Photographic Processes in a Nutshell

The Western History and Genealogy Department houses a large photograph collection with item representing all of the eras of the history of photography. In chronological order, here are some examples of our extensive collection of historic photographs.

A Native American (Sioux) woman hauls a bundle of sticks on her back. The woman wears a woven, striped blanket over her shoulders and head, and walks on a snow covered hillside.

View of a locomotive, "The General," Western and Atlantic Railroad engine no. 3 on a turntable in a roundhouse probably in Atlanta, Georgia. The tender is full of wood. A man stands on the locomotive and holds an oil can.

Bust portrait of a Native American (Navajo) boy in a cloth headband and a probably woven shirt and jacket.

Portrait of Amanda Ermhorn [?] possibly the niece of R. Sopris. She wears a dress with a lace collar.

View from the base of Three Falls waterfall in South Cheyenne Canyon, southwest of Colorado Springs, Colorado; wooden walkway crosses pool in foreground; stairs are parallel to waterfall.

Native American (Crow) men on horses wear feather headdresses and braids. One holds a coup stick or staff.

Studio portrait (sitting) of Benjamin McMakin of Philadelphia. He wears a suit and ascot tie.

Studio portrait (sitting) of a man and his son.

Sitting studio portrait of a girl identified as Grace Alice Stone French.

Portrait of Captain Charley, an elderly Native American (Maricopa) man. He wears a blanket and has white or gray hair.

Studio portrait (sitting) of Elizabeth Minerva Byers (Sumner). She wears a dress with a ruffled collar.

Studio portrait (sitting) of a husband and wife. The woman wears a lace collar.

Two-place "Eaglerock" biplane #4. Photographed: at old Lowry Field; E. 38th Ave. & Dahlia St., Denver, Colo., August 1, 1926.

Studio portrait (sitting) of Elizabeth Minerva Byers (Sumner) and Frank S. Byers, her son.

Studio portrait of (possibly) Augusta Louise Tabor, in a dress and high button shoes.

Shows Hiram and Alida Burton with their children Elsie and Smith Payne Burton. Two young children sit on the lap of the man. The young girl wears a dress, and the toddler wears a pullover with bloomers. The woman wears a dress with a lace collar and the man wears a suit.

View of a building probably in Denver, Colorado. Signs on the buildings read: "Miller's New Drug Store" and "Dry Goods Groceries".

Studio portrait of a girl. She wears a dress.

Sitting studio portrait of an unidentified girl.

Interior view of the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company Minnequa Plant in Pueblo (Pueblo County), Colorado, shows machinery, scaffolding, and bucket pouring molten steel. Steam or smoke rises from machinery nearby, men watch from the walkway.

Head and shoulders studio portrait of an unidentified girl.

Studio portrait of two Native American (Ute) women and three white men. The woman wearing a striped dress, shawl, concho belt, earrings, and a bead necklace is identified as Mary Tobin, mother of Mollie Cloud. The other woman wears braids, a print dress, shawl, a hair pipe choker and necklace with a toy top; she holds paper flowers in her right hand. The men (one identified as Mr. Ward) wear suits, bow ties, felt hats, and ribbons reading: "Denver Festival of Mountain and Plain State Fair director."

Seated studio portrait of A-ki-pa (The Meeter), Native American man and warrior of the Sisiton Sioux, wearing a headband with two feathers, jacket, shirt and necktie, animal fur armband, leggings and a blanket around his waist; he hold a staff or calumet.

Studio portrait of an unidentified group of whites and Native Americans (Ute); Native American costume includes hair pipe chokers, earrings, beaded vests and shirts, rings, and medals. C. M. Day wears a ribbon reading: "Fifth Annual Festival of Mountain & Plain State Fair Indian."

Seated studio portrait of He-kha-ka Ma-za (The Iron Elk), Native American man and Mdewakanton Sioux warrior, wearing a roach and feathers, jacket with shirt and necktie, and a blanket around his waist; he holds a ceremonial staff or spear.

View of a family sledding. Edward Marshall Stedman (owner of the Mascot Mine in American City, Colorado) is on the horse in front, his brother is next, his mother Miriam is in the sled, and his daughter Agnes is behind the sled, probably near the mining town of American City (Gilpin County), Colorado.

Seated studio portrait of a Native American man and Winnebago chief wearing a turban with roach and feathers, striped shirt, earrings and wrapped in a blanket. He holds a war club.

Close-up view of flowers, probably Thimblewee (Candle Anemone), in a field or on the plains in Colorado. The plant has cup shaped blossoms on long stalks, and fan shaped leaves low to the ground.

Panoramic view of sedimentary rock formations identified as "Badlands", probably in Fremont County, Wyoming. Shows layered strata on steep rock hillsides. Sagebrush and grass are on sandy, barren ground.

View of the American Mining Company's assay office near American City (Gilpin County), Colorado. Snow covers the ground.

Men and women pose in front or on the second-story balcony of the Barton House hotel in Georgetown (Clear Creek County), Colorado. Men sit on a horse-drawn stagecoach. The frame hotel has a hipped roof with dormer windows, brackets and overhanging eaves. Shows snow on mountains and near tree stumps.

View of grasses and brush in a valley in the foothills of Jefferson County, Colorado. Shows rocks on slopes, and a trail. The rocky summit of Cathedral Spires is in the distance.

A man sits on a rock in the middle of probably Middle Boulder Creek, and a dog lies beside the creek in the narrow canyon. Shows a sheer rock wall, trees and fallen logs in the creek bed in Boulder County, Colorado.

Close-up view of a flowering plant, the Common Harebell (Scotch Harebell, Bluebell, Bellflower, Witches Thimble), in a field in Colorado. The bell-shaped flowers have fused petals, flared at the ends. The plant has long stems and few, short, narrow leaves.

View of a burro with a saddle on its back. A chair and tree stump are in the distance.