Archivist John Cornelius has done us all a service by preserving a remarkable window into a bygone past—this collection of photographs taken in China between 1921 and 1927 by one Frederick Harris Jewell, marketer for the British-American Tobacco Company.
Early morning in public square, Peking. c. 1920s (© J. D. Cornelius 2008 / F. H. Jewell Collection)
Temple and "Stairway to Heaven" c. 1920s atop Tai Shan ("Sacred Mountain") in Shandong province, elev. 5,069 feet. Significant "Mountain of the East" in Taoist tradition, now a UNESCO World Heritage site. (© J. D. Cornelius 2008 / F. H. Jewell Collection)
Street scene, Hong Kong, c. 1920s. (© J. D. Cornelius 2008 / F. H. Jewell Collection)
You can read more about Mr. Jewell and see dozens more images from China and elsewhere at Mr. Cornelius’ site. Highly recommended.
Chris is most often found flying a desk, but he delights in studying the Golden Age of Aviation (1919-1939). He admires all the pioneering men and women who navigated the skies with nothing more sophisticated than a map, compass and sextant—and the conviction that there was no place they could not reach.
