Nov 9, 2007
Around the World in the 1890s: Photographs from the World’s Transportation Commission, 1894-1896
A hand-colored photograph from 1895 shows a soldier riding a reindeer near the Eastern Siberian Railway. Another photograph from the same year shows a busy day on Collins Street in Melbourne, including buildings, individuals, and multiple forms of transportation. Both images are part of a larger collection of 900 photographs covering a wide variety of subjects.
Between 1894 and 1896, American photographer William Henry Jackson traveled throughout the world for the World’s Transportation Commission, an organization formed to aid American business interests abroad. Jackson’s photographs provide a comparative look at the nature of colonialism and industrialization in various locales at a time when the U.S. was entering its own age of imperialism.
Images are not limited to forms of transportation; those that do highlight modes of travel, including railroads and water travel, often incorporate the local environment and people into the composition. The bulk of the collection focuses on South Asia, but also includes East Asia, Russia, North Africa, and Southeast Asia. A central feature is the browseable list of image topics that includes popular tourist sites, locations of natural beauty, entertainment, indigenous daily life, and wildlife. All images are also keyword searchable. In addition to colonialism and industrialization, the photographs are useful for discussions of nineteenth-century travel and the development of photographic technology and technique.
Read a more in-depth review written by Robert DeCaroli of George Mason University at http://chnm.gmu.edu/worldhistorysources/d/105/whm.html. Or explore additional website reviews at World History Sources—Finding World History or History Matters Website Reviews.
Between 1894 and 1896, American photographer William Henry Jackson traveled throughout the world for the World’s Transportation Commission, an organization formed to aid American business interests abroad. Jackson’s photographs provide a comparative look at the nature of colonialism and industrialization in various locales at a time when the U.S. was entering its own age of imperialism.
Images are not limited to forms of transportation; those that do highlight modes of travel, including railroads and water travel, often incorporate the local environment and people into the composition. The bulk of the collection focuses on South Asia, but also includes East Asia, Russia, North Africa, and Southeast Asia. A central feature is the browseable list of image topics that includes popular tourist sites, locations of natural beauty, entertainment, indigenous daily life, and wildlife. All images are also keyword searchable. In addition to colonialism and industrialization, the photographs are useful for discussions of nineteenth-century travel and the development of photographic technology and technique.
Read a more in-depth review written by Robert DeCaroli of George Mason University at http://chnm.gmu.edu/worldhistorysources/d/105/whm.html. Or explore additional website reviews at World History Sources—Finding World History or History Matters Website Reviews.