THE RIVER BEFORE IT CHANGED—A RIVER STILL UNTAMED

Gifford, Benjamin A. (1859–1936), photographer

The Columbia at the Turn of the Century: Eighteen Original Photographs of the Columbia River, The Dalles, Cascade Locks, River Commerce, Fishing, Agriculture, and Landscape. [circa 1899–1908]

THE WORKING COLUMBIA BEFORE THE MODERN RIVER.
Eighteen original photographs representing fifteen distinct images from Benjamin A. Gifford's numbered Columbia River series, made during his years at The Dalles. Steamers, Cascade Locks, fish wheels, ferries, wheat shipments, and livestock appear alongside Cape Horn, Memaloose Island, Mount Hood, and the Cascades — documenting the Columbia simultaneously as landscape, transportation corridor, workplace, and commercial system at the turn of the twentieth century.

A DOCUMENTED GIFFORD SERIES.
Titles and Gifford negative numbers are incorporated photographically into most images, with several independently matched to examples preserved in institutional collections. The group occurs in more than one contemporary format and includes three duplicated subjects, providing evidence of the commercial circulation of Gifford's Columbia River photographs.

A fully illustrated research PDF provides the complete photograph-by-photograph inventory, enlarged images and captions, identification of Gifford's numbered photographs, institutional comparisons, and research references. [CLICK for LINK]

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS. Eighteen original black-and-white photographic prints representing fifteen distinct images, approximately 8 inches in width and occurring in several closely related formats. Titles, negative numbers, and in some examples Gifford's name or studio mark are incorporated photographically into the images.

Examination under magnification shows continuous photographic image structure rather than halftone reproduction. The precise photographic printing process has not been independently established.

CONDITION: Surviving working prints, generally clear and well defined with good tonal range. Light surface marks, occasional spotting, edge handling, minor soiling, and small corner bends are present. One example of No. 185, 80000 Sacks of Wheat, has a diagonal corner crease. Captions and negative numbers remain generally legible; the number on the sheep-herding image is partially cut off.

RESEARCH AND DOCUMENTATION.
Gifford's Columbia River work is substantially represented in institutional collections, particularly the Benjamin A. Gifford Photographs at Oregon State University. Surviving negatives and positives provide independent confirmation for several photographs in this group and assist in dating individual images to the period circa 1899–1908.

The accompanying illustrated PDF provides a photograph-by-photograph inventory, enlarged images, captions and negative numbers, institutional comparisons, and complete research references.

GENRES: Early Photography, Western Americana, Documentary Photography, Landscape Photography, Transportation History, Industrial Photography, Pacific Northwest History.

SUBJECTS: Benjamin A. Gifford, Columbia River, Columbia River Gorge, The Dalles Oregon, Cascade Locks, Steamboats, Dalles City, Fish Wheels, Salmon Fishing, Wheat Shipping, Sheep Transportation, Memaloose Island, Cape Horn, Bridge of the Gods, Mount Hood.

Item #22436

Price: $1,200.00