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The Mary
D. Parsons
Photograph
Collection
In 1978, the Shiloh
Museum's photographs collection consisted of a single box of assorted
pictures. Today it is a massive collection of over 500,000 images
documenting life in Northwest Arkansas. It is the largest public image
archive in Arkansas.
Longtime museum
assistant director Mary
Dudley Parsons was responsible for developing the collection, and
in 1993 the museum
board of trustees honored her for her accomplishments by naming
the collection
after her. The collection represents the six counties of Northwest
Arkansas—Benton, Boone, Carroll, Madison, Newton, and Washington—with
images dating from the area's early years up to the present day.
HOW THE MUSEUM ACQUIRES PHOTOS
We have limited funds for purchasing objects.
The majority of its photo collection has either been either generously
donated outright
or loaned to the museum for copying. With a loan, museum staff make
and retain a negative and file print for each of the lender’s
photos before returning the originals.
Although loans are very much appreciated, donations of photos and
negatives are preferred because they allow the museum to preserve
and share the
original image in a safe and accessible way. A copy of a loaned photo
will never be as clear and informative as the original image.
Persons who loan photos to the museum are asked to sign a “Photo
Loan Receipt & Reproduction Permission” form which outlines Gift Information for Photo
Lenders. Signing this form allows us to make the images available to current and future researchers.
SCOPE OF THE PHOTO COLLECTION
Along with hundreds
of photos of specific people and places, the collection includes
subjects such as:
| Agriculture |
Health |
Public Buildings |
| Barns and Outbuildings |
Medicine |
Residences |
| Businesses |
Military |
Rodeo of the Ozarks |
| Celebrations and Parades |
Mills |
Schools |
| Churches |
Natural Resources |
Sports |
| Communication |
Organizations |
Towns |
| Construction |
Parks |
Transportation |
| Disaster |
Poultry Industry |
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There are several
large photograph collections of note, including
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The
Morning News of Northwest Arkansas (formerly The Springdale
News) Collection. Events and people collected
by the daily newspaper as it covered local news, ca.1950-1996
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Northwest
Arkansas Times Collection. Events and people
collected by a daily newspaper as it covered local and regional
news, ca.
1950-1996
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Washington
County Historical Society's Dollie Sitton Bentley Collection. Images,
mostly of Washington County, circa 1870-1970
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Jay
Dee Studio Collection. Madison County people
and events, 1976-1989
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Madison
County Genealogical and Historical Society Collection. People,
places, and events in Madison County, circa 1870-1970
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Howard
Clark Collection. Springdale people, events,
and businesses, 1944-1964
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Ray
M. Watson Collection. Springdale
(and surrounding areas) people, events, and businesses, 1957-1980
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Ada
Lee Shook Collection. Fayetteville people, construction
projects, events, family and neighborhood life, circa 1920-1955
- Otto
Bennett Collection. Madison County life, circa 1930-1970
A few of the Museum’s many images can be found
on this website via Photo
of the Month, Photo of
the Month Archive, and Past
Exhibits. These pages will be enhanced and expanded over time, so please check
back! In addition, over 200 of our photos can be found
at the Encyclopedia
of Arkansas History and Culture.
CONTACT US
To learn more about the our collecting areas or how
to go about donating or lending historic images,
please contact photo archivist and research
librarian Marie Demeroukas; 479-750-8165.
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