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Samuel H. Gottscho photographs

Call Number

PR 423

Date

1930s, inclusive

Creator

Gottscho, Samuel H. (Samuel Herman), 1875-1971

Extent

2 Linear feet in 1 flat box (12 photographs)

Language of Materials

The documents in the collection are photographs with captions in English.

Abstract

The collection consists of 12 vintage silver gelatin photographs taken in the early 1930s by Samuel H. Gottscho (1875-1971). Ten of the photographs, taken in 1933, are of Manhattan views. One is centered on Welfare Island (Roosevelt Island) and one is a detail of a cemetery at Gardiner's Island in East Hampton.

Biographical / Historical

Samuel Herman Gottscho (1875-1971) was born in Brooklyn, New York. During his early life, he practiced photography on a part-time basis, deciding to work professionally as a commercial photographer in the 1920s, around the age of 50. Respected as an architectural, landscape, and nature photographer, major collections of Gottscho's work are held by the Library of Congress and the Museum of the City of New York.

(The above note was derived from Gottscho's entry in Wikipedia.)

Arrangement

The collection is organized in two series, based in part on provenance:

Series I. Manhattan 1933 Views

Series II. Other Photographs

Scope and Contents

The collection consists of 12 vintage silver gelatin photographs taken in the early 1930s by Samuel H. Gottscho (1875-1971). Ten of the photographs, taken in 1933, are of Manhattan views, and were originally a gift from Gottscho to a Grace Mayer. These include Gottscho's handwritten titles and captions. Generally, these photographs were taken either from an elevated height and show downward sweeping views of the city and wide angles of skylines, buildings, and streets, or ground level, upward looking views of buildings and other features of the urban built environment.

In addition to the above set, the collection holds two other photographs: one looks east from Manhattan toward Welfare Island (Roosevelt Island) and Queens, and a second is a detailed view within a cemetery on Gardiner's Island in East Hampton, New York.

Access Restrictions

Open to qualified researchers by appointment only. To schedule an appointment, contact the Print Room Librarian at printroom@nyhistory.org.

Use Restrictions

Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff. Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.

Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions

Preferred Citation

The collection should be cited as: Samuel Gottscho photographs, PR 423, Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections, New-York Historical Society.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

All but one of the photographs were the gift of Elizabeth Barlow Rogers, 2021. The exception is noted at the item level in the container list.

Collection processed by

Larry Weimer

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-21 15:47:58 -0400.
Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language: Finding aid written in English

Processing Information

Most of the photographs donated by Elizabeth Barlow Rogers were in frames when donated to N-YHS. These were unframed for conservation purposes by N-YHS conservator Alan Balicki, who stored the photographs with the matting and labeling that accompanied them. The collection was inventoried for this finding aid by archivist Larry Weimer. Added at that time to this collection was a standalone Gottscho photograph from the Photographers File (PR 50).

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024