Thoughts and Moments

The caption accompanying this image tells us this gent is a farmer - and that he's resting in a car in 1938 Ohio.

Yet his body language suggests more than a mundane moment. What were his thoughts at that instant? If he had been shown this photo a year later, would he have recalled them?

Photo by Ben Shahn. [American Memory link]

Generations

For me, this shot captures the cycle of life beautifully. The child holding her doll (suggesting the children she, herself, will have some day), her mother in the doorway, and her grandmother behind her.

Full disclosure: It's actually uncertain who the others in the photo are. The caption accompanying this image says the girl is the daughter of a struggling Ohio farmer.

Photo by Ben Shahn, 1938. [American Memory link]

Have Your Head Read

A stall at a carnival in Ohio, 1938. "Come in and have your head read. She will tell you what you want to know about love" and marriage.

Originally developed by a physician in the late 1700s, phrenology was taken seriously by medical personnel in the 1800s. It was believed that an individual's personality could be understood by examining the exterior of his or her skull.

Photo by Ben Shahn. [American Memory link]

Leaving Church

In 1938 Ohio, going to church and dressing up went hand-in-hand.

Photo by Ben Shahn. [American Memory link]

Homeless

Ben Shahn, who took this shot in 1935 Natchez, Mississippi described these two as "homeless children." Although North America now has a social safety net, in many parts of the world some youngsters still fare for themselves.

[American Memory link]

From Racial Segregation to the Oval Office (1 of 3)

A streetcar terminal in Oklahoma, 1939. (Russell Lee)

The United States appears poised to elect its first president of African-American descent. To appreciate the magnitude of this event, let's time-travel back to the 1930s and '40s, courtesy of photos from the American Memory collection.

A 1938 restaurant window in Ohio. (Ben Shahn)

This half-mile long concrete wall was erected in Detroit, Michigan in 1941. Photographer John Vachon explains its purpose was "to separate the Negro section from a white housing development going up on the other side."

Feb. 1942 in Detroit. (Arthur S. Siegel)

1941 Chicago. (John Vachon)

--
[Part 2] ... [Part 3] ... [American Memory link]