Harry Dring Photographs, 1870-1983

Summary

Creators:

Harry\personal Dring

Extent:

6014 items (14 linear ft.).

Language:

English.

Background

Scope and content:

The collection primarily documents the restoration and maintenance of the historic vessels at San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park from 1954 to 1982. The bulk of the collection holdings consist of black-and-white photographs and negatives created or collected by the ships' manager Harry Dring from 1957 to 1976. Other items include photo albums and motion picture film. Along with restoration and preservation of the vessels, the collection documents daily activities at Hyde Street Pier.

Of particular note are the 1,689 negatives documenting the fleet's restoration and maintenance.

Biographical / historical:

As Ships' Manager and Supervisor of Restoration at Hyde Street Pier under the State of California, Harrison (Harry) Joseph Dring oversaw the ongoing restoration of the museum's historic ship fleet from 1954 to 1982. Dring was responsible for the fleet of historic ships at the National Maritime Museum in San Francisco where he managed the fleets' restoration and maintenance. He documented this work by photographing or hiring photographers as well as collecting images of the fleet and other non-National Park Service (NPS) historic vessels.

After doing restoration work on the Balclutha in 1954, Dring became the ship's manager and supervisor of restoration for California's historic ships. He was named "Conservator of Ships" for the NPS in 1977 upon transfer of the fleet to the Golden Gate National Recreation Area.

Acquisition information:

Arrangement:

Organized into the following series: 1. Negatives, file units 1- 8 as follows: 1.1. Alma; 1.2. Hercules; 1.3. C.A. Thayer; 1.4. Eureka; 1.5. Wapama; 1.6. Park & Pier; 1.7. Miscellaneous Vessels; 1.8. People; 2. Albums (classified), subseries 1-3 as follows: 2.1. Park Fleet; 2.2. Park & Pier; 2.3. Other Vessels/Miscellaneous/People; 3. Albums (not classified), file units 1-25 as follows: 3.1. Alma #1; 3.2. Alma #2; 3.3. Alma #3; 3.4. Eureka #1; 3.5. Eureka #2; 3.6. Eureka #3; 3.7. Hercules; 3.8. C.A. Thayer #1; 3.9. C.A. Thayer #2; 3.10. C.A. Thayer #3; 3.11. C.A. Thayer #4; 3.12. C.A. Thayer #?; 3.13. Wapama #1; 3.14. Wapama #2; 3.15. Wapama #3; 3.16. Wapama #4; 3.17. Wapama #5; 3.18. Wapama #6; 3.19. Fleet #F1; 3.20. Miscellaneous; 3.21. MS #1; 3.22. MT #1; 3.23. MT #2; 3.24. P; 3.25. From Eureka Wheelhouse; 4. Loose Photographs, organized into file units 1-11 as follows: 4.1. Eppleton Hall; 4.2. Eureka; 4.3. Wapama; 4.4. Hercules; 4.5. Alma; 4.6. Balclutha; 4.7. C.A. Thayer; 4.8. Miscellaneous 4.1; 4.9. Miscellaneous 4.2; 4.10. Oversized; 4.11. Film; 5. Photographs transfered from the Harry Dring textual records, HD 648. The negatives in Series 1 were further organized by item utilizing an existing classification scheme. Series 2 photos are a corresponding subset to the Series I negatives.

Dring's classification scheme was maintained for the negatives in series 1 and the photograph albums in series 2. The vessels appear to be arbitrarily arranged within this classification scheme. The series 2 albums are arranged by subject. Series 3 photographs were arranged by vessels in albums, then chronologically within the file units. Series 4 photographs were arranged by vessel. Series 5 photographs maintain the arrangement found in HDC 648.

Location of this collection:

San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park

Building E, Fort Mason

San Francisco, CA 94123, US

Contact:

415-561-7030

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