Finch Jr. (Henry) photograph collection, 1892-1934

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Summary

Title:
Henry Finch Jr. photograph collection
Dates:
1892-1934
Creators:
Finch, Henry, Jr.
Abstract:
The Henry Finch Jr. photograph collection, 1892-1934, (SAFR 24258, P97-011) is comprised of copy negatives of Henry Finch and Sons salvage divers and various steam and sailing vessels, mostly in Seattle, Washington. The collection has been processed to the Collection level and is open for use.
Extent:
13 items
Language:
In English.
Preferred citation:

[Item description], [Location within collection organization identified by Collection Number/Series Number/File Unit Number/Item Number], P97-011 (SAFR 24258), Henry Finch Jr. photograph collection, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park

Background

Scope and content:

The Henry Finch Jr. photograph collection, 1892-1934, (SAFR 24258, P97-011) is comprised of copy negatives of Henry Finch and Sons salvage divers and various steam and sailing vessels, mostly in Seattle, Washington. The collection has been processed to the Collection level and is open for use.

Contains photographs of Henry Finch and Sons crew in diving suits; schooners and steamships moored aground, and underway; and other scenes, including a party and Alaska mining activities, 1892-1934. Some locations are identified as Seattle, Washington. There are 13 unique photographic images (black-and-white copy negatives, 4 x 5 in.).

Photographs
  • Item 01. SAIDIE (built 1898; paddle steamer) moored, port broadside view, 1898-1904. N.C. Co. vessel. The original photograph was possibly taken by E.A. Hegg (his name appears faintly on the image) and reproduced by F.H. Nowell (his name is clearly visible in the lower left corner). Photog. no. 2163.
  • Item 02. FRANK H. BUCK (built 1914; tanker) aground at Point Pinos, Pacific Grove, California, starboard bow view, 1924 May. Associated Oil Co. tanker. A group of four men is seated in the foreground surrounded by luggage.
  • Item 03. Group portrait at George Broom's annual clam party, 1934 February 10. Likely in Seattle, Washington. Twenty-nine men and one dog are in view near the waterfront. The Diamond Ice & Storage Co. building is in the background.
  • Item 04. Nome, Alaska, 1900. View of tents along the shoreline and mining activities. Photographed by Lomen Bros., photog. no. 995.
  • Item 05. ANNA OCLA (schooner, 2m) in the stream, port broadside view, circa 1895-1925. Men are visible on board.
  • Item 06. Henry Finch and Sons crew, one of whom is wearing a diving suit, aboard a diving scow, possibly in Seattle, Washington, circa 1905-1925. The photographic postcard from which the copy negative was made had negative no. 11194 on the verso.
  • Item 07. GREAT BEAR (built 1916; schooner, 3m) docked, stern view, at Schwabacher Wharf, Pier 7, Seattle, Washington, 1916.
  • Item 08. GREAT BEAR (built 1916; schooner, 3m) docked, bow view, possibly at Schwabacher Wharf, Pier 7, Seattle, Washington, 1916.
  • Item 09. Diver descending a ladder from a Neptune Salvage Co. barge in Seattle, Washington, 1908. Other men are visible on board the barge. The photographic postcard from which the copy negative was made had the following information handwritten on the verso: "Henry Finch & Sons - 1908 / picking up 800 English / railroad rails Pier 8 / Seattle Scow load / capsized. / James Moore - Vancouver B.C / H. Finch Jr. / H. Finch Sr. / Divers."
  • Item 10. GRANT (steamship) docked, starboard bow view, circa 1895-1925.
  • Item 11. GOLIAH (built 1907; tugboat) pulling SNOHOMISH (built 1908; cutter: U.S. Coast Guard) off the beach at Restoration Point, Washington, 1916 January 3.
  • Item 12. Diver descending a ladder, circa 1905-1925.
  • Item 13. COLUMBIA RIVER NO. 50 (built 1892; lightship) likely on the Columbia River Bar, stern view, 1892-1909. A rowboat with seven men aboard is alongside. Photographed by Coe.
Biographical / historical:

Henry Finch Sr. (1850-1926) operated Henry Finch and Sons, a diving and salvage business, with his son, Henry Finch Jr. (1887-1961), in Seattle, Washington. Prior to his diving business, Finch Sr. worked at the lifesaving station located in Manistee, Michigan, from at least 1880-1889 (additional years possible, but not confirmed). Circa 1900, he travelled to Alaska for gold prospecting. Sometime between 1900-1910, he relocated to Seattle, Washington, and began a career as a salvage diver throughout the Pacific Northwest and Alaska.

Sources:
  • Ancestry.com and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1880 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010.
  • Ancestry.com. 1900 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.
  • Ancestry.com. 1910 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2006.
  • Captain Henry S. Finch. Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=77679834&ref=acom. Accessed September 30, 2014.
  • Henry S. Finch, Sr. Find A Grave. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=16597799&ref=acom. Accessed September 30, 2014.
Acquisition information:

SAFR-01133

In 1996, Mary Ellen Finch, daughter-in-law of Henry Finch Jr., loaned three photograph albums to the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park (SAFR-01132). The Park made copy negatives from 13 of the photographs in the albums and accessioned the copies as SAFR-01333 in 1997. The photograph albums were returned to the Finch family.

The photograph albums may have been assembled by Henry Finch Jr, alothough some of the photograph may have been from his father, Henry Finch Sr. At least one of the copied photographs dates to after Henry Finch Sr.'s death, so Finch Jr. is more likely to have assembled the albums.

Processing information:

Items 05-11 are copies of photographic postcards and Item 12 is a copy of a snapshot. The original photographic type of the other Items was not recorded.

The descriptions in this collection guide were compiled using the best available sources of information. Such sources include the creator's annotations or descriptions, collection accession files, primary and secondary source material and subject matter experts. While every effort was made to provide accurate information, in the event that you find any errors in this guide please contact the reference staff in order for us to evaulate and make corrections to this guide.

Please cite the title and collection number in any correspondence with our staff.

Arrangement:

Arranged in the order listed on the In-House Photo Order Form in the collection file, which might be the order in which they were found in the photograph albums. Items 01-04 were located in the album labeled "Photographs." Item 05 was located in the album labeled "Souvenir Cards." Items 06-12 were located in the album labeled "Postal Souvenirs." Item 13 is not listed on the form, so it is unknown which album it was copied from.

Physical location:
San Francisco Maritime NHP, Historic Documents Department
Physical description:
.
Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard .

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Processed by: L. Bianchi, October 2014.
Date Prepared:
2015
Date Encoded:
Machine-readable finding aid derived from ICMS database and converted into xml from a template revised and updated by San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, Historic Documents Department. 4/30/2015 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

This collection is open for use unless otherwise noted.

Terms of access:

Some material may be copyrighted or restricted. It is the researcher's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other case restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the collections.

Preferred citation:

[Item description], [Location within collection organization identified by Collection Number/Series Number/File Unit Number/Item Number], P97-011 (SAFR 24258), Henry Finch Jr. photograph collection, San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park

Location of this collection:
Building E, Fort Mason
San Francisco, CA 94123, US
Contact:
415-561-7030
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