Collections : [University of Michigan William L. Clements Library]

The John D. Bagley photograph albums consist of three photograph albums created by John DuCharme Bagley IV of the Bagley family of Detroit, Michigan.

The John D. Bagley photograph albums consist of three photograph albums belonging to John DuCharme Bagley IV of the Bagley family of Detroit, Michigan.

The photograph albums document the life of John DuCharme Bagley IV over a period of twenty years or so. Bagley IV was clearly an enthusiastic amateur photographer who enjoyed documenting his family and friends. The photos in all three albums are snapshot-sized and mostly taken outdoors. While the earliest album (Volume I) is extensively captioned, the other two are not.

Volume 1:

The first volume (14 x 30 cm) includes images taken between 1903 and 1905, including numerous photographs taken during a Bagley family trip to Europe. Bagley IV was a teenager at the time. Identified family members documented in this album include his older sister Frances, younger brother Phil, parents John N. and Esther, and an “Aunt Frankie” who was likely Esther’s sister. This trip appears to have lasted several months, perhaps the better part of an entire year. Locations visited included the German Alps, Naples, Rome, Pompeii, Lake Lucerne, Amsterdam, and London. The family’s return to New York by steamship is also represented. The remainder of this album documents experiences on Woodcote Farm in Ionia, Michigan, as well as family life in Detroit and outdoor summer activities at Long Lake in Grand Traverse County, Michigan.

Volume 2:

The second volume (20.5 x 30.5 cm) contains material compiled during World War I and afterwards. Views of the U.S. Naval Academy and of Washington D.C. are included, and Bagley IV is shown in many images wearing a naval uniform. Several warships (including what appears to be the USS Pennsylvania, commissioned in 1916) are pictured from afar throughout the album. One series of snapshots shows an Armistice celebration taking place at an unidentified location. Several pages showcase scenic views taken during a train journey through an unidentified mountainous region. The bulk of the remaining pictures in this album consist of portraits of family and friends posing informally in urban, domestic, and rural settings. Bagley IV appears regularly, usually in a business suit, and in a couple of cases he can be seen standing next to a Bagley & Co. company vehicle. Also present is a large loose photo that shows John J. Bagley’s birthplace in Medina, New York, which was photographed in 1895.

Volume 3:

The third volume (20.5 x 30.5 cm) contains numerous photographs taken during visits to New Mexico and Colorado in 1908 as well as Oregon in 1909. Images in the New Mexico section highlight operations and personnel of the Maxwell Irrigated Land Company. Bagley IV’s younger brother Phil may have been involved with this company. While it is not entirely clear which photos were taken in Colorado, numerous images of logging operations and logging camps were most likely taken in Oregon. Also present are personal photos showing Bagley IV and his wife Mary visiting forests and beaches. The final section of the album includes photos of Bagley IV in a navy uniform and views of the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland.

The Lakefront Michigan cottage photograph album contains approximately 440 images documenting the construction of a family lake cottage likely located in lower Michigan.

The Lakefront Michigan cottage photograph album contains approximately 440 images documenting the construction of a family lake cottage likely located in lower Michigan. The album (18.5 x 29 cm) has black cloth covers. Photographs include views of a work party clearing land for the cottage on May 3 1920; a truck with a load of lumber mired in a rut before being subsequently rescued; three men sealing the bottom of a rowboat which proceeds to sink in shallow water; the framing and roofing of the cottage; the mounting of a sign reading, "Non Nobis Solum" over the cottage; the addition of a dock; and furniture being moved inside. Other activities depicted include a game featuring a blindfolded woman holding a beer stein; the erection of a flagpole and subsequent raising of a flag accompanied by a bugle player and firing of a miniature cannon; swimming in the lake with innertubes; wading in the lake; and rowing in a seaworthy rowboat. A truck from Edgar's Sugar House in Detroit also appears in several photographs related to the construction of the cottage.

The Nelson Miles European travel photograph album contains approximately 127 photographs documenting a trip to southern Europe undertaken by U.S. Army officer Lieutenant-General Nelson Appleton Miles and John Brooks Henderson, Jr., primarily in order to observe the Greco-Turkish War of 1897.

The Nelson Miles European travel photograph album contains approximately 127 photographs documenting a trip to southern Europe undertaken by U.S. Army officer Lieutenant-General Nelson Appleton Miles and John Brooks Henderson, Jr., primarily in order to observe the Greco-Turkish War of 1897.

The album (28 x 37 cm) has green cloth covers with the word "Photographs" stamped on the front. The inside of the front cover bears the inscription "Personal Travel Album of General Nelson Miles" as well as a loose color print from 1888 depicting Lt. Gen. Miles in full campaign dress. Contents consist of images of Athens and Lamia in Greece, a shot of Lt. Gen. Miles and other officers at rest, a series of photographs that appear to have been taken through binoculars, and views of Castle Angelo and the Coliseum in Rome, Pompeii, an excavation site, the Doge’s Palace and San Marco Square in Venice, Vienna, and Corfu.

The New Hampshire snapshot photograph albums (14.5 x 18.5 cm) contain approximately 138 images in two volumes, showing landscapes, people at leisure, and interior views. Also included are images of buildings in Mont Vernon, New Hampshire.

The New Hampshire snapshot photograph albums (14.5 x 18.5 cm) contain a total of 138 images in two volumes.

Volume One includes views of a home, "Verncroft," landscapes, people mounted on horseback, and men working with hay. Many of the photographs are group shots of children. Of note are three photographs of a Mount Vernon Fire Department truck on pages 8, 9, and 17. Pages 22 and 23 focus on a summer baseball game. Page 36 depicts a man dressed in a graduation cap and gown.

Volume Two contains views of nature, building interiors, and street scenes, with a majority of photos taken in Mont Vernon, New Hampshire. One exception is the image on page 7 of the Lexington Minuteman statue in Lexington, Massachusetts. Pages 16-23 depict outdoor winter activities, including ice fishing and rides in a sleigh. Many town buildings and structures appear, including the town hall (page 70), the Appleton Academy-McCollom Institute (page 71), and the meeting house (pages 72-73). The water tower in Mont Vernon appears in many photos in both volumes.

The Norwalk, Ohio family photograph albums consist of two volumes containing approximately 560 photographs that depict an unidentified family, their homes, vacations, and construction of a house.

Volume 1: This album (29 x 36 cm) has black leather covers and black paper pages. Images include many affectionate pictures of children and pets as well as photographs of family vacations, homes, and the construction of a large house. At the end of the album, several photographs of children that appear earlier are replicated in larger formats.

Volume 2: This volume (35.5 x 43 cm) is a leather portfolio bearing an elaborate embossed elephant design on the front cover. Contained within is a series of thirty large format mounted photographs of the same house that is pictured while under construction in Volume 1. Photographs include views of surrounding natural scenery and gardens, exterior shots of the house, and images showing the porch and sunroom.

The Randel family photograph album (15.5 x 17.25 cm) contains 45 snapshot photographs taken in New York and New Jersey. The album depicts many members of the Randel family, including members of the related Hawks, Slocum, Fort, Potter, and Wood families. These photographs focus on individuals, leisure, travel, and bodies of water in the area.

The Randel family photograph album (15.5 x 17.25 cm) contains 45 snapshot photographs taken in New York and New Jersey. The album depicts many members of the Randel family, including members of the related Hawks, Slocum, Fort, Potter, and Wood families. These photographs focus on individuals, leisure, travel, and bodies of water in the area. Each photograph is numbered to an unknown index; some include notes on how and when the photograph was taken and who is in the photo.

The album has photographs taken in multiple cities in New York state, including Oneida, Hoosick, Easton, Schuylerville, Narrowsburg, and Brooklyn. Various photos were also taken in the New Jersey cities of Jersey City and Eagle Rock.

The Robson family photograph album (14.25 x 19.25 cm) contains 29 snapshots of men and women related to the Robson family in the Missoula, Montana area and Illinois.

The Robson family photograph album (14.25 x 19.25 cm) contains 29 snapshots of men and women related to the Robson family in Illinois and the Missoula, Montana area.

Most of the photographs have inscriptions underneath. 3 loose photographs are tucked in the back pages and do not include inscriptions. An inscription inside the front cover indicates the album was a Christmas gift from Isabelle Cockburn Robson to her nephew, George McPherson, in 1911. Greenough Park in Missoula is featured throughout the album.

Of note are two photographs, one on page 22 of Native Americans standing on a street, and one on page 23 of a crowd listening to former President Theodore Roosevelt give a speech in Missoula.

The Rogers family trip to China photograph album contains 81 photographs from a visit to Shanghai, China, by a group of Americans.

The Rogers family trip to China photograph album contains 81 photographs from a visit to Shanghai, China, by a group of Americans.

The album (18.5 x 27.5 cm) has green cloth covers with "Album" stamped on the front. No captions are present for any of the images. The inclusion of a White House invitation issued to Allan H. Rogers (Superintendent of Public Works in Garden City, Long Island) in 1957 requesting his participation in a traffic study conference raises the possibility that his parents Caroline and Newton Rogers may have been the original compilers of the album.

Images mainly document the activities of a group of Americans visiting China around 1910, but they also provide a glimpse of the U.S. military presence in Shanghai at a time when protection of American commercial interests in the region (especially on the Yangtze River) was a high priority. Images of people playing tennis, attending social events, riding through Shanghai, naval officers aboard ship, sailors marching on land, and a U.S. Navy destroyer in the harbor are all included. Also present are a relatively small number of snapshots documenting street scenes, rickshaws, and commercial river traffic.

The Saint Lawrence River photo album contains 33 photographs taken during a vacation in northern New York State including views of the Saint Lawrence River, Lake Placid, Lake George, and Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

The Saint Lawrence River photo album contains 33 photographs taken during a vacation in northern New York State including views of the Saint Lawrence River, Lake Placid, Lake George, and Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. The album (14 x 20 cm) is bound in a black cloth binding. Images of particular interest include views of a steamboat leaving Clayton, New York, the grounds of the Thousand Island House in Alexandria Bay, views of Wilmington Notch in the Adirondack Mountains, and a picnic scene at Big Rock near Elizabethtown, New York.

The Southwestern automobile travel photograph album (14.5 x 20.25 cm) contains 102 snapshots, most of which document an automobile trip in the United States and Mexico. The images feature bullfighting, camping, fishing and picnicking.

The Southwestern automobile travel photograph album (14.5 x 20.25 cm) contains 102 snapshots, most of which document an automobile trip in the United States and Mexico. The images feature bullfighting, camping, fishing and picnicking. Also included are images of hot springs and a fence made entirely of antlers.