New York University Archives Collection of Late 19th Century Photographic Materials
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Abstract
The New York University Archives Collection of Late 19th Century Photographic Materials is an artificial collection containing images captured on a variety of obsolete photographic formats including lantern slides, glass plate negatives, and daguerreotypes. This collection includes astrophotographic images by NYU professor and dean, Henry Draper; x-ray images by NYU professor D.W. Hering; University Heights campus and student images; and lantern slides of images used for presentations and lectures.
Historical Note
This collection was created by University Archives staff to provide access to obsolete photographic formats which had been donated from various sources.
Biographical Note
Henry Draper (1837-1882) was an American doctor who became a professor and dean of the medical faculty at the University of the City of New York (now New York University) from 1866 until his death in 1882. He was also well known for his work in astrophotography.
Biographical Note
D.W. (Daniel Webster) Hering (1850-1938) was appointed professor of physics at NYU in 1885. He was known for his early work in Roentgen X-rays and took what may be considered the first radiograph of an entire human body. Hering became Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Science in 1902 and served in that post until his retirement in 1916.
Biographical Note
Charles Lawrence (C.L.) Bristol (1859-1931) was a professor of biology at New York University from 1894 to 1931. Bristol began teaching in the biology department at NYU's University Heights campus in 1894. He taught an array of courses such as human anatomy and physiology, general biology, comparative anatomy, and vertebrate zoology.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into ten series, arranged in chronological order within.
Series I. Henry Draper Spectra Images
Series II. Henry Draper Moon Images
Series III. Glass Plate Negative Fragments
Series IV. Henry Draper-Related Observatories and Laboratories Images
Series V. D.W. Hering X-Ray Images
Series VI. NYU Campus, Students, and Related Images
Series VII. Lecture Presentation Support Images
Series VIII. Daguerreotypes
Series IX. Document Reproductions and Memorial Images
Series X. Original Storage Housing
Scope and Contents
The New York University Archives Collection of Late 19th Century Photographic Materials is an artificial collection containing images captured on a variety of obsolete photographic formats including lantern slides, glass plate negatives, and daguerreotypes.
This collection includes images taken by NYU professor and dean Henry Draper during the 1860s through the early 1880s related to his study of astrophotography. Images were often taken of the night sky at an observatory through his telescope, and document spectra, solar spectrum, and the moon. There are also images of Draper's observatory and lab at Hastings-on-Hudson as well as the observatories at Harvard College which were funded in his memory by Draper's widow Anna Palmer Draper in 1886. Some of these glass plate negative slides have been damaged and now only exist in partial fragments. Wooden containers which originally housed Draper's glass plate negatives are this collection.
The majority of the lantern slides in this collection were used as illustrations in presentations and lectures. These slides include a significant number of reproductions of Draper's astrophotographic work including the moon dating from the 1860s, solar spectra, early solar spectrum, and the sun. The lantern slides containing radiographic images of everyday objects taken by D.W. Hering and C.L. Bristol, related to their work in x-rays. Presentation and lecture images also include stock footage of landscapes, cityscapes, Johnstown ruins, and artworks.
Images from the late 1890s of NYU's University Heights campus, including buildings and students, as well as photographs used in a 1914 NYU publication about student life, are also in this collection.
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Conditions Governing Access
Materials are open without restrictions.
Conditions Governing Use
Because of the assembled nature of this collection, copyright status varies across the collection. Copyright is assumed to be held by the original creator of individual items in the collection; these items are expected to pass into the public domain 120 years after their creation. New York University Archives is not authorized to grant permission to publish or reproduce materials from this collection.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date; New York University Archives Collection of Late 19th Century Photographic Materials; MC 230; box number; folder number or item identifier; Repository Name, New York University.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Upon Henry Draper's death in 1882 a selection of items in this collection were found in his New York laboratory. Draper's sister, Mrs. Antonia Dixon, presented these items to New York University. The accession number related to this collection is 82.030.
Custodial History
This is an assembled collection comprised of materials from multiple sources and creators. The initial donation in 1882 included Henry Draper images which were taken from his New York City area laboratory. Additional material was later added to the collection including photographic and radiographic items which had been taken by D.W. Hering. These items had been found in NYU Heights campus building attic.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Due to the fragile nature of the original materials, researchers must use the digital surrogates which are available through this finding aid.
About this Guide
Processing Information
The titles assigned to each plate primarily derive from titles written on the envelopes in which the items were originally housed. It is unclear who assigned these titles and when they did so. Based on the age of the envelopes, this description was likely not in Draper's hand. Some of the items in Series I with names of specific elements are derived from titles on the actual object, and these are more likely to have been written by Draper himself. Untitled items were given the same title as the series in which they are found.
This collection was originally described by T.J. Herczeg (University of Oklahoma's Department of Physics and Astronomy) and Anne Kinney (NYU's Department of Physics) for a 1982 article, "The Collection of Henry Draper Memorabilia in the New York University Archives." However, the arrangement of the collection has been altered since that date.
In 2019, an item-level description of all material was created and items were digitized.
In 2023, the original title was changed from: Henry Draper Image Collection, to its present title to better reflect the contents and provenance of the collection. The series titles were also changed to better reflect the material within. The file listings were rearranged into chronological order. The finding aid was edited for compliance with DACS and ACM Required Elements for Archival Description.