The Oregon Historical Society’s Digital Collections have released thousands of historic images taken by Silverton photographer June D. Drake. Drake ran a studio in Silverton, Oregon, in the early 1900s. Before retiring in 1960, he snapped tens of thousands of photos throughout Oregon and Washington. The photos preserve beautifully preserved time capsules of life in the early 1900s.They include studio portraits, community gatherings, church groups, farmers picking crops and just regular Oregonians going about their daily lives.
Some of the most fascinating images might be those captured on panorama images taken with a Cirkut camera. The Oregon Historical Society’s blog says the Cirkut was unique because the shutter stayed open as the camera rotated on a tripod.
The blog explains: “This is the first time that OHS staff has been able to digitally capture images like these: OHS’s Digital Collections Photographer Robert Warren carefully unwound the rolls of film to capture one segment at a time, between five and ten frames depending on the length and condition of the item.He then digitally stitched the frames together, which resulted in the images that you see online.” It is all that hard work that pays off when viewed closely.
The close views show the individual faces posing for a large group photo. The June D. Drake Collection runs from 1900-1952. The collection includes nearly 3,000 original photographic prints and 3,800 original glass and acetate negatives, as well as some early images from other photographers.
According to OHS, Drake helped establish Silver Falls State Park. For almost three decades, he photographed the falls while creating brochures and booklets promoting the area’s natural beauty. Those images brought state attention to the area and helped protect it from logging.
Silver Falls became a state park in July of 1931. Because of his efforts, the park’s Drake Falls was named for him.
In addition to his photography career, Drake was chief of the Silverton Fire Department, a member of the Silverton City Council and founder of the Silverton Historical Society.
The Drake Collection and thousands of other digitized images held by OHS can be viewed on the Oregon Historical Society Digital Collections website.
Lloyd Smith bought a box of historic glass plate negatives at a garage sale more than 30 years ago. The box contained hundreds of photos of rural life in Southern Oregon in the early 20th century. The collection offers a rare glimpse into Oregon’s rural communities. This treasure could have been lost, but Smith spent years carefully preserving and digitally scanning each image.