Lodewyk Bendikson Papers, 1921-1950, bulk 1931-1942

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Summary

Creators:
Bendikson, L. (Lodewyk), 1878-
Abstract:
This collection contains photographs, correspondence, and articles of Dr. Lodewyk Bendikson (1875-1953), director of the Department of Photographic Reproductions at the Huntington Library in San Marino, California, chronicling the experimental work he did in imaging as well as the day-to-day work of the department. The photographs include experimental and institutional prints, negatives, and lantern slides.
Extent:
2,020 items in 12 boxes
Language:
English, with some material in German and Dutch.

Background

Scope and content:

The papers of Dr. Lodewyk Bendikson span his career at the Huntington Library and the period shortly thereafter, chronicling the experimental work he did in imaging as well as the day-to-day work of the photographic department of the Huntington. The collection is divided into the following series: Correspondence (Boxes 1-3), Articles (Box 3), and Photographs (Boxes 4-12). All material is arranged chronologically wherever possible.

The Correspondence series contains letters mostly to and from Bendikson arranged by year, but other relevant departmental correspondence is present as well (including letters to and from Erwin Morkisch and other staffers). The bulk of the series concerns departmental business, including purchase orders and requests for imaging, photostats, and microfilm, while the rest primarily deals with his experimental work.

The Articles series is comprised of both typed and written Bendikson manuscripts, as well as the resulting published materials.

Photographs include experimental and institutional prints, negatives, and lantern slides. Institutional photographs consist primarily of lantern slides showcasing the treasures of the Huntington, but also include prints and negatives for work done for manuscripts department chair Capt. R.B. Haselden and other miscellany. The experimental photographs include prints, slides, and negatives of the various projects Bendikson undertook in the areas of reproduction technique and photographic imaging. Bendikson’s original labeling from envelopes and negative boxes has been preserved on sleeves whenever possible. Prints, glass negatives, and lantern slides are housed with the collection, while 181 nitrate negatives (Boxes 11-12) are housed separately in cold storage.

Biographical / historical:

Dr. Lodewyk Bendikson (1875-1953) was born in 1875 in Amsterdam. He received his early training at The Hague and was originally destined for a military career, but was unable to pass the required eye exams at the age of 12. He subsequently spent six years at Latin High School (Gymnasium) at Amsterdam and then entered medical school at the University of Amsterdam in 1893, where he graduated with his M.D. in 1901.

Dr. Bendikson first visited the U.S. to do post graduate work at New York University and Bellevue Hospital Medical College, and went on to work from 1903-06 as a clinical assistant at Bellevue. In 1906 he returned to Holland and worked for a time at the City of Amsterdam Hospital, then returned to the U.S. and established a permanent residence in 1909. However, owing to frequent visits to Europe he did not qualify for U.S. citizenship until 1923.

In 1910, Dr. Bendikson joined the staff of the New York Public Library through Dr. John Shaw Billings, a former surgeon general of the U.S.A. and the person responsible for the consolidation of the New York Public Library. (He and Dr. Bendikson had come into contact at the New York Academy of Medicine). After six years with the New York Public Library, Dr. Bendikson joined the Huntington Library staff in February of 1916.

Dr. Bendikson was one of the first men to join the staff of the Huntington Library in New York, and was instrumental in the move of the library from New York to San Marino. He worked for the Huntington Library for 27 years, during which time he contributed significantly to reproduction techniques and photographic imaging. Some of his breakthroughs included the use of color filters to make the Huntington’s ink stained Benjamin Franklin autobiography manuscript legible, infra-red imaging to illuminate passages obliterated by Spanish Inquisition censors, use of ultra-violet radiation to reveal invisible ink secret writing in Revolutionary era letters from Silas Deane to John Jay, and microphotography methods to help distinguish real texts from facsimiles. Also thanks to Dr. Bendikson’s experimenting, photostat reproductions from the Huntington were known to be of the best quality, both in terms of image clarity and resistance to fading. He also demonstrated that the fears of the time that microphotographic film would rapidly deteriorate were unfounded. In some cases he was able to adapt existing equipment for his experiments, like his favored Leitz Ultrapak/Ultropak microscope, or the way he used his Leica camera in conjunction with a photostat mounting apparatus for ease of imaging. When he found ultra-violet light sources unsatisfactory for his work, however, he created a new highly successful yet cost-effective type of ultra-violet light source for documentary photography.

Dr. Bendikson lived in Pasadena, California. He retired from his post as the director of the Department of Photographic Reproductions in 1943, and died on May 27, 1953.

Acquisition information:
Chiefly received from Carey Bliss, Huntington Library Curator of Rare Books, September 25, 1978.
Arrangement:

Organized into the following series: Correspondence (Boxes 1-3), Articles (Box 3), and Photographs (Boxes 4-12) Arranged chronologically whenever possible.

Rules or conventions:
Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader Services.

The negatives in Boxes 11-12 have been placed in cold storage for preservation. Arrangements for viewing negatives must be made in advance.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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