T.S. (Theodore Sherman) Palmer Photograph Collection, 1849-1954
Collection context
Summary
- Creators:
- Palmer, T. S. (Theodore Sherman)
- Abstract:
- This collection contains 87 card photographs and 3 lantern slides taken between January and September 1891 during a United States Department of Agriculture scientific expedition led by T.S. Palmer from Death Valley, California, to Mt. Whitney to collect flora and fauna. The collection includes photographs of Death Valley, as well as the Antelope Valley, Owens Valley, and San Joaquin Valley.
- Extent:
- 90 photographs (87 photographs and 3 lantern slides) in 2 boxes + lantern slide box
- Language:
- English.
Background
- Scope and content:
-
This collection contains 87 card photographs and 3 lantern slides taken between January and September 1891 during a United States Department of Agriculture scientific expedition led by T.S. Palmer from Death Valley, California, to Mt. Whitney to collect flora and fauna. The collection includes photographs of Death Valley, as well as the Antelope Valley, Owens Valley, and San Joaquin Valley. William C. Burnett, a San Francisco Chronicle reporter who traveled with the expedition from February to May, took many of the Death Valley pictures (identified by his initials "W.C.B." in the image captions). A smaller set of Death Valley pictures was taken by John R. Spears, a New York correspondent who visited Death Valley (December 1891) in the wake of the Palmer party. Palmer and various members of his party are responsible for the remaining photographs.
The cards measure between 4 x 5.25 inches and 6 x 8.25 inches and include handwritten captions on the versos.
Item titles primarily transcribed from handwritten captions in ink on card versos; titles for items 39, 50, 60-68, 70-73 transcribed from penciled captions below images. Cataloger-supplied titles in square brackets.
- Biographical / historical:
-
Naturalist Theodore S. Palmer (1868-1955) was born in Oakland, California, and graduated from the University of California at Berkeley in 1888. He joined the United States Department of Agriculture as field agent and ornithologist and shortly thereafter, in 1891, led an expedition from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney. In 1895 he received his M.A. degree from Georgetown University and in 1896 began work with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Biological Survey. He became assistant chief there in 1897 and rose through the ranks until he was named Senior Biologist in 1928. After his retirement in 1933, he worked as an assistant zoologist, specializing in the nomenclature of mammals and birds, at the United States National Museum. He was a member of many distinguished organizations, was active on governmental regulatory bodies for game laws, and wrote numerous books and articles.
- Acquisition information:
- Gift of Mrs. Theodore S. Palmer, the widow of T.S. Palmer, on December 14, 1955. Mrs. Palmer also donated Palmer's papers, including his 1891 expedition diary and family correspondence (housed in the Manuscripts Department) and ephemera materials (now part of the California Promotional Literature Collection).
- Arrangement:
-
The photographs are arranged numerically by item number, with 12 oversized photographs (approximately 6 x 8.25 inches) housed in Box 2.
- 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.
- Location of this collection:
-
1151 Oxford RoadSan Marino, CA 91108, US
- Contact:
- (626) 405-2129