Access to the collection requires an advanced appointment. Contact collection staff at least two weeks prior to preferred date, at AmericanArtCornellStudy@si.edu.
Series 9: Artifacts and Ephemera, Series 13: Personal Library and Book Collection, and Series 14: Record Album Collection, are still undergoing processing and preservation and may not be available for research use. Record albums are unavailable for playback. Contact collection staff for full lists of publications and record albums.
Collection Rights:
Unpublished materials are protected by copyright. Permission to
publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
Collection Citation:
Joseph Cornell Study Center collection, 1750-1980, bulk 1930-1972. Joseph Cornell Study Center, Smithsonian American Art Museum.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was generously provided by the Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial Foundation.
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment. Gloves required with unprotected photographs.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
1 Item (Silver gelatin and ink on paper., 10" x 13".)
Container:
Box 1
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Mexico -- 1900-1910
Scope and Contents:
A photograph and tickets, 1903.
Local Numbers:
AC1015-0000003.tif (AC Scan No.)
Restrictions:
Unrestricted research access on site by appointment. Gloves required with unprotected photographs.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection consists of bound photograph albums and loose photographs documenting the construction of the Adams Power Station (hydroelectric plant) and allied structures of the Niagara Falls Power Company, 1899-1919.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of bound photograph albums and loose photographs documenting the construction of the Adams Generating Station #2 (hydroelectric plant) and allied structures of the Niagara Falls Power Company, 1899-1919. The images depict generators, wheel pits, governors, plant interiors, river views, transmission lines, turbines, and unidentified people.
The albums are arranged numericaly from one to thirty. Albums 13, 19 and 20 are missing. Each photograph has a number, date, and caption located in the lower left of the image. Typescript indices are included at the beginning of each album and the full index is linked to this finding aid.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into two series.
Series 1: Photograph Albums, 1899-1919
Series 2: Photographs by Subject, 1899-1908
Biographical / Historical:
In 1853, the Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power & Manufacturing Company was chartered. The company purchased the water rights and began construction of a canal (1860-1861) and was the first company to generate hydroelectric power from Niagara Falls.
The Niagara Falls Power Company was founded on September 19, 1889 after being re-organized and renamed from it's predecessor company, the Niagara River Hydraulic Tunnel, Power and Sewer Company. Edward Dean Adams, a New York financier became president of the company. Adams created a subsidiary company, the Cataract Construction Corporation to build a power tunnel before deciding on a method of power distribution. Adams also secured the help of financiers, J.P. Morgan, John Astor, and William Vanderbilt.
In 1893, alternating electrical current (AC) was selected as the standard to used and the Cataract Construction Company began using AC for power generation and transmission. From 1892 to 1894, the Niagara Falls Power Company built two powerhouses, Powerhouse #1 (1892-1894) and Powerhouse #2 (1901-1903). In 1895, the Niagara Falls Power Company began placing contracts with the Westinghouse Company for long distance electric transmission development and implementation.
In 1927, by resolution of the board of directors of the Niagara Falls Power Company, the power-houses and sub-stations were renamed in appreciation of the men who pioneered the power industry and developed it. Niagara Power Stations Number One and Two were renamed the Edward Dean Adams Statuon. Also known as the Adams Power Station. The Adams Power Station built in 1895 was not the first hydro power station at Niagara, but it was one of the largest hydroelectric power generators of it's time and it was the first large scale application of AC power in North America. General Electric and Westinghouse collaborated on the project. Engineers Thomas Evershed, George Forbes, Benjamin G. Lamme, Oliver Shallenberger, Nikola Tesla, William Stanley, Dr. Louis Bell, and Charles P. Steinmetz contributed.
Sources
http://www.edisontechcenter.org/Niagara.htm (last accessed on May 3, 2016)
Adams, Edward Dean. Niagara Power History of the Niagara Falls Power Company, 1886-1918, Volumes I-II. Niagara Falls, N.Y., printed for the Niagara Falls Power Co., 1927
Provenance:
The collection was donated to the National Museum of American History's Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering (now Division of Work and Industry) by the Niagara-Mohawk Power Corporation, through E.B. Strowger, System Project Engineer in 1965.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Engineering and Industry Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of History of Technology Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Work and Industry Search this
Extent:
0.5 Cubic feet (3 boxes, 1 oversized folder)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photograph albums
Postcards
Photographs
Place:
Canada
Quebec
Date:
1905-1986
bulk 1905-1916
Summary:
The collection documents the construction of the first and second Quebec Bridges over the St. Lawrence River. Construction on the first bridge began in 1900 and the bridge collapsed before completion in 1907. Construction on the second Quebec Bridge, which is the longest cantilever bridge in the world, was completed in 1917.
Scope and Contents:
The collection documents the construction of the first and second Quebec Bridges over the St. Lawrence River primarily through photographs. The collection is arranged into two series: Series 1, Photographic Materials, 1905-1965 and Series 2, Other Materials, 1916-1986.
Series 1, Photographic Materials, 1905-1965, is divided into two subseries: Subseries 1.1, Photographs, 1907-1965 and Subseries 1.2, Photograph Album, 1905. The black-and-white photographs primarily document the construction of the second Quebec Bridge, 1907-1917. Many of these photographs were taken in a workshop where the production of the bridge parts and building materials occurred. One picture, marked number 24, is of the Prime Minister of Canada, Robert Borden, attending the construction site in October 1913. This series also contains photographs of the 1907 bridge collapse and pictures taken in 1965 of the current second bridge. Subseries 2, Photograph Album, 1905, documents the construction of the first Quebec cantilever bridge. The album contains mounted black-and-white photographs taken between May 12 and November 23, 1905.
Series 2, Other Materials, 1916-1986, consists of newspaper articles and postcards. The
newspaper articles detail the 1916 construction accident on the second Quebec bridge; one 1917
article about the bridge; and one 1986 article about the 1907 collapse of the first bridge. There
are three postcards, both black-and-white and color, of the Quebec Bridge.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into two series.
Series 1, Photographic Materials, 1905-1965
Subseries 1, Photographs, 1907-1965
Subseries 2, Photograph Album, 1905
Series 2, Other Materials, 1916-1986
Biographical / Historical:
The first Quebec Bridge was built over the St. Lawrence River in order to connect important railroad lines.[1] This bridge collapsed on August 29, 1907, killing 79 men.[2]
The engineers for the second bridge were Maurice Fitzmaurice, H.E. Vautelet, and Ralph Modjeska.[3]
Notes:
[1] "Bridge of 1,800-FT. Span Across the St. Lawrence," Popular Mechanics Vol. 8, No. 12 December 1906
[2]"Wrecked Quebec Bridge to be Recommended"[3] "Wrecked Quebec Bridge to be Recommended"
Provenance:
Originally collected for the Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering's reference collections; exact date and source of acquisition unknown.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Physical Access: Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Reproduction permission from Archives Center: reproduction fees may apply.
This collection consists of two photograph albums and a number of individual photographs (tintypes and cabinet prints, all portraits), from the turn of the century to approximately 1918. The cabinet prints are from Pennsylvania and Ohio studios. Most of the snapshots seem to have been taken in and around Washington, D.C.
Scope and Contents:
This collection is composed of two photograph albums and a number of individual photographs. The group includes nineteenth-century material (tintypes and cabinet prints, all portraits), but most of the items are from the turn of the century to approximately 1918. Studio portraits as well as amateur snapshots are included. The cabinet prints are from Pennsylvania and Ohio studios. Most of the snapshots mounted in the two albums seem to have been taken in and around Washington, D.C., and include numerous familiar buildings and scenery. The albums are in poor condition, as number 1 is 'without a cover, and most of the pages are separated from the cover of number 2. Photographers represented include (?) Applegate, J. B. Bairstow, and Filson & Son.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged by type.
Biographical / Historical:
These photographs are from the family of Ms. Evelyn (Lynn) Turner.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Evelyn or Lynn Turner, 1986, June 1.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Coulton Waugh and Waugh Family papers, 1751-1974, bulk 1838-1974. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Collection Citation:
Coulton Waugh and Waugh Family papers, 1751-1974, bulk 1838-1974. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Sponsor:
Funding for the processing of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art.
The collection contains 205 photoprints, including 149 informal outdoor portraits and 46 studio portraits. Although the photographs, post cards, and other materials have been physically removed from the cyanotype album, album captions for the photographs are preserved in copy photographs made before the materials were removed during conservation treatment. The following is excerpted from Carolyn Long's paper, "The History and Conservation Treatment of the Baltimore and Ohio Cyanotype Book and Rosalie O'Connell's Album, Plus the Cyanotype Process Explained" (copy in control file).
Snapshots, newspaper clippings, and other memorabilia were adhered to the reverse of the cyanotypes, and several sentimental poems, evidently Rosalie's own compositions, were written on the back pages. At the time the album was assembled, she dated the pages and wrote formal inscriptions with dark brown ink in a flowing script. In later years she wrote further explanations and made humorous comments with a blue ballpoint pen, apparently in the 1940's or later. The pictures and inscriptions create a record of a young woman's life in the early twentieth century that is as interesting as the views of railroad bridges and depots on the front of the pages.
Rosalie appears to have been in her teens or early twenties at the time, and was a pretty, vivacious girl with long dark hair. Her family, the C. T. O'Connells, lived at 2011 Barclay Street, Baltimore, in a blue-collar neighborhood near the railroad yards. Many railroad employees lived in the area, which offers an explanation of how Rosalie happened to have the cyanotype book. The O'Connells were a large Irish Catholic family, according to the album, which mentions Rosalie's siblings: Florence, an older sister with two children, Charles and Ursula; Bill, who served in the Mexican War; Ed, a football player; Richard, who ran for Democratic delegate to the State Convention in 1915; and a younger brother named Bartlett. Apparently Richard was Rosalie's favorite brother, for she wrote inscriptions such as "My Pal" and "My Dick" under his pictures. It was Richard's wife Ona who later sold the album to the Museum.
The O'Connells' neighbors were the Gables and the Feldmeyers. The Gables and their children are shown behind their house, with a wooden privy in the background. Above their picture, Rosalie wrote "The Dirty Dozen in 1916." "Pop" Gable apparently worked for the Pennsylvania Railroad and is pictured on top of a "Pennsy" engine. There are also snapshots of Rosalie with her flock of chickens in the back yard, and of neighborhood girls having a "fresh air fund" bake sale at 2003 Barclay.
Rosalie's best friend was Beatrice "Beets" Malstrom. The two girls, with other friends and family members, swam and ice skated at Jane's Creek and went to Riverview Park. Rosalie worked at Turner's Grocery Store on North Avenue, and a series of snapshots shows her co-workers clowning with a bottle of beer on a motor scooter.
Rosalie was courted by George Barry, who is shown with her on the boat Louise when he was home on furlough from the Navy in 1917. Poems and inscriptions suggest an eventual breakup of the relationship. Above one of these pictures she wrote, "The arrival -peace and happiness unexpected." Later, however, she wrote in ballpoint, "so mixed up," and "He was nice, but I was not in love."
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series. Materials arranged topically, with a copy photographic key to the original album arrangement.
Biographical / Historical:
In the 1890s the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad maintained a photographic record of its properties along its routes (Divisions); a book of cyanotype prints was made of each Division for railroad officials. The Museum purchased a book of the Baltimore & Ohio Philadelphia Division from the sister-in-law of Rosalie M. O'Connell, and found that it contained personal photographs mounted on the backs of the cyanotypes. Rosalie O'Connell had used the book as a personal photograph album from 1912 to 1917. Because the scrapbook material was damaging the cyanotypes, the National Museum of American History, Division of Conservation removed the photographs in 1985.
Rosalie apparently had come into possession of the cyanotype book when she was a teen-aged girl, possibly due to her father's job with the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and/or the presence of other B & O employees in the neighborhood. Between the years 1912-1917 Rosalie used it as a personal photo album and scrapbook, adhering snapshots, newspaper clippings, and memorabilia to the reverse side of the cyanotypes. Because these items and the adhesives were causing damage to the cyanotypes, in 1985 Carolyn Long of the NMAH Division of Conservation removed the O'Connell material from the cyanotype pages. Thus for the first time the "Rosalie O'Connell Photograph Album" was physically separated from the B & 0 cyanotype album.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center
Baltimore & Ohio cyanotype book in mechanical and civil engineering collection, NMAH.
Provenance:
The collection was purchased by the Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering from Mrs. Richard C. O'Connell in 1979.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Topic:
Recreation -- 1910-1920 -- Baltimore (Md.) Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering Search this
National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Work and Industry Search this
Extent:
0.15 Cubic feet (1 box
)
Container:
Box 1
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Albums
Photographs
Place:
Connecticut
Hartford (Conn.)
Date:
1903-1905
Summary:
The collection consists of an album of 208 mounted photographs documenting the Connecticut River Bridge in Hartford, Connecticut. Subjects include the bridge, approaches, and street construction work.
Scope and Contents:
This collection contains an album of 208 mounted photographs documenting the construction of the Connecticut River Bridge in Hartford, Connecticut. Included among the photographs is a group portrait of commissioners, engineers, and contractors at Laying Corner Stone, East Abutment on April 16, 1904. There are also photographs of businesses, carriages, children playing, construction workers, houses and street cars. There is also some correspondence in the album. The individual who created the album is unknown.
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into one series.
Related Materials:
Materials in the Archives Center, National Museum of American History
Victor C. Darnell Bridge Construction Photographs, 1908-1913 (AC1018)
Canadian Bridges Photograph Albums, 1873-1911 (AC1025)
Snake River Irrigation Project Photo Album, 1912 (AC1031)
Minnesota Railroads Photograph Albums, 1886-1887 (1023)
Provenance:
Collection purchased by Nettie W. Adams in 1971 for the the Museum's Division of Mechanical and Civil Engineering (now the Division of Work and Industry).
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
An album of postcards dating from 1903 to 1907, including some that are unsent and undated. Many are addressed to members of the Humphrey family, but the individual who created the album is unknown.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of a single album of postcards that are both correspondence and blank. Postcards that were mailed are dated from 1903 to 1906; others are undated. Many of the postcards are reproductions of scenic images from places including, but not limited to, New York City, New York, Atlantic City, New Jersey, Annapolis, Maryland, and Nice, France. Other postcards are Christmas holiday cards, and there are several cartoon postcards of the story Madame Butterfly. There are four "real photo" postcards on photographic postcard paper. The recipients of the postcards vary, and there is no information as to who compiled the album. Several addressees of the postcards are members of the Humphrey family.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series.
Series 1: Postcard Album, 1903-1907
Biographical / Historical:
Many members of the Humphrey family experienced long and distinguished careers in the military. Charles Frederick Humphrey Sr. was born in Tioga County, New York on September 2, 1844. His military career began at the age of eighteen when he enlisted in the Fifth Artillery, regular army, in March 1863, as a Private. Humphrey married Juanita Foster DaCosta and the union produced five sons; Evan Harris, Charles Frederick Jr., Julian F., Marion Bell and Joseph DaCosta. Humphrey's military service spanned forty four years. He was the first recipient of the Civil War Campaign Medal and also received the Medal of Honor and Distinguished Service Cross. When Humphrey retired on July 1, 1907, Congress honored his service with the rank of Major General, mostly based on the recommendation of President Taft. After retirement Humphrey resided in Washington, D.C. and his five sons continued the tradition of long military service.
Sons Evan Harris (March 5, 1875-August 30, 1963) and Charles Frederick Jr. (August 11, 1876-January 22, 1968) retired as Brigadier Generals of the United States Army. Another son, Marion Bell Humphrey (September 15, 1887-August 20, 1953) retired as a Colonel of the United States Marine Corps. Julian F. Humphrey retired from the United States Merchant Marine and lastly Joseph Da Costa Humphrey also retired from military service. Charles Frederick Humphrey Sr. died on June 4, 1926 at the age of 81 at Walter Reed General Hospital and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors. Other members of the Humphrey family are also buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Provenance:
Provenance unknown. The album was found in the collections of the National Air and Space Museum Archives.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. : Album pages are slightly warped, and some are torn where they secure the postcards; some postcards are worn around the edges and slightly torn.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
Album of photographs and sketches relating to voyages, primarily in the arctic. Includes photographs from the steamer Neptune's 1917 rescue of Donald MacMillan and other members of the Crocker Land Relief Expedition, as well as the Northern Ventures Expedition, ca 1912. Photographs depict Inuit men, women, and children from Greenland and Baffin Island, sailors, sea ice, arctic and marine mammals, and walrus and narwhal ivory. Sketches are portraits, most likely of other sailors or expedition members.
Provenance:
The Album was donated by Benton and Elizabeth Cox Leach in 2015.
