43 stereographs from the early twentieth century were produced by the Underwood & Underwood Studio depicting various scenes and people from Meiji Japan, 3 stereographs from the 1867 Exposition Universelle in Paris, France, and two black and white postcards from Japan. Specific Japanese locations depicted include: Yokohama; Mississippi Bay and the Mikado Cliffs; Tokyo; Mt. Haruna, Ikao; Kyoto; Hiroshima; Lake Chuzenji.
Arrangement:
0.5 linear foot
Biographical / Historical:
The cards were most likely assembled by Ms. Smith's father, A. Hyatt Mayor (1901-1980), art historian, writer, and Metropolitan Museum of Art Curator of Prints from 1946-1966.
Underwood & Underwood was an early photographic studio who produced steroscopic and photographic images from 1881 to the 1940s. Founded in Ottawa, Kansas by brothers Elmer Underwood and Bert Elias Underwood, the studio worked in Ottawa, Baltimore, and New York City. They sold box sets of photographs and set up distribution offices throughout the world. Underwood & Underwood covered major news events like the Boer War and the Great War.
Local Numbers:
FSA A2002.02
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.
Genre/Form:
Stereographs
Postcards
Citation:
Martha Smith Collection of Stereographs and Postcards. FSA.A2002.02. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
Identifier:
FSA.A2002.02
Archival Repository:
Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives
Assembled by collectors Dr. Henry D. Rosin and Nancy Rosin to document nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century photography of Japan. Includes albumen prints, portions handcolored, some signed and numbered in the negative. Taken by photographers Felice Beato (b. ca. 1825), Baron Raimon von Stillfried (1938-1911), Kusakabe Kimbei (active 1880s), Ueno Hikoma (1838-1904), Ogawa Kazumasa (1860-1929) and unknown photographers to depict architecture, landscapes, formal studio portraits, and daily activities.
Arrangement:
Organized chronologically by the creators.
Biographical / Historical:
Henry and Nancy Rosin were collectors of Japanese photography of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
Henry and Nancy Rosin Collection of Early Photography of Japan. FSA.A1999.35. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Purchase and partial donation.
Taft, William H. (William Howard), 1857-1930 Search this
Extent:
1 Album (42 leaves, unbound, 38 x 52 cm.)
1 Album (8 leaves, Japanese bound cloth-covered boards with gilt edges, 28 x 37 cm.)
1 Album (8 leaves, embroidered cloth-covered boards with gilt edges and silk endpapers, 36 x 48 cm.)
1 Item (one photographic portrait, in a 55 x 45 cm. frame, image 23 x 17 cm.)
2 Items (two signed photographic portraits, in elaborately carved frames, 44 x 34 cm., images 28 x 21 cm.)
2 Items (two photographic portraits, in 48 x 40 cm. frames, images 27 x 22 cm.)
1 Item (one photographic portrait, in a 23 x 13 cm. frame, 14 x 6 cm.)
1 Photographic print (loose, 26 x 18 cm.)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Albums
Photographic prints
Photograph albums
Portraits
Photographs
Postcards
Place:
Beijing (China)
China
Japan
Korea
Philippines
Hawaii
Tokyo (Japan)
Hong Kong
Date:
undated
Scope and Contents:
A collection of photographs and photographic albums obtained by Alice Roosevelt, daughter of President Theodore Roosevelt, when she accompanied the Taft Mission to Asia in the summer of 1905. The collection contains 1.) One album of 8 leaves, embroidered cloth-covered boards with gilt edges and silk endpapers, 36 x 48 cm., containing 16 photographs of Alice Roosevelt during her stop in San Francisco, and on the passenger ship Manchuria, with the inscription "To Miss Alice Roosevelt: This Album of Photographs Taken by its Artists Is Presented by the San Francisco Call As a Souvenir of Her vist to the Philippines 1905." on the inside cover is an oil painted scene of a ship leaving San Francisco painted by the California artist Frederick John Behre (1863-1942); 2.) one album of 42 leaves, unbound, 38 x 52 cm., containing photographs of the Mission by American photographer Burr McIntosh, with the inscription "To Alice Lee Roosevelt in sincere admiration and appreciation of her generosity to the 'official photographer.' -- Burr McIntosh"; 3.) one album of 8 leaves, cloth-covered with gilt edges, 28 x 37 cm., containing photographs of a reception at Korakuen in Tokyo; 4.) one photographic portrait of the Empress Dowager Cixi, image 23 x 17 cm. in a 40 x 31 cm. frame; 5.) two signed photographic portraits, one each of the Meiji Emperor and Empress, images 28 x 21 cm. in elaborately carved frames, 44 x 34 cm.; 6.) two signed photographic portraits, one each of Emperor Gojong and Crown Prince Sunjong of Korea, images 27 x 22 cm. in 45 x 38 cm. frames; 7.) one photographic portrait of Japanese Foreign Minister Nagasaki Shōgo, by the Maruki Studio, Tokyo, 14 x 6 cm. in a 23 x 13 cm. frame, inscribed "Hon. Taft with sincere regards from his friend" above the image and signed "Michinori S. Nagasaki" below; 8.) Small matted print of American and Japanese audiences watching a Sumo demonstration at Korakuen in Tokyo, 6.8 x 16.3 cm., mounted on a board 22 x 31.5 cm; 9.) one loose photographic print of Alice Roosevelt and William H. Taft on the deck of the Manchuria, 26 x 18 cm.; 10.) one album of photographs of Nikko by the Hoshino studio in Nikko, with elaborately embroidered dragon cover, 27 x 38 cm.; 11.) accordian album of woodblock prints and descriptions of the whaling industry in Ikitsukishima in Nagasaki province, dated 1829, 23 x 34 cm.; 12.) album of various 19th century Japanese woodblock prints, 37 x 25.5 cm.; 13.) 73 picture postcards from the Kobe Picture Postcard Club, many handmade, addressed to President Roosevelt in appreciation of his efforts to obtain a peace treaty between Japan and Russia.
Biographical / Historical:
Alice Lee Roosevelt Longworth, eldest child of President Theodore Roosevelt, was a writer, activist, and socialite, known for her exploits and willingness to flout convention. Her father once said that, "I can be President of the United States, or I can control Alice. I cannot possibly do both." She was born on February 12th, 1884 in New York City, and was the only child of Theodore Roosevelt and Alice Hathaway Lee. Her mother died two days after her birth. Alice's life changed dramatically when her father became the 26th president of the United States in 1901 upon President William McKinley's assassination. She entered Washington society the following January at her debutante ball, launching her career as an important political mover and a celebrity. During her father's presidency, she hosted large events for him, acted as a stand-in at events he could not attend, and went on various diplomatic trips at his behest, cementing her place among the Washington political elite.
On February 17, 1906, she married Congressman Nicholas Longworth (1869-1931), a Republican from Ohio, and moved her base of influence from the White House to her husband's home. She had one daughter in 1925 named Pauline. After her daughter's death from an overdose of sleeping pills in 1957, Alice gained custody of her granddaughter, Joanna and raised her. Alice Longworth campaigned frequently for Republican Party candidates and wrote regular political columns, but she supported the Democratic Kennedy and Johnson administrations. Throughout her life, Alice Longworth was known both for her caustic wit as well as her convivial dinner parties, two traits that gave her lasting influence and in later years earned her the title, "the other Washington Monument." She died two weeks after her 96th birthday on February 20, 1980.
Alice was a member of one of the first and largest U.S. foreign diplomatic delegations to Asia. It embarked from San Francisco on July 8, 1905 for a three-month tour, stopping in Japan, the Philippines, and China. The delegation, under the leadership of then-Secretary of War William Howard Taft, also included congressmen, senators, and a group of other civilians. Alice's future husband, Nicholas Longworth, was one of the congressmen with the delegation and their engagement was declared shortly after their return. On this trip, Alice met with the Meiji Emperor of Japan, the Philippine Sultan of Sulu, and the Chinese Empress Dowager Cixi. Multiple photographs of her, other members of the delegation, and those they met with, were taken during the journey. Alice also collection albums, prints and postcards of local cities on her journey.
Local Numbers:
FSA A2009.02
Related Materials:
Alice Roosevelt Longworth Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Rights:
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.
The Alice Roosevelt Longworth Collection of Photographs from the 1905 Taft Mission to Asia, FSA A2009.02. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
1 Gelatin silver print (print of a drawing , mounted on board in elaborately carved wooden frame, image: 27.5 x 20.5 cm.; frame: 66 x 43 cm.)
Type:
Archival materials
Gelatin silver prints
Photographic prints
Drawings
Portraits
Photographs
Place:
Tokyo (Japan)
Japan
Date:
1888
Scope and Contents:
A photograph received by Alice Roosevelt in July 1905 at an Imperial reception in Tokyo for members of the Taft Mission to Asia. A photographic print by Maruki Riyō (1854-1923) of a drawing by Eduardo Chiossone. The photograph is personally signed by the Emperor (Mutsuhito), and has a gold embossed chrysanthemum crest.
睦仁 明治天皇
Biographical / Historical:
Alice Roosevelt visited Tokyo from late June 1905 as a member of the William H. Taft Mission to Asia.
Local Numbers:
FSA A2009.02 05a
Collection Restrictions:
Collection is open for research.
Collection Rights:
Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.
The Alice Roosevelt Longworth Collection of Photographs from the 1905 Taft Mission to Asia, FSA A2009.02. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
1 Item (photographic print ; on mount 35.6 x 27.9 cm, image 25.7 x 19.4 cm.)
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Photographic prints
Place:
Asia -- Japan
Date:
1873
[1860 - ca. 1900]
Scope and Contents:
The Meiji Emperor, dressed in military attire, seated in a studio setting.
Biographical / Historical:
Uchida Kuichi (内田九一) apprenticed under Ueno Hikoma, and eventually opened photo studios in Yokohama, Tokyo and Osaka. He is credited as taking one of the first photographs of the Emperor Meiji.
Henry and Nancy Rosin Collection of Early Photography of Japan. FSA.A1999.35. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Purchase and partial donation.
1 Item (photographic print, hand coloring, 24.3 x 19.1 cm.)
Type:
Archival materials
Photographs
Photographic prints
Place:
Asia -- Japan
Date:
[1872 or 1873]
Scope and Contents:
Albumen print of the Meiji Emperor in military attire. This is a reprint of Kuichi's original photograph by the studio of Baron Raimund von Stillfried.
Biographical / Historical:
Uchida Kuichi (内田 九一) apprenticed under Ueno Hikoma, and eventually opened photo studios in Yokohama, Tokyo and Osaka. He is credited as taking one of the first photographs of the Emperor Meiji and his consort.
Local Numbers:
R031 (Rosin Number)
FSA A1999.35 031
General:
According to Henry and Nancy Rosin, this photographic print was probably reprinted by another photographer in this format, a not uncommon practice.
Henry and Nancy Rosin Collection of Early Photography of Japan. FSA.A1999.35. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. Purchase and partial donation.
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu
No access restrictions Many of SIA's holdings are located off-site, and advance notice is recommended to consult a collection. Please email the SIA Reference Team at osiaref@si.edu
