The Joseph G. Tirrell Photograph Collection consists of images created by Tirrell (1840-1907). The images were created during the later years of his life, when he recorded New Bedford’s waterfronts, buildings, streets, and the declining whaling industry, sometimes in collaboration with his assistant Joseph S. Martin (1882-1947). The images focus largely on individual, named whaling ships, including the Niger, Swallow, Sunbeam, Platina, Canton, Lenora, Greyhound, and several more.