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8888541a872927ae98182ededec7f592
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Selections from the Frank Nivison Photograph Collection
Subject
The topic of the resource
Nivison, Frank
Black and white photographs
Historic buildings - Virginia - Williamsburg
Public buildings - Virginia - Williamsburg
Architecture, Domestic - Virginia - Williamsburg
Architecture, Colonial - Virginia - Williamsburg
Description
An account of the resource
Frank Reginald Nivison served as a contract photographer for Colonial Williamsburg during the initial restoration of the town between 1930 and 1935. Prior to this, he served as a darkroom assistant at the University Film Foundation at Harvard University. He was hired by the Williamsburg Holding Corp. to take progress photos of construction and restoration work, as well as of buildings to be wrecked or moved. According to a memo issued by architect William G. Perry to Frank Nivison on December 12, 1930, his work was to “…include the photography of all buildings and parts of buildings, exterior and interior, which the architects deem necessary for architectural and historical purposes. Such photographs would be supplemented by progress photographs of construction work as it proceeds. All buildings to be wrecked should be photographed before the wrecking takes place. In addition, there will be photographs of furniture, fabrics, and objects of all kinds.”
Nivison set up a small photographic studio in a room in the Bruton Parish House. His equipment included a Zeiss camera, 5x7 inch, with a F 4.5 lens and a special magazine for cut films, along with a Mitchell tripod with a ball and socket head. His darkroom equipment consisted of an Eastman Auto-focus Enlarger, printing machines, and various accessories such as tanks and scales. Over the course of five years, he took more than 7,000 photographs documenting each stage of the restoration or reconstruction of various 18th-century buildings in Williamsburg. Copies of these photographs were forwarded to the offices of Perry, Shaw, & Hepburn in Boston so that the architects could monitor the progress of various projects. Nivison’s photographs were also used to produce postcards, “before and after” lantern slides, and publicity relating to the restoration of Williamsburg.
By late 1935, Nivison had started taking on a lot of outside photography business and Colonial Williamsburg officials felt he should establish himself as an independent photographer. Nivison’s employment with Colonial Williamsburg terminated on July 1, 1935. However, Colonial Williamsburg continued to utilize his services on an as needed basis and assisted him in setting up his own business in Williamsburg. Unfortunately, Nivison did not attract enough outside commissions to enable him to operate independently and filed for bankruptcy in 1937. He applied to Colonial Williamsburg for a monthly retainer fee for his periodic services and was given $100.00 per month to draw upon in 1938. With the advent of World War II, Nivison moved back to Massachusetts in 1940.
Still Image
A static visual representation. Examples of still images are: paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type "text" to images of textual materials.
Original Format
If the image is of an object, state the type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
Gelatin silver print
Physical Dimensions
The actual physical size of the original image.
8 x 10 inches
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Ewing House
Subject
The topic of the resource
Block 02. Building 28.
Ewing House (Williamsburg, Va.)
Architecture, Domestic - Virginia - Williamsburg
Historic buildings - Virginia - Williamsburg
Lost architecture - Virginia - Williamsburg
Description
An account of the resource
Pre-restoration view along Francis Street of the Ewing House, Henry K. Graves House, and Mount Ararat Baptist Church, Williamsburg, Virginia, circa 1928.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Nivison, Frank
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
Circa 1928
Date Created
Date of creation of the resource.
Circa 1928
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
Frank Nivison Photograph Collection
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
jpeg
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Image
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
N3751
Rights Holder
A person or organization owning or managing rights over the resource.
Special Collections, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Ewing House
Francis Street
Frank Nivison
Henry Graves House
Lost Architecture
Mt. Ararat Baptist Church
Pre-Restoration
Sweeney House
Virginia
Williamsburg
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445780121c1e857e46d962103a9c9c0e
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Selections from the Clyde Holmes Photograph Collection
Subject
The topic of the resource
Historic buildings - Virginia - Williamsburg
Public buildings - Virginia - Williamsburg
Architecture, Domestic - Virginia - Williamsburg
Black and white photographs
Holmes, Clyde E., 1902-1977
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Holmes, Clyde
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
Circa 1928-1932
Rights Holder
A person or organization owning or managing rights over the resource.
Special Collections, John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Description
An account of the resource
“Since 1924, a young man in Williamsburg, Mr. Clyde Holmes, has been collecting newspaper clippings and taking photographs in connection with the Restoration. This man has apparently all the newspaper write-ups that appeared in the local papers touching the Restoration from the time Dr. Goodwin first attempted to have someone buy the town in 1924; he also has from two to three thousand photographs he has taken of the various buildings and streets in Williamsburg before and after the Restoration began.”
Letter, Vernon Geddy to Perry, Shaw & Hepburn, July 29, 1930, Colonial Williamsburg Corporate Archives
The Clyde Holmes Photograph Collection originated with Clyde Holmes, a long-term Williamsburg resident with a passion for history. His employment at the Imperial Theater on Duke of Gloucester Street helped to develop his interest in film and photography. As noted in the quote above, Holmes drew inspiration from the early efforts of Dr. W.A.R. Goodwin, rector of Bruton Parish Church, to convince both townspeople and wealthy philanthropists to support preservation of dilapidated structures with ties to the days when Williamsburg was a bustling colonial capital. Goodwin first approached Henry Ford in 1924 with the idea of funding preservation of certain Williamsburg buildings. Undaunted by Ford’s refusal, Goodwin pitched his ideas to John D. Rockefeller, Jr., who agreed to finance restoration of the colonial segment of Williamsburg in 1927. He authorized hiring Perry, Shaw, & Hepburn, a Boston architectural firm, to begin drafting preliminary plans. Once approved, the firm assembled a team of architects and draftsmen who started what local residents jokingly termed a second “Yankee invasion” in the late 1920s as they arrived in the area to study and measure existing buildings, uncover buried foundations, and conduct fieldwork at other colonial sites in the region.
After his photographic efforts came to the attention of this team, Todd & Brown, the firm hired to oversee much of the construction work connected with the Restoration, encouraged Holmes by asking him to assist them with taking “before” photos of various sites. He also took a few to document early progress with archaeological and architectural investigations. While lacking the superior quality of contract photographers hired to aid the team, his amateur photos were recognized early on as having significant value as a working archive of the town’s pre-restoration appearance. Clyde Holmes cooperated with and supported the restoration effort by turning over his collection of clippings and photographs in 1933.
Dating from ca. 1924-1933, his photos capture the birth of the idea of Williamsburg as a tourist destination. Automobiles, a hotel, a souvenir shop, and Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities sites all attest to growing activity in the town as it stood on the brink of transformation into a laboratory for one of the nation’s earliest historic preservation campaigns. Examples of lost architecture that was either soon to be moved or torn down to make way for reconstruction of colonial buildings are also well represented in the collection.
Holmes donated his photos in a bound fire insurance volume. Adhered to the pages with glue, the photos have since been removed for optimal preservation but still await further conservation treatment to remove residual paper backings. Quite a few of the Holmes images were copied by restoration contract photographers and mounted on linen for insertion into albums used on a daily basis by the architectural team. The visible stains, tears, and creases bear witness to the role this group of photos played in providing visual evidence that guided restoration and reconstruction work.
Still Image
A static visual representation. Examples of still images are: paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type "text" to images of textual materials.
Original Format
If the image is of an object, state the type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data
Gelatin silver print
Physical Dimensions
The actual physical size of the original image.
5 x 7 inches
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Mount Ararat Baptist Church
Subject
The topic of the resource
Historic buildings - Virginia - Williamsburg
Church architecture - Virginia - Williamsburg
Lost architecture - Virginia - Williamsburg
Description
An account of the resource
Pre-restoration view of Mount Ararat Baptist Church in its former location on Francis Street, Williamsburg, Virginia, ca.1930s.
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Holmes, Clyde
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
Circa 1930
Date Created
Date of creation of the resource.
Circa 1930
Is Part Of
A related resource in which the described resource is physically or logically included.
Clyde Holmes Photograph Collection, AV2009.25, Box 1, Folder 3, Sheet 48
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
jpeg
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Image
Identifier
An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context
H299 Print Hol-186
Rights Holder
A person or organization owning or managing rights over the resource.
Special Collections, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Library, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Churches
Clyde Holmes
Francis Street
Mt. Ararat Baptist Church
Pre-Restoration
Virginia
Williamsburg