August 31, 1954
(Fortier, Norman)
b/w photographic prints, 7 x 5 3/8 inches
Price: $150
This is a collection of photographs by renowned marine photographer Norman Fortier, documenting the damage caused in the vicinity of the New Bedford Yacht Club by Hurricane Carol on August 31, 1954. The photos are mounted back to back, so that each page of this booklet consists of 2 images. Each image is identified by a title typed onto the negative. The photos are comb bound in cardboard covers, upon which has been pasted a “Stormograph” chart of barometric pressure during the hurricane. The binding is partially broken, but holding. The final image has been damaged, and a copy print of that image has been inserted. Fortier’s ink stamp on the inside of the back cover has also been damaged. Despite these flaws, this is a rather breath-taking reminder of nature’s power. (I was 9-years-old when Carol swept upon our beachfront vacation rental in Wallis Sands, NH. Waves broke on our front steps. The big picture window bowed in and out in the gusts, as if it were made of plastic. Trash cans and similar oversized junk flew down the street at telephone-pole level. My sister had tonsillitis and a frighteningly high fever. My parents were beside themselves while I, in my youthful innocence, had the time of my life.)
