Sylvester Thomas Blue photograph album and correspondence related to World War II in China | Collections | The Huntington

Sylvester Thomas Blue photograph album and correspondence related to World War II in China | Collections | The Huntington

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Sylvester Thomas Blue photograph album and correspondence related to World War II in China
Visual Materials
A photograph album and letters documenting the experiences of Sylvester Thomas "Bud" Blue, a private in the United States Marine Corps, in Shanghai, China, during World War II. The album contains 127 photographs: personal snapshots, photo booth portraits, commercially-made photographs, and a few photographic postcards of Shanghai. The album has no writing and people are not identified. Subjects include American and Chinese soldiers; images of war dead and destruction in Shanghai; a military parade; portraits of American and Chinese women; and scenes of soldiers drilling and at leisure. A few images show prominent figures such as Chiang Kai-shek and Soong May-ling, and other military scenes in Shanghai. Accompanying the album are nine letters from Blue to his parents in Danville, Illinois, posted from Shanghai and elsewhere between 1939 and 1945. One letter includes a newspaper clipping noting Blue and other soldiers being sent to the Fourth Marines in China.
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Photograph album of a British expatriate in China
Visual Materials
An album of 210 photographs of China taken sometime after the end of World War I, by an unidentified British expatriate likely working in Shanghai, China. Subjects include Shanghai, Hong Kong, Huangpu River, local residents, Westerners, naval and civil ships, coastal villages, Chinese architecture, and historical landmarks. There is no writing in the album, though one photograph of buildings along a waterfront has "my office" in pencil, with an arrow to a building. Many of the snapshots are of local people: children, fishermen, weavers, a shoe cobbler, workers with building materials, and others.
photCL 691
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Photograph album of China during the occupation by the Eight-Nation Alliance
Visual Materials
An album of 80 photographs of Beijing, China, after the invasion of the Eight-Nation Alliance during the Boxer Uprising in 1900. The high-quality photographs were presumably taken by a French military officer, as many images feature French officers and soldiers, and one image depicts the French flag flying on top of a city gate. A few other Western officers are seen in group portraits, riding horses at camp, or posed with Chinese residents. A series of images shows the construction of a music bandstand by French and Chinese workers, most likely in the French Legation in Beijing. Other subjects include portraits of Chinese women in traditional clothing, Chinese soldiers, Beijing buildings and street scenes, and Chinese workers and families.
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Photograph album of northern China after the Boxer Uprising
Visual Materials
Likely compiled by a resident of the British Concession in Tianjin, China, the album features 180 mounted photographs of Tianjin, Chefoo (Yantai), Beijing, and other parts of northern China, dating from approximately the 1900s to 1910s. Among some of the identified photographs of Tianjin are views of various European concessions, the Clarence House Hotel, soldiers of the Eight-Nation Alliance, and memorials to the Boxer Uprising. Other views include scenes of Beijing, Diederichs's stone in Qingdao, the Great Wall of China, railway stations and tracks, Chinese funeral processions, and social and sporting events held by the Westerners. The photographs are of various sizes and include professional photographs as well as snapshots; there are no identifications or other writing in the album.
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Photograph album of China, Korea, and Japan
Visual Materials
A photograph album containing 263 photographs of China, Korea, and Japan, dating from the time of the Boxer Uprising in China to the Russo-Japanese War, 1901 to 1905. The photographs are primarily unique images, along with some commercial photographs and foldout panoramas, and many have handwritten captions. The album's inside cover is inscribed: "John Rory Macey / H.M.S. Blenheim / China Station / Vol. II / Jan 1st 1901 - July 18th, 1905"; Macey was a naval engineer in the British Admiralty and most likely took some of the photographs, particularly naval-related scenes, and images of British servicemen. Photographic subjects in China include navy ships in the port of Weihaiwei, street scenes in Peking (Beijing) and other cities, Chinese residents, monuments (including the Forbidden Palace under foreign occupation), palaces, gardens, and temples. A number of photographs focus on the aftermath of the Boxer Uprising, including ruined buildings. The second portion of the album depicts scenes in Korea during the Russo-Japanese War; these include Korean people in daily activities, street scenes, commercial images of Chemulpo, and the palace grounds in Seoul. The third portion of the album contains amateur and commercial photographs of Japan, including the port cities of Maizuru and Yokohama, Japanese residents, tea ceremonies, the hot spring resort of Tonosawa, and panoramic images of the Osaka Exhibition of 1903. At the back of the album are 17 large, hand-colored photographs of Japan, including images of landscapes, street vendors, and Japanese women in genre scenes.
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Paul Traynor photograph album of the US Armys 31st Infantry Regiment
Visual Materials
This photo album documents Paul Traynors experiences and encounters while serving in the Philippines and China. There are many photographs of Traynor and his fellow American soldiers engaged in leisure activities, meeting locals and learning Filipino customs, exploring cities and other surrounding regions, and documenting agricultural practices, work, and social life. There are also a few professional studio portraits. Images from Shanghai, China depict the Bund, Whangpoo (Huangpu) River, New World Building, street battle scenes, barricades and damages from the 1932 Battle of Shanghai, various street views, and portraits of locals and American and Chinese soldiers. Images from the Philippines show Fort Stolsenburg, Fort William McKinley, Camp John Hay, Manila Bay, various beaches, rural areas, and cityscapes of Manila, Baguio, and Luzon, and portraits of American soldiers, Indigenous Igorotte Peoples, and Moros on Luzon. Most photographs have a brief handwritten description of the image. There are a small number of loose photographs, which have handwritten notes on the verso. There is also ephemera relating to Traynor's exploration of Manila and Shanghai and his time after his service in the military, including various permission slips to leave camp; business cards from bars in Manila, such as the California Bar, the Anchor Bar and Cafe, the Lone Star Bar, House of Quality Whiskey, Silver Dollar Cafe, and the Brookyln Bar; various liquor labels; a ticket to the Nanking Theatre; and Traynor's State of Michigan driver's license and a copy letter from the Delinquency Control. Please note that this collection contains historical images of violence and nudity that library users may find harmful, offensive, or inappropriate.
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