National Air and Space Museum Archives

Krainik Ballooning Collection, 1859-1934

Summary

Collection ID:
NASM.1990.0009
Creators:
Krainik, Cliff
Dates:
1859-1934
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
3.19 Cubic feet
2 shoeboxes; 3 flatboxes
Repository:
This 19th and 20th century ballooning memorabilia collection contains the following items, which have been meticulously inventoried: 112 stereoscopic photographs; 107 photographs; 84 postcards, trade cards, valentines, and similar items; 80 prints; and 23 miscellaneous items.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
The Krainik Ballooning Collection contains 112 stereoscopic photographs; 107 photographs; 84 postcards, trade cards, valentines, and similar items; 80 prints; and 23 miscellaneous items all pertaining to 19th and 20th century ballooning. Highlights of the stereoscopic photographs include: views of T.S.C. Lowe's balloons during the Civil War; views of the Nadar and Godard balloons; balloons during the Boer War, Russo-Japanese War, and WWI; and views of the airships
Ganymede
,
Great Western
,
Phantom Balloons
,
Buffalo
,
Madame Carlotta
, and
The Aerial
. The photographic portion of the collection features Matthew Brady's views of Lowe's balloons during the Civil War; views of the balloon
Madam Carlotta
before and during flights; smoke and gas balloon inflation and flights; and portraits of T.S.C. Lowe and other pioneers of ballooning.
The collection also contains lithographic cards printed in Germany, whimsical advertising trade cards incorporating popular ballooning motifs and events, and 19th century woodcut illustrations from various periodicals concerning all aspects of ballooning. Other items include a small broadside for the
Grand Balloon Ascension of CARLOTTA
and a contract for smoke balloon ascensions. A few non-archival items, such as medals for Lowe's balloon,
City of New York
, and Giffard's giant captive balloon,
1878
, were accessioned with this collection and subsequently transferred to curatorial collections.
Note: The digital images in this finding aid were repurposed from scans made by an outside contractor for a commercial product and may show irregular cropping and orientation in addition to color variations resulting from damage to and deterioration of the original objects.

Arrangement note

Arrangement note
This collection has been arranged, first, in chronological order based on the Krainik inventory number that was assigned by the donor (K#), and then by size.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
The Krainik Ballooning Collection was amassed by Clifford and Michele Krainik, experts in 19th and early 20th century historical photographs, negatives, and ephemera. This collection of 19th and 20th century ballooning memorabilia contains 112 stereoscopic photographs; 107 photographs; 84 postcards, trade cards, valentines, and similar items; 80 prints; and 23 miscellaneous items.

Administration

Author
Allan Janus (1991); Amanda Buel (2017)
Immediate Source of Acquisition note
Clifford Krainik, Purchase, 1989, 1990-0009, NASM
Processing Information
This collection was rehoused by Allan Janus in 1991. A paper inventory was provided by the Krainiks. The collection was re-processed and an EAD finding aid encoded by Amanda Buel in 2017.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access note
No restrictions on access
Preferred Citation
Krainik Ballooning Collection, Acc. 1990-0009, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Conditions Governing Use
Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Great Western (Airship) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Phantom Balloons (Airships) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Stereoscopic photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Airships Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
World War, 1914-1918 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Postcards Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Aeronautics Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Madame Carlotta (Airship) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
The Aerial (Airship) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Works of art Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Russo-Japanese War, 1904-1905 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
South African War, 1899-1902 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Buffalo (Airship) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Aeronautics -- 1903-1916 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Aeronautics -- pre-1903 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ganymede (Airship) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Woodcuts Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Balloons Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Communications Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Balloons -- History Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Balloons -- pre-1900 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Spanish-American War, 1898 Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Stevens, Albert Leo, 1873-1944 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Myers, Mary, "Carlotta Queen of the Air" Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Myers, Carl, 1842-1925 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lowe, Thaddeus S. C. Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Brady, Mathew B., approximately 1823-1896 Personal Name Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

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