Most of the photos on this site were extracted from reference images (high-resolution tiffs, 20 to 200 megabytes in size) from the Library of Congress research archive. (To query the database click here.) Many were digitized by LOC contractors using a Sinar studio back. They are adjusted by your webmaster for contrast and color in Photoshop before being downsized and turned into the jpegs you see here.

Yesterday we asked people to share their own photos on Shorpy. We've been overwhelmed with the response. The images we've seen in just the first day have been remarkable. Above you see Paul Herman Wedmark, an itinerant photographer who lived in his truck. The image was shared by Wedmark's great nephew.
You'll also want to check the photos of Pennsylvania coal miners from the early 1900s, a 1924 Bronx street scene, a 1938 class photo and women factory workers making munitions. There are more images in the Shared Blog and photo gallery. You can also subscribe to an RSS feed of shared photos. To share your photos, just create an account and upload your photo.
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