University of Washington Libraries, Special CollectionsPH0586Orré Nobles
Photograph Collectionapproximately
1920-194091 photographs (1 folder)Collection materials are in
English.Photographs
relating to the life of Washington State artist Orré Nelson Nobles.Northwest artist Orré Nelson Nobles was born on April 18, 1894, in
Sumter, Minnesota. After relocating several times, the Nobles family finally
settled in Tacoma, Washington. Orré graduated from Tacoma High School and spent
two years teaching in a small school at Tahuya on Hood Canal. This was followed
by several years serving as a merchant seaman in such locations as South
America and the Orient. Nobles continued to travel throughout his life.
Nobles attended Pratt Institute in New York City where he studied art
for two years. He then taught arts and crafts for a summer at the University of
Washington. Nobles was a teacher in the Arts and Crafts Department at Ballard
High School in Seattle for more than thirty years. During the early 1920s, he
and his family created Olympus Manor, a successful artist colony located on the
shores of Hood Canal at Union where painters, musicians, writers, sculptors,
and dancers gathered to pursue their creative aspirations. Nobles designed a
grand music room in 1923 in order to enlarge the family house. At the official
opening of the music room in the summer of 1925, artists from the Cornish
School in Seattle presented an elaborate program for the guests. In the fall of
1945, Nobles purchased a vacant lot on James Street, above what was then
Chinatown in Seattle and with the help of his family, built a tiny house which
he called Windy Cliff. Orré Nobles died on December 14, 1967, at Windy
Cliff.
The collection contains photographs relating to the life of Orré
Nelson Nobles. It has been arranged in nine sections. The first part includes
three portraits of Orré Nobles. The second part, consisting of photographs
taken at Olympus Manor on Hood Canal and including photos of some of Nobles's
friends and relatives. In addition, there are two photographs of the music room
at Olympus Manor. The third part of the collection includes two photographs of
the Smith Tower in downtown Seattle, taken from Windy Cliff. Henry H. Hussey's
Beijing Compound is the fourth part of the collection. The fifth is related to
ferrys and boats. The sixth part show scenes from China and the Nobles wearing
Chinese dress. The seventh and eight parts show scenes from an amusement park
and Hawaii. The last part is a mix of family trips.
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Donor: Gift of Erna Spannagel Tilley, before 2001, 13 photographs.
Donor: Gift of Graham J. Wright, November 15, 2010, 73 negatives.
Processed by Rebekah Dalby, 2002. Processed by
Kaylynn Guerra, May 2019.
Visual Materials Collections (University of Washington)Nobles, Orré (Orré Nelson), 1894-1967--PhotographsNobles, Orré (Orré Nelson), 1894-1967--Homes and haunts--PhotographsOlympus Manor (Union, Wash.)--PhotographsArtists--Washington (State)--PhotographsArtists--Homes and haunts--Washington (State)--PhotographsArt teachers--Washington (State)--PhotographsArtist colonies--Washington (State)--Hood Canal RegionWashington (State)PhotographsArts and HumanitiesHome and Family
Portraits 11Turner, Bremerton, WAOrré Nobles
wearing a plaid jacket1928 Written on image: Tout a Vous Erna from the King of the Canal,
Orré.
12-3Grady, Seattle, WAOrré
Noblesbetween 1920 and
1930?Olympus Manor, Hood Canal,
Washington14Men and women near trees and a carbetween 1920 and 1930?Scanned from negative.
15Orré Nobles
drawing in a studiobetween 1920 and
1930? 16Viola Nobles standing by Olympus Manor's entrance
signbetween 1920 and 1930? 17Entrance sign to
Olympus Manor with a man in Chinese dress standing beneath itbetween 1920 and
1930? 18-9Olympus Manor
cottagebetween 1920 and
1930? Item 8 is scanned from negative.
110 Olympus Manor cottage with a man (probably Orré Nobles)
on the porchbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
111Orré Nobles sitting in a chair on the porch with a man
(probably his partner) standing next to himbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
112Orré Nobles (on the right) standing with a man (probably
his partner) outside in suitsbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
113-14Music
roomTurner1925 In item 13, Orré Nobels is sitting in a chair.
115Erna Tilley and
Don Blanding outside of music room1935? 116Woman (probably Viola Nobles) wearing Asian clothing and
holding an Asian style umbrella between 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
117Woman and a man (probably Orré Nobles) sitting on chairs
wearing Asian clothing and holding umbrellasbetween 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
118Two women (the one holding the Asian style umbrella is
probably Viola Nobles) lounging in a chair wearing Asian clothing between 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
119Girl sitting on man's lap with an Asian straw hat
leaning against their chairbetween 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
Ferry boats220-21Crowds of people on ferrybetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
The name on the ferry in item 21 is Washington Irving.
222Seagate ferry with a crowd
of people on itbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
223A docked ferry or boatbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
224A sinking boat, The Admiral Line
P.S.S. Co.between 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
225Men on a dockbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
226Man in a dinghy with a boat behind himbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
227Man standing by boat railingbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
228Three men, one smoking a cigarette and another holding a
pipe, standing on ferry deckbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
229Two men (the one on the left is probably Orré Nobles and
the one on the right is probably his partner) standing on a boat called the
Ravallibetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
230Man (probably Orré Nobles) sitting in a chair with
another man sitting behind himbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
231Man (probably Orré Nobles) standing next another man
(probably his partner) with crossed arms on a boatbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
232Man (probably Orré Nobles' partner) leaning against boat
or ferry railbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
233Man standing on ferry or boat deck with mountains in the
backgroundbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
234 Orré Nobles leaning against the railing and another man
(probably his partner) near the railing of a boat with mountains in the
backgroundbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
Luna Park, Coney Island,
NY235Boat coming out from the Chutesbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
236 Two men (the one on the right is probably Orré Nobles)
in hats standing and other people in the backgroundbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
237Two men (the one on the right is probably Orré Nobles)
in hats standing by the fence of the Over the Top ridebetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
238Waterside of the parkbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
239Two men (one is probably Orré Nobles) in hats standing
in front of "The Electric Tower" between 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
240Large crowd at a beach, Coney Island, NYbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
Hawaii241Two men (the one on the left is probably Orré Nobles and
the other is probably his partner) standing by a sign pointing to "Outrigger
Canoe Club", Waikiki, HIbetween 1920 and 1930?Scanned from negative.
242Man (probably Orré Nobles's partner) standing in the
water and holding on to a canoe with kids in itbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
243Two men (the one on the left is probably Orré Nobles and
the other is probably his partner) in bathing suits sitting on a canoe half in
the waterbetween 1920 and 1930?Scanned from negative.
244Man (probably Orré Nobles's partner) standing in front
of a building at a sandy beachbetween 1920 and 1930?Scanned from negative.
245Two men (the one on the left is probably Orré Nobles and
the other is probably his partner) standing in front of 'Iolani Palace,
Honolulu, HIbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
246Two men (the one on the left is probably Orré Nobles and
the other is probably his partner) standing in the outdoor hallway of the
'Iolani Palace, Honolulu, HIbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
Beach Trip347-48Young girl with Orré Nobles and another man at a rocky
beachbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
349Two men (the one on the left is probably Orré Nobles and
the other is probably his partner) standing on a rocky beachbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
350-51Man standing in the sand with a woman (probably Viola
Nobles) standing on his thighbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
352Man standing in the water holding up the woman on his
shoulderbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
353Man (probably Orré Nobles) standing on another man's
(probably his partner) shoulders at the beachbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
354Man (probably Orré Nobles's partner) lying on matts in
the sand with legs up to prop-up Orré Noblesbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
355Man standing on a stump at the beachbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
356Two men (the one on the right is probably Orré Nobles)
standing among Native American style canoesbetween 1920 and 1930?Scanned from negative.
357Woman sitting in a canoe in front of a
floatplanebetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
Other Trips358Man standing in front of a douglas fir known as the
Columbus Tree between 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
359Two men on a suspension bridgebetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
360Two men (the one on the right is probably Orré Nobles)
standing with a calf between thembetween 1920 and 1930?Scanned from negative.
361Girl sitting on a calf with a man supporting her
nearbybetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
362Man (probably Orré Nobles) on a horsebetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
363-64Man with a long beard, glasses, long coat, straw hat, an
umbrella, and a pipe in his mouthbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
365Two men with one holding a bagbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
366-67Military base or camp and a man standing in front of the
towerbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
368Man standing in front of a double decker busbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
369Man standing on the side of a hill at a possible Denny
Regrade sitebetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
370-71Boys squatting by sidewalk advertisement boards of
Ballard baseball and basketball gamesbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
372Two men holding a sign board saying "Coming Games
Ballard versus West Seattle"between 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
373Boy wearing glasses standing by a tapestry or painted
boardbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
374-75The Woolworth building in New Yorkbetween 1920 and 1930? Scanned from negative.
Windy Cliff, Seattle, Washington476-77Smith Tower from
Windy Cliffbetween 1950 and
1960? Henry H. Hussey's Beijing
Compound478Exterior of a residence with a dog on its front
steps1931? 479Interior entryways 1931?Written on verso: One wanders and wonders thru such dream doors
as these.
480The main hallway with a fireplace1931?Written on verso: Indirectly lighted murals done in oils
surround back of the several fireplaces. The color is more glorious than the
design.
481Dining room1931?Written on verso: The gorgeous dining room where I have eaten
many many times. Lean Peking???.
482Mrs. Hussey's chamber (bedroom)1931?Written on verso: One of the many in the house.
483Mr. Hussey's study1931?China484Man sitting on a crate with a family standing near him
on a dockbetween 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
485Man and a family sitting among crates on a
boatbetween 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
486-87A Chinese town and marketbetween 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
488A town from a distance between 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
489People carrying loads and walking down the
streetbetween 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.
4 90Boy in a dinghy holding up a fishbetween 1930 and 1940? Scanned from negative.