National Museum of the American Indian

Byron Harvey, III Collection of Exposition and Portrait photographs

Summary

Collection ID:
NMAI.AC.119
Creators:
Rinehart, F. A. (Frank A.)
Muhr, Adolph F., -1913
Jackson, William Henry, 1843-1942
Rau, William Herman, 1855-1920
Heyn & Matzen
Dates:
1898-1901
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
56 Photographic prints
Repository:
This collection contains 44 photographs in a photo album and 12 loose prints that depict American Indian leaders circa 1898 to 1901. The bulk of the photographs were shot at the Indian Congress of the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition, 1898 and the Greater America Exposition, 1899, both held in Omaha, Nebraska.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
This collection contains 44 photographs in a photo album and 12 loose prints that depict American Indian leaders circa 1898 to 1901. The bulk of the photographs depict photographic portraits and scenes of sham battles shot at the Indian Congress of the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition in Omaha, Nebraska, from June 1 to October 31, 1898. Frank A. Rinehart (ca. 1862-1928) and his assistant Adolph F. Muhr were the official photographers. During the Indian Congress they photographed more than 500 individuals and groups representing the estimated thirty-six tribes represented at the Exposition. Rinehart shot the majority of the outdoor battles, dance scenes, and events, while Muhr photographed the majority of the delegate portraits. Rinehart copyrighted the photographs under his own name in 1899 and 1900.
Other photographs in this collection are photographic portraits of American Indian leaders that were photographed by Herman Heyn and James Matzen at the Greater America Exposition in Omaha in 1899. Heyn copyrighted the photographs under his own name in 1899.
Finally, the collection also contains 7 loose photomechanical prints depicting portraits by photographer William Henry Jackson. These prints were colorized and published under Jackson's company the Detroit Photographic Co. Other loose color photomechanical prints include portraits shot by photographer William H. Rau (1855-1920) for the Chicago Inter-Ocean Newspaper in 1901.
The photograph titles were assigned by the photographers.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The photographs in the album are in original order. The loose prints are organized into 3 folders.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Byron Harvey, III (1932-2005) was an anthropologist and collector specializing in southwestern American Indian tribes. He was the great-grandson of Frederick Harvey, best known as the founder of the Fred Harvey Company that ran a successful chain of gift shops, restaurants, and hotels known as Harvey Houses. The Company also amassed a collection of American Indian art and sold many collections to museums including the Museum of the American Indian (NMAI's predecessor museum).
The Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition World's Fair was held in Omaha, Nebraska from June 1 to October 1898. Over 500 Indian delegates from over thirty-five different tribes were present at the Fair. James Mooney (Bureau of Ethnology) and Captain William A. Mercer organized and managed the Indian Congress in conjunction with the Exposition. It included "living exhibitions," with mock Indian villages and demonstrations of dances, daily activities, and sham battles.
The official photographer of the U.S. Indian Congress was Frank A. Rinehart (ca. 1862-1928) with his assistant Adolph F. Muhr (ca. 1858-1913). The Rinehart and Muhr photographs are considered one of the most comprehensive photo documentations of American Indian leaders at the turn of the century.
After the Trans-Mississippi Exposition ended, the Greater America Exposition opened on the same fair grounds from July 1, 1899 to October 31, 1899. Herman Heyn and James Matzen won the contract to be the official photographer of the new Exposition. This Exposition featured many of the same buildings and set up as the Trans-Mississippi Exposition of the previous year.

Administration

Author
Emily Moazami
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Byron Harvey, III in 1966.
Processing Information
Processed by Emily Moazami, Assistant Head Archivist, 2018.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Access to NMAI Archive Center collections is by appointment only, Monday - Friday, 9:30 am - 4:30 pm. Please contact the archives to make an appointment (phone: 301-238-1400, email: nmaiarchives@si.edu).
Preferred Citation
Identification of specific item; Date (if known); Byron Harvey, III Collection of Exposition and Portrait photographs, P#####; National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Conditions Governing Use
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center. Please submit a written request to nmaiphotos@si.edu. For personal or classroom use, users are invited to download, print, photocopy, and distribute the images that are available online without prior written permission, provided that the files are not modified in any way, the Smithsonian Institution copyright notice (where applicable) is included, and the source of the image is identified as the National Museum of the American Indian. For more information please see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use and NMAI Archive Center's Digital Image request website.

Related Materials
The Haskell Indian Nations University in Lawrence, Kansas has a large collection of Frank Rinehart photographs from U.S. Indian Congress of the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition, including the original glass plate negatives.
The National Museum of the American Indian Archive Center also holds other photographs shot by Rinehart and Muhr at Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition, including collection NMAI.AC.118.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition (1898 : Omaha, Neb.) -- Photographs Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Greater America Exposition (1899 : Omaha, Neb.) Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Oglala Lakota (Oglala Sioux) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Kiowa Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Inunaina (Arapaho) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Chiricahua Apache Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Tsitsistas/Suhtai (Cheyenne) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Ute Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Piipaash (Maricopa) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lakota (Teton/Western Sioux) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Assiniboine (Stoney) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Omaha Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Apsáalooke (Crow/Absaroke) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Sicangu Lakota (Brulé Sioux) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Salish (Flathead) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Wichita Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
San Carlos Apache Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Jicarilla Apache Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photograph albums Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Genre Form Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

National Museum of the American Indian
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Suitland, Maryland 20746-2863
Business Number: Phone: 301.238.1400
Fax Number: Fax: 301.238.3038
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