Charlotte Buyer photograph collection

Collection – Multiple Containers

Identifier: MS-0392

Staff Only

Collection Overview

Abstract

The Charlotte Buyer Collection consists of sixty-two glass plate negatives, twenty-seven safety film negatives and thirteen original prints. Every negative is accompanied by a contact print made by the Center for Archival Collections for research use.

All of the negatives and prints depict scenes and events which occurred in and around Bellevue, Ohio between the 1870s and the 1960s.

Dates

Creation: circa 1870s-1960s

Extent

0.92 Cubic Feet (2 legal boxes)

Creator

Buyer, Charlotte (Former owner, Person)
Buyer, Ben (Former owner, Person)

Scope and Contents

The Charlotte Buyer Collection consists of sixty-two glass plate negatives, twenty-seven safety film negatives, and thirteen original prints. Every negative is accompanied by a contact print made by the Center for Archival Collections for research use.

The photographs depict street scenes, steam locomotives and cabooses, portraits, festivals, including the Columbus Day Parade of 1892, ex-President Hayes' visit in the 1890s and numerous street fairs. Also depicted are downtown Bellevue buildings and aerial views of the city. All of these photographs were taken of scenes and events in and around the city and date from the 1870s to the 1960s.

One of the major strengths of this collection is the number of well-preserved and clear photographs of the downtown area of Bellevue, Ohio. Several photographs of the same buildings exist which were taken at different times throughout the development of the city. One can easily identify many of the buildings from the earliest scenes through to the present. Many of these structures still exist in the city and can be seen there today (1985).

Some rather unique photographs are included in the collection. Number seventy-nine is a photograph of Theodore Roosevelt giving a campaign speech in May 1912. Photograph number seventy is of "The Largest Buffalo (hide) in the World," and dates back to 1915.

This collection is in excellent condition. The negatives, prints, contact prints, and any existing copy negatives are stored in separate envelopes within their own folder. The location and identification numbers are marked in the left-hand corner of the folder, on the negative envelope, and on the back of the print. Each item of the same subject will bear the same number of its storage folder. Hence, file folder number one contains glass plate negative number one, contact print number one and copy negative number one. These numbers are used consecutively throughout the entire collection and are not re-numbered by storage box.

The photographs are arranged according to subject, and not chronologically, except for a group of stereo-view glass plate negatives which were grouped by format instead of subject, because of their uniqueness.

Biographical / Historical

Mr. William Oddo, the donor of this collection, owns and operates a barbershop in downtown Bellevue, Ohio. He is an avid local historian and has written several articles on the history of Bellevue which have been published in the Bellevue Gazette newspaper.

Mr. Oddo acquired this collection from Mrs. Charlotte Buyer, also of Bellevue, Ohio. These negatives and photographs were given to Mr. Oddo to accompany his history articles in the local newspaper. These articles and photographs have been collected and published in a book entitled, Stories of Old Bellevue which was published by the Bellevue Gazette Community Printing Company, February 1, 1985. Mrs. Buyer requested that upon completion of this book, the photograph collection be donated to the Center for Archival Collections in Bowling Green, Ohio for its permanent preservation and for use by the public.

This collection was passed on to Mrs. Buyer by her late husband, Mr. Ben Buyer, who died in 1984. Mr. Buyer had owned and operated a photographic studio in Bellevue for many years. The studio was the continuation of a business which was originally established in 1867. Several photographers owned the studio throughout the years. They were: S. Gaugler, A. D. Hale, I. G. Ferrier, a Mr. Jewell, and finally, Mr. Ben Buyer.

It is known that Mr. Buyer did not produce any of the original negatives. The photographer of specific photographs is unknown, but it could be assumed that one or all of the former owners were responsible for their creation.

Mr. Buyer discovered these negatives when he purchased the studio several years ago. He produced copies of some of them, which will be evident in the collection.

Conditions Governing Access

No known access restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Researchers using this collection assume full responsibility for conforming to the laws of libel, privacy, and copyright, and are responsible for securing permissions necessary for publication or reproduction.

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

This collection was donated to the Center for Archival Collections on December 3, 1984, by Mr. William Oddo of Bellevue, Ohio, who obtained it from its former owner, Mrs. Charlotte Buyer.