Overview
Photographs of Jessie Tarbox Beals, first American woman photojournalist.
Dates
- Creation: 1896-1941
Creator
- Beals, Jessie Tarbox , 1870-1942 (Person)
Language of Materials
Materials in English.
Access Restrictions:
Access. Unrestricted.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright. Copyright in the photographs created by Jessie Tarbox Beals is held by the President and Fellows of Harvard College for the Schlesinger Library.
Copying. Photographs may be copied in accordance with the library's usual procedures.
Extent
7.75 linear feet (5 cartons, 1 file box, 1 folio box, 1 folio+ box)The collection of Jessie Tarbox Beals's photographs consists of approximately 2500 original prints, 1100 duplicate prints, 780 film negatives, and 110 glass negatives. With the exception of a few tintypes, cyanotypes, and autochromes, positive images are silver prints.
The dating of many photographs is uncertain. Visual evidence of a date on a photograph is not always conclusive, and a date written on the back of a print may have been assigned long after the event; some duplicate prints in fact bear different dates. Nor is an address stamped or written on the back necessarily a reliable clue, since Beals often made a print long after taking the photograph. The student of Beals's work may be helped toward the dating and/or identification of some of her problematic photographs by referring to her papers in the Schlesinger Library. These include daybooks and correspondence relating to her photographic business.
Photographs have been arranged in three series:
Series I, Family (#1-14), consists of photographs of a few of Beals' relatives, of Beals herself from 1887 to ca.1940, and of Nanette, ATB, and some of Beals' homes. It has not always been possible to arrange these photographs in strict chronological order, because some are in albums put together by Beals (see #2f, 3f, 4f, 13f).
Series II, Professional life (#15-94a), follows the various stages of Beals' professional life and has been arranged chronologically as far as possible. It includes some of her first experiments with the camera, such major assignments as the World's Fair in Saint Louis, Missouri and the children of the Lower East Side, cityscapes, political events, the cafe society of Greenwich Village, travels in the United States and abroad, and parties and balls. The dating of some of these photographs may be open to question: for example, it is likely but not absolutely certain that the photographs taken in the South (#32-37) date from early 1905.
Series III, Portraits (#95-187), consists of formal and informal portraits. Identified subjects have been arranged alphabetically; unidentified subjects, according to gender, occupation (when visible in the picture), age, costume, setting (indoors, outdoors), and number (couples, groups). Some overlap among series proved unavoidable. For example, Series II includes portraits, especially in the folders (#61-65) from Greenwich Village; it seemed sensible not to separate a gallery, a restaurant, or a shop from its owner. In Series III, #124 and 125, which show the MacDowell Colony in Peterborough, New Hampshire, were kept with the two folders (#122-123) of portraits of Marian MacDowell, founder of the colony.
Negatives without prints have not been cataloged; they may be viewed and printed upon request. Most of the negatives (with or without prints) are in reasonably good condition; it should therefore not be necessary to make a copy negative when a copy print is needed. Each folder or volume description in the inventory is followed by two bracketed numbers: the first indicates the number of positive prints in the folder, the second, the number of unprinted negatives that, according to what they depict, belong there (although they are stored elsewhere, with other negatives).
Some of Beals' photograph numbers proved useful for purposes of identification and dating, but on the whole her numbers presented too many gaps and inconsistencies to be integrated into the library's numbering system. There is, however, a record of the changes from Beals' to the library's numbers.
Photographs of houses and gardens were given to the Frances Loeb Library of the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Four photographs (from #18, 29, and 56) have been given to the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts at Harvard.
BIOGRAPHY
Jessie Tarbox Beals was the first American woman photojournalist. She was born in Hamilton, Ontario, on December 23, 1870, the daughter of Marie Antoinette (Bassett) Tarbox and John Nathaniel Tarbox. Her father, an inventor and entrepreneur, failed in business and Beals, after completing her education at the Collegiate Institute of Ontario, took a teaching position in Williamsburg, Massachusetts, in 1888. That same year she acquired her first camera, and in 1889 established Williamsburg's first photography studio on the front lawn of her house, using her weekends to take pictures of friends, students, family groups, barns, houses, and animals. In the fall of 1893 she moved to Greenfield, Massachusetts, to take up a new teaching position. There she met Alfred Tennyson Beals, whom she married in 1897.
In 1900, convinced that she could make a successful career out of her hobby, Beals gave up teaching and started traveling as an itinerant photographer, with Alfred Tennyson Beals as her assistant. In 1901 the couple moved to Buffalo and Beals joined the Buffalo Enquirer and Courier as staff photographer. She took hundreds of photographs of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition (World's Fair) in 1904, and the following year covered President Roosevelt's Rough Riders' Reunion in San Antonio, Texas.
Later in 1905 she and Alfred Tennyson Beals moved to New York, where she stayed until 1928. These New York years were probably the busiest and most interesting in her life. Moving almost every year, she managed to photograph a wide variety of subjects, among them the inauguration of President Taft, suffrage parades, poor children of the Lower East Side, celebrities, and Greenwich Village and its Bohemian society. Her only child, Nanette, was born on June 8, 1911. In 1917 Beals separated from Alfred Tennyson Beals (they were divorced in 1923) and opened her own photo gallery in Sheridan Square.
By 1926, although quite well known and regularly published in such fashionable magazines as Harper's Bazaar, Vogue, Town and Country, and the Ladies' Home Journal, Beals had to face the steady decline of her income. In 1928, in the hope of finding more lucrative returns for her labors, she moved to California. The crash of 1929 having deprived her of most of her rich Santa Barbara and Hollywood patrons, Beals decided to return East. She was back in New York in 1931, but stayed only briefly. In 1932 she moved to Chicago, where she photographed mostly gardens and estates. By the end of 1935 she was again in Greenwich Village, living very near the studio where she had started her first New York business. She died in Bellevue Hospital in 1942. For more information about Beals, see Jessie Tarbox Beals, First Woman Photographer, by Alexander Alland, Sr., New York: Camera/Graphic Press, 1978.
ARRANGEMENT
The collection is arranged in three series:
- Series I. Family (#1-14)
- Series II. Professional life (#15-94a)
- Series III. Portraits (#95-187)
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Accession numbers: 82-M122, 83-M38
These photographs were given to the Schlesinger Library by Nanette (Beals) Brainerd, daughter of Jessie (Tarbox) Beals, in May 1982.
Related Material:
There is related material at the Schlesinger Library; see Papers of Jessie Tarbox Beals, 1866-1989 (MC 602). Photographs of houses and gardens were given to the Frances Loeb Library of the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Four photographs (from #18, 29, and 56) have been given to the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts at Harvard.
CONTAINER LIST
- Box 1: Folders 1-27
- Box 2: Folders 28-52
- Box 3: Folders 53-75
- Box 4: Folders 76-95
- Box 5: Folders 96-115
- Box 6: Folders 116-134
- Box 7: Folders 135-151
- Box 8: Folders 152-174
- Box 9: Folders 175-187
INDEX
This is a selective index, containing names, places, subjects, and events. For some photographs there are several entries. Most names in the index are of people who appear in Who Was Who, Notable American Women, or in the Schlesinger Library manuscript catalog. Included as well are people who were part of Beals's family, or of her professional or social life.
- Afro-American children 17
- Afro-Americans--Social conditions 89
- Adair, Jean 95
- Aikin, Zoe 95
- Allerton Hotel (Chicago) 10, 85-86
- Anderson, Judith 95
- Animals 15-16, 46-49
- Aubere, Jean 95
- Auer, Leopold 95
- Auslander, Joseph 95
- Baer, William Jacob 96
- Baird, Marie 96
- Bamalaczky, Princess 96
- Barclay, Patricia 96
- Bardon, Edith 96
- Bardon, Edward 96
- Barton, Mercine 96
- Beals, Alfred 11
- Beals, Jessie (Tarbox) 1-10, 13f-16, 18, 19, 32-33
- Beckwith, Carol 96
- Belcher, Hilda 96
- Belmont, August 97
- Bitter, Karl (Theodore Francis) 97
- Borglum, Gutzon 97
- Boston (Mass.) 43
- Boyington, Dan 97
- Boylan, Grace Duffie 97
- Brainerd, Nanette Beals 7, 9, 11, 12, 13f
- Brown, Frances 99
- Bryan, Walter 61
- Buhley, A. W. 98
- Buhley, Dorothy 98
- Burroughs, John 99
- Bunt, Fred 99
- California 75-82
- Campbell, Joseph 100
- Cannon, Joseph 100
- Cape Cod (Mass.) 67-69
- Carnival--Louisiana--New Orleans 36-37
- Carroll, Earl 66
- Chicago 85-87
- Children--Portraits 17, 78, 80, 89, 101, 103, 110, 113, 117, 127, 134-135, 147, 172-175, 181-187
- Clarke, Sir Caspar Purdon 100
- Coman, Charlotte (Buell) 101
- Cornoyer, Paul 101
- Craigie, Pearl Mary Teresa Richards ("John Oliver Hobbs") 102
- Crothers, Rachel 102
- DeHaas, Epy 104
- DeMilhau, ? 104
- Deming, Edward 104
- Derwood, Gene 104
- Dey, Harriet Holt 105
- Dickerman, Dan 62
- Duveneck, Frank 105
- Eberle, Abastenia St. Leger 106
- Family--Portraits 4, 11, 84, 176, 178-179, 186-187
- Farnham, Sally James 107
- Faversham, William 107
- Flanagan, John 107
- Flood-Keyes, Dr. Regina 107
- Florida--Social conditions 17
- Fokine, Michel 107
- Fokine, Vera 107
- Fox, Fontaine Talbot, Jr. 108
- Freeman, Helen 108
- Francis, David R. 18
- Garland, Rose 109
- Geddes, Norman Bel 109
- Goodwin, Grace Duffield 9, 62
- Greenwich Village 57-66
- Griffin, Lillian Barnes 110
- Grimes, Teresa 110
- Groll, Albert 110
- Hayakawa, Sesshu 111
- Hall, Bessie Lee 111
- Hallmark, Anne Rittenhouse 111
- Harrison, Birge 111
- Hassam, Childe 112
- Herrick, Myron T. 18
- Herter, Albert 113
- Hoover, Herbert 77
- Hoover, Lou Henry 77
- Howells, William Dean 113
- Hurst, Fannie 113
- Ibanez, Vicente Blasco 114
- Illington, Margaret (Light) ("Maude Light") 114
- Jefferson, Joseph 115
- Kemp, Harry Hubbard 116
- King, Helen Dean 116
- King, Louisa (Yeomans) 117
- Knox, Susan Ricker 117
- Kuni, Prince 8
- Lagercrantz, Ava 118
- LaGuardia, Fiorello 118
- Lewis, Janet Cook 118
- Lie, Jonas 118
- Lincoln, Joseph Conrad 119
- Logan, Frank Granger 120
- Logan, Josephine (Hancock) 120
- Louisiana Purchase Exposition (1904 : Saint Louis, Mo.) 36-37
- Lower East Side (New York, N.Y.) 54-56
- McCord, George 121
- MacDougall, Alice Foote 121
- MacDowell Colony (Peterborough, N.H.) 124-125
- MacDowell, Marian Griswold (Nevins) 122-125
- Manle, Mary K. 126
- Mardi Gras (New Orleans) See Carnival
- Mayhew, Ralph 126
- National League of American Pen Women 9
- New England 43, 44, 67-69
- New Orleans (La.)--Social life and customs 36-37
- New York (City) 50-66
- O'Hare, Dorothee Warren 129
- Olliver, Mary Lindsay 129
- Oyen, Olaf Henry 129
- Panama 72
- Pen and Brush Club (New York, N.Y.) 10, 59, 140
- Pendleton, Isabelle 130
- Pershing, John Joseph 130
- Pets 15-16, 46-49
- Pope, Virginia 130
- Post, Emily (Price) 130
- Potter, Grace 130
- Preston, Mary Wilson 131
- Quackenbos, John D. 132
- Reed, John 62
- Rippen, Jane Parker (Deeter) 133
- Roosevelt, Theodore 18
- Rosen, Baron 134
- Rough Riders See United States. Army.
- Saint Andrews Golf Course (N.Y.) 70-71
- Saint Louis World's Fair See Louisiana Purchase Exposition
- Saint Louis 31a
- Santa Barbara (Calif.) 75-80
- Selwyn, Edgar 135
- Shepley, Ruth 135
- Sinclair, Upton 135
- Singer, Dorothy Frances 135
- Smith, Alfred Emanuel 136
- Smith, Frances Grace 136
- Spanish Fiesta (Calif.) 78-80
- Stonehill, Mary 136
- Taft, William Howard 18, 40
- Tarbell, Ida Minerva 138-140
- Tarkington, Newton Booth 141
- Terhune, Albert Payson 141
- Troubetzkoy, Prince Piere 141
- Troubetzkoy, Princess (Amelie Rives) 141
- Twain, Mark 142
- United States. Army. Volunteer Cavalry, 1st. 38
- United States--Description and travel 32-39, 43-45, 50-53, 67, 69, 72-84, 87-94
- United States. Works Progress Administration. 90
- Urner, Mable Herbert (Mrs. Lathrop Colgate Harper) 143
- Village Art Gallery (New York City) 7, 57-66
- Vonnoh, Bessie (Potter) 144
- Vonnoh., Robert William 144
- Walker, Mary Edwards 147
- Washington, D.C.--Social conditions--1930-1940 89
- Wheeler, Candace ("Bucknut") 147
- Wiggam, Albert Edward 147
- Wiggin, Kate (Douglas) 147
- Wiles, Irving Ramsey 148
- Winter, Alice (Ames) 148
- World's Fair see Louisiana Purchase Exposition
- Yates, Cullen 150
- Young, Mary 150
- Young, Roland 150
- Zagat, Helen 151
Processing Information
Processed: February 1988
By: Marie-Hélène Gold, Nancy Falk
Geographic
- Boston (Mass.)--Buildings, structures, etc.
- California--Description and travel
- California--Social life and customs
- Cape Cod (Mass.)--Description and travel.
- Chicago (Ill.)--Social life and customs
- Florida--Social conditions
- Greenwich Village (New York, N.Y.)--Social life and customs
- Lower East Side (New York, N.Y.)--Social conditions
- New Orleans (La.)--Social life and customs
- New York (N.Y.)--Social life and customs
- Panama--Social life and customs
- Saint Louis (Mo.)--Pictorial works
- Santa Barbara (Calif.)--Social life and customs
- United States--Description and travel
- Washington (D.C.)--Social conditions
Topical
- Actors
- Actresses
- African American children
- African Americans--Social conditions
- Artists
- Authors
- Carnival--Louisiana--New Orleans
- Children--Social life and customs
- Domestic animals
- Housing
- Louisiana Purchase Exposition (1904 : Saint Louis, Mo.)
- Painters
- Photographers
- Photography of cats
- Photography of children
- Photography of families
- Photography of men
- Photography of women
- Photojournalists--United States
- Politicians
- Presidents--United States
Creator
- Beals, Jessie Tarbox , 1870-1942 (Person)
Subject
- Bryan, William Jennings (1860-1925) (Person)
- Crothers, Rachel, 1878-1958. (Person)
- Hoover, Herbert, 1874-1964 (Person)
- Lincoln, Joseph Crosby, 1870-1944 (Person)
- Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 (Person)
- Seton-Thompson, Grace Gallatin (Person)
- Taft, William H. (William Howard), 1857-1930 (Person)
- Title
- Beals, Jessie Tarbox. Photographs of Jessie Tarbox Beals, 1896-1941: A Finding Aid
- Author
- Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America
- Language of description
- eng
- EAD ID
- sch00047
Repository Details
Part of the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute Repository
The preeminent research library on the history of women in the United States, the Schlesinger Library documents women's lives from the past and present for the future. In addition to its traditional strengths in the history of feminisms, women’s health, and women’s activism, the Schlesinger collections document the intersectional workings of race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and class in American history.