences in southern Illinois coal towns were built with money borrowed from building and loan associations. During the depression building and loan associations almost all went into receivership. Their mortgages were sold for whatever they would bring, and the purchasers demolished houses by the hundreds in order to salvage the scrap lumber.

"The result is serious overcrowding and high rents in all the coal towns. A number of people can find no houses to rent, and are living in tents and shanties on the fringes of the town."

That this website is currently auctioning foreclosed American homes with starting bids as low as $1,000 is a chilling echo of those times.

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[American Memory link]

to locate this image, use search terms: shanty, mortgage

Treasure Trove

Oh, my. Having recently learned that this awesome collection is available online, I'm smitten.

At the moment, its interface is neither pretty nor user-friendly. And, on any given day, one is likely to be advised that a previously bookmarked image is temporarily unavailable from the server.

But poke around a little and you'll discover amazing things. Poignant shots of ordinary people going about their lives. Breathtaking scenery. Vintage cars. Retro fashions.

At a time in which America was experiencing heartache and turmoil, in which its resources were strained and its cares many, visionary individuals in the US government nevertheless dispatched photographers far and wide. The American Memory collection is the result.

It is a gift. It is a time-capsule of stupendous depth and breadth. And, thanks to the power of the Internet, it is now available to all of us.

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[American Memory link]