A gorgeous picture of a Quonset hut from 1946, touted by Popular Science as a possible “stop gap” to the immediate post World War II housing shortage. I’ve called it a Quonset hut/house because it clearly does not resemble its earlier incarnation: Army barracks. In fact, the vets were said to be moving back to… Continue reading Quonset Hut / House Cutaway, 1946
Walker Bulldog T-41 Tank Cutaway, 1951
The Walker Bulldog tank was named after General Walton Walker who served in World Wars I and II and the Korean War. He was killed in a car accident in Korea in 1950. The Bulldog was a fast, lightweight tank that could reach speeds of 40 mph under its 51,000 pounds of weight. It was… Continue reading Walker Bulldog T-41 Tank Cutaway, 1951
Palomar Observatory Cutaway 1947
Famed Palomar Observatory, just outside of San Diego, CA, had not yet been finished at the time this cutaway drawing was published. The drawing shows the observatory’s massive 200-inch mirror that, at that moment, was being finished at optical labs at Cal Tech, Pasadena, CA. The disk of glass was 17 feet in diameter, and… Continue reading Palomar Observatory Cutaway 1947
House Cutaway Showing Movement of Water Vapor, 1951
This is a cutaway drawing from 1951 showing how water vapor moves throughout a house. Source: Popular Mechanics, September 1951
Basement Bomb Shelter, 1961
In 1961, LIFE extolled the benefits of building a basement bomb shelter out of pre-cast concrete blocks. This cutaway drawing shows how the homeowner would have situated the shelter in a corner of the basement where it had no windows. The article estimated materials cost not to exceed $200. It was estimated that radiation within… Continue reading Basement Bomb Shelter, 1961