In 1944, the DC Public Library purchased photographer E.B. Thompson’s collection of images of Washington, DC. This collection included more than 1,800 lantern slides and glass plate negatives.

Starting in 1946 the DC Public Library contracted with the Library of Congress to create 8×10 black and white prints on mounts from his collection of slides and negatives. The prints are now part of the Washington, DC, Historical Image Collection in the Washingtoniana Division.

The strength of this collection lies “in its images of federal buildings, the Arlington National Cemetery, federal memorials, national parades, historic houses, and street scenes.” DCPL’s collection is very rich in photographs of historic buildings and national monuments. However, there is a notable amount of images of people and street scenes, too.

DCPL held a very exciting “Then and Now” Commons-themed contest. Please be sure to view the winning entry here.

The DC Public Library’s photostream consists of eight sets. Two of these sets represent photographs taken by E.B. Thompson. There is a total of 306 photographs in these two sets.

From the set “All Uploaded E.B. Thompson Photos” is this photograph of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery, ca 1925.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

There is a set of second batch of E.B. Thompson photos in which there is a “Canoe Race!”

Canoe Race!

This photograph of the of the Library of Congress (ca. 1900) is from the “Buildings” set.

Library of Congress

Also, from the “Buildings” set is this photograph of the north lawn of the White House, taken ca. 1860.

White House

The “Department of Agriculture” set is comprised of views of the old and new Department of Agriculture buildings. This is the “Exterior view of the old Agriculture building” taken ca. 1900.

Exterior view of the old Agriculture building

There is a set of “Color Images” within DCPL’s photostream. But many other color images appear in other DC Public Library sets, too. Here is a fine photograph entitled “Great Falls,” a view of Great Falls on the Potomac River.

Great Falls

The “Portraits & People” set consists of many fine portrait photographs from the E.B. Thompson Collection. Here is one of them, which is the “Portrait of John Alexander Joyce,” taken ca. 1910. John Alexander Joyce (1842-1915) was enlisted in the Union army at the beginning of the Civil War and received a promotion to the rank of colonel.

Portrait of John Alexander Joyce

One of DCPL’s sets consists of 18 photographs of Arlington National Cemetery. This photograph shows a view of graves in the Civil War section of the cemetery. Unknown soldiers are marked with small cube shaped markers, while known soldiers have standard sized markers. All soldiers in the Civil War section fought for the North.

View of graves in the Civil War section of Arlington National Cemetery

This photograph of the Taft Inauguration is housed in three sets, which are “Color Image,” “Portraits & People,” and “All Uploaded E.B. Thompson Photos.” President William Howard Taft and his wife Helen appear during the inaugural parade on March 4, 1909, during a snow storm.

Taft Inauguration

“This is my relative. She also went by the name of Flossie. She was Chappaquiddick Wampanoag …” –wealthywamp

Almira West Williams

“This is my husband’s Grandmother … She passed away when my husband was young …” –sewcrazzed

Arline Wilma Preston

“I lived in the apartment just upstairs… just above where she is pointing …” –nippyfish

Mitchell’s Book Corner

“My brother and I worked behind the soda counter for many summers …” –natkg

Congdon’s Pharmacy, c. 1910s

Happy anniversary, Nantucket! And if you, reading this, or yours are from Nantucket or passed through, take a moment to find your history in the Commons!

We celebrate the 1st anniversary of Oregon State University Archives this weekend! OSU still holds the celebrated spot of being the only university participating in The Commons (but there’s more to come in the year ahead). With a little over 270,000 views on all of their photos, they have much to cheer about!

As both part of their Commonsversary celebration and the 2010 Winter Olympics, they’ve uploaded a new set of images, OSU Olympians. Pictured here is OSU athlete Dick Fosbury winning the 1968 Olympic high jump in Mexico City (and setting a record at the time!).

Dick Fosbury

A mainstay of the OSU’s Commons material is from the the Gerald W. Williams Collection, consisting of the collected historical photographs, personal papers, and research library of Gerald “Jerry” Williams, former national historian for the U.S. Forest Service. There is a treasure trove of Pacific Northwest images in this collection; these are an important record of the history of the state of Oregon.

Gerald W. Williams Collection

One of the newest sets in this collection, in time for their 1st birthday on The Commons, contains a wealth of trains and railroad photographs. Workers, logs, trains, bridges – oh my! If you’re near their campus on Monday, Feb. 15, 2010, drop by to see all they have to offer from the Commons, in the lobby of the Valley Library; It’ll be on the big jumbo screen Smartboard for a day-long slideshow!

Railroads & Trains

One of the earliest and most popular sets of photos OSU Archives uploaded to The Commons is that of the Civilian Conservation Corps. Created by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as a part of the New Deal during the 1930s, the CCC was responsible for building much of the infrastructure of the Pacific Northwest. Enrollees fought fires on the Tillamook Burns, helped build ski areas on Mt Hood, built telephone and electrical wires, and improved farm lands.

Civilian Conservation Corps

More great photos of infrastructure being built is found in the Celilo Falls set. The images of this dam being built on the Columbia River are thrilling.

Celilo Falls

My absolute favorite collection of theirs is Take a Trip: traveling and touring with the Visual Instruction Lantern Slides Collection. There’s so much great material here, from historical and iconic images of great rails like the Shasta and Sunset Routes to images of the The Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition. Their sets on Oregon industry are a great look back to how we worked and lived in the 20th Century while Early Settlement of Oregon takes you back to centuries prior.

Take a Trip!

And no matter what time of the year you drop into the OSU on the Commons, you’ll find something timely, in their Through the Seasons set. Here’s to another happy winter … spring, summer, and fall!

Through the Seasons

The images – both photographs and film clips – included in the Flickr Commons are part of the Florida Memory Project. This project provides Internet access to primary records of important events in Florida’s history, as well as educational resources for students of all ages. Please enjoy with us some highlights of the collection on Flickr …

Florida’s history has been marked by hurricanes. The images in this set date from 1896 to 2005, showing the devastation, tragedy, and triumphs of spirit the state has experienced after enduring so many storms. Hurricane Ivan was the strongest hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. It made landfall on the U.S. mainland in Gulf Shores, Alabama on September 16, as a Category 3.

Waves hit Navarre Pier hard during Hurricane Ivan’s approach: Navarre Beach, Florida

The Florida Folklife Collection is comprised of a selection of images that represents the work of the Florida Folklife Program. The program, consisting of 88 individual series, documents the performances by, interviews with, and fieldwork surveys of folk musicians, artisans, storytellers, folklife interpreters, and other Florida peoples and their traditions.

Members of Carver School dancing at the 1959 Florida Folk Festival: White Springs, Florida

Happy Commonsversary, Florida!

But here at Indicommons, our heart is with the NLNZ on Flickr, and here are some of the ways …

Panoramas

House and grounds of R H Edie, Edievale, Otago, between 1923-1928

Stereographs!

Photographer and assistant, with a camera, between 1902-1922

Celebration of the end of a war

New Zealand soldiers and civilians in London at the end of World War I, 1918

Views of Antarctica

Photographer: Herbert Ponting

… and all the people and places of New Zealand.

Wairoa Geyser, Whakarewarewa, 1908

Robert Louis Stevenson’s birthday party, at Vailima, ca 1893

Huge sunfish thrown up on beach at Awatuna, near Hokitika, ca 1910

Close-up view of a Port Chalmers wharf and ships loading, 1870s

A sampling of their images so far — to be viewed with or without a side of poutine, as you see fit (and BTW: yes, there’s a whole Flickr group dedicated to images of poutine):

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Their most popular image is this dramatic train wreck, from the set “Views of Canada – Vues du Canada (1858-1935) “

Collision between two engines, Bay of Quinte Railway, ON, 1892

Many of the images in this set, as well as the museum’s collection as a whole, are from William Notman’s Montreal. He and his sons documented Canadian life and people from 1856 to 1936.

Views of Canada – Vues du Canada (1858-1935)

In 1956, McGill University purchased the historic collection of the William Notman & Son studio, housing it in the McCord Museum of Canadian History, forming the Notman Photographic Archives.

Views of Montreal – Vues de Montréal (1863-1925)

There is hockey!

Being Irish O’Quebec – Irlandais O’Québec

Views as long as the day …

View from Signal Hill, St. John’s, NL, about 1900

And truly remarkable images of Canada’s First Peoples.

Royal Tour: Aboriginal women and children, Vancouver, BC, 1901

Cheers to you, Musée McCord — may your 2nd year be as fulfilling in The Commons as your first!

Rustico Beach, PE, 1916 (?)

The State Library of New South Wales’ major subject strengths are Australian history, culture and literature, including Aboriginal studies, Antarctic exploration, family history and genealogy, business and management, social sciences, applied science, biography, health and law.

It’s more than fitting to start the celebration with the Library’s very own Happy Birthday set, featuring the amazing photography of Sam Hood.

Happy Birthday

They opened their collection with a series of images of libraries of yore in NSW, to provide ideas and inspiration for New South Wales public library staff who are planning changes to their libraries. These images will help with plans for renovations and rebuilding.

Libraries, galleries and museums

Possibly one of their most recognized Commons images are from the set Bondi Jitterbug: George Caddy and his Camera. This photo was taken by Ted Hood, Sam’s son.

Bondi Jitterbug

These iconic Sam Hood images are of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the world’s largest steel arch bridge.

Sydney Harbour Bridge

The Library also has an extensive collection of children in their catalog – especially this heartbreaker from the Depression.

Australian children

An absolute must is their historic Antarctic exploration series of images.

First Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911-1914)

And you know, they also have some of the cutest animal photos to be found in the Commons. Got milk?

Pets and other animals

We’ve barely touched the surface of their impressive collection, so hop over and join in the fun by tagging, commenting, and researching their collection! They’ve over 1,000,000 views on their ~500 photos, which is pretty darned impressive, and we look forward to seeing what their second year in the Commons brings them.

Hip Hip Hoorah and Happy Commonsversary to the State Library of New South Wales!

The National Photography Collection held at the Museum is one of the finest and most extensive anywhere in the world. It encompasses many significant groups of material, including the Science Museum’s Photography Collection, The Royal Photographic Society Collection, the holdings of the former Kodak Museum and the picture library of the former Daily Herald newspaper.

Their most popular set on Flickr contains spirit photographs by William Hope. Hope was a medium who founded a group comprised of six spirit photographers known as the “Crewe Circle.”

The spirit photographs of William Hope

When Hope was exposed as a fraudster, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle remained a loyal supporter of his.

The spirit photographs of William Hope

Another popular set contains charming circular Kodak snapsnots from the late 1800s. The introduction of the Kodak camera revolutionized photography by virtue of how easy it suddenly became to capture memories.

Kodak No.1 Circular Snapshot

A unique set of 20 photogravures from Peter Henry Emerson, again late 1800s, illustrates the rich historical archives that the NMeM shares through its Flickr photostream.

Peter Henry Emerson – Images from ‘Pictures From Life in Field and Fen’

Another beautiful photograph from this set demonstrates the power of the Commons; a commenter was able to supply location data for this image.

Peter Henry Emerson – Images from ‘Pictures From Life in Field and Fen’

Another favorite set includes images from Charles Darwin’s The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals, a book we covered in detail earlier on this blog.

Human Expressions

Last, a fun set they were inspired to create from an exhibit they held on anthromorphology! The National Media Museum: diverse, humorous, and engaging. HAPPY COMMONSVERSARY!

Snapping Dogs