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The SOHS Sawyer Collection

The images presented here are part of a donation we are calling the Sawyer Collection. The images have come from multiple photography studios, some of them unidentified. Most were taken by the Kiser Studio of Portland, Oregon in the 'Teens and early 'Twenties, especially of rugged scenes in Crater Lake and Glacier National Parks and along the Columbia River. A small collection was taken 1905-07 by photographer H. G. Peabody of Massachusetts and Maine urban and coastal scenes. An anonymous collection portrays architectural and rural views taken in Central Mexico in the same era.

The collection was saved and cared for by William Gruber, who had a long working relationship with the Portland photography studio Sawyer Service Inc. Gruber was the inventor of the popular View-Master, which he produced in collaboration with Sawyer’s. According to the donor, in 1939 Sawyer’s was poised to dispose of these glass plate negatives in order to focus on the View-Master, when Gruber offered to take the plates. Over the past eight decades, the Gruber family has meticulously maintained the collection of approximately 3,000 plates, weighing roughly half a ton. Southern Oregon Historical Society received the plates as a donation in 2019, and has made them publicly available with additional grant funding from Oregon Parks and Recreation and the Oregon Cultural Trust.

 SAWYER COLLECTION INDEX        WILLIAM GRUBER       WHEN THE COLLECTION ARRIVED AT SOHS     

Displaying 1 - 50 of 2802
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Search by Sawyer Number (use only the number)
Title
SWY0001 probably crater lake highway

Probably Crater lake Highway between Eagle Point and the west boundary of Crater Lake National Park.
SWY0002

Wide vista circa 1915, Mt McLoughlin in background, with trees in foreground (same vista as SWY0003).
SWY0003

Wide vista circa 1915, Mt McLoughlin, Jackson County, Oregon
SWY0004

Prospect Hotel circa 1915, Jackson County, Oregon</span>
SWY0005

Wide vista, farmlands, looking back toward Medford and the Rogue Valley on the road to Crater Lake (west boundary).&nbsp;
SWY0006

Rogue River circa 1915
SWY0007

Rogue River near Prospect circa 1915
SWY0008

Mill Creek Falls circa 1915, Jackson County, Oregon
SWY10

Mill Creek Falls circa 1915, Jackson County, Oregon
SWY11

Mill Creek Falls circa 1915, Jackson County, Oregon
SWY0012

Natural Bridge on Rogue River circa 1915, rock rubble, forest
SWY13

Crater Lake Highway circa 1915, model T, thick trees, driver. Shows approximate width of the Fort Klamath - Rogue River Wagon Road, likely from the south and east side.
SWY14

Crater Lake Highway (Fort Klamath-Rogue River Wagon Road), circa 1915, big trees
SWY15

Wide view Rogue River circa 1915 and thick forest
SWY16

Wide view Rogue River circa 1915 and thick forest
SWY17

Crater Lake Highway circa 1915, wooden Notice sign. West Entrance of Crater Lake National Park, on the Fort Klamath-Rogue River Wagon Road, prior to relocation by the Army Corps of Engineers.
SWY0018

Crater Lake National Park Supervisor\'s office circa 1915, old cars, Park Headquarters (at Annie Spring).
SWY0019

Mtn road to cabins, thick. Looking south toward Crater Lake National Park Headquarters at Annie Spring, ca 1915. Graded width indicates work by the Army Corps of Engineers (16 feet shoulder to shoulder).
SWY0020

Thick forest, covered wagon, wide. Looking east with view of road segment near Crater Lake National Park Headquarters at Annie Spring.
SWY21

Mtn road to cabins, thick. Road segment width indicates construction by Army Corps of Engineers in the Annie Spring
SWY0022

Mtn road to cabins, above Annie Spring with Camp Arant; Arant Point in distance, Crater Lake National Park
SWY0023

Cabins, tents, old cars, portion of Camp Arant at Annie Spring, Crater Lake National Park Headquarters at that time.
SWY0024

Small Lake, waterfall
SWY0025

Wide vista, trees and ridges. Looking west from the Rim Road, Crater Lake National Park.
SWY0026

Mountain climbers sitting in field (foreground) just off the Crater Lake Rim Road, with Mount Scott in the background.
SWY0027

Mtn road through big trees; view looking south toward Annie Spring and Crater Lake National Park Headquarters.
SWY0028

Probably road to Crater Lake, circa 1915. Location is on the Fort Klamath Road, south of the Engineer\'s Camp (now Park Headquarters), showing portion of Castle Crest leading to Garfield Peak.
SWY0029

Probably road to Crater Lake, circa 1915. Likely location is south of the Engineer\'s Camp on the Fort Klamath Road, surrounded by mountain hemlock and Shasta red fir.
SWY0030

Scenery near Crater Lake, circa 1915. Looking west toward Union Peak from segment of the Rim Road just south of Rim Village.
SWY0031

Scenery near Crater Lake, circa 1915. Portion of the same view as SWY0030, view to southwest of Rim Village on a segment of the Rim Road.
SWY0032

Dewie/Duwee/Dewey Falls, Crater Lake National Park circa 1915
SWY0033

Dewie/Duwee/Dewey Falls, Crater Lake National Park circa 1915
SWY0034

Munson Creek circa 1915, Godfrey Glen (Garden of the Gods) Spires, Crater Lake National Park, looking north.
SWY0035

Munson Creek circa 1915, Godfrey Glen (Garden of the Gods) spires (pinnacles), Crater Lake National Park
SWY0036

Munson Creek circa 1915, Godfrey Glen (Garden of the Gods) spires (pinnacles) looking north, Crater Lake National Park
SWY0037

Munson Creek above Dewie Falls, Godfrey Glen (Garden of the Gods) spires, looking north, Crater Lake National Park
SWY0038

Crater Lake circa 1915, Wizard Island, wide angle. Location is east of Crater Lake Lodge above the Lake Trail, Rim Village.
SWY0039

Crater Lake circa 1915, Wizard Island from east of Crater Lake Lodge, large tree near top of the Lake Trail, looking northwest.
SWY40

Crater Lake circa 1915, Wizard Island from Rim Village. Location is near top of Lake Trail, east of Crater Lake Lodge
SWY0041

Crater Lake circa 1915 through trees, island reflection. Location is on the Rim Road, not far from Discovery Point.
SWY42

Crater Lake circa 1915. Location is the Sentinel Rock Trail from the Rim Road with Cloudcap to the right, Mt. Thielsen in the distance.
SWY0043

Crater Lake vista circa 1915, closeup tree, Lake and cliffs. Location has to be above most of the Lake Trail from Rim Village, looking north/northeast.
SWY0044

Crater Lake vista circa 1915, closeup tree, lake and cliffs. From the Lake Trail below Rim Village. Portion of Llao Rock in the distance.
SWY0045

Crater Lake circa 1915, tree, rock. Looking northwest with Watchman and Hillman in the distance. Taken from a segment of the Lake Trail below Rim Village.
SWY0046

Gnarled tree at Crater Lake circa 1915, from Garfield Peak with Roundtop and Grotto Cove in the distance.
SWY0047

Gnarled tree at Crater Lake circa 1915. View from Garfield Peak with Grotto Cove and Roundtop in the distance.
SWY0048

Man fishing in Crater Lake circa 1915. View taken from a location near the Phantom Ship, looking northwest past Wizard Island.
SWY0049

Crater Lake circa 1915, man in boat. Photo taken near Phantom Ship. looking northwest. Watchman and Hillman Peak in the distance.
SWY0051

Crater Lake circa 1915, Wizard Island. Photo taken from the Eagle Crags area east of Crater Lake Lodge at Rim Village.
SWY0052

Crater Lake circa 1915--Sentinel Rock Shoreline, reflection. View from southeast part of Crater Lake near Phantom Ship, with top of Cloudcap on right side.