October 21, 1797–The 44-gun 204 foot frigate, USS Constitution, one of the six original Frigates of the US Navy and the oldest commissioned warship still afloat in the world, was launched in Boston’s harbor. It was never defeated in 42 battles. In 1997, 216 crew members set sail again to celebrate her 200th birthday. Although her construction is almost halted by a 1796 peace treaty with Algiers, the CONSTITUTION is launched (in the third attempt to get her in the water) and christened by visiting Capt. James Sever using a bottle of Madeira.
She was constructed from hard, heavy, straight-grained, and decay-resistant white oak. Unlike the rather short and gnarled live oak, white oak trees grow to 150' tall to provide long, clear planks. When Old Ironsides was being built, white oak was plentiful throughout the Union's 13 states. Today, at Naval Support Activity Crane, near Bloomington, Indiana the US Navy maintains "Constitution Grove," where a forest of white oaks are grown for the sole purpose of restoring and refitting the USS Constitution, the oldest commissioned vessel still sailing (the UK's HMS Victory is older, but remains in drydock).
NAS Crane and Constitution Grove therein, protects the white oak trees and also the biological diversity an oak forest provides, including the wildlife that live there. Three Navy civilian foresters help maintain the wood and ensure that no tree removed from the ecosystem will have an adverse effect on the grove's biodiversity.
It was in the great naval battle where the USS Constitution captured the 38 gun British Frigate HMS Guerriere (pictured below) that she was given her nickname of, "Old Ironsides". A sailor on the Guerriere saw 18-pound British cannonballs bouncing right off the hull of the Constitution. He exclaimed, "Huzza, her sides are made of iron!"
The second battle of Cabin Creek.
Pipeline Rider - This photo from the mid 1910’s shows motorcyclist Johnny Hogg and his wife riding on an aqueduct pipeline with a Harley-Davidson sidecar rig. The pipeline ran about 15 miles through Los Angeles’ Mint Canyon. Mere days after this stunt was completed, another daring rider on a solo machine attempted the same stunt and found himself in the hospital.
Archelon, an ancient sea turtle
The Ute Pass Trail originated just below the springs of Manitou, Colorado, through Ute Pass and into the White River country of Utah. With the Indians dragging their travois along this trail, the route became easier to follow and eventually became a safe route to the Colorado gold fields. Starting in 1860, the mineral rushes to Colorado resulted in large settler migrations that began the first major threat to the Ute way of life. These Ute men pose on horseback as part of the marking ceremony for the Ute Pass Trail on August 29,1912. – Courtesy Southern Ute Cultural Center & Museum