Harry Stein photographs
Call Number
Date
Creator
Extent
Language of Materials
Abstract
This collection consists of 106 nitrate negatives taken by amateur photographer Harry Stein (1891-1964). These snapshots were taken in and around New York City between 1919 and 1922. They include portraits, scenic views and street scenes.
Biographical / Historical
Harry Stein (1891-1964) was born in Odessa, Ukraine in 1891, and as a child immigrated with his family to the U.S. The family appears in the 1900 census, living at 82 Eldridge Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Stein served in the army during WWI and was discharged in 1919. In 1922, Stein married Rose Englander (1894-1986), the daughter of Hungarian immigrants who settled in Brooklyn, NY. Stein and his brothers owned a chain of stores that sold sporting goods and camera equipment. The Steins lived briefly in the Bronx, then moved to Mount Vernon, NY in the early 1930s, and raised two sons. Harry Stein died in 1964, while Rose Englander Stein lived until 1986.
*This biographical note is based on information provided by the donor.
Arrangement
This collection was originally arranged in two albums, with the negatives in individual sleeves, with no captions or identification. The negatives have been removed from the albums and rehoused, but their original order has been preserved, and each negative has been given a number. The negatives in Volume 1 are numbered 1-66, and those in Volume 2 are numbered 67-106. The captions for the negatives were created by the archivist.
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of 106 nitrate negatives taken by amateur photographer Harry Stein (1891-1964). These snapshots were taken in and around New York City between 1919 and 1922.
Most of the negatives are approximately 4"x5", though some are smaller. Originally housed in two albums, the negatives include images taken in parks, beaches and other scenic outdoor settings, as well as portraits and street scenes. According to the donor, the subjects of the photos are Stein's friends and family members, including his wife Rose Englander Stein, but they are not individually identified.
Some scenic views include people picnicking, ice skating, boating, or posing for the camera. A few of these photos are clearly identifiable as Central Park, but most are not. Street scenes and cityscapes include people posing in front of homes and cars, including a number of photos at a house with the address "1461," though it's not clear where the house is located.
There are also a good number of individual and group portraits of men, women and children, both indoors and out. Some are formally posed, while others are more informal with people lounging on the grass or sunbathing at the beach. Also included are views of the East River, the Brooklyn and Queensboro Bridges, and the Manhattan skyline.
These negatives are on possibly unstable, nitrate base film and have been transferred to cold storage in the N-YHS Conservation Lab.
Subjects
Access Restrictions
Open to qualified researchers by appointment only. Advance notice is required to access these negatives. They are on possibly unstable, nitrate base film and have been transferred to cold storage in the N-YHS Conservation Lab.
Use Restrictions
Permission to reproduce any Department of Prints, Photographs and Architectural Collections holdings through publication must be obtained from: Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 270. Fax: (212) 579-8794.
Preferred Citation
The collection should be cited as: Harry Stein Photographs, PR 399, Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections, New-York Historical Society.
Credit line should read: Gift of Andrew Stein in memory of Harry Stein
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Andrew Stein, 2018.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Processed by archivist Marybeth Kavanagh, 2019
Repository
View Inventory
Volume 1, 1919-1922, inclusive
Scope and Contents
1. Cat in grass
2. Outdoor scene, lake
3. 3 boys sitting on bench
4. Outdoor scene, trees
5. Water under a bridge, house visible in far distance
6. 3 boys sitting on a rock, another boy reading newspaper. Street, buildings visible
7. Woman in a coat, sideview
8. Outdoor scene, lake
9. Queensboro Bridge
10. Rosebush
11. Baby in carriage with stuffed toy
12. 1 man and 3 women sitting/lying in the grass
13. Lake in Central Park. The Kenilworth, 4th Universalist church, New-York Historical Society, American Museum of Natural History visible.
14. Woman, head down
15. Ships docked
16. Two boys seated on couch with an older woman
17. Scenic walkway, overpass visible
18. Ice skating on a lake (Central Park?)
19. 2 WWI soldiers outside a tent
20. 2 cows in a barn
21. Lake
22. 2 men and a young boy holding a dog standing on a stoop. Sign in window: "Rosenblum, Chiropractor."
23. 2 men standing on porch of rowhouse. Address on stoop: 1461
24. Car parked on a muddy, unpaved residential street.
25. 3 women and 2 men wearing ice skates
26. Girl standing in front of house with porch. Address on stoop: 1461
27. Older man with beard sitting on porch (identified by donor as Solomon Englander)
28. Woman wearing fur hat and muff
29. Three men posing on sidewalk
30. Small child on a scooter
31. Small child (close-up)
32. Houses (semi-rural?)
33. House (exterior)
34. Boy with camera
35. Small child on scooter
36. Tree-lined path in park
37. Stream with ice
38. Park path with overpass
39. portrait, man
40. portrait, woman
41. portrait, man
42. portrait, woman
43. portrait, man
44. portrait, woman
45. Woman sitting in grass
46. Lake
47. Woman sitting on a rock
48. Water flowing under bridge
49. House and trees
50. Horse and carriage on tree-lined road
51. Water flowing under bridge
52. Bridge over a stream, people on bridge, people on banks
53. Man and woman seated on sofa
54. Woman posing on sidewalk
55. Queensboro Bridge
56. Women in rowboats
57. Men and women in a park/wooded area
58. Cars parked on a residential street
59. Unidentified man, seated
60. Row houses from the sidewalk
61. Cars parked on a residential street
62. Men and women in wooded area, with camera on tripod
63. Woman posing in wooded area, man behind camera on tripod, woman observing
64. Lake
65. Three women and a child
66. Rustic pavilion near lake (Central Park?)
Volume 2, 1919-1922, inclusive
Scope and Contents
67. Men and women on sailboat on East River
68. Brooklyn Bridge
69. Photo of a bridal portrait
70. Lake with bridge, buildings visible on shore, man with camera in foreground
71. Lake with bridge, buildings visible on shore
72. Wooded walkway (park?)
73. Ice skating
74. Rustic structure on path (Central Park?)
75. Lake
76. House framed by trees, bikes on porch
77. Boy with camera
78. Cow grazing
79. Baby propped on a cushion, outdoors
80. Group photo of 3 women, 2 men, 1 boy
81. Man sitting on porch
82. Baby propped on cushion outside
83. Man seated on sofa
84. Lake and trees
85. Two attached negatives- scenes by lake
86. Two attached negatives - water under bridge
87. People sunbathing at beach
88. Boy posing with car
89. Boy posing in front of bush
90. Man with pipe
91. Stream with trees
92. Woman posing on sidewalk
93. East River, tugboat, Queensboro Bridge
94. Woman sitting on beach
95. Man and woman in rowboat on lake, (Central Park?)
96. Docks
97. Manhattan skyline from Brooklyn Bridge walkway
98. People on wooded path
99. Men and women sitting and standing in a wooded area
100. Brooklyn Bridge with view of Manhattan skyline
101. Man seated
102. Ice skating
103. Lake and trees
104. Woman seated
105. Boy holding camera
106. Ice skating