The 2015 New England Journal of Photographic History, #173, contains: The Watergate Break-In Cameras – what the burglars really used; Way Back to School – College Dorm Room Photos (c.1900); Lost Negatives of Herbert Ponting – the gift of a collection reveals an unexpected treasure; Needles in the Haystack – searching for Civil War images from both sides for the book “Divided We Fought”; Rediscovering Three Photographers: Benjamin Crown of Brattleboro, VT; Hattie J. Goodnow, Sudbury Teacher and Photographer Reborn; Margaret Sutermeister, Chronicling Seen and Unseen Worlds (Milton, MA). Each of these photographers documented their communities from the late 1800s into the 1900s with care, diligence, insight, and occasional humor. Each is also a celebration of the work, largely volunteer, by local historical societies to find and preserve the visual history of these communities.

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2015 PHSNE Journal #173 — Supplementary Materials

The Watergate Break-In Cameras, by Ralph London

After Ralph’s 2015 PHSNE Journal article was in-print, he discovered two additional “evidence” photographs which added more information to his article, which calls out the Minolta cameras used in the break-in. Download the Ralph London supplement.

For more information about the two Minolta SR-T 100 cameras shown in the evidence photographs, visit: http://camera-wiki.org/wiki/Minolta_SR-T_100 and https://www.rokkorfiles.com/SRT%20Series.htm.

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Margaret Sutermeister: Chronicling Seen and Unseen Worlds, 1894-1909, by Judith Arlene Bookbinder

In 1951, the new owners of a property in Milton, Massachusetts discovered a long-forgotten crate of 1800 glass negatives. These exquisite and often socially perceptive images were eventually identified as the work of an amateur photographer, Margaret Sutermeister (1875 -1950), until then known only as life-long and quiet resident of the town.

In 1993, Judith Bookbinder curated a major exhibition of Sutermeister’s work at the Milton Historical Society, which later traveled to the Massachusetts State Archives and the Martha’s Vineyard Historical Society Museum.

This 22-minute video created by the Milton Historical Society was narrated by Judith Bookbinder. Watch on YouTube: Margaret Sutermeister: Chronicling Seen and Unseen Worlds.

The exhibit’s catalogue, authored by Bookbinder, reproduced 54 Sutermeister photographs and provided remarkable insight into her life. An excerpt from that catalogue appeared in the 2015 PHSNE Journal, and a facsimile version of the complete catalogue is available here, courtesy of Judith Bookbinder and the Milton Historical Society. Download the catalogue.