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Yamanaka family photograph collection

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Held at: University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts [Contact Us]3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6206

This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.

Overview and metadata sections

The Yamanakas arrived in California prior to 1910, and lived on Railroad Avenue in San Franscisco before moving to Cottage Grove Avenue in Chicago a decade later.

The Yamanaka family photograph collection comprises 312 loose photographs, including photo postcards, of the Yamanaka family, friends, and their community in California during the 1910s-1920s. Included are a number of studio portraits as well as images of activities in the Bay Area, Japan, and other areas in the Americas. Images document the Japanese community and its growth across the United States in the early 1900s.

Some of portraits were taken at the studios of Japanese-American photographers Moriyama and Motoyoshi in San Francisco. In addition to the portraits and family photographs from San Francisco, there are photos and photo postcards from family excursions to destinations including Yosemite and Niagara Falls; school children on outings; two portraits showing a Japanese woman and child from a studio in Sao Paulo; image of the Japanese Methodist Episcopal Church, Oakland; image of the Japanese M.E. church, Alameda.

Several images feature scenes from the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition which took place in San Francisco from February 20-December 4, 1915 and featured an exhibit called "Japan Beautiful."

Folder 1 contains a christmas card addressed to Mr. (or Dr.) T. Yamanaka, in Chicago, Illinois, 1924.

The collection is organized into 1 series: Series 1: Yamanaka family photograph collection, 1910-1925

Sold by McBride Rare Books, 2022.

Accessioned as 2022.000103. Samantha Dodd processed, wrote and encoded the finding aid, 2023. Loose photographs were foldered and arranged alphabetically by general subject, and style of image.

Publisher
University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts
Finding Aid Author
Samantha Dodd
Finding Aid Date
2023 May 17
Access Restrictions

This collection is open for research use.

Use Restrictions

Copyright restrictions may exist. For most library holdings, the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania do not hold copyright. It is the responsibility of the requester to seek permission from the holder of the copyright to reproduce material from the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts.

Collection Inventory

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Scope and Contents

Photographs are arranged alphabetically by folder title.

Physical Description

1 box(es)

A letter to Mr. T. Yamanaka, 1924 December.
Box 1 Folder 1
Animals, undated.
Box 1 Folder 2
Buildings, house, unidentified, 1915, 1923, undated.
Box 1 Folder 3
Chefs, kitchen, staff, undated.
Box 1 Folder 4
Children, groups, undated.
Box 1 Folder 5
Children, individual, undated.
Box 1 Folder 6
Children, pairs, undated.
Box 1 Folder 7
City views, aerials, bridges, undated.
Box 1 Folder 8
Events, undated.
Box 1 Folder 9
Family outings, undated.
Box 1 Folder 10
Flowers, undated.
Box 1 Folder 11
Groups, undated.
Box 1 Folder 12-14
Individuals, undated.
Box 1 Folder 15-20
Mountain views, undated.
Box 1 Folder 21
Ocean, ships, dock, undated.
Box 1 Folder 22
Pairs of individuals, undated.
Box 1 Folder 23-26
Parks, waterfalls, undated.
Box 1 Folder 27
Roadside views, undated.
Box 1 Folder 28
School children outings, undated.
Box 1 Folder 29
School children party, undated.
Box 1 Folder 30
Street scenes, undated.
Box 1 Folder 31
Studio portraits, undated.
Box 1 Folder 32-35

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