Exhibits

Items

• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 055
  Caption: "First Apt. House in America -- New Orleans -- Jun 16, 34." One of the Pontalba Buildings occupies the right side of this photograph. These large, matching, red brick buildings, constructed in the late 1840s by Baroness Micaela Almonester Pontalba, form two sides of Jackson Square in New Orleans' French Quarter. Popular belief holds that these are the oldest continuously-rented apartment buildings in the U.S. However, that assertion has been challenged by historians who state that the buildings served as row houses for almost a century, not functioning as apartment buildings until the 1930s.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 054
  Caption: "Cabildo or Old Spanish Jail and St. Louis Cathedral -- New Orleans, June 16, 34." The façade of the Cabildo dominates this photograph, while the corner of St. Louis Cathedral is visible at the right. The Cabildo was the seat of government for New Orleans while the area was under Spanish jurisdiction. The building was also the site of the transfer ceremonies when the U.S. purchased the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803. Although damaged by fire in 1988, the restored Cabildo survived Hurricane Katrina in 2005 with only minor damage.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 053
  Caption: "New Orleans Iron Fence Made to Represent Corn. June 16, 34." The iron pickets and vertical rails of the fence in this photograph have been shaped to look like stalks of corn, complete with ears and leaves.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 052
  Caption: "Saint Louis Cathedral, New Orleans, Louisiana. June 16, 1934." St. Louis Cathedral anchors one end of Jackson Square in New Orleans' French Quarter. The structure of the cathedral largely dates to the 1850 restoration and expansion of an older cathedral built on the site in 1793. Very little of the older church survived, although the central bell tower (added on to the older church in 1819) was reused in the new structure and is still extant today. A statue of Andrew Jackson mounted on a rearing horse (Clark Mills, sculptor) stands in the square in front of the cathedral. The sculpture was erected in 1856. See also 96-07-08-alb09-231.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 051
  Caption: "Street Scene -- New Orleans, June 15, 34." Street scene with two lines of railroad tracks in the center of the photograph, running into the distance. Automobile traffic can be seen on the roads to either side of the tracks.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 050
  Caption: "Spanish Court -- New Orleans, June 15, 34." William and Grace McCarthy posing in a courtyard lushly planted with vines, bushes, and trees.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 049
  Caption: "New Orleans Ferry to Angiers [sic] June 15, 34." Ferry New Orleans getting ready for a trip to Algiers, on the west bank of the Mississippi River (now one of the oldest neighborhoods in New Orleans). Ferries were critical to the movement of people and freight between the east and west banks of the Mississippi River for more than a century. There are still several that serve the New Orleans area.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 048
  Caption: "Canal Street -- New Orleans, June 14, 34." Street scene along Canal Street in New Orleans.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 047
  Caption: "Mississippi River Ferry -- New Orleans, June 14, 34." A ferry owned by the Bisso family carrying automobiles and their owners across the Mississippi River near New Orleans. Ferries were extremely important to commerce and other activities along the Mississippi River before the construction of bridges capable of carrying automobile traffic.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 046
  Caption: "Mississippi River Bridge Under Construction, New Orleans, June 14, 1934." View of the Huey P. Long Bridge while under construction. The cantilevered steel through truss bridge, designed by Ralph Modjeski, spans the Mississippi River between Elmwood and Bridge City. It opened to traffic in 1935.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 045
  Caption: "Louisiana Negro Bungalows and Conveyance, June 14, 34." Three unidentified African-Americans drive a wagon pulled by a single horse in this photograph. The bungalows and family seen in Album 11, Photograph 043 are visible in the background.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 044
  Caption: "Negro Woman and Son -- Morgan City -- Louisiana, June 13, 1934." Unidentified African-American woman and young man along a road in Morgan City. The woman is carrying a pail on her head, while the young man is carrying two wood planks.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 043
  Caption: "Louisiana Negro Bungalows, June 14, 34." An unidentified African-American family sits on the front porch of a small home sided with wood planks. A row of similar structures can be seen to the right.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 042
  Caption: "A Louisiana Plantation Home. June 13, 34." A single-story residence featuring a long porch with paired columns, set back from the road. Picturesque trees dripping with Spanish moss bracket the home.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 041
  Caption: "Atchafalay [sic] River Bridge -- Morgan City, LA. June 13, 1934." The Long-Allen Bridge spans the Atchafalaya River between Morgan City and Berwick, in Louisiana. The through truss bridge opened in 1933.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 040
  Caption: "Wild Hyacinths in River Bed -- Morgan City, Louisiana, June 13, 34." View of a riverbed choked with wild hyacinths, many of which are in bloom. No water is visible.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 039
  Caption: "Louisiana Highway, June 12, 34." A highway in Louisiana recedes into the distance, flanked by tall vegetation.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 038
  Caption: "San Jacinto Battle Ground -- Tex, June 11 34." View of the gated entry to the San Jacinto Battleground. The site was the location of the Battle of San Jacinto, in which the Texan Army (led by Sam Houston) defeated the Mexican army (led by General Antonio López de Santa Anna), paving the way for the formation of the Republic of Texas. A Texas Historic Site, the battleground was also declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 037
  Caption: "Houston Ship Channel Ferry -- Houston Tex. June 9, 34." View of a ferry with a single vehicle on board, crossing the Houston Ship Channel. The dredged channel was opened in 1914 as part of the Port of Houston.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 036
  Caption: "Sam Houston Monument -- Houston Tex. June 8, 34." View of the San Houston Monument, a twenty-foot-tall bronze sculpture designed by Enrico Cerracchio and dedicated in 1925. The sculpture commemorates Sam Houston, a prominent soldier and politician who served as the first and third President of the Republic of Texas before its annexation to the U.S. Houston also served as Governor of Texas and as a U.S. Senator for both Texas and Tennessee.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 035
  Caption: "Houston Court House -- Houston Tex. June 7, 34." View of the Harris County Courthouse, a neoclassical building constructed in 1910 and designed by Dallas architectural firm Lang & Witchell. It was the fifth courthouse to be built on the site.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 034
  Caption: "Carlsbad Caverns -- Inside Looking Out, May, 30, 34." View looking out of the mouth of Carlsbad Cavern, a series of natural underground chambers including the "Big Room," the fifth-largest such chamber in North America with a length of 1,000 feet, a width of 625 feet, and a maximum height of 255 feet. The site was named Carlsbad Cave National Monument in 1923, and declared Carlsbad Caverns National Park in 1930.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 033b
  One side of a flier handed out by the San Antonio Reptile Garden in the mid-1930s entitled "Reptile Facts." The Reptile Garden opened in the 1930s as a fundraising facility for the Witte Museum. The Garden featured turtle races, snake handling demonstrations, fried rattlesnake meat, and rattlesnake dinner fund raisers. It also became a research center for the use of antivenom. The Garden closed in the early 1940s, its live snakes donated to the San Antonio Zoo.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 033a
  One side of a flier handed out by the San Antonio Reptile Garden in the mid-1930s entitled "Reptile Facts." The Reptile Garden opened in the 1930s as a fundraising facility for the Witte Museum. The Garden featured turtle races, snake handling demonstrations, fried rattlesnake meat, and rattlesnake dinner fund raisers. It also became a research center for the use of antivenom. The Garden closed in the early 1940s, its live snakes donated to the San Antonio Zoo.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 033
  Caption: "Carlsbad Caverns -- New Mexico, May 30, 34." View looking into dark cave mouth of Carlsbad Cavern, a series of natural underground chambers including the "Big Room," the fifth-largest such chamber in North America with a length of 1,000 feet, a width of 625 feet, and a maximum height of 255 feet. The site was named Carlsbad Cave National Monument in 1923, and declared Carlsbad Caverns National Park in 1930.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 032
  Caption: "Signal Peak -- Guadalupe Mts. 10,000 ft alt. New Mexico, May 29, 34." View of Guadalupe Peak (also known as Signal Peak), the highest natural point in Texas with an elevation of 8,751 feet above sea level.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 031
  Caption: "Court House -- El Paso Tex. Population of El Paso 100,000, 80% Mexicans. 4000 ft. alt. May 28, 34." View of the El Paso County Courthouse, built in 1917 and designed by Henry Charles Trost. It is not known where William McCarthy got the statistics he quotes in the caption.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 030
  Caption: "Park in El Paso, May 27, 34." Grace McCarthy standing in a park, in front of statue of a young boy.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 029
  Caption: "Street Scene -- El Paso, May 26, 34." Street scene in El Paso, Texas. Residences line the street in the foreground, while what appears to be a city center can be seen in the center distance.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 028
  Caption: "Pima Indian Children and Their Hut, Made from Bush Branches, Sacaton Indian Reservation, Sacaton, Arizona. May 24, 1934." Several children of the Akimel O'odham (Pima) tribe in front of a hut made with tree branches and wood beams, its walls and roof thatched in brush. Located south of Phoenix and including the town of Sacaton, the Gila River Indian Reservation is home to members of the Akimel O’odham (Pima) and the Pee-Posh (Maricopa) tribes. The reservation was established in 1859. Eighty years later, in 1939, Congress provided for the self-governance of the reservation via the Gila River Indian Community.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 027
  Caption: "Cactus in Bloom Near Phoenix Arizona, May 24 1934." Cluster of what appear to be yucca plants in bloom.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 026
  Caption: "Indian Hut Made From Adobe and Bush Branches, Sacaton Indian Reservation, Sacaton, Arizona, May, 24, 1934." View of a small adobe building with a porch area across the length of the façade. The porch is sheltered by a low roof supported by tree trunks or thick tree branches and thatched with grass or sticks. Located south of Phoenix and including the town of Sacaton, the Gila River Indian Reservation is home to members of the Akimel O’odham (Pima) and the Pee-Posh (Maricopa) tribes. The reservation was established in 1859. Eighty years later, in 1939, Congress provided for the self-governance of the reservation via the Gila River Indian Community.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 025
  Caption: "Central St. Phoenix, Arizona. May 24, 1934." View from street-level of Phoenix's Central Street.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 024
  Caption: "Biltmore Hotel -- Phoenix, Arizona, May 24, 34." View of the Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix, part of the Bowman-Biltmore hotel chain. Designed by Albert Chase McArthur (with some collaboration from Frank Lloyd Wright), the hotel opened for business in 1929.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 023
  Caption: "State Capitol, Phoenix Arizona, May 24, 34." View of the façade of the Arizona State Capitol Building in Phoenix. Designed by James Riely Gordon, the building opened for use in 1901.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 022
  Caption: "The Casino -- Agua Caliente, Mexico -- May 20, 34." View of the exterior of the casino at Agua Caliente Casino and Resort. Designed by Wayne McAllister, the resort opened in Tijuana in 1928. It closed only a few years later, in 1935, when Mexican President Lázaro Cárdenas outlawed gambling.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 021
  Caption: "Agua Caliente Swimming Pool -- Mexico -- May 20, 34." View of the swimming pool, with bathers and people socializing around the water, at Agua Caliente Casino and Resort. Designed by Wayne McAllister, the resort opened in Tijuana in 1928. It closed only a few years later, in 1935, when Mexican President Lázaro Cárdenas outlawed gambling.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 020
  Caption: "Agua Caliente -- Mexico, May 20, 34." Grace McCarthy standing in front of a fountain at the Agua Caliente Casino and Resort. Designed by Wayne McAllister, the resort opened in Tijuana in 1928. It closed only a few years later, in 1935, when Mexican President Lázaro Cárdenas outlawed gambling.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 019
  Caption: "Agua Caliente Mexico, May 20, 34." View of an elaborate large arch over a roadway, pointing the way to Hotel Agua Caliente in Tijuana. The Agua Caliente Casino and Resort Hotel, designed by Wayne McAllister, opened in Tijuana in 1928. The resort closed only a few years later, in 1935, when Mexican President Lázaro Cárdenas outlawed gambling.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 018
  Caption: "U. S. and Mexico Border Monument. May 20, 1934." William and Grace McCarthy standing in front of the monument placed at the U.S.-Mexico border in Tijuana, Mexico.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 017
  Caption: "Coronado Hotel, May 20, 1934." View of the Coronado Hotel, with sand dunes in the foreground. At the time it opened in 1888, this hotel was the largest beach resort in the world. The Ballroom Tower, the highest point of the building, is 120 feet tall.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 016
  Caption: "Balboa Park, San Diego, Calif. May 19, 1934." View of an artificial lagoon in San Diego's Balboa Park, with the Panama-California Exposition's Commerce and Industries Building (tower at left, now called Casa de Balboa) and the Foreign Arts Building (tower at right, now called the House of Hospitality).
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 015
  Caption: "San Diego Water Front, May 19, 1934." View from across the harbor of San Diego's waterfront.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 014
  Caption: "Broadway, San Diego, Calif, May 19, 1934." Bird's eye view of Broadway, a main street in San Diego.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 013
  Caption: "Public Market, Long Beach, Calif, May 18, 1934." Small street market in Long Beach, showing a flower vendor, fruit or vegetable vendors, and a few other stalls too distant to make out the merchandise.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 012
  Caption: "Colorado St. Main Thoroughfare of Pasadena, May 18, 1934." Scene on Colorado Street in Pasadena.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 011
  Caption: "City Hall, Pasadena, Cal. May 18, 1934." View of Pasadena's City Hall, designed by San Francisco firm Bakewell and Brown. Built in 1927, the building reflects the City Beautiful movement of that decade.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 010
  Caption: "Olvera St. Mexican Section of Los Angeles, May 18, 1934." View of the Olvera Street Market in Los Angeles. In 1926, Christine Sterling began efforts to preserve the buildings on and around Olvera Street (one of the oldest parts of Los Angeles). After several years of struggle and fundraising, Olvera Street was closed to automobile traffic in 1929, and opened as the Paseo de Los Angeles in 1930. The street and its market quickly became popular tourist sites, promoters touting the area as "A Mexican Street of Yesterday in a City of Today."
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 009a
  Caption: "Chas Chaplin Residence Los Angeles, May 18, 1934." View of a castle-like building, with crenellated parapets and a tower. William McCarthy labeled this as a residence of Charlie Chaplin. The sign in front appears to indicate that the building is a church rather than a residence, but is difficult to read.
• McCarthy Album 11, Photograph 009
  Caption: "Olvera St. Mexican Market Place, Los Angeles, May 18, 1934." View of the Olvera Street Market in Los Angeles. In 1926, Christine Sterling began efforts to preserve the buildings on and around Olvera Street (one of the oldest parts of Los Angeles). After several years of struggle and fundraising, Olvera Street was closed to automobile traffic in 1929, and opened as the Paseo de Los Angeles in 1930. The street and its market quickly became popular tourist sites, promoters touting the area as "A Mexican Street of Yesterday in a City of Today."