Subseries A: Images and Postcards
Scope and Contents note
The photographs include a wide-variety of techniques: albumen prints, Gelatin POP and Gelatin DOP images. The subjects include numerous original photos of early balloons and airplanes from the early 1900s. The pre-World War I airplane photographs cover numerous and varied planes, some of which proved to be successful designs and some that were simply failures. The collection also includes numerous reprints of historic photos.
The lantern slides include a nearly complete selection of painted slides from the early 1900s depicting the history of aeronautics. Other lantern slides from that same time period depict various gliders, balloons, and early airplanes. One of the more interesting series of slides depicts what appears to be a complicated steam powered airplane that dwarfs its crew and bystanders.
The postcards range from the early 1900s to the late 1960s. They are sorted more or less by the natural division of plane evolution marked by the periods before, during and after World War I and World War II.
Dates
- Creation: 1909-1974
Creator
- From the Collection: Anderson, Benjamin M. (Person)
Access Restrictions
This material is open for research.
Boxes 1-23; 25-67; 70 stored off-site at the Library Service Center. Please request this material via woodson@rice.edu or call 713-348-2586. Boxes 24; 68-69 stored onsite at the Woodson Research Center.
Extent
From the Collection: 23.5 Linear Feet (68 boxes)
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
General note
Box 59 through box 64 consist of postcards and images, usually photos, that were inserted into scrapbooks. The scrapbook images were organized by year, by theme within each year with some pages labeled. In general, the majority of the images focus on the planes of Great Britain, although other nations, including the United States, Germany, and France are well represented.
The processor of this collection removed the images from the acidic pages and placed them into folders that follow the same organizational scheme as the scrapbooks. Wherever possible, the folder titles also follow the thematic labeling of the scrapbook. Some images were identified and some were not. The processor copied the original captions, usually written on the scrapbook pages, onto the back of the postcards and images. Those captions are enclosed in square brackets. Where possible items are described as photos or postcards within this finding aid. Many of the photographs and postcards are from the period, however some photographs appear to have been reproduced from originals. Many aircraft recognition cards printed by Valentine & Sons Ltd., Dundee and London are included among the photos and postcards. Some of the photo reproductions were supplied by the British Imperial War Museum.
Numerous abbreviations are used throughout this collection of images and postcards. The abbreviation m.f. or m/f is frequently used with dates written in the following format: m.f. day.month.year. The abbreviation m.f. or m/f may stand for the year of manufacture or maiden flight, but the abbreviation form is uncommon. The images appear to be organized according to year of manufacture. Other abbreviations include R.F.C. for Royal Flying Corps, R.N.A.S. for Royal Naval Air Service, R.A.F. for Royal Air Force, and F.T.C. for flight training school to name a few.
Repository Details
Part of the Woodson Research Center, Rice University, Houston, Texas Repository
Fondren Library MS-44, Rice University
6100 Main St.
Houston Texas 77005 USA
713-348-2586
woodson@rice.edu