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This collection consists of two scrapbooks containing aerial views of the New York City area with related newspaper clippings.
The Fairchild group of companies grew out of the aerial photography interests of Sherman M. Fairchild. Fairchild developed the first synchronized camera shutter and flash in 1916 and in 1919 developed a specialized camera for the purpose of aerial photography that featured a between-the-lens shutter. By 1924, Fairchild had established Fairchild Aerial Surveys, Inc. which secured contracts to photo-map various areas, including New York City. The photography produced by Fairchild Aerial Surveys, Inc. was used for a variety of applications including city planning, tax appraisal work, and geological surveys, and the company also introduced many types of equipment pertaining to aerial photography. Fairchild Aerial Surveys, Inc. went out of business in 1965.
NASM.XXXX.0043
Fairchild Aerial Surveys
Circa 1929-1931
No donor information, unknown, unknown, NASM.XXXX.0043
0.51 Cubic feet (1 flat box)
National Air and Space Museum Archives
This collection consists of two scrapbooks containing aerial views of the New York City area with related newspaper clippings. The aerial views, which were taken by Fairchild Aerial Surveys, Inc. and reproduced in an unidentified publication, showcase prominent city locations. The photographs are numerically arranged as if in a feature series, and each photograph has the caption "Around New York in an Airplane," followed by the location and a textual description of that area. The first scrapbook contains entries 1-100 and the second scrapbook has entries 101-154 (some numbers are not included). The second scrapbook also contains additional clippings that show other views of the New York City area.
Collection is in original order.
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New York City Aerial Photographs, NASM.XXXX.0043, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution.
Aerial photography
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Aerial photographs
Clippings
Scrapbooks