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Fairmount Park glass plate negatives

Creation: after 1908
 Collection
Accession: 1971-597
View this collection online in the Hagley Digital Archives.
View this collection online in the Hagley Digital Archives.

Abstract

This collection consists of thirty-five glass negatives and one box. It documents locations in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania’s Fairmount Park system. While the photographer is unidentified, and the images are undated and unlabeled, most images appear to depict Wissahickon Valley Park, historically part of the Fairmount Park system.

Dates

  • Creation: after 1908

Creator

Extent

35 item(s)

Physical Description

36 glass plate negatives : b&w ; 4.25 x 6.5 in. 1 box.

Historical Note

This collection was purchased in 1971 as part of a lot that included a number of other small collections. The photographer is unknown, but a box included in the collection identifies the images as originating in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania’s Fairmount Park system. This network of parks began being developed by the city in 1820 in an effort to establish a sustainable water supply for the city and to preserve its diminishing green spaces. Most of the photographs appear to have been taken in Wissahickon Valley Park, which, from 1867 to 2010 was also part of and managed by the Fairmount Park System. The Wissahickon Valley Park is located in Northwest Philadelphia, and includes Wissahickon Creek from its confluence with the Schuylkill River, and extends to the northwestern boundary of the city with eastern Montgomery County.

Scope and Content

This collection consists of thirty-five glass negatives and one original box. The negatives themselves include no identifying information, but a sticker on the box indicates that the images are of Fairmount Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Many of the images include identifiable landmarks. While the photographs are undated, it is estimated that they were taken no earlier than 1908, based on the presence of what appears to be Walnut Lane Bridge, completed in October of that year, in one of the images.

Existence and Location of Copies

This collection has been digitized and can be viewed in Hagley's Digital Archives.

Access to Collection

No restrictions on access; this collection is open for research.

Glass plate negatives DO NOT CIRCULATE.

Language of Materials

English

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title:
Fairmount Park glass plate negatives
Author:
Skylar Harris
Date:
2019.
Description rules:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description:
English
Script of description:
Latin

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Audiovisual Collections Repository

Contact:
PO Box 3630
Wilmington Delaware 19807 USA
302-658-2400