Janese Swanson developed video game software, a website, and an array of toys and gadgets aimed at making technology more accessible to girls. The collection contains approximately six hours of original and reference video footage of Swanson's Innovative Lives Presentation, in which she discussed her background and demonstrated her inventions with her daughter, Jackie. The material also includes a brief interview.
Scope and Contents:
This collection contains six (6) hours of original (BetaCam SP) recordings, six (6) hours of master (BetaCam SP) recordings, and six (6) hours of reference (VHS) copies documenting the life and work of Dr. Janese Swanson, inventor of toys, books, a website, magazine, and software. This video documentation was created on March 25, 1998. The recordings include a presentation by Swanson for the Lemelson Center's Innovative Lives Program. Audience participants are students from Thoreau Middle School (Vienna, Virginia), Options Charter School (Washington, D.C.), Carrollton Elementary School (New Carrollton, Maryland), and Rosa Parks Middle School (Olney, Maryland). The collection also contains a brief interview with Dr. Swanson.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into three series.
Series 1, Original Videos, 1998
Series 2, Master Videos, 1998
Series 3, Reference Videos (viewing copies), 1998
Series 4, Photographs and Slides, 1998
Biographical / Historical:
Janese Swanson, a native of California, was the founder and CEO of Girl Tech (1995), a company created to bring girls into the world of technology. The second of six children, Swanson was raised by her mother after her father died in the Vietnam War. From a young age, Swanson had an interest in technology, often tinkering with household appliances. Building on her experience as a flight attendant and school teacher, Swanson served on the team at Broderbund Software that developed the video game Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? She produced Playroom and Treehouse, early learning software, and has developed award-winning curricula, electronic toys, and books that encourage girls to explore technology and inventions. Some of Swanson's toy inventions include the Snoop Stopper Keepsake Box, Me-Mail Message Center, Zap N' Lock Journal, YakBak, and Swap-It Locket. Her publications include Tech Girl's Internet Adventures, Tech Girl's Activity Book, and Girlzine: A Magazine for the Global Girl. Swanson received her Ed.D. in Organization and Leadership Technology in 1997 from the University of San Francisco.
The Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation was founded in 1995 at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History through a generous gift from the Lemelson Foundation. The Center's mission is to document, interpret, and disseminate information about invention and innovation; to encourage inventive creativity in young people; and to foster an appreciation for the central role invention and innovation play in the history of the United States. The Innovative Lives series brings together museum visitors and, especially, school aged children, and American inventors to discuss inventions and the creative process and to experiment and play with hands-on activities related to each inventor's product. This collection was recorded by the Innovative Lives Program of the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation.
Provenance:
The collection was transferred to the Archives Center by the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation in 1998.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the original videos are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning intellectual property rights. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions. Copies of oral history releases on file.
Mike Augspurger was born in 1956 in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Working with steel land titanium, he invented an all terrain rear wheel drive handcycle. Collection contains approximately eight hours of video footage documenting Augspurger discussing his life and work and a promotional video titled One-Off Handcycle.
Scope and Contents:
This collection contains seven (7) hours of original (BetaCam SP) recordings and eight (8) hours of reference (viewing) copies documenting the life and work of Mike Augspurger, inventor of the One-Off All Terrain Handcycle. The recordings include a presentation by Augspurger for the Lemelson Center's Innovative Lives Program. Audience participants are students from Jefferson Junior High School (Washington, D.C.), Nysmith School (Herndon, Virginia), Nicholas Orem Middle School (Hyattsville, Maryland), and Rosa Parks Middle School (Olney, Maryland). The collection also contains interviews with Leni Fried, Augspurger's wife, and Provi Morillo, an owner of a One-Off Handcycle.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into three series.
Series 1, Original Videos, 2000
Series 2, Reference Videos (viewing copies), 1998; 2000
Series 3, Supplemental Documentation, 2001
Biographical / Historical:
Mike Augspurger (1956-) was born and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he built, modified, and raced bicycles, motorcycles, and go-karts from a young age. He attended motorcycle mechanic school at the Indiana Institute of Technology and received his B.A. from Hampshire College in 1981. Augspurger founded Merlin Metalworks in 1987 with business partners and began using titanium to manufacture bicycle frames because of its flexibility, corrosion resistance, and lightweight nature. It was his friendship with neighbor Bob Hall, a wheelchair racing athlete, which prompted him to create an all terrain arm-powered cycle. He founded One-Off Titanium, Inc., to design, manufacture, and custom-build handcycles in 1989.
The Jermone and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation was founded in 1995 at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History through a generous gift from the Lemelson Foundation. The Center's mission is: to document, interpret, and disseminate information about invention and innovation; to encourage inventive creativity in young people; and to foster an appreciation for the central role invention and innovation play in the history of the United States. The Innovative Lives series brings together museum visitors and, especially, school-aged children and American inventors to discuss inventions and the creative process and to experiment and play with hands-on activities related to each inventor's product. This collection was recorded by the Innovative Lives Program of the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation.
Provenance:
This collection was recorded by the Innovative Lives Program of the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation on May 5, 2000. The Innovative Lives series brings Museum visitors and American inventors together to discuss inventions and the creative process and to experiment and play with hands-on activities related to each inventor's product.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use. Series 1, Original Videos, 2000, is stored off-site and may not be used by researchers. Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs and negatives.
Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. The Archives Center does not own rights to the promotional video One-Off Handcycle. Reproduction permission and fees from the Archives Center may apply. Copies of releases on file.
This collection consists of approximately 5 hours of original, master and reference video footage and photographs, documenting Thomas H. Massie and James McLurkin in 1995 and 1997. Massie invented the Phantom Haptic Interface, an electronic device giving existing computer technology the ability to simulate the sense of touch. James McLurkin invented a community of microrobotic ants that detect food, pass messages, and pick up small objects. Both inventors discuss their inventions and potential applications, as well as their backgrounds and experience as student inventors.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into four series.
Series 1: Orginal Videos
Series 2: Master Videos
Series 3: Reference Videos
Series 4: Photographs
Biographical / Historical:
Thomas Massie was born in West Virginia in 1969 and grew up in Vanceburg, Kentucky. He graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1993 with a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering and a masters in Mechanical Engineering in 1995. AT MIT's Artificial Intelligence (AI) Laboratory Massie developed, with his adviser J. Kenneth Salisbury, a principal research scientist at the AI Lab, and later built, a prototype system that provides users with surprisingly vivid tactile impressions of nonexistent virtual objects. Massie's invention is called the Phantom Haptic Interface. In August of 1993, Massie and Salisbury established SensAble Devices Inc., in Cambridge, MA to manufacture the arm. Massie later changed the name of the company to SensAble Technologies.
James McLurkin was raised in Baldwin, New York and graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1995 with a Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. McLurkin built upon the earlier work of robot communities. Each robot is essentially identical to Cleo, a micro-robot he designed that was once considered as a basis for a remote-controlled colon surgery device. Each robot ant has a pair of tiny treads powered by a battery and two motors taken from vibrating beepers. The robots are guided away from the objects they hit and toward illumination sources by antennae and light sensors, and they also have mandibles powered by a third motor to pick up bits of food--quarter inch balls of crumpled brass.
Provenance:
This collection was created by the Innovative Lives Program of The Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation on October 27, 1995. The Innovative Lives series brings young people and American inventors together to discuss inventions and the creative process and to experiment and play with hands-on activities related to each inventor's product.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but the original videos are stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
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.
Signed releases on file, but releases not available for Western School students.
Taken for the book jacket of Victory Deferred, 1999. Photograph taken in Middleburg, Virginia by Strom (Eric Malstrom), September 1999.
Local Numbers:
AC1128-0000009.tif (AC Scan No.)
Exhibitions Note:
Displayed in Archives Center exhibition, "Archiving the History of an Epdemic: HIV and AIDS, 1985-2009," June 3, 2011-October 3, 2011. Franklin A. Robinson, Jr., curator.
Collection Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Researchers must use reference copies of audiovisual materials. When no reference copy exists, the Archives Center staff will produce reference copies on an "as needed" basis, as resources allow. Viewing film portion of collection requires special aarrangement with Archives Center staff. Do not use original materials when available on reference video or audio tapes.
Collection Rights:
Collection items available for reproduction, but copyright held by donor. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection contains business records and photographic materials documenting the International Salt Company. The business records include correspondence, account and ledger books, a payroll book, patent and trademark information, print advertising and marketing materials, and a salesman salt display kit. The photographic materials include a series of photographs by William M. Rittase, a series of photographs by Harold Haliday Costain, a small photograph album, snapshots, and slides. The images cover all facets of the salt manufacturing and packaging operations, and include photographs taken in New York State, Michigan, and Louisiana.
Scope and Contents:
The collection contains business records and photographic materials documenting the International Salt Company. The business records include correspondence, account and ledger books, a payroll book, patent and trademark information, print advertising and marketing materials, and a salesman salt display kit. The photographic materials include a series of photographs by William M. Rittase, a series of photographs by Harold Haliday Costain, a small photograph album, snapshots, and slides. The images cover all facets of the salt manufacturing and packaging operations, and include photographs taken in New York State, Michigan, and Louisiana.
The scrapbooks contain advertisements for the International Salt Company's Sterling Salt label and other leading salt companies, especially Morton's. Much of the ephemera consists of labels, but there are also small pamphlet cookbooks. The cookbooks, prepared and marketed by various salt companies, tout recipes for tasty dishes using specific salts and expound upon the merits of salt in general, especially the medical benefits. Other clever salt-related advertising appears in conjunction with maps, buttons, song books, calendars, and health exercises.
Series 1, Business Records, 1894-1937, consists primarily of financial materials--ledgers, cash books, monthly statements, timekeeping and payroll information--for the Avery Rock Salt Mining Company (A.R.S.M.Co.), Detroit Rock Salt Company, Detroit Salt Company, International Salt Company, and the Restof Mining Company. Additionally, there is one annual report for the International Salt Company (1957) and the newsletter Saltmaker, 1964.
There are two A.R.S.M.Co. ledgers, 1898-1907 and 1907-1922. The first ledger, 1898-1907, predates the founding of the International Salt Company, and it is likely that A.R.S.M.Co was absorbed by International Salt during a merger. Documentation recorded including inventories, merchandise, labor, surplus, insurance, office expenses, legal expenses, taxes, bills receivable, directors' committee fees, fuel, candles, oil, waste and packing, rental, repairs and maintenance, interest, labor, feed, outside salary account, Cuban consignment account, and loan account. Specific persons, such as superintendents F. Rundio and Sidney Bradford, are mentioned and specific companies including Restof Mining, Joy Morton Company, Havana Mill, G. Lawton Childs & Company, International Salt of New York and various others (pages 193-212), are listed with expenses.
The Detroit Salt Company (general ledger), 1911-1913, consists of one bound volume documenting the company's assets, liabilities, expenses, earnings, advance accounts, and old accounts.
Detroit Rock Salt Company (cash record), 1912 October-1913 January, consists of one bound volume documenting cash received and cash disbursed.
International Salt Company, Inc., Independent Salt Company Division (monthly statements), 1933 October-1937 December, consists of one bound volume of general ledger trial balance sheets organized chronologically. Detailed documentation includes general expenses, assets, capital assets, liabilities, special reserves, net worth, profit and loss statements, warehousing costs and tonnage purchased.
Restof Mining Company (time and payroll), 1894 July 1-1895 March 31, consists of one bound volume of 400 pages, documenting the time and payroll for employees. The volume contains the name of the employee, the number of days worked, hourly wage earned per day, the amount earned, advances, board due, store (supplies due), rent, and any balances due. A portion of the volume is severely water-damaged.
Series 2, Trademarks, 1881-1935, consists of copies of issued trademark declarations from the United States Patent Office. The trademarks are for company names, logos, salt containers and packages, and various salt products. The trademarks are arranged alphabetically by the name of the trademark. For example, Amaessa, a trademark for baking powder and salt is filed with other trademarks beginning with the letter "A." Additional materials consist of one file folder of correspondence and printed materials about patents, trademarks and copyright laws. The correspondence relates specifically to the ownership of certain trademarks by International Salt Company, and there is correspondence from John L. Ryon, assistant sales manager and W.T. Chisolm, vice-president of International Salt Company. There are compiled lists of brand names, trademarks, and package designs for which International Salt registered at the United States Patent Office, 1926-1927. There are two examples of small cloth bags branded with "Ideal Salt" and some packaging, such as "White Lily High Grade Salt" and labels such as "Purex Free Running Table Salt." The Peter J.L. Searing trademark for salt (No. 52,963) and Chicago Sawed Salt-Block Company (No. 15,174) provide examples of ethnic imagery. A trademark is a brand name. A trademark or service mark includes any word, name, symbol, device, or any combination used or intended to be used to identify and distinguish the goods/services of one seller or provider from those of others, and to indicate the source of the goods/services. Although federal registration of a mark is not mandatory, it has several advantages, including notice to the public of the registrant's claim of ownership of the mark, legal presumption of ownership nationwide, and exclusive right to use the mark on or in connection with the goods/services listed in the registration.
Series 3, Photographs, 1934-1993, is divided into five subseries: Subseries 1, Harold Haliday Costain, 1934; Subseries 2, William Ritasse, circa 1934; Subseries 3, Loose Photographs, 1969-1993; Subseries 4, Slides, circa 1970s; and Subseries 5, Album (unidentified), undated.
Subseries 1, Harold Haliday Costain, circa 1934, consists of three photographs (approximately 10 1/2" x 13") black-and-white prints mounted to 16" x 20" boards. The prints are numbered #6, #42, and #44 and depict a salt mine and equipment used in salt manufacturing located in Avery Island, Louisiana.
Subseries 2, William Ritasse, circa 1934, consists of black-and-white prints (10" x 14") signed by Ritasse which are mounted on 18 1/2" x 20" boards. The photographs are arranged numerically from #350 to #480. Many of the photographs are captioned. American photographer William Rittase (1887-1968), active in the 1920s-1930s, is known for his industrial photography. Rittase's images provide insight into International Salt Company activities such as salt manufacturing, packaging operations, general factory processes, printing salt bags, can labeling, brine storage, exteriors of buildings, crushing salt, men in the salt mines, machine shop views, and equipment.
Subseries 3, Loose Photographs, 1969-1993, consists of black-and-white and color prints, as well as transparencies depicting salt mines and related activities. Some of the photographs document a visit by International Salt Company executives to the Jefferson Island, Louisiana salt plant.
Subseries 4, Slides, circa 1970s, consists of seventeen color slides documenting salt plants, equipment and salt miners.
Subseries 5, Album (damaged mine), undated, consists of twenty-two 4" x 6 1/2" black-and-white photographs documenting the damage to a salt manufacturing plant. The photographs are captioned, but there is no indication of the geographic location of the salt plant.
Series 4, Advertising and Marketing Materials, 1920-1948, consists of two scrapbooks (14" x 17" and 11" x 16") that contain primarily tear sheets, unbound periodical pages showing an advertisement as printed, or as a proof, newspaper clippings, magazine clippings, correspondence, pamphlets, price lists, recipes, labels, periodicals, and other ephemera.
The scrapbook, 1920-1931, consists primarily of advertisements and newspaper clippings related to advertising salt products, especially for Morton's Salt and Diamond Crystal Salt. Other companies represented include Colonial Salt Company, Carey Salt Company, Jefferson Island Salt Company, Kerr Salt Company, Mulkey Salt Company, Myles Salt Company, Ohio Salt Company, Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company, Remington Salt Company, Star Salt Corporation, Union Salt Company, Worcester Salt Company, and Watkins Salt Company.
The scrapbook from 1945-1948 is devoted to advertisements for the International Salt Company and Sterling Salt, which promoted salt uses for the home (table salt, curing meats, and brines), industry (rock salt for winter weather) and agriculture (killing weeds). Many of the advertisements were part of the "Pass the Salt" campaign and were featured in publications such as Woman's Day, National Provisioner, Food Industries, Hide, Leather and Shoes, Chemical Previews, and Public Works. The scrapbook is divided into three sections: institutional, weed prevention, and Lixate, a process developed by the International Salt Research Laboratory for making brine. Many of the advertisements were prepared by J.M. Mathes Incorporated.
Also included is a traveling salt kit for Sterling Salt Company salesmen, undated, featuring small glass vials of sterling salt from mines in Detroit, Avery Island, Louisiana, and Restof, New York. Each vial notes the types of salts--purified, softener, iodized, medium flake, coarse flake, granular flour, and meat.
Series 5, Posters, circa 1920s, consists of oversize advertising posters for Worcester Salt Company. There is one set of labels from an exhibit titled "I Eat Rocks! Salt of the Earth."
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into five series.
Series 1, Business Records, 1894-1937
Series 2, Trademarks, 1881-1935
Series 3, Photographs, 1934-1993
Subseries 1, Harold Haliday Costain, circa 1934
Subseries 2, William Ritasse, circa 1934
Subseries 3, Loose Photographs, 1969-1993
Subseries 4, Slides, circa 1970s
Subseries 5, Album (damaged mine), undated
Series 4, Advertising and Marketing Materials, 1920-1948
Series 5, Posters, circa 1920s
Biographical / Historical:
The International Salt Company incorporated on August 22, 1901, and in 1902, the company purchased the stock and assets of the National Salt Company, which had failed. By 1934, International Salt was a holding company for six subsidiaries: Avery Salt Company (West Virginia), Detroit Rock Salt Company (Michigan), Eastern Salt Company (Massachusetts), Independent Salt Company (New York), International Salt Company, Inc. (New York), and Retsof Mining Company (New York). All of the subsidiaries operated rock salt mines and evaporated salt plants and distributed salt. In 1940, the International Salt Company decided to sell four of its subsidiaries--Avery Salt Company, Detroit Rock Salt Company, International Salt Company, Inc., and Retsof Mining Company.
John M. Avery discovered rock salt at Petite Anse, Louisiana in 1862. Petite Anse Island was renamed Avery Island in the late 19th century. Ownership and mining of salt at Petite Anse involved numerous parties until 1886, when New Iberia Salt Company took over operations. In 1896, the Avery family began operating the mine, and they founded the Avery Rock Salt Mining Company. In 1899, the International Salt Company leased the mine.
The Detroit Salt and Manufacturing Company was founded in 1906. The company quickly went bankrupt during construction of a shaft and was acquired in 1910 by the Watkins Salt Company, which incorporated the new organization under the name Detroit Rock Salt Company. The company experienced success and the International Salt Company purchased the mine circa 1914. In 1983, International Salt closed the mine's operations and in 1985, Crystal Mines, Inc., purchased the mine as a potential storage site.
In 1885 the Empire Salt Company of New York was renamed the Retsof Mine Company, and the Village of Retsof was founded near the mine shaft. During the next 110 years, the mine grew to become the largest salt-producing mine in the United States and the second largest in the world. Before the initial collapse in March 1994, the mine encompassed an underground area of more than 6,000 acres, and the mine footprint (outer edge of mined area) extended over an area of nearly ten square miles. At the time of the collapse, the Retsof Mine was owned by Akzo-Nobel Salt Incorporated (ANSI) and, during the winter of 1993--994 operated at full capacity to meet demands for road salt throughout the northeastern United States. The Retsof Mine ceased operations on September 2, 1995, and by December, twenty-one months after the initial collapse, the mine was completely flooded.
Related Materials:
Materials held at the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution Libraries, National Museum of American History
Trade catalogs from International Salt Company Inc., 1900s
Materials held at Other Organizations
Harvard University Archives
Ritasse, William M., 1894-1968. Photographs of Hardvard University campus and environs taken by William M. Ritasse, circa 1930.
Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs
Avery Rock Salt Mining Company, Plan. June 16, 1924 (AKZO No. 7-77-02) - Avery Island Salt Works, Akzo Salt Incorporated, Avery Island, Iberia Parish, LA
Salt Mine Village, Salt Workers' Houses No. 6, Avery Island, Iberia Parish, LA
Avery Island Sugarhouse, Avery Island, Iberia Parish, LA
State Library of Louisiana
Historic Photograph Collection contains images of salt mining at Avery Island, Louisiana.
University of North Carolina, Southern Historical Collection at the Louis Round Wilson Library
Papers for the Avery Family of Louisiana, 1796-1951
Provenance:
Tom Maeder donated the collection on June 13, 2009.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
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 Cultural History Search this
Extent:
1 Cubic foot
18 Videocassettes (VHS)
15 Cassette tapes
38 Videocassettes (Video 8)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Videocassettes (vhs)
Cassette tapes
Videocassettes (video 8)
Videotapes
Oral history
Interviews
Audiotapes
Date:
1992-1993
Summary:
An oral history project that grew out of the exhibit "Go Forth and Serve" which commemorated the 100th anniversary of the drafting of the second Morrill Act, which provided funds for the founding of land grant schools of higher education for black students.
Scope and Contents:
Oral history interviews, on film and audio, on the subject of African American land grant colleges, conducted in conjunction with the exhibition "Go Forth and Serve" at the National Museum of American History in 1990.
Arrangement:
The collection is organized into one series. It is organized alphabetically by the name of college or university that is the subject of the interview.
Biographical / Historical:
"Go Forth and Serve", an exhibition curated by Lonnie Bunch and Spencer Crew, opened in March 1990 at the National Museum of American History to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the drafting of the second Morrill Act, which provided funds for the founding of land grant schools of higher education for black students. The exhibition was co-sponsored by the Department of Agriculture and the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. There was a subsequent newsletter, and oral interviews were conducted.
Provenance:
Collection made by the Smithsonian Institution Division of Cultural History, National Museum of American History.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research. Reference copies must be used. Access and use of audiovisual materials available in the Archives Center reading room.
Rights:
Reproduction may be limited due to intellectual property rights. No releases exist.
Go Forth and Serve: African American Land Grant Colleges Audiovisual Collection, 1992-1993, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution.
Collection consists of photoprints and other materials created by Jacob Jacobson for the "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America" exhibition circulated by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), from April 2000 to early 2004.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of photoprints and other materials created by Jacob Jacobson for the "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America" exhibition circulated by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), from April 2000 to early 2004. The materials are arranged into two series.
Series 1: Iris (Inkjet) Digital Photoprints, dates, consists of eighty six color Iris (inkjet) items. The subjects are primarily individual musicians and craftsmen, although several instrument companies are included, notably the venerable Selmer Company of Elkhart, Indiana, which has manufactured band instruments for many decades. These digital prints were made from Jacobson's 35mm color transparencies (although print number one is monochrome, rather than full color). The prints are from a limited edition of 350, and are signed by the photographer in the lower right beneath the image, and numbered on the lower left. Some prints bears Northlight Atelier blind stamp in the margin and an identifying label with the print number and subject's name is affixed to each print on the verso at the bottom. Most of the prints have an image size of 20" in the long dimension and from approximately 13-1/4" to 14-1/4" on the short side; on heavy, textured archival paper, ranging in size from about 16"x 23" to 19"x 24". Eight larger prints, with image sizes of approximately 21-22" x 31-32" in size, were received matted and in 28" x 40" frames. Some representative image and print sizes are included. Most prints are in one large flat box; prints in the "folder" are stored separately because the paper is slightly too large for the box. The large framed prints are necessarily stored separately and are less accessible.
Series 2: Other Materials, dates, includes a loose-leaf notebook containing inventory of the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Services (SITES) exhibit prints with titles and thumbnail images for identification (except item 55, which is omitted), plus a CD-ROM containing the images in pocket. Note that the images for numbers 81 and 85 in the notebook are reversed. There is also a compact disk in plastic jewel case of the same name ("Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America"), which contains sixty tracks of instrument makers playing their instruments and interviews with some of them. Compact disk in plastic jewel case, "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America; Music and Interviews Recorded Live; Taken from the Book..." (produced by Northlight). Containing music and selected interviews with instrument makers, produced for commercial distribution by Northlight Atelier; 60 tracks. Compact disk in plastic jewel case, "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America; Music and Interviews Recorded Live; Taken from the Book..." (produced by Northlight). Containing music and selected interviews with instrument makers, produced for commercial distribution by Northlight Atelier; 60 tracks.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into two series.
Series 1, Iris (Inkjet) Digital Photoprints
Series 2, Other Materials
Biographical / Historical:
"Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of America" was an exhibition of photographs by Jake Jacobson, circulated by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), from April 2000 to early 2004 to at least fourteen venues. The first site was April 8, 2000, at the Georgia Mountains History Museum, and the last venue for the show was the Elkhart County Historical Museum, Bristol, Indiana, ending April 6, 2004. Selections from the exhibition were on view from June 4 to 8, 2001, in the Rotunda of the Russell Senate Office Building, and it was shown in the Smithsonian's Arts and Industries building, March 2-April 28, 2002.
The field work for the project was begun in 1996, culminating in 1998. "Traveling coast to coast, in an extensive two-year journey across the United States, Jake Jacobson and research collaborator Trisja Malisoff recorded the images, words, and music of over 300 contemporary musical instrument makers. Documenting the diversity of American music, Jacobson's photographs reveal a complex, living tradition-a heritage that draws upon Latin, Native American, European, African and Asian music influences."
Following this project, Jacobson engaged in a related photographic documentation, "Heart & Hands: Musical Instrument Makers of China." He has established a "Heart & Hands Foundation." Music has been an important part of Jacobson's life throughout his career as a photographer, printmaker, and jazz musician. During the mid-1960s he operated a backyard print shop, producing rock concert posters. As an advertising and editorial photographer, he pioneered new techniques for special effects and printmaking. His continuing passion for photographing musical artists is evident in the portraits in the "Heart & Hands" project.
A graduate of Brooks Institute of Photography, Jacobson has taught photography at UCLA and Cypress College in Orange County. A longtime practitioner and teacher of Yoga, he is the owner of the Center for Yoga in Los Angeles. He operated a "state-of-the-art" photography, printmaking, and video production studio, Northlight of Colorado, in the mountains near Telluride, Colorado, before relocating the Northlight Atelier to Santa Barbara, California, in 2003.
Another project of Jacobson's is entitled, "Oh, Baby--Celebrating Birth Rites around the World."
Provenance:
Collection donated by Mr. Jacobson.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Physical Access: Researchers must handle unprotected photographs with gloves.
Technical Access: Do not use original
Rights:
Jake Jocobson retains copyright. 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.
United States Capitol (Washington, D.C.) Search this
Extent:
0.15 Cubic feet (1 box, 16" x 20" x 1")
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Photographs
Place:
Washington (D.C.) -- 1990-2000
Lincoln Memorial (Washington, D.C.)
Date:
1990-1996
Summary:
Black and white photoprints by photographer Craig Sterling, made in the 1990s as part of an ongoing series depicting familiar buildings, monuments, and other sites in Washington, D.C., including the U.S. Capitol, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, and the Arboretum.
Scope and Contents:
The photographs in this collection were made in the 1990s by Craig Sterling as part of an ongoing series depicting familiar buildings, monuments, and other sites in Washington, D.C. These prints are silver gelatin. Nine of them, unmated and unmounted, were made on 16" x 20" with wide margins (actual image sizes are shown below). The other three prints are in window mats, 16" x 16".
Arrangement:
Collection is arranged into one series.
Biographical / Historical:
Craig Sterling is an American art photographer who studied at the Brooks Institute of Photography, Santa Barbara, California. He cites the photography of Ansel Adams, Arnold Newman, and Eugene Atget as having had the greatest influence on his work. Sterling, who works exclusively in black-and-white, using a wide range of equipment, makes his own silver gelatin and pigment prints. He often prefers the square format of Hasselblad cameras. He has maintained a studio at the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria, Virginia since 2001.
His photographs, which display a largely pictorialist style, are in the collections of other institutions, such as the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the National Gallery of Art, and the Oakland Museum. His work has appeared in group exhibitions at the Art League Gallery (Alexandria Virginia), the University of Maine Museum of Art (Bangor, Maine), the Baldwin Photographic Gallery (Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tenn.), the Oakland Museum (Oakland, California), the Philip Weiss Gallery (London), among many others, especially in the Washington and Virginia areas.
His other photographic activities have included teaching at the Art League, Alexandria, Va.; PhotoWorks at Glen Echo Park, Bethesda, Md.; and the Smithsonian Institution Resident Associate Program. He also served as curator for an exhibition, "The Photographs of Alexander Gardner," at the Washington Center for Photography. He has a Web site at http://www.craigsterling.com/.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Craig Sterling
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Contact photographer, Craig Sterling, for reproduction permission. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
The collection documents a working class "gay" bar, the Shamrock Bar, Bluefield, West Virginia, 1997-2000, through photographs and oral history interviews.
Scope and Contents:
The collection consists of Carol Burch-Brown's photographs (200 photoprints, mostly silver gelatin on fiber-base paper, but including more than a dozen digital prints), copies of tape-recorded interviews (on 26 compact discs), and transcripts of interviews (3 volumes plus a compact disc containing Word files) made at the Shamrock Bar, Bluefield, West Virginia, 1997-2002, documenting a working-class gay bar. The photographs include "drag" performances, pageants, and other activities at the bar. Many show performers applying makeup and donning costumes, including the use of prosthetic breasts. Pictures taken in the bar are often in a soft-focus, slightly blurred, high-contrast, impressionistic style. There are a number of sharp-focus portraits, however, and exterior views of the building, its neighborhood, and the town are sharply focused, detailed documentary images.
Names (usually pseudonyms or stage names) which turn up in the interviews include: Natasha Michaels, Nikki Eaves, Shea West, Cortney Collins, Taylor Made, India Dream, Clinton, Tiffany Aver, Terba Devero, Roxie Morehead, and Dorothy. The performer "Bunny" is actually the photographer's friend and colleague, Ann Kilkelly. Many of these persons are also shown in the photographs, as is Helen Compton.
Note: The audio compact disks are not original recordings, and may be played by researchers directly.
Arrangement:
The collection is divided into three series.
Series 1: Photoprints
Series 2: Text (including transcripts of interviews)
Series 3: Compact discs
Biography:
Carol Burch-Brown is Professor of Art and Humanities at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, and is a photographer, painter, and musician. Photographer and co-author with David Rigsbee, Trailers, University Press of Virginia, 1996.
Historical:
During its heyday, the Shamrock Bar in Bluefield, West Virginia was a gathering place for gays and lesbians. The photographer reported in March 2003, before donating this collection, that Miss Helen Compton, proprietor of the Shamrock, had died and the establishment had been closed.
Other Title:
It's Reigning Queens in Appalachia
Provenance:
Colection donated by Carol Burch-Brown, December 2003.
Restrictions:
Collection open for research on site by appointment. Unprotected photographs must be handled with gloves.
Rights:
Reproduction restricted due to copyright. Requests will be referred to the photographer.
The Shamrock Bar: Photographs and Interviews by Carol Burch-Brown, 1997-2003, Archives Center, National Museum of American History. Gift of the artist.
The collection is a set of twenty-four black-and-white silver gelatin prints entitled "Potomac: East and West," by Jan Faul, 1991. They include agricultural landscapes, cemeteries, industrial buildings commercial buildings in rural areas, etc., in the Potomac River region of Washington, D.C., Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. Each image contains a small area hand-colored by the photographer, providing a subtly mysterious, often whimsical or humorous effect.
Scope and Contents:
The collection is a set of twenty-four black-and-white silver gelatin prints entitled "Potomac: East and West," and is number six in an edition of forty five. The photographs all were taken in 1991 and the prints were made shortly thereafter. The photographs are basically somewhat romantic documentary images of locales in Washington, D.C., Virginia, Maryland, and West Virginia, including landscapes and industrial settings, interiors and exteriors, some of which are apparently abandoned. Human figures are seen only incidentally in several images. Each print has a small area hand colored by the artist, usually adding subtle humor and/or a hint of mystery. The titles are brief and geographical, and the set is numbered I to XII and XIV to XXV; there is no number XIII, the artist was careful to point out.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into one series. Sequence arranged by artist: numbered I-XII, XIV-XXV (no number XIII).
Biographical / Historical:
Jan Faul was born in Port Chester, New York in 1945. His family moved frequently, living in Washington, D.C., New York, Boston, Denver, Toronto, Strasbourg, and Bern, Switzerland. In Bern he received his first camera as a gift for his fourteenth birthday. He returned to the United States and completed high school in Washington.
In his late teens Faul met Roy Stryker, legendary director of the Farm Security Administration documentary photography project, who suggested that he spend time looking at photographs in the Library of Congress which he did, concentrating on the F.S.A. files. Influenced by his artist parents, Faul studied art history and graphics in college, hoping to become a printmaker, but had begun to support himself with photography by the time he graduated from The George Washington University in 1969.
The "immediacy" of photography and other aesthetic considerations in addition to the financial ones finally led to Faul's abandonment of printmaking and commitment to photography. Since 1970 he has been a self employed photographer, working in landscape, still life, and portraiture. He documented the lives of poor people in the U.S. from July 1970 to March 1971 for the Office of Economic Opportunity. In summer 1971 he photographed scenes of rural poverty for the Appalachian Regional Commission. A grant from the Upjohn Institute for American Labor Studies in 1974 supported his photographic documentation of American workers and changing work habits. In the summer of 1975 he worked for the Smithsonian, portraying the locksmen and pilots of the St. Lawrence Seaway. Further grants and contracts for documentary photography followed, including the 1976 Smithsonian Festival of American Folklife.
Faul moved to Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1979, and there worked on commercial accounts for Esso, Polaroid, and others, while continuing to pursue a variety of personal photographic projects. He returned to the Washington, D.C., area a decade later.
The photographer's career has included commercial work and contractual documentary projects, as well as the sale of photographic prints as art to private collectors and sales and donations to institutions. Fourteen photographs were donated to the Division of Photographic History of this Museum in 1970, and his work is in the collections of the Royal Museum of Art in Denmark, The Library of Congress, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, George Eastman House, the Toledo Museum of Art, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the Oakland Museum, and others. He has received a number of awards, and has been included in a number of group and solo exhibitions. He has received an artist's residency at Yaddo for 1992 1993.
Additional biographical information, including a bibliography, is on file in the Archives Center.
Provenance:
Collection donated by Jan Faul, November 13, 1991.
Restrictions:
Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
Rights:
Use and copyright restrictions: all rights retained by the artist. The Museum may exhibit and reproduce photographs in its publications, but cannot make copies or authorize reproduction by others. Contact artist for reproduction arrangements.
The records of the DC Cowboys Dance Company, an all-male, gay, non-profit dance company based in Washington, DC. that was active from 1994-2012. They peformed nationally and internationally live and on television, "celebrating diversity through dance."
Scope and Contents:
The DC Cowboys Dance Company Records contain the business and financial papers of the company, such as memoranda and correspondence; choreography routines; printed materials such as press releases and articles; fundraising materials; photographs; audiovisual materials; and the pre-recorded music used for their various dance routines. The records are arranged chronologically in three series.
Series 1: Company Files, 1994-2013, undated, is arranged chronologically by year and maintains the original order received from the donor. The files cover the entire life of the company and its peformances within the United States as well as internationally. The files contain correspondence, contracts, dance routines, fundraising initiatives, event information and advertising materials, travel and lodging arrangements, tourist information, and photographs.
Series 2: Financial, 1996-2011, undated, is arranged chronologically. The files contain receipts, money receipt books, financial statements, balance sheets and those materials related to the financial aspect of running the company.
Series 3: Audiovisual, 1994-2012, undated, contains compact discs (189) of pre-recorded music used for the company's various dance routines. The music was prepared for each booking and most often identified with the title of the booking and the date. Much of the music on these discs is under copyright since they are recordings done by original artists or professional covers of songs that were contemporary with the company's performance during any given year. There are also DVDs (five) detailing the production of varous fund raising DC Cowboys calendars and one audio cassette tape.
Arrangement:
This collection is divided into three series.
Series 1: Company Files, 1994-2013, undated
Series 2: Financial, 1996-2011, undated
Series 3: Audiovisual, 1994-2012, undated
Biographical / Historical:
"History of the DC Cowboys Dance Company - Celebrating diversity through dance"
The DC Cowboys Dance Company, an all-male, gay dance company, entertained audiences around the world from 1994 to 2012. Internationally acclaimed, the DC Cowboys specialized in providing exciting, high-energy, jazz-style, dance entertainment which spanned all musical genres, from contemporary country to club dance party, pop, to classic Broadway numbers for all types of occasions. Shows were customized to the venue—both gay-specific and mainstream events—and featured anywhere from one song to multiple sets of three to four songs each. Combining a little traditional country-western with jazz, musical theater and a masculine sex appeal, the DC Cowboys' high-energy choreography made the company one of the most-sought after gay dance groups in the world.
Founder and Artistic Director Kevin Platte started the dance company in August 1994 after seeing a similar gay, country-western dance group in California. Platte recruited 11 dancers—mostly friends—from a Washington, D.C., gay, country-western bar named Remington's. He approached the best dancers based on watching them two-step and line-dance at the bar. The dancers formed the troupe for the sole purpose of performing at the Atlantic States Gay Rodeo Association's (ASGRA) annual rodeo in Washington, D.C., in September 1994.
Platte thought the performance would be a one-time event. But based on an overwhelming reception, the dancers decided to continue the group. This required weekly rehearsals, the creation of a dance "repertoire" and a larger commitment from the dancers. Of the original 12 members, only six were up to the task. These six original members then had to find more dancers and identify other performance venues. Mainstay venues soon included the Capital Pride Festival every June and the Atlantic Stampede Gay Rodeo event every September.
In September 1995, Metro Weekly placed them on the cover of their magazine, giving them greater exposure and more clout. The Cowboys used this coverage as a catalyst to build the brand and identity. All the while, the DC Cowboys remained volunteers and amateurs, performing solely for the love of it. Each dancer maintained a "day job," and the group only rehearsed in the evenings once or twice a week. As the warmer months seemed to be their busiest, the dancers would use the colder months to build up the repertoire and practice. Every year, rehearsals would cease for the months of November and December for the existing dancers. However new recruits that were successful in the annual auditions attended "bootcamp" rehearsals during those months to learn some of the existing repertoire. In January, the existing and new members started rehearsing together as the new season began.
During the early years, the dancers paid for all expenses out of their own pockets, and monthly dues were collected to pay for group expenses. The group would often pay for the opportunity to perform. To supplement these expenses, the group began fundraising through a monthly bar night at different gay nightclubs. Once their reputation grew, venues and events began to pay for the company's entertainment services and patron club members donated funds to support the organization and their mission. These funds allowed the organization to pay for all of their expenses including dancer costuming. In addition, the group sold merchandise which included T-shirts, performance DVDs as well as their sexy DC Cowboys calendars. Three of the more popular calendars featured the dancers without clothes in artistic poses and included the "making of the calendar" DVD.
In 1996, Platte added a charitable element to the organization. He created a mission statement which said the company would provide free entertainment to any HIV/AIDS charitable organization. Over the years, the company also directly raised funds for HIV/AIDS organizations by sharing the profits of their calendar sales. The DC Cowboys raised millions of dollars through performances for national and local non-profit organizations such as:
Washington, D.C. AIDS Ride; Washington, D.C. AIDS Walk; Chase Brexton Clinic of Baltimore, Maryland; Northern Virginia AIDS Ministry; Human Rights Campaign; Whitman Walker Clinic of Washington, D.C.; Food and Friends of Washington, D.C.; Mautner Project; Gay Latino Benefits in Metro D.C.; Harford County AIDS/Cancer Benefit, Maryland; NYFD Benefit for the New York City Fire Department.
In 1996, the company received a grant from the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts, honoring the company for its valued contribution to the Washington, D.C. arts community. The company always maintained a tax-deductible status as a 501c3 non-profit organization with a small board of directors.
During their 18-year tenure, the DC Cowboys provided an outlet for gay artists and performers in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. The company included 85 dancers, eight choreographers and three stage-managers. The company performed at 458 events in five countries. The DC Cowboys' crowd-pleasing, sexy dance style had been described as "Will Rogers Follies meets Bob Fosse." The group famously described themselves on America's Got Talent in 2008 as "Think Brokeback meets Broadway," which became a popular line echoed around the world. Their growth and popularity were attributed to their unique and high quality entertainment which was often copied in other cities but never equalled. In addition the dancers were talented, good-looking men who were friendly and approachable to their many fans. Their farewell season tour in 2012 visited all of their favorite performance venues and locations around the world and was dedicated to their fans who were instrumental to their success.
Typical performance venues included Pride Festivals in New York City, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Charlotte, North Carolina; Headliners on the Gay Rodeo circuit in Washington, D.C., Las Vegas, San Diego, Atlanta, Chicago, Calgary, and Texas; Halloween in New Orleans; Mr. Gay All-American Finals; Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, Washington, D.C., concerts and events; Whitman Walker Volunteer Appreciation at Constitution Hall, Washington, D.C.; PFLAG's Gala Dinner, Washington, D.C.; HRC (Human Rights Campaign) Leadership Dinner cruise aboard the Spirit of Washington, Washington, D.C.; Human Rights Campaign National Dinner, Washington, D.C. - special reception for major donors; Annual Chef's Best Dinner & Auction for Food and Friends, Washington, D.C..
Performance highlights included America's Got Talent television show, season 3, NBC, semifinalists (2008); Closing Ceremonies of the Gay Games VII at Wrigley Field in Chicago (2006); RSVP's Caribbean Fantasy gay cruise (2005); Arts grant recipient from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts (1996);The Sziget Festival in Budapest, Hungary (2009--012); Dales' Great Getaway television show, ITV London, England (2012); The Podge and Rodge television show, RTE, Dublin, Ireland (2010)."
Source
This history of the DC Cowboys Dance Company was supplied by its founder, Kevin Platte.
Provenance:
The collection was donated by Kevin P. Platte, founder and Artistic and Executive Director of DC Cowboys Dance Company in 2013.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research use. Gloves must be worn when handling unprotected photographs, negatives, and slides.
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. Fees for commercial reproduction.
United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration Search this
Extent:
0.36 Cubic feet ((1 letter box))
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Newsletters
Correspondence
Notes
Charts
Photographs
Motion pictures (visual works)
Reports
Drawings
Articles
Place:
Outer space -- Exploration -- United States
Date:
bulk 1959-1970
Scope and Contents:
This collection consists of material chronicling the NACA/NASA career of Dennis Hasson, notably his work on Project Mercury, his work with a lenticular manned reentry vehicle for planned lunar missions; and his work with deep-space probes. The following type of material is included: Langley NASA newsletters; memos and correspondence; phone lists and organizational charts; newspaper articles; photographs; one 16 mm film of wind tunnel testing; reports; and drawings.
Biographical / Historical:
Dennis Hasson received his Mechanical Engineering BES from The John Hopkins University, his Aerospace Engineering MS from Virginia Polytechnic Institute, and his Engineering Material Ph.D. from the University of Maryland. Hasson worked at NACA-NASA at Langley Research Center, as well as the Goddard Space Flight Center. Hasson's work started with experimental aerodynamic studies on advanced aircraft, such as the X-15 and Mach 3 transport. In March 1959, Hasson was assigned to the Aerodynamics Group at Langley Field. That group was responsible for the aerodynamic performance of the manned space vehicle in the earth's atmosphere. Hasson was responsible for the wind-tunnel program for the Mercury project and he and two coworkers received a patent for a manned reentry vehicle for planned lunar missions. In 1961, he became involved in advanced control thruster and power systems for deep-space probes, using advanced materials including fabricators and metallic, polymeric and ceramic materials. He is a Fellow of both ASM international and ASME Internal. He received the Meritorious Civilian Service Medal, and was Pi Tau Sigma USNA Chapter Teacher of the Year. He is currently a Professor at the US Naval Academy in the Mechanical Engineering Department.
Provenance:
Dennis F. Hasson, Gift, 2004
Restrictions:
No restrictions on access.
Rights:
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual records or born digital records with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
Collection Rights:
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:
Jimmy Hedges papers and Rising Fawn Folk Art Gallery records, 1969-2016, bulk 1991-2013. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Use of original papers requires an appointment. Use of archival audiovisual records or born digital records with no duplicate access copy requires advance notice.
Collection Rights:
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:
Jimmy Hedges papers and Rising Fawn Folk Art Gallery records, 1969-2016, bulk 1991-2013. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Ann Moore is the inventor of the Snugli baby carrier and Air Lift oxygen carrier. The collection contains original, master, and reference videos, audiocassette recordings, and transcripts documenting Moore's inventive career.
Scope and Contents:
This collection contains 5.5 hours of original BetaCam SP recordings, 5.5 hours of master video copies, 5.5 hours of reference copies, 5.5 hours of audiocassette recordings, transcripts, and articles documenting the life and work of Ann Moore, inventor of the Snugli baby carrier and Air Lift oxygen carrier. The recordings include a presentation by Ann and Mike Moore for the Lemelson Center's Innovative Lives Program. Audience participants include students from Seven Locks Elementary School in Bethesda, Maryland; Burrville Elementary School in Washington, D.C.; Barrett Elementary School in Arlington, Virginia; and Jefferson Junior High School in Washington, D.C. Ann Moore's interview includes footage of her home in Colorado and discussions with users of the Air Lift oxygen carrier and Weego baby carrier.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged into five series.
Series 1: Original videos, 1999
Series 2: Master videos, 1999
Series 3: Audiocassettes, 1999
Series 4: Reference videos, 1999
Series 5: Supplemental documentation, 1999
Biographical / Historical:
Ann Moore was born in 1940 in a small Ohio farming community and studied pediatric nursing at the University of Cincinnati. She joined the Peace Corps in 1962 as part of a medical team and was sent to Togo. She met her husband Mike Moore during training. While in Togo, Ann Moore noticed that most women tied their babies onto their backs with a long piece of fabric, which made the babies more content. Back in Colorado, Moore wanted to carry her newborn daughter Mandela in the same way. With the assistance of her mother, Lucy Aukerman, Moore designed the first Snugli baby carrier in 1969 (US Patent 3,481,517). She patented the Snugli in 1984 (US Patent 4,434,920). Snugli, Inc. grew from a small company where each Snugli was handmade by Aukerman and her neighbors to a large company with an international presence and a factory in Colorado. In 1985 Ann and Mike Moore sold Snugli, Inc. to Gerico, a Huffy Company. In 1986 Ann invented Air Lift, a soft mesh backpack oxygen carrier so people on oxygen could be more mobile (US Patent 4,739,913).
Ann and Mike Moore became disappointed in how Gerico had simplified the Snugli design so it could be manufactured less expensively so in 1999 the Moores launched Weego, a soft baby carrier similar to the original Snugli. The Weego has some modern improvements, including an adjustable buckle around the top of the carrier instead of pin tucks.
The Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation was founded in 1995 at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History through a generous gift from the Lemelson Foundation. The Center's mission is to document, interpret, and disseminate information about invention and innovation; to encourage inventive creativity in young people; and to foster an appreciation for the central role invention and innovation plays in the history of the United States. The Innovative Lives series brings together Museum visitors and especially school age children, and American inventors to discuss inventions and the creative process and to experiment and play with hands-on activities related to each inventor's product. This collection was recorded by the Innovative Lives Program of the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation.
Provenance:
This collection was recorded by the Innovative Lives Program of the Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation on October 15, 1999.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research use.
Rights:
Copyright held by the Smithsonian Institution. Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Reproduction permission from Archives Center: reproduction fees may apply.
The papers of African American painter and art administrator Betty Blayton-Taylor measure 7.1 linear feet and date from 1929 to 2016, with the bulk of the material dating from the 1970s to the 2000s. The collection contains biographical material including resumes, awards, family papers, autograph books from her time in school, and mix tapes; correspondence with colleagues, friends, and other artists including Frank Wimberley, Howardina Pindell, and Eugene Grigsby; and writings including artist statements and notes. Also included are files related to the Children's Art Carnival, an arts education organization co-founded by Blayton-Taylor, for which she served as executive director for many years. These files include board and committee files, budget and financial documents, correspondence, and reports. Files related to the Harlem Textile Works, another organization co-founded by Blayton-Taylor, include board and committee files, correspondence, business plans, and reports. The collection also includes material related to professional activities including exhibition files, committee files, consignment and sale agreements, financial documents, and property files; printed material including exhibition announcements, catalogs and programs, newspaper clippings, published books, and recorded conference proceedings; a scrapbook containing primarily clippings, as well as some correspondence and other printed material; and photographic material including photographs, negatives, slides, and digital images.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of African American painter and art administrator Betty Blayton-Taylor measure 7.1 linear feet and date from 1929 to 2016, with the bulk of the material dating from the 1970s to the 2000s. The collection contains biographical material including resumes, awards, family papers, autograph books from her time in school, and mix tapes; correspondence with colleagues, friends, and other artists including Frank Wimberley, Howardina Pindell, and Eugene Grigsby; and writings including artist statements and notes. Also included are files related to the Children's Art Carnival, an arts education organization co-founded by Blayton-Taylor, for which she served as executive director for many years. These files include board and committee files, budget and financial documents, correspondence, and reports. Files related to the Harlem Textile Works, another organization co-founded by Blayton-Taylor, include board and committee files, correspondence, business plans, and reports. The collection also includes material related to professional activities including exhibition files, committee files, consignment and sale agreements, financial documents, and property files; printed material including exhibition announcements, catalogs and programs, newspaper clippings, published books, and recorded conference proceedings; a scrapbook containing primarily clippings, as well as some correspondence and other printed material; and photographic material including photographs, negatives, slides, and digital images.
Arrangement:
This collection is arranged as nine series.
Series 1: Biographical Material, 1929, 1937-1938, 1951-2014 (Box 1, OV 8; 0.6 linear feet)
Series 2: Correspondence, 1952, 1968-2016 (Boxes 1-2, 0.7 linear feet)
Series 3: Writings, 1978, circa 1990s-2000s (Box 2, 0.2 linear feet)
Series 4: Children's Art Carnival, 1968-2011 (Boxes 2-3, 1.1 linear feet)
Series 5: Harlem Textile Works, 1983-2012 (Box 3, 0.3 linear feet)
Series 6: Professional Activities, 1967-2013 (Boxes 3-4, 0.4 linear feet)
Series 7: Printed Material, 1967-2015 (Boxes 4-5, OV 8; 1.3 linear feet)
Series 8: Scrapbook, 1965-2009 (Box 5, 1 folder)
Series 9: Photographic Material, 1954-2000s (Boxes 5-7, OV 8; 2.5 linear feet)
Biographical / Historical:
Betty Blayton-Taylor (1937-2016) was an African American artist and art administrator in New York, New York.
Born and raised in Virginia, Blayton-Taylor attended Palmer Memorial Institute, a private boarding school in North Carolina. She earned a bachelor's degree in fine art from Syracuse University and continued her studies at the Art Students League of New York and the Brooklyn Museum School.
Betty Blayton-Taylor was a founding member of the Studio Museum in Harlem and served on the board from 1965 to 1977. She co-founded the Children's Art Carnival, an organization designed to engage disadvantaged youth in the arts, and served as executive director from 1969 until 1998. Blayton-Taylor also co-founded and served on the board of Harlem Textile Works, which grew out of the Children's Art Carnival and offered fabric design workshops and other arts education. She also served on boards of other organizations, including the Robert Blackburn Printmaking Workshop and the Arts and Business Council in New York City, and worked as an arts education consultant.
In addition to her dedication to arts education organizations, Blayton-Taylor exhibited in both solo and group shows across the country. Her work is included in collections of institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Studio Museum in Harlem. She died in 2016 in the Bronx, New York.
Related Materials:
The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library also holds the Children's Art Carnival Records, 1971-1995.
Provenance:
The Betty Blayton-Taylor papers were donated in 2018 by Oscar Blayton, Betty Blayton-Taylor's brother and executor.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Researchers interested in accessing born-digital records or audiovisual recordings in this collection must use access copies. Contact Reference Services for more information.
Rights:
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.
Occupation:
Arts administrators -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Painters -- New York (State) -- New York Search this
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, Brent Heath Garden Photography Collection.
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, Brent Heath Garden Photography Collection.
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, Brent Heath Garden Photography Collection.
Access to original archival materials by appointment only. Researcher must submit request for appointment in writing. Certain items may be restricted and not available to researchers. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Rights:
Archives of American Gardens encourages the use of its archival materials for non-commercial, educational and personal use under the fair use provision of U.S. copyright law. Use or copyright restrictions may exist. It is incumbent upon the researcher to ascertain copyright status and assume responsibility for usage. All requests for duplication and use must be submitted in writing and approved by Archives of American Gardens. Please direct reference inquiries to the Archives of American Gardens: aag@si.edu.
Collection Citation:
Smithsonian Institution, Archives of American Gardens, Brent Heath Garden Photography Collection.
