Albert B. Kinne Photographs

Albert B. Kinne Photographs, ca. 1903-1910

Overview of the Collection

Photographer: Kinne, A. B. (Albert Barnes)
Title: Albert B. Kinne Photographs
Dates: ca. 1903-1910 (inclusive)
19031910
Quantity: 50 photographic prints + 2 labels
21 negatives : glass ; 8 x 10 in.
1 negative : nitrate ; 8 x 10 in.
Collection Number: PH0314
Summary: Images of the gold mining industry and the Alaskan towns of Council, Deering, Candle, and Nome, taken by San Francisco public affairs activist and photographer
Repository: University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu
Access Restrictions: Negatives are not available for viewing.
Languages: English
Sponsor: Funding for encoding this finding aid was partially provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Albert Barnes Kinne was born around June 1, 1853. He resided in San Francisco, where he was actively engaged in public affairs and ran an unsuccessful bid for Congress. Kinne also operated a photography studio in San Francisco, located at 1040 Shotwell Street. Around 1900, he relocated to Nome, Alaska, where he set up a new studio and worked with the Wild Goose Mining and Trading Company. By 1903, he had formed a partnership with well-known Nome photographer Beverly B. Dobbs. Their studio, Dobbs & Kinne, was dissolved when Kinne moved eighty miles east to the gold mining camp of Council (aka Council City), and started a new photography business around 1905. In 1911, Beverly Dobbs sold the Nome studio and its glass negatives, including some made by Kinne, to photography entrepreneurs the Lomen Brothers, who created prints of the images under their own imprint.

Kinne took a job as manager of the Alaska Telephone & Telegraph Co. around 1907 and may also have held a teaching job in Council in 1910, when the U.S. Bureau of Education set up schools to educate native populations in the area. On Nov. 20, 1913, Kinne was appointed postmaster of Council. He married his wife, Nellie, in 1921, and continued to live and work in Council until Jan., 1925, when he returned to Nome and established a mercantile business. Although his business was reportedly thriving in Nome, he became despondent, possibly over ill health, and shot himself to death in Aug., 1925.

After Kinne's death, his wife apparently abandoned their home, along with hundreds of photographs contained there. In 1941, a visitor managed to save a few samples of the poorly preserved photographs and glass and nitrate negatives from the collapsing home.

Historical BackgroundReturn to Top

At the turn of the 20th century, gold discoveries on the Seward Peninsula of Alaska led to the development of four communities: Nome, Council, Candle, and Deering.

Nome, located on the peninsula's southwest corner, became one of Alaska's major gold mining areas when gold was discovered in nearby Anvil Creek in 1898.

Council, situated 65 miles northeast of Nome on the Niukluk River, was founded by prospectors in 1898 after a gold strike occurred there the previous year. Mines on nearby Ophir Creek, primarily owned by the Wild Goose Mining and Trading Company, produced $4.5 million in gold. During the summers of 1897-1899, Council’s population was estimated at 15,000, but many people left for Nome when more gold was discovered there in 1900. By 1910, Council's population had dwindled to just 686.

Candle, named for Candle Creek, was established about 1901 in the northern part of the Seward Peninsula on the Kiwalik River. Although it was the largest community on the north side of the peninsula, Candle's population decreased after its mining industry suffered a sharp drop in production around 1907. By 1910, the town numbered only 204 inhabitants.

Deering, a village located about thirty miles north of Candle on the Kotzebue Sound, was established in 1901 as a supply station for gold mining on the interior. It was probably named for the ninety-ton schooner Abbey Deering , which traveled nearby waters around 1900.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The collection contains scenes of the gold-mining towns of Council City, Candle, Deering, and other areas on the Seward Peninsula of Alaska during the early years of the 20th century. Included are photographs documenting the activities of the Council Volunteer Fire Department, the DeSoto Mining Company, and the Wild Goose Mining and Trading Company. All of the photographs were made by Albert B. Kinne.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Alternative Forms Available

Photographic prints made from the negative originals are available for reference purposes.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Acquisition Information

Glass plate negatives and modern contact prints possibly made in the 1970s; source: Michael Maslan, 2002.

Nineteen vintage prints and modern contact prints possibly made in the 1970s; source unknown.

Processing Note

Processed by Linda Corets, 2003.

Two acquisitions have been combined. One consisted of modern contact prints, glass plate negatives, and one nitrate negative; the other consisted of 19 modern contact prints and vintage prints from an unknown source.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

Nome, Alaska (Nome County, Seward Peninsula)Return to Top

Container(s)		Description
Folder	item
1	1	View of road and harbor at Nome (Kinne 501)

Council (or Council City), Alaska (Nome County, Seward Peninsula)Return to Top

Container(s)		Description	Dates
Folder	item
2	2	View of river with ice, probably near Council (Kinne 717)
2	3	Distant view of Council and landscape (Kinne 514)
2	4	View of Council, waterway, and small boat from Melsing Creek (Kinne 842)
2	5	View of Council and waterway from Melsing Creek (Kinne 556)
2	6	Rope strung between buildings in winter to guide people during blizzards (Kinne 1220)
2	7	Man standing on wind-carved snow drift in Council (Kinne 1210)
2	8	Bags, possibly containing coal, in the snow (Kinne 1253)
2	9	Sanborn, Marshall & Co. general store on the main street (Kinne 511)
2	10	Men and dogs in front of the Beach Saloon and Bakery
2	11	Men in front of the Ophir and Headquarters log (Kinne 845)
3	12	Men on ladders and in building during Council’s Volunteer Fire Department fire drill (Kinne 824)
3	13	Bucket brigade at the Ophir Saloon fire (Kinne 782)	Dec. 30, 1904
3	14	Bucket brigade along the waterfront at the Wild Goose Mining and Trading Company (Kinne 720)
3	15	Trustees of Council’s Volunteer Fire Department

DeSoto Mining Company (Nome County, Seward Peninsula)Return to Top

Container(s)		Description	Dates
Folder	item
4	16	DeSoto Mining Co. camp on the Niukluk River (formerly Neukluk) near Council (Kinne 553)	July 24, 1903
4	17	DeSoto Mining Co. camp on river at White Mountain (Kinne 115)
4	18	DeSoto Mining Co. workers unloading the steamer Dusty Diamond at White Mountain (Kinne 117)
4	19	DeSoto Mining Company’s steamer Dusty Diamond at White Mountain
4	20	Blasting ice around the DeSoto Mining Company’s dredger with discarded gravel bar in background (Kinne 719)
4	21	[DeSoto Mining Company’s?] dredger and pile of wood for its boiler, White Mountain

Gold mining (Nome County, Seward Peninsula)Return to Top

Container(s)		Description
Folder	item
5	22	Distant view of steam dredge at work near mouth of Ophir Creek (Kinne 862)
5	23	Day shift miners at Northern Light Mining Co., Ophir Creek (Kinne 225)
5	24	Miners at mining operation, probably at Council
5	25	Large group of miners at Council
5	26	Two men in mining camp, one with mosquito netting on his hat
5	27	Men and dog team in front of cabin at gold camp, probably at Council (Kinne 704)
5	28	Men playing with dogs in front of tent at gold camp, probably at White Mountain The tent features the logo for Seattle Tent & Awning Co. of Seattle. Beginning in 1897, the company supplied tents to gold prospectors en route to Alaska.

Wild Goose Mining and Trading Company (Nome County, Seward Peninsula)Return to Top

Container(s)		Description
Folder	item
6	29	Barges towed by the Wild Goose Company’s sternwheeler tow boat Pauline on the Fish River
6	30	Barges towed by the Wild Goose Company’s sternwheeler tow boat Pauline on the Fish River (Kinne 111)
6	31	Wild Goose Company’s horse teams hauling lumber from the company mill on Duncan Creek (Kinne 784)
6	32	Workers, lumber, and horse teams, probably from the Wild Goose Company’s mill on Duncan Creek (Kinne 789)
6	33	Workers and lumber, probably from the Wild Goose Company’s mill on Duncan Creek (Kinne 788)

Deering, Alaska (Northwest Arctic County, Seward Peninsula)Return to Top

Container(s)		Description	Dates
Folder	item
7	34	Local residents and visitors from the town of Candle in front of cabin in Deering (Kinne 835) Elmer “Slim” Rydeen stands at center, holding tray. Rydeen lived in Candle and Nome and served on the territorial legislature.	Apr. 13, 1905
7	35	Family and dogs in front of cabin in Deering (Kinne 822)
7	36	Men and dogs in front of cabin in Deering (Kinne 816/817)
7	37	Eskimo children at Eskimo mission in Deering

Candle, Alaska (Northwest Arctic County, Seward Peninsula)Return to Top

Container(s)		Description	Dates
Folder	item
8	38	View of the town (Kinne 203)	Apr. 9, 1907
8	39	Men standing in front of the Lacey building (Kinne 1242)
8	40	Men working at homestead, Candle "'King Olaf's Place. O.A. Lundberg."	1910

Kiwalik Area (Northwest Arctic County, Seward Peninsula) Return to Top

Container(s)		Description	Dates
Folder	item
9	41	Dog teams and men at Keewalik Hotel, probably Kiwalik (formerly Keewalik) (Kinne 815)
9	42	Robert Wakely Snyder family at winter house, 22 miles up the Kiwalik River (Kinne 800) From left: daughter Tacoma, 4 years; Susie, wife, Eskimo; family friend; Robert Wakely Snyder; son Roy, 5 months. This is the winter house that turned into Snyders Road House.	1904

PeopleReturn to Top

Container(s)		Description	Dates
Folder	item
10	43	Eskimo hunter and pack dog in town (Kinne 723)
10	44	Eskimos whip-sawing lumber in snow (Kinne 694)
10	45	Male and female patrons inside a saloon, possibly Nome or Council
10	46	Woman reading in cabin decorated with artifacts and fur pelts (Kinne 518)
10	47	Little girl holding flowers and dressed for confirmation, possibly in church (Kinne 711)	ca. 1905
10	48	Woman in ornate dress, probably in Council (Kinne 706)
10	49-50	Naked body of man inside cabin (Kinne 701)

Kinne Photography Studio LabelsReturn to Top

Container(s)		Description
Folder	item
11	51-52	Kinne's photography label with San Francisco studio address Labels removed from the backings of items 39 and 40.

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

Eskimos--Alaska--Photographs
Fire departments--Alaska--Council--Photographs
Fire fighters--Alaska--Council--Photographs
Frontier and pioneer life--Alaska--Photographs
Gold miners--Alaska--Photographs
Gold mines and mining--Alaska--Photographs
Gold rushes--Alaska--Photographs
Pioneers--Alaska--Photographs

Personal Names

Kinne, A. B. (Albert Barnes)

Corporate Names

DeSoto Mining Company--Photographs
Wild Goose Mining and Trading Company--Photographs

Geographical Names

Alaska--Gold discoveries
Candle (Alaska)--Photographs
Council (Alaska)--Photographs
Deering (Alaska)--Photographs
Nome (Alaska)--Photographs
Seward Peninsula (Alaska)--Photographs

Archives West Finding Aid

Table of Contents