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A DAY’S WORK, Part II, by W.H. Bunting, Tilbury House, Gardiner, Me.; 2000, 384 pages, $35 paperback, $55 hardcover.
When W.H. Bunting compiled the first part of “A Day’s Work” in 1997, he asked readers not to think of the book of more than 200 pictures as an illustrated history.
“The photographs lead,” he emphasized in the introduction to the volume of pictures from the period 1860-1920. The same is certainly true of Part II, published this summer by Tilbury House in Gardiner.
Offer the book to 10 people for perusing, and chances are they will point out different photographs as “the best” or most important. Certainly, their favorites will be influenced by their own upbringing and interests.
Bunting’s admitted fascination with all things marine is evident in the multitude of ships, boats, schooners, peapods and other vessels throughout both volumes.
The author’s talent for choosing photographs comes through in the variety offered – especially in those that highlight the size of the craft or present an angle different from the traditional broadside view.
Long-skirted women passengers, deposited on the beach at Sprucehead Island, give a sense of scale to a picture of the Boston-Bangor steamer, City of Bangor, after its 1901 collision with Monhegan Island.
Shots of vessels under construction – the five-masted schooner
Baker Palmer in Waldoboro and the steamer Bar Harbor at Brewer’s Barbour yard – give the viewer the feeling of looking into the subjects rather than at them.
The same is true when the subject is a slate pit of the Monson Slate Quarry Co. in Monson. The tall sides of the man-made crevasse seem to narrow in on the six hardy souls posing on a pile of slate. In the foreground, a ladder and part of the hoisting equipment provide scale.
On another page, adjacent pictures of massive Lombard log haulers are just right.
One shows the behemoth as it’s being built. In the other, a snowy woods scene with the log hauler in the background, the size is seemingly dwarfed by the five sleds of logs unfurled behind the machine.
Bunting also gives horses their due, whether hauling people, ice or bottles of sure-fire cures for galls, cuts, scratches and bruises.
Cattle contribute to the workforce, as well, but only in Dover-Foxcroft do they take up the middle of the main thoroughfare. Possibly headed for Boston’s Brighton Market, the animals crowd around a water trough installed in Monument Square by the editor of the Piscataquis Observer.
A second trough served dogs, Bunting noted.
In an amusing coincidence, the nearest building held Bush’s CafT, and, perched just behind the cattle, a sign urged, “Stop Here for Refreshments.”
The list of memorable views goes on – wash day on Matinicus, the trolley in Skowhegan, John MacGregor’s spool mill in South Lincoln, blacksmithing shops and textile mills.
Even in softcover, the book is hefty, but the large pages give a lot of room for reprinting the pictures in an adequate size. Most of the photos are clearer and sharper than is generally expected with ones so old.
What brings them to life, of course, is the living. From newlyweds aboard the St. James in 1899 to Italian laborers in a Rumford canal, to aproned domestics at a Belgrade Lakes summer hotel and women sorting rags at a paper mill in Kennebunk, the faces of workers beckon the reader into their world.
Opposite each page of pictures, an equal amount of space is devoted to information on the topic, whether gleaned from Bunting’s own research or from talking with local experts.
Captions include generous quotations from newspapers, books and publications, such as the Industrial Journal, lent to Bunting by the Bangor Public Library.
At the back of each volume is a well-presented section of credits and notes, including the photographer, if known; the owner of the picture; and list of sources for accompanying information.
Those who start with Part II will undoubtedly be inspired to read Part I.
Hop pickers in Andover, a machine shop in Portland, a train wreck near Oakland and a span of stump fences in Aroostook County are among the first book’s memorable topics.
In a picture taken in 1877 in Hallowell, workers swarm over a 36-foot portion of the 200-ton statue of “Faith,” one of five pieces produced at the Hallowell Granite Works for the National Monument at Plymouth, Mass., in honor of the Pilgrims.
The book was dedicated to the memory of historian James Vickery of Bangor, and his brother, Eric Vickery of Unity. Bunting cites a 1967 letter Jim Vickery wrote to Earle Shettleworth, head of the Maine Historic Preservation Commission.
“What makes me get rather ecstatic over these early forms of photography is difficult to write,” Vickery wrote. “Nevertheless, they have a charm of their own, whether it is the forbidding visage of an old deacon or the artless innocence of a child. They convey the artistry of another period and provide considerable historic clues.”
Well said.
An exhibit of “A Day’s Work” was held in August at the Maine State Library in Augusta. With the help of the Maine Humanities Council and Maine Preservation, the exhibit will be traveling to several schools during the current school year. For information, contact Tilbury House at (800) 582-1899.
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