Virginia Commonwealth University Libraries has been awarded a grant from the National
Film Preservation Foundation to preserve select films from the Harris H.
Stilson film collection.
Grants were awarded to 35 projects--including preservation of a newly discovered film by
composer John Cage--in 22 states. VCU is the first university in the
commonwealth to receive a grant from the National Film Preservation Foundation. For more information
Stilson (1868-1934) was a Richmond streetcar conductor, later a motorman, and amateur photographer and film documentarian. His films offer a rarely-seen visual record of Richmond 1929-31. Highlights of the collection are street scenes of black and white citizens, streetcars and buildings and leisure life at Byrd Park and Shields Lake.
"The Stilson work is a unique treasure," said Wesley J. Chenault, head of Special Collections and Archives at James Branch Cabell Library. "Film footage of the city is rare and our research suggests that these films are among the oldest, if not the oldest, held by any local or regional cultural institution in the commonwealth."
Adding to the historic value are provenance and documentation. The donor is the filmmaker's
great-granddaughter, Kitty Snow. Recognizing the importance of this record, she
has actively worked to locate and preserve Stilson's collection, which includes
some 3,000 photographs and negatives that document the ordinary lives of
Richmonders, including African American and Jewish communities and individuals
from his streetcar routes. It also contains meticulous records - ledgers,
receipts, notes - that identify who and what Stilson captured through his
lenses.
Snow says her great-grandfather (at left) "was the poor man's photographer, selling pictures for 20 cents to pay for his cameras, film, and developing materials. He was also an innovative photographer, hand-coloring and even inserting a missing relative's face into a family portrait, sort of an early 'Photoshopped' picture." A selection of his images is the subject of Snow's forthcoming book "From a Richmond Streetcar." The film collection at VCU Libraries represents his only known surviving film work. VCU Libraries is working with Snow to acquire the photographs, negatives and personal papers, which will add immense historical depth and context.
The Kodacolor films in the collection will be the first to be preserved. Introduced for 16 mm film in 1928, this Kodak brand was associated with an early color process known as lenticular. After being cleaned and preserved, the films will be made available for public research and use in Special Collections and Archives at James Branch Cabell Library and online through VCU Libraries Digital Collections.
The film collection is expected to have broad research interest to scholars, students, documentarians and others interested in early 20th century urban life, Virginia and Richmond history, race relations, urban studies, architectural history and more.
Created by the U.S. Congress in 1996 to save the nation's film heritage, the National Film Preservation Foundation is affiliated with the Library of Congress's National Film Preservation Board. It awards basic preservation grants to nonprofit and public institutions for laboratory work to preserve culturally and historically significant films.
Stilson (1868-1934) was a Richmond streetcar conductor, later a motorman, and amateur photographer and film documentarian. His films offer a rarely-seen visual record of Richmond 1929-31. Highlights of the collection are street scenes of black and white citizens, streetcars and buildings and leisure life at Byrd Park and Shields Lake.
"The Stilson work is a unique treasure," said Wesley J. Chenault, head of Special Collections and Archives at James Branch Cabell Library. "Film footage of the city is rare and our research suggests that these films are among the oldest, if not the oldest, held by any local or regional cultural institution in the commonwealth."
Adding to the historic value are provenance and documentation. The donor is the filmmaker's
great-granddaughter, Kitty Snow. Recognizing the importance of this record, she
has actively worked to locate and preserve Stilson's collection, which includes
some 3,000 photographs and negatives that document the ordinary lives of
Richmonders, including African American and Jewish communities and individuals
from his streetcar routes. It also contains meticulous records - ledgers,
receipts, notes - that identify who and what Stilson captured through his
lenses. Snow says her great-grandfather (at left) "was the poor man's photographer, selling pictures for 20 cents to pay for his cameras, film, and developing materials. He was also an innovative photographer, hand-coloring and even inserting a missing relative's face into a family portrait, sort of an early 'Photoshopped' picture." A selection of his images is the subject of Snow's forthcoming book "From a Richmond Streetcar." The film collection at VCU Libraries represents his only known surviving film work. VCU Libraries is working with Snow to acquire the photographs, negatives and personal papers, which will add immense historical depth and context.
The Kodacolor films in the collection will be the first to be preserved. Introduced for 16 mm film in 1928, this Kodak brand was associated with an early color process known as lenticular. After being cleaned and preserved, the films will be made available for public research and use in Special Collections and Archives at James Branch Cabell Library and online through VCU Libraries Digital Collections.
The film collection is expected to have broad research interest to scholars, students, documentarians and others interested in early 20th century urban life, Virginia and Richmond history, race relations, urban studies, architectural history and more.
Created by the U.S. Congress in 1996 to save the nation's film heritage, the National Film Preservation Foundation is affiliated with the Library of Congress's National Film Preservation Board. It awards basic preservation grants to nonprofit and public institutions for laboratory work to preserve culturally and historically significant films.