National Museum of the American Indian

Herbert U. Silleck photographs

Summary

Collection ID:
NMAI.AC.223
Creators:
Silleck, Herbert Underhill
Dates:
circa 1924-1944
Languages:
English
.
Physical Description:
260 Photographs
Repository:
This collection contains 260 photographs depicting many American Indian communities including Diné (Navajo); Hopi; Isleta Pueblo; Pikuni (Piegan) [Blackfeet Nation, Browning, Montana]; Taos Pueblo; and Lacandon Maya, as well as others. Photographs were shot by amateur photographer Herbert Underhill Silleck circa 1924-1944 during his travels with his wife Agnes Smartt Silleck.

Scope and Contents

Scope and Contents
This collection contains 260 photographs (196 film negatives and 64 photos in an album) shot by amateur photographer Herbert Underhill Silleck during his travels with his wife Agnes Smartt Silleck circa 1924-1944.
The photographs depict many American Indian communities in western United States including Diné (Navajo), Hopi, Isleta Pueblo, Pikuni (Piegan) [Blackfeet Nation, Browning, Montana], Taos Pueblo, and Lacandon Maya. The images include scenes of candid portraits; powwows in Flagstaff, Arizona and Montana; Pueblos; tourist goods for sale; Aztec Ruins National Monument, New Mexico, among other scenes.

Arrangement

Arrangement
The photographs are intellectually arranged by subject matter and physically arranged in boxes by image #.

Biographical / Historical

Biographical / Historical
Relatively little is known about Herbert Underhill Silleck. He was born in New York in April 24, 1881 and worked for the Brooklyn Trust Company for about 47 years. He married Agnes Smartt on June 1, 1905 and they had one daughter Doris G. Silbeck (born 1918). He died in New York on March 14, 1961. Based on Herbert's photographic record, it appears that he was an amateur photographer who traveled throughout the western United States.

Administration

Author
Emily Moazami
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Agnes Smartt Silleck, 1962.
Processing Information
Emily Moazami, Supervisory Archivist, 2020.
Separated Materials
Agnes Smartt Silleck also donated a sash, hair tie, and a painting to the museum, which can now be found under object numbers 23/2012 - 23/2014.

Using the Collection

Conditions Governing Access
Access to NMAI Archives 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); Herbert U. Silleck photographs, image #, NMAI.AC.223; National Museum of the American Indian Archives Center, Smithsonian Institution.
Conditions Governing Use
Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from National Museum of the American Indian Archives 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.

Keywords

Keywords table of terms and types.
Keyword Terms Keyword Types
Diné (Navajo) Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Taos Pueblo Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Isleta Pueblo Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Hopi Pueblo Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Pikuni (Piegan) [Blackfeet Nation, Browning, Montana] Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Lacandon Maya Cultural Context Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Powwows Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid
Photographs Topical Search Smithsonian Collections Search ArchiveGrid

National Museum of the American Indian
4220 Silver Hill Rd
Suitland, Maryland 20746-2863
Business Number: Phone: 301.238.1400
Fax Number: Fax: 301.238.3038
nmaiarchives@si.edu