WAUTowneBertramPHColl502.xmlGuide to the Bertram C. Towne Photographs circa 1884-circa 1898 circa 1884-circa 1898Towne (Bertram C.) PhotographsSpecial Collections, University of Washington Libraries© 2003 (Last modified: 11/27/2017)
Seattle, WA 98195
Finding aid written in English.Finding aid based on DACS (Describing Archives: A Content Standard).University of Washington Libraries, Special CollectionsPH0502Towne, Bertram CBertram C. Towne photographscirca 1884-circa 1898188720 photographic prints, 1 album (1 box) ; 8.5 x 5.25 in.Collection materials are in English.Boudoir size photographs of Alaska, Oregon and California by early Portland photographer Bertram C. Towne

Bertram C. Towne was a photographer active in Portland, Oregon, during the period 1884-1895. From 1884-1887, B.C. Towne and Elbridge W. Moore operated the San Francisco Gallery in Portland as partners, having assumed control of the gallery after the death of W.H. Towne. At this time, the studio was also listed as "Towne & Moore." From 1888-1895, the studio operated as "B.C. Towne Photograph Company" and was located on First Street in Portland. In October, 1890, the West Shore , a popular weekly publication that promoted life in the Pacific Northwest, named Towne as a photographic contest winner in the "professional" category. Carl Mautz, in Biographies of Western Photographers (1997), states that Towne's studio "became one of the premier galleries in Portland, employing many of the best photographers in the area" and that it "published boudoir format scenes of Alaska, the Columbia River, Mount Hood, and other Northwest scenes."

Except for one photograph of the Chilkoot Pass, this set of 20 photographs appears to have been taken by Towne during the period 1884-1887. The majority of the images are outdoor scenes, produced on "Boudoir Cards", from southeastern Alaska, Portland and Mount Hood in Oregon, and Mount Shasta in northern California. Several Alaskan images of Chilkoot Pass and the Muir Glacier (Glacier Bay) are natural scenes, while the rest are of settlements and/or people in Sitka and Howkan, including images of Tlingit Native Americans tending to everyday responsibilities, such as drying fish and selling berries. Towne is known to have taken a trip to Alaska in 1887, and many of the photos appear to have been taken during that trip. The collection also includes three portraits taken by Towne, and one boudoir card photograph album of "Portland, Or. Souvenir Photographs."

Introduced in the 1880s, the "Boudoir Card" size (5.5 x 8.5 inches) is a larger verison of the "Cabinet Card" size (4.5 x 7 inches), and was originally produced for marketing purposes. The "Boudoir Card" consisted of a paper photograph mounted on a cardboard mount and usually cost more money than the smaller size "Cabinet Card". This collection contains one "Boudoir Card" photograph album. The following 12 photographs were originally contained within the album: items 2-5, 7-8, 11-16.

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Photographs18-20 were originally from the S.L. Crawford Collection.

Source: 12 photographs, 1 album, Joan Perkal Books, 1980; PH Coll 502.1, gift of Charles Gould;

Processed by James Foti, 2002 and Jordan Grimmer, August 2011.

Towne, Bertram CTlingit Indians--PhotographsMountains--West (U.S.)--PhotographsVisual Materials Collections (University of Washington)AlaskaOregonPhotographsNative AmericansSitka (Alaska)--PhotographsHood, Mount (Or.)--PhotographsBoudoir card photographs

 

Alaska11Chilkoot Passcirca 1898

Caption on verso: Chilcoot Pass, ca. 1898, Gen. T.M. Anderson in Alaska, 1897-1898.

12-3Muir Glacier, Glacier Bay (Towne 178 & Towne 179)1887 14-5Harbor and waterfront, Sitka (Towne 1 & Towne 9)1887 16Tlingit village, Sitkaundated 17Tlingit Indians tending to canoe and fish on drying racks in front of houses, Sitka (Towne 209) 1887

Caption on photo: Scene in Indian Town

18Tlingit women selling salmonberries along planked sidewalk, Sitka (Towne 54) 1887

Caption on verso: Salmon berries for sale.

19Tlingit women sitting in Indian River Road, Sitka (Towne 11)undated

Caption on verso: Indian river road "Sitka."

110Indian River Falls viewed from downriver, below footbridge, Sitka (Towne 10)undated 111Two Haida totem poles, Howkan, Long Island (Towne 57)1887

Caption on verso: Twin Totems, Howkan

Oregon / California212Portland, Oregon, with Mount Hood in background (Towne 17)1887 213Multnomah Falls along the Columbia River, Oregon (Towne 227)1887 214Group of men with backpacks, hiking staffs, and horses, Mount Hood, Oregon (Towne 195)1887 215Two men with backpacks and hiking staffs climbing Mount Hood, Oregon (Towne 193)1887

Caption on verso: Crater Rock, Mt. Hood.

216Houses, livery stable, barns, and Mount Shasta, California (Towne 250)1887 217Salmon wheel on Columbia Riverundated Portraits318Thomas Keogh1887 319"Cousin Charlie," Mizner familycirca 1884-1887Towne & Moore 320Captain Frank Northcirca 1884-1887 Album421Album cover for boudoir size photographs 1887

Title on album: Portland, Or. Souvenir Photographs.

The photographs (items 2-5, 7-8, 11-16) were originally contained in this boudoir size card photograph album.