AFRICAN AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHICA (3 Ergebnisse)

A large photograph of a well-dressed African-American woman posing with four white children. The woman wears a demure, dark dress with a high collar and brooch at her throat. Her hair is parted in the center and pulled back. She stares fixedly into the camera. Four white children pose on and around her, the oldest two girls standing behind and to either side of her, while a younger girl and the youngest boy each sit next to her, their arms leaning on her thighs. The boy is dressed in a sailor suit, cap in hand. We suppose that the woman is the children's nanny, or similar trusted household servant. One of the most striking factors is the sheer size of the photograph, in addition to the subject matter. The mount is stamped with the logo for Prince's studios in Washington, D.C., with the center stamped: "Enamel Finish, 1891 Imperial." Light wear to card. Faint line of older adhesive substance in center of photograph. Minor wear and fading. About very good.

A collection of official and unofficial photographs of the African-American 364th Engineer General Service Regiment, at work on the home front in World War II constructing levees, purifying drinking water, and guarding against historic floods on the White River. After training at Camp Claiborne in Louisiana, the 364th was deployed to Arkansas to protect peoples' homes and the all-important cotton crop from severe flooding caused by a series of tornadoes in the state. The larger part of the photographs here appear to be official documentation of their activities, each with an ink stamp reading "Not For Public Release" on the verso, although some were undoubtedly meant for the press. Indeed, the Army did much to tout the Engineers' efforts on the home front. In the May 23, 1943 issue of The Tennessean, the paper reported a dispatch "written especially for the United Press," which proudly stated, under the headline "Army Flood Work Regarded Among Top Home Victories," that "the largest flood to hit these flat-lands of Arkansas since 1927 was being checked today by troops. Army engineers have become flood fighters. Their work has allowed practically all of these low-land residents to remain in their homes. Furthermore, the fight which the six engineer outfits have been putting up against the overflowing White River has saved several thousand acres of precious cotton." The photographs collected here document that important (and laborious) work. The men of the 364th are shown at camp and mess, at work filling and hauling sandbags, purifying drinking water, marching between sites, building levees, and traveling upriver in assault boats. Each of the official photographs has a typed caption and date, describing the location and activities depicted. The slightly smaller photos, likely copy prints, depict more vernacular scenes and show the men at work in large vehicles and construction equipment, digging roads, and building bridges. Most of the photographs are from Peach Orchard Bluff and Sand Hill, roughly halfway between Little Rock and Memphis, though a handful depict other worksites such as an aerial view of the regiment at work on the Mississippi River in Tennemo, Tennessee. The presence of one photo mount with handwritten caption, a handwritten annotation on the front of another image, and remnants of mounts on the verso of a handful of others suggest that some or all of these photographs may have once been part of an album compiled by one of the soldiers. The annotated photo depicts three African-American soldiers working on a machine which purifies drinking water, and labels the men "Ratliff," "Ray McMillian," and "Harry Gordon." The other, more revealing captioned photo is mounted to a black photo album leaf with corner mounts, and depicts three White officers of the engineering regiments. The only photograph in the entire group that depicts a White person, the official caption on the back reads: "WHITE RIVER. Discussing plans for fighting the flood on the White River are; left to right, Col. Roy M. McCutchen, Col. Jarvis J. Bain, District Engineer, and Col. R.H. Nicholson of the 359th Engineer General Service Regiment." The serviceman's handwritten caption below, however, tells a more interesting story: "Confab of 'The Big Three from Tennessee': Results Arkansas furnishes the Sand.Government furnishes the Bags.U.S. Army furnishes the 'Darkies.' 'We Build A Levee.'" While relations between locals and the 364th were generally cordial, there was at least one instance of racially motivated violence against the soldiers recorded during their time in Arkansas. On May 20, a group of men from the 364th were on leave in the nearby town of Cotton Plant, dutifully remaining in the "colored section" of town, when the visibly intoxicated constable approached them and demanded that they "move along," drawing his gun on them when they refused. The soldiers responded immediately to this threat, and Constable James Jordan was wounded by a shot from his own gun in the melee. A court martial found Private John A. Foreman guilty of attempted murder and sentenced him to twelve years in prison, though the NAACP petitioned for a reversal of the verdict in 1945. An intriguing and attractive collection of official and vernacular photographs documenting the important home front activities of a segregated Engineering unit during the Second World War. Images exceptionally clean and bright. Near fine.

A charming collection of family photographs assembled by Ola A. Mayo Brandon of Washington, D.C. Ola A. Mayo (born 1918) was raised as one of twelve children in rural Moneta, Virginia, and by 1940 had moved to Washington, D.C., and was employed as a domestic worker. In 1941 she married Sheppard A. Brandon (1919-1977), who joined the army the following year. Sheppard appears just a couple of times, as a civilian. Several other relatives in uniform are pictured here, including brothers William, Edward, and Samuel Mayo, and brother-in-law Sergeant Willie F. Brandon. Some of the photographs of the male service members are dated in the years of World War II, indicating that these men served their country during the war. Ola also seems to have found new work during the war. One snapshot shows her standing in front of a school bus, captioned "I am the driver." A small percentage of the photographs are post-war, and there are numerous shots of African-American women and children, most of whom are named. An excellent source of African-American family history for the Washington, D.C., area and a record of service for at least four military servicemen of the Greatest Generation. Approximately 100 photographs, the great majority mounted, most captioned in white ink on the album leaves. Oblong octavo. Contemporary brown textured boards, string tied. Moderate wear to album. Occasional heavy wear to photographs, a few removed, a handful loose. Overall very good.