© Copyright 2025 - The Library Company of Philadelphia, 1314 Locust Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107. TEL (215) 546-3181 FAX (215) 546-5167
For inquiries, please contact our IT Department
- Title
- The Court of Honor during the Elks' greatest parade, Philadelphia, July 18, 1907
- Description
- View of the "Elks Greatest Parade" on South Broad Street during the 21st Annual Benevolent Protective Order of Elks Convention held in Philadelphia in 1907. Depicts a float, a horse-drawn wagon carrying a large stuffed elk and passengers, and several costumed parade participants from various Elk Lodges throughout the country. Participants include a group dressed as minstrels in bowler hats and duster jackets and members attired all in white holding umbrellas. Spectators line the street. The south side of City Hall is visible in the distance., Title from item., Berry, Kelley & Chadwick was an early 20th century prolific publisher and retailer of stereoviews with locations in Philadelphia, Chicago, Dallas, and Atlanta., Purchase 1978., RVCDC, Description revised 2022., Access points revised 2022., Digitization funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (PW-506-19-10), 2010-2012.
- Date
- 1907
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department stereo - Berry, Kelley & Chadwick [P.8451.3]
- Title
- "D em brats done gone and stole dat melon."
- Description
- Racist, genre stereograph depicting an African American man coming upon three African American boys sitting next to each other and eating large slices of watermelon at the entrance to a stone root cellar. Shows an outdoor setting in which the man, holding a switch, peers around the stone, curved structure at the boys who sit with their legs crossed, or bent at the knees, or to the side, before the open entryway. Each holds a slice of watermelon toward their mouth. Half a watermelon with a knife in it and two other slices of the melon lie near the boys. View also show a grassy hillside in the background and a patch of greenry near the cellar. The man is attired in a soft-brimmed hat, shirtsleeves, a vest, and slacks. The children wear shirts and shorts., Title from item., Date inferred from active dates of publisher and content., Name of photographer and publisher from copyright statement: Copyright Griffith & Griffith., Curved grey mount with rounded corners., Griffith & Griffith, established in Philadelphia in 1896, expanded in 1908 to included offices in St. Louis and Liverpool. The non-Philadelphia offices were relocated in 1910., RVCDC, Gift of George R. Allen, 2022.
- Creator
- Griffith & Griffith
- Date
- [ca. 1900]
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department stereo - Griffith & Griffith - Portraits & Genre [P.2022.42.18]
- Title
- On the river, Canton, China
- Description
- Shows the busy Pearl River in Canton (i.e. Guangzhou), China. In the center, a large ship, with steam paddles and a smokestack, is beside a wooden dock. In the foreground are sampans, some with people attired in conical hats and holding poles. In the background, numerous boats of various sizes and buildings along the shoreline are visible., Title from item., Date inferred from content., Text printed on verso: On the River, Canton, China. Lat. 23 degrees N.; Long. 113 degrees E. About one hundred miles from Hongkong on the delta of the Pearl or Canton River is the great city of Canton, the port of outlet for southern China, and one of the largest cities of China. This is one of the most thickly populated parts of the world, and stretching back from the river are miles and miles of fertile fields in which the industrious Chinese raise three crops a year. The city itself is built very closely. Throngs of people crowd the streets, which are incredibly dirty and so narrow that only a strip of sky can be seen overhead. On the river are boats of every description, modern steamers, Chinese junks, sampans, and houseboats. More than a hundred thousand people live in these boats, which are sometimes seventy-five feet long by fifteen feet wide. Such a boat usually has three rooms-a hallroom, a living room, and a sleeping room. These rooms can be broken up easily into additional rooms by the use of screens. The cooking and washing are done in the stern of the boat outside the house proper. Sometimes a family may have a flock of ducks or geese. These are put into the water in the morning and taken on board in the evening. The waters have many fish so the family usually have fish and rice for their food. The houseboats are pushed along by long poles or heavy oars. Sometimes you see little children playing about these houseboats fastened by ropes tied about their waists or with little barrels on their backs which, in case of their falling overboard, will keep them afloat until they are rescued by father or mother. Canton used to be a treaty port. What does that mean? Are all the Chinese seaports now open for trade? Copyright by the Keystone View Company., Gift of Christine Nelson, 2023., Keystone View Company was founded in 1892 by B.L. Singley, an amateur photographer from Meadville, Pennsylvania. Keystone View Company was the leader in promoting stereographs for educational purposes. In 1912 the company purchased rights to some Underwood & Underwood negatives for use in educational sets, and in 1922 purchased the remaining stock of Underwood materials. The company remained in business until 1970.
- Creator
- Keystone View Company
- Date
- [ca. 1905]
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department stereo - Keystone View Company - Views [P.2023.73.17]
- Title
- A " jam" on Dock Street, Philadelphia's produce market place
- Description
- View of street traffic at the produce market on the 200 block of Dock Street. Horse-drawn carts and wagons packed with sacks, barrels, and crates crowd the cobblestone street lined with storefronts, including C.G. Justice & Co. (123 Dock St.); Rosskam, Gerstley & Co. (133 & 135 Dock Street); Carstairs & McCall Co (139 Dock St.); and J. M. Morris & C. H. Peacock warehouse. Signs advertising "Carstairs & McCall Co. fine rye whiskies," "Rosskam, Gerstley & Co. fine whiskies," and "Fruits" adorn the buildings. Produce dealers C.G. Justice & Co. was established in 1871. Isaac Rosskam and Henry Gerstley founded the whiskey wholesale firm Rosskam, Gerstley & Co. in circa 1869 and continued until 1921. Brothers Charles and James Carstairs, Jr. and John C. McCall founded the whiskey company Carstairs & McCall Co. in 1868., Title printed on mount., Date from copyright statement: Copyrighted 1903 by William H. Rau., Curved buff mount with rounded corners., Distributor's imprint printed on mount: Sold only by Universal View Co., Publisher's imprint printed on mount., Gift of Raymond Holstein.
- Creator
- Rau, William Herman, 1855-1920, publisher
- Date
- 1903
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department Holstein stereo - Streets - Chestnut Street [P.2011.47.1840]
- Title
- Calve s crossing the stream
- Description
- View of four women walking through water with their dresses pulled up to their knees., Inscribed on mount: 1169, Name of distributor stamped on mount: Sold only by Griffith & Griffith, Philadelphia, Chicago, London, Hamburg, Ger., Milan, Italy., Digitization funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (PW-506-19-10), 2010-2012.
- Creator
- Rau, William Herman, 1855-1920
- Date
- [ca. 1900]
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department stereo - Rau -Portraits & Genre [P.2007.20.8]
- Title
- Sunken gardens and Catholic fountain, Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.A
- Description
- View looking southwest at a long, landscaped flower bed, also known as the "Sunken Gardens," built in front of Horticultural Hall (not pictured) for the Centennial Exhibition in 1876. The Catholic fountain is not visible at the end of the flower bed in the distant background., Copyrighted 1901 by William H. Rau., Title printed on mount., Photographer's imprint printed on mount., Dark gray curved mount with rounded corners., Cataloging funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (PW-506-19-10), 2010-2012.
- Creator
- Rau, William Herman, 1855-1920
- Date
- c1901
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department stereo - Rau - Parks [P.9573.18]
- Title
- [Girls High School class of 1900]
- Description
- Class portrait, including African American students, posed before the school at 17th and Spring Garden streets. The students sit on the front steps of the school and stand along the sides and at the top. Some hold and display personal mementoes. Established in 1848, the high school, located at Spring Garden from 1876 to 1958, was the first municipally funded secondary school for girls in the United States. The school relocated to 1400 West Olney Street in 1958., Right corner missing., Photographer's imprint ink stamped on verso., Title supplied by cataloger., Purchase 1991., Description revised 2022., Access points revised 2022., Part of digital collections catalog through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services as administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Education through the Office of Commonwealth Libraries, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Tom Corbett, Governor, 2013-2014.
- Creator
- Broadbent Company, photographer
- Date
- [1900]
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department *group portrait photographs - education [P.9359]
- Title
- " Does you love me hun?"
- Description
- Racist stereograph of an outdoor caricatured, genre scene showing a man woman couple, portrayed in Blackface, seated together, and embracing each other on a wooden swing in the countryside. The woman sits next to the man, her legs dangling. She smiles and looks up toward him. He smiles and looks out, his legs crossed at the ankle and his feet touching the ground. The woman wears a kerchief, dark-colored shirtwaist, a striped skirt, white stockings, and laced shoes. He wears a cap, long-sleeved white shirt, light-colored pants and boots. Scene also includes a pile of branches behind the couple and a wood fence in the distant background., Title from item., Date inferrred from publisher and places of publication., Curved buff mount with rounded corners., Griffith & Griffith, established in Philadelphia in 1896, expanded in 1908 to included offices in St. Louis and Liverpool. The non-Philadelphia offices were relocated in 1910., RVCDC
- Creator
- Griffith & Griffith
- Date
- [ca. 1908]
- Location
- Library Company of Philadelphia | Print Department Rau Misc. Collection [P.2012.56.56]

