Photographic
Negatives by Harris & Ewing, Inc.
Collection digitized? Generally, no. A selected
image is included here to give a sample of the collection.
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The Harris & Ewing, Inc. Collection of photographic negatives
includes glass and film negatives taken by Harris & Ewing,
Inc., which provide excellent coverage of Washington people,
events, and architecture, during the period 1905-1945. Harris & Ewing,
Inc., gave its collection of negatives to the Library in 1955.
The Library retained about 50,000 news photographs and 20,000
studio portraits of notable people. Approximately 28,000 negatives
have been processed and are available for printing. (About
42,000 negatives still need to be
indexed.)
Patrons approaching this collection should be aware that there
are no corresponding prints or copies of any sort to aid patrons
in their selection of negatives. Images must, therefore,
be ordered "sight unseen" on the basis of descriptions in the indexes. In addition,
some deterioration of the negatives --such as broken glass negatives and flaking
emulsion -- has been observed. As negatives are pulled for Photoduplication Service
requests, they will be reviewed by staff. Patrons are, thus, forewarned that
some negatives may be deemed too fragile and "unprintable" by the Photoduplication
Service or by P&P's
preservation staff.
Finding images in the negative collection is a two-step
process:
Step 1: Consult indexes to find images and their negative
numbers. These are located in notebooks with the Division's Finding Aids and
include:
- A) Portrait & Subject Index, wherein negatives are listed by biographical
name and subject
- B) News Index, wherein negatives are listed by event and biographical
name (some building names also appear here) . Please note that this index
is not complete; there is a large gap between the entries for "Slave
Reunion" and "Witherspoon." Negatives for subjects in this
gap are not available.
- C) Franklin Delano Roosevelt Index, wherein negatives
are listed by date.
Note: Patrons are advised to check both the Portrait & Subject Index
and the News Index for names and events. Some images are cited in both indexes,
while others are cited in only one.
Step 2: Consult the Shelflist notebook to determine which
of the desired negatives are actually available at the Library for printing.
Not all the negatives cited in the indexes will be found in the Shelflist,
and only negatives found in the Shelflist can be pulled and printed. If the
negative is not listed in the Shelflist, it might be held by Stock Montage,
as noted in "Related Collections Outside of the Prints & Photographs Division," below.
Photographic prints made from negatives listed in the Shelflist may be ordered
through the Library of Congress Photoduplication Service, Washington,
D.C. 20540-5230. Order forms, price, and order instructions will be provided
on request. Cite the negative number of the desired image when placing an order.
The collection is a mix of glass and film negatives, which affects the pricing
of prints.
If the negative number begins... |
It is ... |
H21 |
4x5" glass |
H212 |
4x5" film |
H24 |
8x10" film |
H25 |
8x10" glass |
H261 |
5x7" glass |
H27 |
5x7" glass |
There are no known restrictions on the use of Harris & Ewing images. Restrictions
on the negatives, placed by the firm of Harris & Ewing, Inc., through its
Instrument of Gift with the Library, have expired, and the copyrights which were
placed on some of the photographic prints (see below) have expired. Privacy and
publicity rights may, however, apply. When images are reproduced in a publication,
the Library requests that the reproduction number be published with the credit,
as in the following example: "Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division,
LC-H261-4562."
Related Collections in the Prints & Photographs Division
Over the years, the Library has acquired Harris & Ewing photographs from
various sources. Many
of these have been cataloged in groups, or "LOTs," and brief descriptions are
provided below. Fuller descriptions are
provided in Washingtoniana: Photographs: Collections in the Prints and
Photographs Division of the Library of
Congress (Washington, D. C.: Library of Congress, 1989), which is available
at the reference counter. Photographic prints in the LOTs have not been
matched to
negatives in the negative collection described above. Patrons wishing
to obtain copies of images in the LOTs must, therefore, order copy negatives
from which prints may be made.
- LOT 2395: Studio portraits of twenty-four members of Congress
(24 items).
- LOT 2482: Portraits of Victor S. Clark, his family, and his associates
(17 items).
- LOT 4316: Formal portraits and news photographs of President Warren G.
Harding, members of his cabinet, their wives, and other public figures (37
items).
- LOT
7623: U.S. Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. (57 items).
- LOT 9709: U.S. Capitol and events therein (25 items).
- LOT 10304: Residence of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes
(14 items).
- LOT 12504: Library of Congress Jefferson and Adams Buildings (8
items).
- LOT 12505: Portraits of men and women, and view of the French Embassy (25
items).
- LOT 12506: Scenes and events in Washington, D.C. (5 items).
In addition to the prints in LOTs, miscellaneous prints may be found in the Division's
various "open files," such as the
Biographical File and Specific Subjects File.
Related Collections Outside of the Prints & Photographs
Division
Negatives made after 1946, as well as a large collection of prints from the entire
life of the firm, are held by:
Stock Montage
10 North Halsted, Suite 200
Chicago, IL 60661
(312) 733-3239
Prepared by: Mary Ison, Head, Reference Section, 8/22/96. Last revised: January
2003.
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