Finnish stallion Primus (1953)

 Finnish stallion Primus photographed in Sippola (Finland) in 1953.

My colorization of Pekka Kyytinen´s photo in the Finnish Heritage

Agency archive.

A winter landscape in Finland (1965)

 Fetching water from the river in Polvijärvi (North Karelia region, Finland) in 1965. The winter of 1965-1966 was one of the coldest in recent Finnish history. Finnish Lapland had its longest cold spell ever recorded, with 146 days (almost five months) of mean temperatures under zero degrees centigrade. My colorization of Matti Poutvaara´s photo in the archive of the Finnish Heritage Agency.

The horse in the picture is a Finnhorse, a breed known for its strength and endurance even in extreme winter circumstances.

"The Finnhorse or Finnish Horse (Finnish: suomenhevonen, literally "horse of Finland"; nickname: suokki, or Swedish: finskt kallblod, literally "finnish cold-blood") is a horse breed with both riding horse and draught horse influences and characteristics, and is the only breed developed fully in Finland. In English it is sometimes called the Finnish Universal, as the Finns consider the breed capable of fulfilling all of Finland's horse needs, including agricultural and forestry work, harness racing, and riding. In 2007, the breed was declared the official national horse breed of Finland."

(Wikipedia)

Brita and Carl Johan Strömmer (1904)

Brita and Carl Johan Strömmer photographed on their diamond anniversary day on March 3, 1904. My colorization of a photo by Karls Atelier in Vasa, Finland. The original image is in the Svenska Litteratursällskapet archive.

Dressed for a sleigh ride in Lapland (1920s)

Dressed for a sleigh ride in Finnish Lapland in the early 1920s. 

Juhani Ahola´s photo - here shown with my editing and colorization - is in the

 Board of Antiquities of Finland archive.

The Erkylä manor in Finland in winter (ca.1900 - 1911)

The Erkylä manor in Hausjärvi, Finland, in an early 20th century photo. The main manor building, designed by Finnish architect A.E. Granstedt, was built in 1847. My colorization of a picture in the Board of Antiquities of Finland archive at Finna.fi. The photographer is unknown.

The delight of speed (1936)

The delight of speed in the summer of 1936 in Helsinki. The speedboat is an Ares A-55. Photographer Pietinen´s image - here shown with my colorization - is in the Finnish Board of Antiquities archive on Finna.fi.

Portrait of shipowner Gustaf Erikson (1872 - 1947)

Portrait of Gustaf Erikson (1872 - 1947), the owner of the last fleet of windjammers. My editing and colorization of a photo in the Maritime Museum archive in Stockholm (Fo220180). In 1935 Erikson´s fleet reached the peak in the number of vessels, among them these legendary deep-sea sailing vessels:

Moshulu
Passat
Lawhill
Olivebank
Herzogin Cecilie
Pamir
Pommern
Viking
Archibald Russel
L´Avenir
Ponape
Winterhude
Killoran
Grace Harwar

"Gustaf Adolf Mauritz Erikson (1872, Lemland – 1947) was a ship-owner from Mariehamn, in the Åland islands (Finland). He was famous for the fleet of windjammers he operated to the end of his life, mainly on the grain trade from Australia to Europe.
Erikson was involved in sailing for virtually his entire life. He went to sea at age 9, was commanding a sailing vessel in the North Sea trade by age 19, and was master of a number of square-rigged vessels prior to becoming an owner.[1]
His ships were bought cheaply as most shipping companies switched to steam ships about the turn of the century; Erikson would often acquire ships at shipbreakers prices.[1] In the early 1920s there was still some competition for the windjammers sold – the shipping company F. Laeisz even ordered new sailing ships in the 1920s – but in the 1930s Erikson owned a significant share of the operational windjammers of the world. In March 1935, he purchased Moshulu, "one of the finest steel barques afloat", for only $12,000.[2]
By the late 1930s, the South Australian grain trade was virtually the only profitable use for windjammers, and then only if the ship owner minimized costs as much as possible. Erikson supplied his ships adequately with crew and supplies as these were necessary for his ships to sail quickly and efficiently, but supplied neither more crew nor equipment than was necessary. Erikson's large four-masted barques would routinely sail on voyages of 30,000 nautical miles (56,000 km) with less than 30 crew.[3]
A young Eric Newby sailed to Australia on Moshulu in 1938–1939, as part of the South Australian grain trade. At the time she was owned by Erikson and part of the last "great fleet of sailing ships". Newby chronicled his trip in The Last Grain Race and Learning the Ropes, where he wrote that Erikson was both respected and reviled by the crew, who knew him only as "Ploddy Gustav". Of the 13 ships which took part in the 1939 grain race, 10 were Erikson ships." (Wikipedia)

Four-masted barque Olivebank off New Zealand in 1926

The Åland Islands (Finland) shipowner Gustaf Erikson´s four-masted barque Olivebank photographed off Bluff Harbour (New Zealand) in 1926. The original picture by E. A. Phillips - here with my processing and colorization - is in the Maritime Museum archive in Stockholm (Fo33756). The Olivebank run into a mine in the North Sea and was destroyed on September 8, 1939. It was built by Mackie & Thompson, Glasgow, in 1892.

A wedding cortege in Finland in 1913

On the way to church in 1913. A traditional wedding cortege in the Swedish speaking area of Ostrobothnia in Finland. My colorization of a photo by Gösta Carlsson. The original is in the Svenska Litteratursällskapet archive.

Finnish construction workers (ab. 1920)

Construction workers in Finland (Ostrobothnia) posing in photographer Erik Hägglund´s studio probably about 1920. The man on the right is Johan Paulin from Vörå, who had returned from America, where he had worked as a navvy for six years. The hat is from his time in the U.S.

The original picture - here shown with my processing and partial colorization - is in the Svenska Litteratursällskapet archive in Helsinki.

Legendary female aviator Elly Beinhorn in Helsinki 1952

German aviator Elly Beinhorn attended the 1952 Helsinki summer Olympics as a "flying reporter" for Quick magazine. Volker von Bonin took this picture - here with my partial colorization - of Beinhorn immediately after her arrival at the Malmi airport in Helsinki. The original is in the Helsinki city museum collection (N210167).

"Elly Beinhorn, referred to as “one of the most daring women of the 20th century” on the inside cover of her autobiography Alleinflug (Solo Flight), was born in Hannover, Germany in 1907 as the only child of a merchant family. In 1928 she was so fascinated by a lecture she attended held by the trans-Atlantic aviator Hermann Köhl that she immediately applied for acceptance to the Berlin-Staaken amateur pilot school. She received her amateur pilot license in the spring of 1929, and shortly thereafter she acquired her stunt pilot license at the flying school in Würzburg. Additional pilot licenses were to follow.

In 1931 she took off on her first solo flight to Africa. After a four-day-long trek through the desert, with the aid of locals she survived an emergency landing during her return flight to Europe, returning safely to Germany: “My emergency landing caused more headlines than my wildest flights.”

Several months later the 24-year-old ventured to circle the world in her Klemm KL-20 airplane. The flight took her via southern Asia to Port Darwin in Australia, where she boarded a ship to Panama. From there she flew via the Cordilleras to the east coast of South America, arriving in Buenos Aires on July 23, 1932.

In 1936 Beinhorn married the famous racecar driver Bernd Rosemeyer, who died in a car accident two years later, only ten weeks after the birth of their son Bernd. She remarried in 1941 and within a year gave birth to a much-longed-for daughter, whom she named Stephanie. After the war Beinhorn-Rosemeyer reapplied for and received her pilot licenses in Switzerland in 1951. Once the flying ban was lifted in Germany, she successfully participated in numerous competitions."

http://www.fembio.org/english/biography.php/woman/biography/elly-beinhorn/

A woman with a cat (1910 - 1920)

A woman and a cat photographed by the Finland-Swedish poet Edith Södergran some time between 1910 and 1920. My partial colorization of a photo in the Svenska Litteratursällskapet collection in Helsinki.

Södergran was a cat lover and wrote many poems which included cats. She also photographed a great numer of cats.

In one of her last poems, "There is no one who has time" ("Det finns ingen som har tid i världen"), she writes:

"Och Gud är med i alla sammanhang.
När gumman oväntat mötte sin katt vid brunnen
och katten sin matmor.
Det var en stor glädje för dem båda
men allrastörst var den att Gud hade fört dem samman
och velat dem denna underbara vänskap
i fjorton år."

"And God is present in every context.
When the old woman unexpectedly met her cat by the well
and the cat his housemistress.
That was a great joy for them both
but greatest of all was that God had led them together
and wished upon them this wonderful friendship
that lasted fourteen years."

"Edith Irene Södergran (4 April 1892 – 24 June 1923) was a Swedish-speaking Finnish poet. One of the first modernists within Swedish-language literature, her influences came from French Symbolism, German expressionism, and Russian futurism. At the age of 24 she released her first collection of poetry entitled Dikter ("Poems"). Södergran died at the age of 31, having contracted tuberculosis as a teenager. She did not live to experience the worldwide appreciation of her poetry, which has influenced many lyrical poets. Södergran is considered to have been one of the greatest modern Swedish-language poets, and her work continues to influence Swedish-language poetry and musical lyrics, for example, in the works of Mare Kandre, Gunnar Harding, Eva Runefelt and Eva Dahlgren." (Wikipedia)

The passenger and cargo ship S/S Aranda

The Finnish cargo and passenger ship S/S Aranda photographed by Selim Björses in 1931. My colorization of the original photo which is in the Svenska Litteratursällskapet collection in Helsinki.

The building of the ship began in 1915 at the Ab Vulcan Varf in Turku. It was being built as a minesweeper for the Russian Imperial Navy. However, due to changed circumstances, the work was interrupted.

As there was to be no delivery to Russia, the shipyard opted to build the ship to a cargo and passenger vessel - named S/S Aranda - with a capacity to function in icy winter circumstances.

After a brief interlude with a private owner, the government of Finland bought the S/S Aranda in the summer of 1921 for the Turku - Åland islands route during the difficult winter season. 
In the summer months the Aranda was used for cruises in the Finnish archipelago and also to some international destinations. In the summer of 1928 she took Finnish visitors to the Amsterdam Olympic games.

The winter of 1945 was to be the last for Aranda on the Turku - Åland islands route. In June the same year she had to be handed over to the Russians as a war reparation. The Russians renamed the ship Marshal Govorov.

"Knowledge is Power" - Civic education class in Finland in 1910

"Knowledge is power" (Sir Francis Bacon´s famous equation) was the guiding star for this civic education class in Finland in 1910. At the time Finland was still a Grand Duchy under Russia, but independence was not far away (1917).

The original photo by amateur photographer Karin Åström - here colorized by me - is in the Svenska Litteratursällskapet collection.

A woman and a cow in 1910

A woman and a cow in Finland in 1910. This photo - here with my colorization - by the veterinarian Bernhard Åström is in the Svenska Litteratursällskapet collection in Helsinki.

Two modern Finnish ladies in the early 1930s

Two young ladies in Helsinki smoking and drinking cognac with coffee in the early 1930s. My colorization of a photo by an unknown photographer. The original is in the Helsinki city museum collection (N160953). 

The Finnish Steamship Co. steamer S/S Urania in Helsinki (early 20th cent.)

The Finnish Steamship Co Ltd. (FÅA) combined passenger and cargo ship S/S Urania in the Helsinki Southern harbour in the early 20th century. My colorization of a photo in the Helsinki city museum collection (N350500). The photographer is unknown.

The 68.6 m Urania - built in 1891 by Wigham Richardson & Co. in Newcastle - was one of the ships carrying Finnish migrants on the route Hanko - Copenhagen - Hull. (In Hull the migrants boarded bigger ships for the journey to the US). The Urania had cabins for 22 first class passengers, 34 second class passengers and 186 third class passengers.

S/S Urania sank in heavy fog near Kullen (not far from where I live) on February 2, 1913 when it collided with the Norwegian S/S Fancy while on its way from Hull to Copenhagen. The passengers and the crew were rescued by the heavily damaged Fancy to Helsingör, Denmark.

Japanese youth reporters at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics

Youth reporters for the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shinbun at the Helsinki Olympics in the summer of 1952. My colorization of Volker von Bonin´s photo. The original is in the Helsinki city museum collection (N2100260).

A lady and an NSU motorcycle in Helsinki (1952)

In the summer of 1952 the German-Finnish photographer Volker von Bonin took this picture of his wife Gisela and their (I presume) NSU Fox bike. The original photo - here with my colorization - is in the Helsinki city museum collection (N210732).

A summer day on the beach in Helsinki 1931

An idyllic summer day on the Pihlajasaari beach in Helsinki in 1931. The De Havilland D.H.60X Moth "Pilvetär" (K-SILD) was on display and it probably took daring sunbathers on a flight above the Helsinki archipelago.

"Pilvetär", which was owned and operated by the Finnish Air Defense League (Ilmapuolustusliitto) saw some more serious duty in 1939 - 1940. It was part of the air defense in Finland´s Winter war against Russian aggression.

The photo by Foto Roos - here with my colorization - is in the Helsinki city museum collection (N43185).