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Vintage photos of:
Our holdings include hundreds of glass and film negatives/transparencies that we've scanned ourselves; in addition, many other photos on this site were extracted from reference images (high-resolution tiffs) in the Library of Congress research archive. (To query the database click here.) They are adjusted, restored and reworked by your webmaster in accordance with his aesthetic sensibilities before being downsized and turned into the jpegs you see here. All of these images (including "derivative works") are protected by copyright laws of the United States and other jurisdictions and may not be sold, reproduced or otherwise used for commercial purposes without permission.
[REV 25-NOV-2014]
April 9, 1923. Washington, D.C. "Paul Tchernikoff dancers, Russian Village Fair at Wardman Park Inn." Our second glimpse of these lithe young ladies. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.
New York circa 1900. "Gillender Building." This improbably slender tower at the corner of Nassau and Wall Streets, one of the tallest buildings in the city when it was completed in 1897, met the wrecking ball in 1910. View full size.
New York circa 1909. "High school graduates wearing dollar dresses." Note plunging neckline, scandalously exposed ankles and elbows. View full size.
New York circa 1926. "Victor Salon Orchestra." To sound sharp, one must first look sharp. Bain News Service glass negative. View full size.
Manhattan circa 1908. "The Heart of New York." Landmarks in this panorama of four 8x10 glass plates include Broadway, City Hall Park, the City Hall Post Office, the Singer, Park Row, Home Life Insurance and City Investing buildings and, far left, Manhattan Terminal. Note the observer taking in the scene from the cupola atop the domed New York World building. Detroit Publishing Co. View full size.
Boston circa 1923. "Tremont Street and the Mall." One of the later entries in the Detroit Publishing catalog. Note the big Chevrolet sign. View full size.
My grandfather worked for Ace Hardware in the 1950s and '60s. He traveled throughout Indiana and set up store displays. This is one of his store designs. View full size.
Another photo from 1977, also from Medford Mass. Not sure of the year of the car; it's showing its age. I was interested in the shape of the car and the architecture of the house. They seemed to share something that only is obvious on an early morning walk. There was also a quiet I enjoyed while doing these and never realized I was making little time capsules. Taken with my trusty 4x5 view camera and the reliable Luna Pro light meter as a guide for exposure. View full size.
Somewhere in Southern California circa 1956. The car is a 1954 Oldsmobile. Another Kodachrome slide from my recent eBay find. View full size.
New York circa 1908. "Times Square." The old New York Times building, now encased in billboards, Hotel Astor and various theaters seen from Broadway. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.
Washington, D.C., circa 1928. "T.R. Shipp -- Star Radio." Shipp, the client for whom this photo was made, was Atwater Kent's public relations guru. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.
July 1940. "Auto of migrant fruit worker at gas station in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin." The other end of the jalopy we saw here. 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
Southern California circa 1956. One of a dozen Kodachrome slides that I recently found on eBay. If the clothes here were any sharper we'd need to call 911. No T- shirts and jeans for these folks. More to come over the weekend. View full size.
Pittsburgh circa 1914. "Liberty Avenue and skyscrapers." The Steel City grows up and up. 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.