Posts Tagged by ellice engdahl
Though Molly Malcolm’s summer internship with the Historical Resources department at The Henry Ford has sadly ended, we are continuing with the project she initiated and digitizing materials related to some of our historic buildings. This week, we’ve digitized over 80 photographs of Daggett Farmhouse on its earlier sites. Daggett wasn’t moved to Greenfield Village until 1977—so this photo depicts a television and mid-century furnishings from the house’s stay in Union, Connecticut, from 1951 through 1977. Visit our collections website to view all the recently added material related to Daggett Farmhouse, and keep an eye out for additional photos to be added soon.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
farms and farming, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, digital collections, Daggett Farmhouse, by Ellice Engdahl
Back in June, we announced the digitization of selections from our collection of slot cars, model race cars most popular in the 1960s and 1970s. Recently, we’ve been digitizing a collection acquired last year of spindizzies, an earlier type of model race car. Spindizzies were popular in the 1930s and 1940s, incorporating model airplane engines powered by gasoline, and were either raced together on grooved tracks or tethered to a pole and run singly on circular tracks. Our new collection, donated by Eric Zausner and the E-Z Spindizzy Foundation, includes cars, tools, and accessories. You can now view a number of these, including this 1939 “Silver Streak” model, in our Digital Collections. Check out all the cars and accessories we’ve digitized from this collection so far, and keep watching as we add more over coming months.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
Henry Ford Museum, Driven to Win, toys and games, racing, digital collections, cars, by Ellice Engdahl
John Burroughs (1837–1921) was an American naturalist who wrote frequently and with a literary sensibility on nature and the environment. He joined the Vagabonds, and as a result took a number of camping trips with Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Harvey Firestone. Henry Ford also provided his friend Burroughs with multiple Ford vehicles, including a Model T touring car, to assist him in his nature studies. We’re currently digitizing selections from our collections related to Burroughs, such as this photograph of a sculpture of Burroughs created by C.S. Pietro. You can see Pietro working on what appears to be the same sculpture in another photograph. Thus far, we’ve digitized over 250 photographs, letters, writings, and postcards documenting Burroughs’ life, including his travels, famous friends, and retreats—browse them all on our collections website.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections and Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
digital collections, nature, John Burroughs, by Ellice Engdahl
As Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford, one thing that I find particularly fascinating is how our collections intersect with those of other cultural institutions. Sometimes these connections pop up unexpectedly.
Recently, I was searching in our collections database for items related to Mexican artist Diego Rivera. This 1930s image of Ford Motor Company employees collecting their wages from a payroll truck, pictured above, was one of the items I got back in my search. Continue Reading
Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo in Detroit, photographs, Ford Motor Company, art, Detroit Institute of Arts, by Ellice Engdahl
Jenny Young Chandler (1865–1922) was a 25-year-old widow in 1890, when she began to support herself and her infant son by working as a photojournalist for the New York Herald. Her images were captured on glass plate negatives via a heavy camera, and intimately depict everyday life on the streets of Brooklyn, New York. We’ve just digitized over 200 images from the collection, including this one of marionette-makers at work. Other noteworthy subjects for Chandler include children at play and work, ethnic minorities (such as “gypsies,” now more commonly known as Roma), and the Brooklyn Children’s Museum (which still exists today, though undoubtedly in much different form). See all the Chandler images digitized thus far in our Digital Collections, and check back in as we add more over upcoming months.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
20th century, 19th century, New York, women's history, photography, photographs, by Ellice Engdahl
We are continuing on our summer project with intern Molly Malcolm to digitize photographs and other materials related to the structures in Greenfield Village. Over the last few weeks, it’s been the turn of Farris Windmill, originally constructed in Cape Cod, Massachusetts in the mid-seventeenth century. This photograph, which appears to capture a newspaper clipping, shows that not every community wanted Henry Ford to purchase and relocate their architectural treasures to Dearborn. On a cheerier note, you can also review close to 100 images showing crowds of Ford dealers at the dedication of the windmill in the Village, and some surprisingly atmospheric shots of the windmill in its earlier locations. Visit our Digital Collections to see more items related to Farris Windmill.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
power, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, digital collections, by Ellice Engdahl
As we mentioned last week, we have been digitizing selections from our collections that relate to topics that will be featured on our brand-new TV show, The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation. We’ve just digitized dozens of artifacts related to the H.J. Heinz Company, including this image of a turn-of-the-century exhibition booth. Follow up a visit to the Heinz House in Greenfield Village by perusing elaborate store displays of Heinz products, streetcar advertising posters, and images of food production. Browse all of our digital Heinz collections in our Digital Collections, and learn more about Heinz on Innovation Nation in the fall!
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
food, The Henry Ford's Innovation Nation, Heinz, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, digital collections, by Ellice Engdahl
You might have heard that we are partnering with Litton Entertainment to create a brand-new TV show, The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation, premiering on CBS later this year. As we worked with Litton to develop story ideas that might be featured on the show, we also wanted to make sure we digitized a variety of artifacts from our collections related to those stories. To that end, we’ve just digitized a couple dozen photos of the Rosa Parks Bus before and during its 2002 restoration. As former curator Bill Pretzer relates online, the bus had been left in a field and used as a storehouse for decades, leading to the significant condition issues that you can see in this photo of the driver’s seat. See more newly digitized photos of the restoration process by visiting our collections website, and learn more on Innovation Nation this fall!
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
#Behind The Scenes @ The Henry Ford, 21st century, 2000s, women's history, The Henry Ford's Innovation Nation, Rosa Parks bus, digital collections, conservation, collections care, by Ellice Engdahl, African American history
Just Added to Our Digital Collections: Armington & Sims Machine Shop Photography
When you enter Armington & Sims Machine Shop in Greenfield Village, you feel like you are entering a truly historic building. However, as intern Molly Malcom notes, A&S is a building that was constructed onsite between 1928 and 1930 in honor of Pardon Armington and Gardiner Sims, who built steam engines for Thomas Edison in the Rhode Island factory A&S was modeled after. The authentic feel comes from original records, equipment, furniture, and parts that were acquired from a former A&S employee and now populate the building. As part of an ongoing project, we have digitized some of our images of the original facility, including this interior shot, and related people. View these photos and other collections related to Armington & Sims on our collections website.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, digital collections, by Ellice Engdahl
The Dave Friedman collection at The Henry Ford is a massive collection of automobile racing–related images. About 4,300 of these are now available on our digital collections website. The latest additions are photos documenting Ford drag racing in the early 60s, including this image from the 1966 NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) Nationals. Digital Processing Archivist and racing fan Brian Wilson notes that this particular image shows the “Brand Ford Special fielded by Lou Baney and driven by legendary Tom McEwen.” Visit our collection website to view more images from the 1966 NHRA Nationals, as well as images from the 1963 NHRA Winter Nationals, the 1965 Bristol Dragway, and the 1967 Riverside Drag Races. Or, browse through all of the Dave Friedman images in our online collections.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
cars, digital collections, by Ellice Engdahl, photographs, racing
