Shorpy Higginbotham, an oiler on the tipple at Bessie Mine near Dora in Jefferson County, Alabama. December 1910. Photograph by Lewis Wickes Hine. Entire uncropped image.
Submitted by Anonymous Tipster on Tue, 02/19/2008 - 11:45pm.
I don't think his arms are "permanently out away from his body." I think that the thing he's counterbalancing the weight of that thing he's holding. His arms do look weird though.
They all look set with grim determination. It's a character asset that not many of today's youth share. Considering what people went through back then I would wonder if it's even appropriate to call them "kids". Pictures like this really make me consider that ... Thanks for posting these!