April 2012

Kodak 1 – Virginia Photograph Collection

Photograph Collection

C1: 157
1889
51 4 x 5-inch photographic cards 

C1:157 Kodak 1 – Virginia Photograph Collection

C1:157 Kodak 1 – Virginia Photograph Collection

These photographs conform to the Kodak 1 camera’s distinctive 2.5-inch circular iris, and often capture those in the unidentified photographer’s entourage from a considerable distance, reducing them to delicate miniatures on hillsides or in sylvan glades. Tighter shots reveal happy-looking men and women in comfortably rumbled Victorian traveling clothes—apparently early enthusiasts of historic tourism. Other photos show an oxcart on the road to Petersburg, Grant’s headquarters at City Point (present-day Hopewell), Gen. William “Baldy” Smith’s headquarters during the Siege of Petersburg (referred to in the photo’s handwritten caption as “The Old Friend House”), a group luncheon on the grass of Petersburg’s famous “Crater,” St. John’s churchyard in Richmond, the State Capitol building, the bell tower and statues of Washington and Henry Clay (since removed) on the Capitol grounds. Also shown is a mothballed monitor-class gunship on the James, which, given the time and place the photo were taken, would have to be the Manhattan, Mahopac, or Tippecanoe. 

Most of the photos have handwritten captions and are dated, with most taken on October 9, 1889. 

Provenance:
Purchased, 2010

  • C1:157 Kodak 1 - Virginia Photograph Collection
    C1:157 Kodak 1 – Virginia Photograph Collection
  • C1:157 Kodak 1 - Virginia Photograph Collection
    C1:157 Kodak 1 – Virginia Photograph Collection
  • C1:157 Kodak 1 - Virginia Photograph Collection
    C1:157 Kodak 1 – Virginia Photograph Collection
  • C1:157 Kodak 1 - Virginia Photograph Collection
    C1:157 Kodak 1 – Virginia Photograph Collection
  • C1:157 Kodak 1 - Virginia Photograph Collection
    C1:157 Kodak 1 – Virginia
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Richmond VA Goodwill Lantern Slide Collection

Photograph Collection

C1: 173
1923
90 glass slides, 3 x 4 inches, housed in original wooden box 

C1:173 Richmond VA Goodwill Lantern Slide Collection

These rare slides, many of which are hand-colored, offer a glimpse into the founding of the Richmond branch of Goodwill Industries by Dr. J. T. Mastin and the Rev. Samuel Coles in 1923, before its eventual merger with Citizens’ Service Exchange. Featured are detailed interior and exterior shots of early Goodwill-related activity, including refurbishment of furniture and clothing, horse-drawn Goodwill wagons, volunteers and patrons, several scenes of prison interiors (presumably in connection with Mastin’s correctional work), and many images unrelated to Richmond, including views of England and South Africa. The Goodwill headquarters featured so prominently in these images stood at 1814 E. Grace Street, only a few yards from the Craig House in Shockoe Bottom, and has since vanished without a trace. 

The slides most likely served as a visual aid to educational or religious lectures. Lantern slides, as a technology, were popular in America as early as 1850, yielding “magic” projections of images large enough to be easily visible to large audiences. 

The accompanying collection file contains much biographical information about Mastin (1855–1943), a Methodist minister, secretary of the State Board of Charities and Corrections, a native Virginian and, according to one article, “the South’s greatest social worker.” 

Provenance:
Purchased, 2007

  • C1:173 Richmond VA Goodwill Lantern Slide Collection
    C1:173 Richmond VA Goodwill Lantern Slide Collection
  • C1:173 Richmond VA Goodwill Lantern Slide Collection
    C1:173 Richmond VA Goodwill
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