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Collection Photo, Print, Drawing Biographical File filing series (Library of Congress)

[ original digital photo ]

Full online access to this resource is only available at the Library of Congress.

About this Item

Title

  • Biographical File filing series (Library of Congress)

Summary

  • Portraits and other pictures relating to the lives, careers, and families of distinguished or notable persons and groups, including their homes and birthplaces. Most of the people depicted are American or European who lived between 1500 and the present day (chiefly 1800 to 1950) in such occupations as actors and actresses, government officials, military officers, politicians, and royalty.

Names

  • Bain, George Grantham, 1865-1944, photographer
  • Brady, Mathew B., approximately 1823-1896, photographer
  • Underwood & Underwood, photographer
  • Washington Press Photo Service, photographer

Created / Published

  • 1500-present, bulk 1800-1950.

Headings

  • -  Biography--Portraits
  • -  People--1500-2000
  • -  Entertainers--1500-2000
  • -  Government officials--1500-2000
  • -  Military officers--1500-2000
  • -  Politicians--1500-2000
  • -  Families--1500-2000
  • -  Dwellings--1500-2000

Format Headings

  • Photographic prints--1500-2000.
  • Portrait photographs--1500-2000.
  • Portrait prints--1500-2000.

Genre

  • Portrait prints--1500-2000
  • Portrait photographs--1500-2000
  • Photographic prints--1500-2000

Notes

  • -  Arrangement: Organized in one filing series with the call number prefix BIOG FILE. Arrangement: This browsing file in the Prints & Photographs Division Reading Room is arranged alphabetically by surname of each person, with a small section at the end for group portraits of named organizations. A "Supplemental Reference File (Biographical)" contains newspaper clippings, letters, and other textual documents received with the portraits.
  • -  Many of the photographs are from the studios of Mathew Brady-Levin C. Handy, George G. Bain, Underwood & Underwood, and the Washington Press-Photo Bureau.
  • -  The portrait media range from engravings, lithographs, and etchings to original photographs in many sizes, photomechanical prints, and photographic copies of paintings. Most images are black-and-white; a few are in color.
  • -  The Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division began assembling this browsing file in the 1930s(?) to provide direct visual access to portraits of well-known people. Few new images have been added since 1990.
  • -  The reference aid "Famous People Selected Portraits From the Collections of the Library of Congress" illustrates many portraits from the Biographical File https://aj.sunback.homes/rr/print/list/235_intr.html
  • -  The Biographical Index (a 66-drawer card file) lists portraits for which copy negatives have been made and provides cross references to some portraits housed in other collections.
  • -  Digitized images of more than 7,500 items in the file and their associated identifying information are available through the Prints & Photographs Online Catalog, by searching using the call number "Biog File" https://aj.sunback.homes/rr/print/catalog.html
  • -  Gift, purchase, and copyright deposit; various sources; 1800s to present.

Medium

  • ca. 110,000 items, chiefly photographs and prints.

Call Number/Physical Location

  • Guide Record (Filing series: BIOG FILE) [P&P]

Repository

  • Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http: //hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print

Digital Id

Library of Congress Control Number

  • 2001695651

Rights Advisory

Online Format

  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress generally does not own rights to material in its collections and, therefore, cannot grant or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute the material. For information about assessing rights, see the Rights and Restrictions Information page.

  • Rights Advisory: Publication rights status of individual images not evaluated. For general information see "Copyright and Other Restrictions ..." https://aj.sunback.homes/rr/print/195_copr.html
  • Reproduction Number: ---
  • Call Number: Guide Record (Filing series: BIOG FILE) [P&P]
  • Access Advisory: ---

Obtaining Copies

Generally, Guide Records describe large groups of items from which a selection must be made. The individual items in the group may or may not be represented online.

  1. 1. Determine whether the desired materials can be retrieved online.
    • Select the "About this Item" tab and look for a note about tools for searching the group
    • If there is a note such as "Digitized images of most prints along with associated descriptive information are available through the Prints & Photographs Online Catalog," try searching the name of the collection in Search All
    • Select the "Obtaining Copies" tab for any retrieved items that are of interest.
  2. 2. If the desired material cannot be retrieved online:

Access to Originals

Please use the following steps to determine whether you need to fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room to view the original item(s). In some cases, a surrogate (substitute image) is available, often in the form of a digital image, a copy print, or microfilm.

  1. Is the item digitized? (A thumbnail (small) image will be visible on the left.)

    • Yes, the item is digitized. Please use the digital image in preference to requesting the original. All images can be viewed at a large size when you are in any reading room at the Library of Congress. In some cases, only thumbnail (small) images are available when you are outside the Library of Congress because the item is rights restricted or has not been evaluated for rights restrictions.
      As a preservation measure, we generally do not serve an original item when a digital image is available. If you have a compelling reason to see the original, consult with a reference librarian. (Sometimes, the original is simply too fragile to serve. For example, glass and film photographic negatives are particularly subject to damage. They are also easier to see online where they are presented as positive images.)
    • No, the item is not digitized. Please go to #2.

  2. Do the Access Advisory or Call Number fields above indicate that a non-digital surrogate exists, such as microfilm or copy prints?

    • Yes, another surrogate exists. Reference staff can direct you to this surrogate.
    • No, another surrogate does not exist. Please go to #3.
  3. If you do not see a thumbnail image or a reference to another surrogate, please fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room. In many cases, the originals can be served in a few minutes. Other materials require appointments for later the same day or in the future. Reference staff can advise you in both how to fill out a call slip and when the item can be served.

To contact Reference staff in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room, please use our Ask A Librarian service or call the reading room between 8:30 and 5:00 at 202-707-6394, and Press 3.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Bain, George Grantham, Mathew B Brady, Underwood & Underwood, and Washington Press Photo Service, photographer. Biographical File filing series Library of Congress. , 1500. to Present, Bulk 1800 to 1950. Photograph. https://aj.sunback.homes/item/2001695651/.

APA citation style:

Bain, G. G., Brady, M. B., Underwood & Underwood & Washington Press Photo Service, photographer. (1500) Biographical File filing series Library of Congress. , 1500. to Present, Bulk 1800 to 1950. [Photograph] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://aj.sunback.homes/item/2001695651/.

MLA citation style:

Bain, George Grantham, et al., photographer. Biographical File filing series Library of Congress. to Present, Bulk 1800 to 1950. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <aj.sunback.homes/item/2001695651/>.