It's 1942, and these women are in Long Beach, California, inspecting massive pieces of jet wings for cargo transporters. They're real-life Rosie the Riveters, making sure these wings are ready to be assembled on the fuselage.

This is one of thousands of images released to the public through a new project of the Library of Congress. The historic images are available on Flickr, including many that showcase the beauty of industrial machinery. Library of Congress Photostream [Flickr]