Digital Commonwealth

The history of the Abbot and Phillips Academies in images and documents.

This collection consists of items from the Abigail B. Homer family papers (MS035) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

During the academic year 1986-1987, UMass Amherst was awash in political turmoil, fueled in part by the US intervention in Central America. The arrival on campus of a CIA recruiting officer in November set off a string of demonstrations that attracted the support of activists Abbie... more

Founded in 1953 by a multi-racial collective of educators including Horace Mann Bond, then President of Lincoln University, and William Leo Hansberry, a professor of history at Howard University, the Africa American Institute has encouraged and supported African students in pursuit of higher... more

Aldin Grout was among the first American missionaries to the Zulu nation. After experiencing a religious conversion in his early twenties, Grout dedicated his life to the ministry, studying at Amherst College (1831) and Andover Theological Seminary (1834) before accepting an... more

Since 1983, the Boston Public Library has acquired in several components a distinguished and unique (to this country) scholarly resource -- the personal library and related collections of eminent painter, art historian, and Ballets Russes set and costume designer, Alexandre Benois. The... more

Alphonse Legros (1837-1911) was a French painter, etcher, sculptor, and medallist. Born in Dijon in 1851, he went to Paris to study, took up etching in 1855, and in 1857 exhibited for the first time at the annual Paris Salon. In 1863, with the encouragement of the American artist James Abbott... more

With the invention of lithography in Germany in 1798 and its introduction into France and England during the first years of the 19th century, there was an increasing demand for images among the growing middle class. As the new technique allowed much larger editions than did the older techniques... more

Critical funding to support long-term preservation of and enhanced public access to Boston Public Library collections, including this one, was provided by the Associates of the Boston Public Library.

With the first battles of the American Revolution occurring in the Boston area, one of the most important historical time periods represented in the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center's pre-20th-century holdings is the American Revolutionary War era, defined broadly as 1750 to 1800. This collection... more

This collection represents a selection of images from the American Textile History Museum, including prints, photographs, and insurance maps. These items reflect many different aspects of the American textile industry: images of textile companies (interior and exterior), textile machinery,... more

Anders Zorn (1860-1920) was a Swedish painter, sculptor, and printmaker. Born in Mora, Zorn’s early drawings and wood carvings showed his artistic abilities. Between 1875 and 1880, he studied sculpture and painting at the Royal Swedish Academy of Arts. He then traveled extensively in England,... more

Historical Background For nearly five decades, Anne Sullivan was Helen Keller's teacher, friend, and constant companion. This collection contains portraits of Sullivan, images of her with Helen Keller and other images and documents that pertain to her life. Anne Sullivan was born in April... more

This collection is from the contents of vertical files in the Annisquam Historical Society. Annisquam, a village in Gloucester, Cape Ann, Massachusetts, has its historical society based in the old firehouse, Deluge 8. The building and its contents are under the aegis of the Annisquam... more

In the late 1890s, the family of William Lloyd Garrison, along with others closely involved in the anti-slavery movement, presented Boston Public Library with a major gathering of correspondence, documents, and other original material relating to the abolitionist cause from 1832 until after the... more

Antonio Cardinal Tosti (1766-1866) was appointed as Cardinal-Priest of San Pietro in Montorio in 1839 and later served as the Librarian of the Vatican Library (1860-1866) until his death. He assembled a large collection of prints that was particularly strong in the works of Old Masters and... more

This collection holds late 19th century photographs as well as engravings of 17th and 18th century buildings in Eastern Massachusetts. The mounted photographs and engravings were compiled by the Liberty Tree Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (D. A. R.) and consist of homes,... more

Represented are photographs of Arlington, Massachusetts. The photographic images depict mainly people, property, buildings, monuments & statues, views, and scenes of town life, during the years, c. 1885 – 1992.

The City of Newton owns a wealth of historic materials that speak to the community's social, cultural, and governmental past. These materials reflect the civic life of and provide insight into Newton from the 19th through the early 20th century, a time when Newton was transforming from... more

This collection consists of items from the Artwork and Artifacts collection hosted by Center for the History of Medicine (Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine). Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

A collection of portrait photos from the family album of Rufus Barlow (1813-1887) and Clarissa (Spelman) Barlow (1808-1900). The album appears to have been created around the time of their marriage in 1849 and contains photos of family members and prominent Granville citizens. Unfortunately,... more

This collection consists of items from the Barrett family papers (MS007) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

The papers of Benjamin Smith Lyman (1835-1920), a native of Northampton, Massachusetts, and a geologist/mining engineer who worked in Japan at the request of the Meiji government to introduce modern geological surveying and mining techniques, illuminate aspects of late nineteenth... more

A stylistic innovator and influential perfomer on the five string banjo, Bill Keith is credited with transforming the instrument from a largely percussive role into a one where it carried the melody. A native of Boston and 1961 graduate of Amherst College, Keith cut his teeth as a performer in... more

The first edition of John James Audubon's Birds of America was issued through a collaboration between Audubon and the London printmakers Robert Havell, Sr. and Robert Havell, Jr., with some plates engraved by William H. Lizars, of Edinburgh. The prints were originally sold by subscription and... more

This collection presents a fascinating glimpse of ways in which people who are blind or visually impaired have been portrayed in works of art through the ages. It consists of reproduction prints, posters, photographs, clippings, and a few original art objects relating to the depiction in works... more

This collection consists of items from the Boston & Albany Railroad Company photographic collection, 1890s-ca. 1920 (PC015) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

The primary geographical focus of the Norman B. Leventhal Map Center's pre-20th-century Boston and New England Maps Collection is the local region, encompassing Boston, Massachusetts, and New England. The collection consists of more than 600 maps of the city of Boston and approximately 1,000... more

Boston, in the early 1900s, was home to 31 breweries. There were 24 breweries in Roxbury and Jamaica Plain and all were located in the vicinity of Columbus Avenue, Heath, and Armory Streets. The abundant water supply from the aquifer along the Stony Brook, artesian wells around Mission Hill, and... more

This collection consists of seven black-and-white photographs of bridges constructed by the Boston Bridge Works, along with a plate showing 11 cross-sections of sewers.    

This collection consists of items from the Boston College athletic photographs collection hosted by Boston College. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection consists of items from the Boston College building and campus images collection hosted by Boston College. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection consists of items from the Boston College Commencement materials collection hosted by Boston College. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection consists of items from the Boston College Evening College photographs (early years) collection hosted by Boston College. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection consists of items from the Boston College faculty and staff photographs collection hosted by Boston College. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection consists of items from the Boston College special guests and events photographs collection hosted by Boston College. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection consists of items from the Boston College students and campus life photographs collection hosted by Boston College. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

The Boston Pictorial Archive is one of the largest distinct collections of images related to Boston held by a public institution and the essential resource for Boston architectural, social, and neighborhood history. It includes more than 6,000 images on paper representing the visual history of... more

The idea for establishing The Boston Printmakers came from faculty members and students at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, whose goal was to promote printmaking in Boston. At the invitation of Arthur Heintzelman, Boston Public Library’s first Keeper of Prints and an... more

This collection of broadside advertisements from the Boston Theatre date from the 1856-1857 theatrical season. The theatre, located at 539 Washington Street, opened in 1854 with seating for over 3,000 patrons. The venue hosted not only theatrical productions but also grand opera, ballet,... more

This collection consists of items from the Boston Transit Archive, 1895-1960s (PC017) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

Presented here are botanical prints that date from 1620 to 1969. Subjects include such items as orchids, camellias, lilies, grapes, and apples. Among the artists featured in this collection are Magdalena Bouchard, Claude Aubriet, and Isaac Sprague. Techniques include aquatints, etchings,... more

This collection consists of items from the Bowen family papers (MS006) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

Boydell's Graphic Illustrations of the Dramatic Works of Shakspeare represents the final chapter in a three-part, decades-long commercial publication venture undertaken by John Boydell. Between 1786 and 1804, Boydell prepared a sumptuous, illustrated edition of the works of Shakespeare, along... more

This collection of photographs document the history of Bridgewater State University, which opened in 1840 as a State Normal School – the third such school devoted to teacher preparation in both Massachusetts and the nation. The original items are held by the Archives and Special Collections at... more

This collection contains photographs, documents, and monographs from the early history (late 19th century to mid-20th century) of Faulkner Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. Contents include the founding Faulkner family, the Faulkner Hospital Training School for Nurses (later known as the... more

Critical funding to support long-term preservation of and enhanced public access to Boston Public Library collections, including this one, was provided by the Associates of the Boston Public Library.

Represented here are postcards and photographs that mainly depict views of Brookline from the late 1800s through the early 1900s. The core of the photograph collection is made up of photographs that were donated to the library in the late 1920s by Town Clerk Edward W. Baker.

The City of Newton owns a wealth of historic materials that speak to the community's social, cultural, and governmental past. These materials reflect the civic life of and provide insight into Newton from the 19th through the early 20th century, a time when Newton was transforming from... more

Born in 1908 to Louis and Sarah Kessel Burgett, Katherine grew up on the family farm outside of Oquawka, Illinois. In 1924 her parents purchased their own farm in Monmouth, which they later lost due to the devastating impact of the Depression on agriculture, and it was there that she... more

The artist Burt Vernon Brooks was one of the outstanding chroniclers of daily life in the Swift River Valley before it was inundated to create the Quabbin Reservoir. Born in Brimfield, Mass., in 1849 and raised in Monson, Brooks moved to Greenwich with his family in the 1870s, where... more

The City of Newton owns a wealth of historic materials that speak to the community's social, cultural, and governmental past. These materials reflect the civic life of and provide insight into Newton from the 19th through the early 20th century, a time when Newton was transforming from... more

This collection consists of items from the C. G. Sargent's Sons collection (CC016) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

The Cambridge Photo Morgue Collection contains black-and-white prints taken by newspaper photographers to illustrate stories regarding the city of Cambridge. Images in this collection represent a wide breadth of topics including protests, political figures, buildings, and city projects, thus... more

The carte de visite, also known as a CDV, was a photographic format first produced in the 1850s, which became wildly popular in the 1860s. It consisted of a small photographic print (typically an albumen print) mounted on card stock measuring approximately 2 1/2 x 4 1/4 inches. The cards were... more

A collection of cranberry labels donated to the Carver Public Library by Clark Griffith.

This collection consists of items from the Casey family papers (MS008) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

Charles Herbert Woodbury (1864-1940) was an American painter and printmaker. Born in Lynn, Massachusetts in 1886, Woodbury received a degree in mechanical engineering from MIT and then established a studio in Boston. Although known as a painter and a printmaker, Woodbury also was interested in... more

Frederick Childe Hassam (American, 1859-1935) was a painter, printmaker, draftsman, and illustrator. Born in Boston, Hassam began his artistic career by studying wood engraving and producing designs for letterheads, newspapers, and other commercial publications. In 1882, he established... more

Advertising a circus was difficult before radio, television, and the Internet. To be successful and stay ahead of the competition, a circus owner had to market his show and create a brand that would be recognizable and generate repeat patrons. He had to advertise the features of his show to set... more

The general collection of the Chelsea Public Library Archives includes a wide variety of items including postcards, photographs, oral and written personal histories, books, and city documents. These postcards represent a portion of the collection of general Chelsea history, largely picturing... more

This collection contains selected manuscripts from the R. Stanton Avery Special Collections related to the American Civil War, 1861-1865. These collections include letters, diaries, military records, photographs, scrapbooks, and other materials produced by soldiers that provide details about... more

The C.C.C. was a relief program established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to assist unemployed men through the worst years of the Great Depression. In Massachusetts, the C.C.C. was largely engaged in tree planting, fire fighting, insect control, and tree and plant disease control. Contains... more

Ordained as an Episcopal priest in 1911, Dr. Clark accepted the position of director of the Chapel of the Comforter in Greenwich Village, New York, a mission that abandoned its traditional Christian practices in favor of the teachings of theosophy. A prolific writer and lecturer, Clark stressed... more

In 1918, Clinton Melville Tilman Brann, a dentist by training, served with in the 17th Field Artillery of the American Expeditionary Forces in France, a unit cited for gallantry in five critical engagements of the First World War. During his time overseas, Brann maintained an intense... more

The Coast Guard Heritage Museum General Collection contains an assortment of documents and images related to U.S. Coast Guard history, which are housed in the archives at this museum. The museum was created in 2005 in the former U.S. Custom House (1856) located in Barnstable Village on Cape Cod,... more

Boston Public Library holds thousands of American manuscripts, printed books, and documents from the Colonial and Revolutionary War periods. The materials document American intellectual and political life before, during, and shortly after the Revolution. Highlights include: over 1,300 individual... more

Boston Public Library holds thousands of manuscripts, correspondence, documents, and printed records from the Colonial and Revolutionary War periods. This collection is unparalleled in the extent of its administrative and judicial records of Massachusetts Bay Colony and early Boston. The... more

When Capt. Henry Guertin, a native of Leominster, Mass., was ordered to active duty with the 24th Infantry Division during the Korean War, his wife Rita relocated to Japan to raise their growing family in Kokura (Kyushu), Japan. Just 13 at the time and already used to the regular... more

These images include original costume and set designs for a variety of operas and other stage productions such as Renato Virgilio's "Jana," Giuseppe Cicognani's "Il figlio del mare," Richard Strauss's "Ariadne auf Naxos," Ubaldo Pacchierotti and Alberto Colantuoni's "Eidelberga mia!," Ettore... more

The experimental ciliatologist David L. Nanney spent much of his career studying the protozoan Tetrahymena. Under Tracy M. Sonneborn at Indiana University, he completed a dissertation in 1951 on the mating habits of Paramecium, but soon after joining the faculty at the University of... more

Recognized for her coverage of historic events and personalities, the photographer Diana Mara Henry took the first steps toward her career in 1967 when she became photo editor for the Harvard Crimson. After winning the Ferguson History Prize and graduating from Harvard with a degree... more

This collection consists of items from the Digital Amherst collection hosted by Jones Library, Amherst. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection consists of items from the Digitized Museum Collections collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection consists of items from the Domestic interiors photographic collection (PC002) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

The co-owner with Alan Peterson of Krackerjacks, a psychedelic clothing store in Boston, Donald “Jack” Levy grew the boutique he started in 1966 into a staple of the counterculture in the Boston area and eventually a franchise. Levy was at the center of a controversy in Cambridge when the city... more

Doyle's Cafe was a popular community gathing space located at 3484 Washington Street in Boston's Jamaica Plain neighborhood. Doyle's opened its doors in 1882 and grew from a one-room Irish pub to a three-room bar and restaurant that was host to both locals and tourists alike. It was also known... more

Eadweard Muybridge's "Animal locomotion : An electro-photographic investigation of consecutive phases of animal movements, 1872-1885" was published by the University of Pennsylvania in 1887. The eleven volume set consisted of 781 plates printed by the Photogravure Company of New York. The... more

The Boston Public Library holds a significant collection of books from the earliest years of English printing, including works from the presses of William Caxton, Richard Pynson, Wynkyn De Worde, and others. Critical funding to support long-term preservation of and enhanced public access to... more

A curated selection of highlights from across the many collections held by the Boston Public Library's Rare Books and Manuscripts Department. Critical funding to support long-term preservation of and enhanced public access to Boston Public Library collections, including this one, was provided... more

This collection contains items that describe life in Eastham, Massachusetts. Items were donated to the Historical Society by Eastham residents.

Edmund Blampied (English, 1886-1966) was a painter, printmaker, draftsman, illustrator, cartoonist, sculptor, and graphic designer.   Born in the Parish of Saint Martin, Jersey, Channel Islands, Blampied was inspired to draw by the people, animals, and landscape that he observed. After... more

Correspondence, sermons, drawings, drafts of unpublished and published work, articles, artwork, and images relating to the professional activities and personal life of Edward Hitchcock, the third President of Amherst College and noted geologist and minister, and his family. These material are... more

Raised on Long Island, Ed Judice embarked on a path in photography at the age of 13 when he took a job sweeping floors in a local photo studio. After picking up work photographing locally and a stint in the army, he moved to New York city, Judice began doing commercial work for ad... more

Presented here is Eliot Church, which was located at the corner of Centre and Church Streets in Newton Corner. It was a Congregational Trinitarian church organized on July 1, 1845. The City of Newton owns a wealth of historic materials that speak to the community's social, cultural and... more

Presented here are letters, personal memorabilia, and photographs that represent the founding and early history of the College of Our Lady of the Elms (Elms College) from 1928 to 1950. After receiving a charter from The Commonwealth of Massachusetts to confer degrees, Elms College became a... more

The City of Newton owns a wealth of historic materials that speak to the community's social, cultural, and governmental past. These materials reflect the civic life of and provide insight into Newton from the 19th through the early 20th century, a time when Newton was transforming from... more

Critical funding to support long-term preservation of and enhanced public access to Boston Public Library collections, including this one, was provided by the Associates of the Boston Public Library.

This collection consists of items from the Ephemera collection (EP001) collection hosted by Historic New England. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

This collection contains gravestone rubbings and epitaphs from cemeteries throughout New England. The items in this collection are attributed to Doris Felton between 1973 and 1978.

A pioneer in war and documentary photography, the Anglo-Greek photographer Felice Beato was an important chronicler of late-Edo and early-Meiji era Japan. Between 1863 and 1877, Beato took a stunning array of views, portraits, ethnographic images, and genre scenes and helped train the... more

This collection consists of items from the Fine Arts collection hosted by Forbes Library. Information about the items has been provided by the holding institution so that they may be included in Digital Commonwealth.

The Winsor School's art collection includes paintings, works on paper, and sculpture as well as a variety of decorative arts. Benefactors donated the majority of the artwork. Artwork ranges from oil paintings, prints, and drawings to textiles and murals; it ranges from historic to contemporary,... more

Joseph MacDougald Railroad collection at Fiske Public Library.