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Vintage photos of:
Our holdings include hundreds of glass and film negatives/transparencies that we've scanned ourselves; in addition, many other photos on this site were extracted from reference images (high-resolution tiffs) in the Library of Congress research archive. (To query the database click here.) They are adjusted, restored and reworked by your webmaster in accordance with his aesthetic sensibilities before being downsized and turned into the jpegs you see here. All of these images (including "derivative works") are protected by copyright laws of the United States and other jurisdictions and may not be sold, reproduced or otherwise used for commercial purposes without permission.
[REV 25-NOV-2014]
Our third look at that circa 1917 car wreck at Massachusetts Avenue and 21st Street N.W. in Washington. As with so many of these old glass negatives, mold is colonizing the thicker parts of the emulsion. The result is an accident scene that looks like it's been dusted with flour. National Photo Company. View full size.
Washington circa 1917. Shoomaker's saloon at 1311 E Street N.W. after having moved from 1331 E Street in late 1914. National Photo Company glass negative. View full size. Thanks to Quondam Washington for the inspiration.
"Auto wreck. December 31, 1923." Looking for the car hauled up in the previous post. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.
"Auto wreck. December 31, 1923." Continuing this week's theme of vehicular mishaps on (and off) the roads of Washington, D.C. On New Year's Eve, this car was in the drink. See the comments for details about this fatal accident in the Tidal Basin. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.
Washington, D.C. "Fire at Thomas Somerville plant, July 20, 1926." 312 13th Street N.W. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.
Washington circa 1924. "Union Garage." The Union Building on G Street, venue for the 1917 Auto Show. In July 1917 it was taken over by the Semmes Motor Company, offering 24-hour repair service as well as showrooms for Dodge and Hudson cars. National Photo Company glass negative. View full size.
New York, 1920. Ms. Young returns, piloting a less imposing conveyance but still with a gleam in her eye. 5x7 glass negative, G.G. Bain Collection. View full size.
New York, 1920. "Young." One of dozens of photos of Ms. Young in the Bain archive. 5x7 glass negative, George Grantham Bain Collection. View full size.
"Auto wreck, Mass. Ave., Washington circa 1917." A comment on our earlier post of this accident correctly pegged the location as Massachusetts Avenue at 21st Street N.W. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.
"Auto wreck, Washington, circa 1917." D.C. license plate number for this car: 26. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.
"J.F. Campbell, Anacostia, decorated with American flags." Circa 1918, another patriotically attired hardware store in Washington's Anacostia neighborhood. Check out the Mad Hatter. National Photo glass negative. View full size.
"Nichols Avenue and U Street S.E." Storefronts in Washington's Anacostia section put on a patriotic display circa 1918. The hardware store on the corner, at 1919, was run by one William Ira Mushake. Nat'l. Photo glass negative. View full size.
The Belle Isle Park Aquarium in Detroit circa 1908. Its cavernous spaces and glass viewports afforded aquatic life a fascinating peek at the bipedal terrestrial creatures known as homo sapiens. 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.
The Minneapolis Public Library circa 1900-1906. This 1884 Romanesque Revival building, designed by Long and Kees, was razed in the 1950s and is now a parking lot. Detroit Publishing Company glass negative. View full size.
December 1955, Calpella, California. My paternal grandmother, born 1882 in Murialdo, Italy; me, born 1946 in San Rafael, California. Kodachrome slide by my brother. View full size.