Washington, D.C., 1928. Going out on a low note: "Women with contrabass tuba" is all it says here. Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative. View full size.

Circa 1900 in parts unknown. "Seth & lamb at Will's. f4.5 3.5F Kodak." 6½ x 8½ inch glass negative by Mother Goose, for all we know. View full size.

From 1912 or later comes "elderly man in rocking chair," watching the world go by from the vine-covered porch of his cozy cottage (erected "A.D. 1901") at 479 Main Street. 5x7 inch glass negative, photographer unknown. View full size.

Circa 1918. "The heart of Detroit." An aerial view of the Campus Martius from the Dime Bank, taking in landmarks including Detroit City Hall in the foreground, the Real Estate Exchange, Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument, Hotel Pontchartrain, Wayne County Building, Cadillac Square and the Cadillac Chair. 8x10 glass negative, Detroit Publishing Co. View full size.

The Bay Area in 1918. "Service truck and greens." Eucalyptus trees and some sort of leafy vegetable. 5x7 glass negative by Christopher Helin. View full size.

Circa 1908. "Broadway and Grand Union Hotel, Saratoga Springs, N.Y." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.

San Francisco in 1920. "Federal truck -- Van Arsdale-Harris Lumber Co., Fifth and Brannan." 5x7 glass negative by Christopher Helin. View full size.

July 21, 1923. "Water conduit." Part of the Washington, D.C., aqueduct system seen here, along what used to be called Conduit Road. View full size.

Washington, D.C., 1932. "Vacated 'Bonus Army' camp." Burned-out remnants of the Bonus marchers' camp in Anacostia Flats, with gas holders and what looks like a railroad bridge in the distance. And in the foreground, what we suppose might be conduit for the D.C. aqueduct. Harris & Ewing glass negative. View full size.

New York, 1944. "Pawnbroker and prospective customer." I imagine the idea here was to convey the wholesome, cheery atmosphere of the typical pawn shop. Our second photo by Tony Linck. 4x5 Agfa acetate negative. View full size.

        UPDATE: The photographer is Tony Linck, whose work appeared in Life magazine. The location is probably around Utica, New York.

From somewhere in New England in the 1940s comes this uncaptioned 4x5 Agfa negative of three happy guys and their Ford truck. View full size.

San Francisco. "1934 Federal truck, City Ice Delivery Co." A business that was melting away. 5x7 film negative by Christopher Helin. View full size.

San Francisco circa 1910. "W.W. Montague & Co. plumber with water heater and bathtub." 3x4 nitrate negative, photographer unknown. View full size.

1916. "Dolly sister with Buzzer the cat, portrait photograph." One of the Dolly Sisters (Rose and Jenny), twin vaudeville stars from Budapest who made it big in America. 5x7 nitrate negative by Arnold Genthe. View full size.

        America's first camouflaged automobile has been let loose, and is now on the war path. The inhabitants of the Pacific Coast from Seattle to San Diego swear they are "seeing things." A sheriff who has a record for pinching speeders is out after the camoufleurs who committed "camouflage" to prove that America's automobiles are as chameleon-like while on the war path as those in Europe.

-- Oakland Tribune, Oct. 28, 1917

        W.L. Hughson, of KisselKar fame upon the Pacific Coast, has donated the famous Kissel military scout car, recently used to blaze the "three nation run," to the government department having the new operations of "camouflage" in its charge. A committee of three prominent San Francisco artists will paint this car with color patches, which suggests nothing except the surrounding earth, trees, grain fields, sky, etc., making an exact fac-simile of the cars now being used by the allies along the various war fronts

-- Motor West, Oct. 15, 1917

"Kissel Military Highway Scout Kar." From somewhere in the woodsy Pacific Northwest comes the "Scout Kar" last seen here, with 1918 Washington State dealer plates. 5x7 glass negative by Christopher Helin. View full size.