The Arthur J. Trory Photograph collection

The Early Years, 1895-1927

Exhibition Catalogue, 1976

Exibition Dates:

October 30, - November 12, 1976
The Student Center Art Lounge
Kent State University
Kent, Ohio

Contents:

Exhibition Catalogue Information

Introduction

Exhibition List

[Biographical] Chronology

Progress Report:
The Prints
The Negatives
Camera Equipment
Flood of 1913
Bridges
Portraits
Kent Opera House

Exhibition Catalogue

Project Director
Ralph L. Harley, Jr.
Assistant Professor of Art History
School of Art, Kent State University

Contributors to Catalogue
Betty Trory McCormick
Rebecca Fosnaugh Budd
Jane E. Farver
Deborah A. Figley
Susan E. Hrivnak
Susan Klein
Mark J. Manenete
Anne Rohrbaugh
Doreen E. Swensen

Sponsored by The Kent American Revolution Bicentennial Commission with cooperation from the Ohio American Revolution Bicentennial Commission. This project was also made possible through the support of The George Gund Foundation of Cleveland, John Davey Foundation of Kent, and Kent State University.

Printed by Kent State University Publications The Arthur J. Trory Photograph Collection: The Early Years, 1895-1927 Exhibition Catalog is a Special Bicentennial Edition limited to 1000 copies. It is available at The Kent State University Library, as well as Special Collections and Archives where the original and reproduced photographs are housed.

^{* Web editor's note: The exhibition's photograph reproductions are separate from the Arthur J. Trory Photograph Collection, and thus do not follow the same numbering scheme. A complete list of the 200 photographs used for this 1976 exhibition can be found in the Exhibition Catalogue.}

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ARTHUR J. TRORY PHOTOGRAPH COLLECTION
The Early Years 1895-1927

Introduction

by RALPH L. HARLEY, JR.
Assistant Professor of Art History
School of Art, Kent State University

He was a man of unlimited enthusiasms and had an insatiable interest in people, nature and life in general. In his eighty-eight years he had acquired and enjoyed a multitude of friendships of fellowman from all walks of life. He expressed surprise that the Good Lord should have allowed him to live so many good years and enjoy every minute of it. A few minutes before his death he looked out the window at early morning sunshine and said, "Isn't this a beautiful morning? It's going to be my kind of a day."

Betty Trory McCormick

During the past decade photographic history has been undergoing reappraisal. This changing perspective has given rise to an interest in regional developments and the discovery of large bodies of work produced by serious amateurs. The materials of Arthur J. Trory are among the more important collections. They represent seventy-eight years of continuous photographic activity by a single amateur. The subject of this exhibition is Trory's early interests as imagemaker and collector. It has been prepared especially for America's Bicentennial.

Arthur J. Trory's life coincided with the second phase of amateur photography: the snapshot. He was born at Lyons, Ohio, in 1879, the same year that George Eastman made the dry plate process practical. The Eastman Dry Plates, followed by the hand-held camera, triggered the revolution in amateur photography that was well underway by the time Trory received his first camera at age ten.

Entries in his diaries and a journal of newsclippings indicated that Trory actively photographed in Kent and its environs as early as 1896. Newspapers in Northeastern Ohio were publishing his prints. Indeed, before he was twenty, Trory had collected some 1300 photographic prints and was recognized as one of Ohio's finest amateur photographers. Through the next sixty-eight years this interest in photography was sustained. After retirement in 1949, he continued to take photographs, attempted to organize his collection, and in some instances reprinted older negatives, forming what has become known as The Arthur J. Trory Photograph Collection. On Thanksgiving Day, 1967, Trory made his last photographs at age eighty-eight, two days before his death, bringing to a close an extraordinary life-long avocational. involvement with photography.

Some believe that Arthur J. Trory was nothing more than an amateur. By definition this means only that one is a lover of the art. However, one might recall the observation of Helmut Gernsheim, the English photographer and historian: "Indeed the progress of photography in its picturemaking aspect has at every period been largely due to the work of serious amateurs." ¹ The issue of Trory's photographic contribution then would seem to rest on our perception of the word "serious" as distinct from what has commonly been called the "pushbutton photographer."

Alfred Stieglitz in 1897 pointed out the dangers introduced by Eastman's readily available commercial materials which opened the way for "photographing by the yard."² Bernard Shaw observed, "The photographer is like the cod, which produces a million eggs in order that one may reach maturity."³ These opinions do not describe accurately the photography of Arthur J. Trory.

Trory was a spontaneous recorder of life about him. At times he was an avowed photojournalist; at others, a genre realist; and, still others, a creator of mood. But, while he was prolific, he was not mindless. There existed in his early work a freshness and vitality balanced with a conscious sense of composition. Whatever the intangible matrix of creativity may be, he possessed a capacity to infuse his work with a personal artistry. The ability to "imbue ordinary subjects with artistic quality bearing a personal stamp" was by Gernsheim's definition the mark of a serious amateur.⁴ It was precisely this "personal stamp;quot; that established Trory's credibility as an imagemaker worthy of posterity's consideration.

The research that has produced this exhibition and catalogue began during Spring Quarter 1976, six weeks after the American History Research Center at Kent State University announced receipt of the Collection. Nine members of a graduate seminar on American Art History. 1893-1945, and a tenth student from the undergraduate section, elected the Collection as their term project. The uncatalogued material presented a rare opportunity for students to gain valuable first-hand experience with primary research materials housed on the campus, working within the confines of the course structure with additional guidance from archival staff. So vast was the material to be examined that research extended through the summer and is yet in progress.

From the project's inception, it was determined that the student should have the principal role in reporting the findings. Given the scope of material and the continual arrival of new information from the donor, however, it became evident that only a portion could be considered for exhibition. With these circumstances, the decision was made to present the early years, spanning the mid-1890's when Trory came to Kent, until 1927 when he and the family moved to Hudson, Ohio.

The progress report begins with Ms. Jane E. Farver's overview of the prints. It is followed by Ms. Doreen E. Swensen's discussion of the condition and types of surviving negatives and Ms. Deborah A. Figley's observations on the camera equipment. Ms. Farver and Ms. Swensen are graduate students in art history and studio art, respectively; Ms. Figley is an undergraduate art history major. Their reports are followed by Mrs. Rebecca Fosnaugh Budd's research into Trory's coverage of the 1913 flood, Mr. Mark J. Manente's dating of prints showing Kent bridges, Ms. Figley's interpretation of Trory's portraits, and conclude with the findings by Mrs. Anne Rohrbaugh and Susan E. Hrivnal on the Kent Opera House. Mrs. Budd and Mrs. Rohrbough graduate students in art history; Mr. Manenete and Mrs. Hrivnak are graduate students in art education. The closing statement is by Mrs. Susan Klein, graduate student in studio art.

The chronology of Arthur J. Trory's life has been prepared by Betty Trory McCormick, his daughter, and, Patricia McCormick Grant, granddaughter. The enthusiastic efforts of Mrs. McCormick to recall memories of her father and search for additional materials have made it possible to verify and expand the research.

Footnotes

¹Helmut, Gernsheim, Creative Photography: Aesthetic Trends 1839 to Modern Times (Bonanza Books, NY, 1962), p. 118.
²"Alfred Steiglitz: the Hand Camera," The Art and Science of Photography, ed. Beaumont Newhall (Century House, NY, 1956), p. 134.
³Gernsheim. p. 116.
⁴Ibid., p. 119.

HOME | TOP OF PAGE | INTRODUCTION

1. The Opera House
2. The Post Office
3. Post Office Interior
4. RCC Gymnasium
5. RCC "Smoke"
6. RCC Card Party
7. RCC "Smoke" and Oyster supper
8. F.W. Trory Drugstore, exterior
9. F. W. Trory, exterior
10. Fred Trory in his Drugstore
11. Early Days Back of the Counter, 1800's
12. Boys at the Soda Fountain
13. The New Soda Fountain
14. Sodas
15. Mr. Watts and Mr. Mick
16. Dealing Out Ice Cream
17. Jo-Bo Hindu Hypnotist and Art Trory
18. Malt Hops
19. Fred and Charlie: Fisherman's Luck
20. The Advertising Clown
21. Ayers Cherry Pectoral
22. A Happy New Year 1898
23. Family Portrait, Wauseon
24. Portrait of Arthur J. Trory
25. Portrait of Arthur J. Trory
26. Stow Foot Bridge
27. Old Sill - Summit Street
28. The Dam in 1896
29. Main Street Bridge
30. Two River Views between Stow and Main Street Bridges [2 copies]
31. Brady Leap Bridge 1897
32. Patton Swinging Bridge
33. Mayor Patton and Mr. Fowler
34. Man in Carriage
35. Woman in Carriage
36. Cunningham's Trotter
37. Carriage and Drugstore Scene
38. West Main Street - Methodist Church Before Street Car Time 1897
39. High Wire Act
40. High Wire: Lunch Hour
41. Lunch Hour
42. Kearney and Foot File Works
43. The Smokestack
44. Raising the Smokestack
45. Smokestack Installed
46. Factory Workers
47. Kearney and Foot Rivet Works, Old Glass Factory 1898
48. At the Ball Park
49. Kent Ball Team 1897
50. Fourteen Join Cleveland Grays Battalion
51. Santiago's Surrender, Fireball, Kent, Ohio
52. Community Celebration
53. Celebration at Erie Railroad Station
54. Politics Erie Yard 1898
55. July 4 Erie Shops Flagraising
56. Wells fargo - Erie Depot 1899
57. Station Master
58. Erie Railroad Coal Shoots, Kent, Ohio
59. Train Wreck on C.C.&S. Tressel
60. Train Wreck
61. Steam Shovel, Brice Railroad, Kent, Ohio
62. Inspecting Construction
63. Stow Street Foot Bridge and new Bridge Abutment
64. Stow Street Bridge Abutment
65. Scaffolding for Stow Street Bridge
66. Workman at Bridge Construction Site
67. Portrait of Photographer
68. Completed Stow Street Bridge
69. Paving Main Street, Wauseon
70. Main street, Hudson
71. Mr. and Mrs. Andenson
72. Portrait of Arthur J. Trory
73. The Swells
74. College Rooms, Ada, Ohio, 1900
75. College Rooms, Ada, Ohio, 1900
76. Ada, Ohio, January 2 - March 9, 1900
77. College Rooms, Heller House
78. Pastime While in College, January 20, 1900
79. Miss Heller
80. A Pleasant Corner, 1899
81. Pharmacy Lab, December 1899, O.N.U. Ada, Ohio
82. The Bakery Wagon
83. Bakery Interior
84. Mr. Ralph
85. Fresh Bread
86. Bakery Business 1900
87. Downtown Kent Showing National Bank Cornerstone
88. View of Crain Avenue Bridge
89. View of Ne Stow Street Bridge
90. West Bank North of Main Street Bridge
91. Brady Leap Swinging Bridge, about 1900
92. Abandoned Factories, West Bank
93. Winter Photo Showing Bridge, old B&O Depot, with shute for trunks, also flagstaff, about 1900
94. Two Views of North Water and Main
95. The Watering Trough and North Water Street
96. Load of Hay Overturns, 1897
97. City Livery and West Main Street
98. West Main Street and Streetcar Tracks
99. View of Dam
100. 1895 Box B&O Depot Car
101. Skatin on River
102. Old Rockwell Building
103. Case Block, East Main. 1895
104. Main Street East
105. Baby Clarence Jordan
106. On the Stump at Sandy Lake
107. Woods and Lake
108. Fortune Telling
109. Gentleman and Ladies
110. Two Young Ladies
111. Art Trory and Friends at Stewart Glen
112. Boaters on Lake
113. Herma
114. Three by the River
115. Music at Herma's
116. Walking the Plank
117. Walking the Plank
118. The Watchman
119. Kent Fire Department
120. Dr. Krappe's Office
121. Smallpox
122. Medina Rooms
123. Portrait of A.J. Trory
124. Self-Portrait
125. Mabel - Kelso and Amy Geisinger
126. Cal Salen's Party, July 4, 1904
127. Mother and Father Trory and Mabel
128. Our Apartment at Buchtel Hotel, Akron, 1905
129. Fos-Fo - Rat Display
130. Cutting Ice at Brady Lake, Kent, Ohio, A.J.T.
131. Costume Party
132. Young girl in Costume
133. Chamber of Commerce Going to Cleveland Ball Game
134. An Interior
135. Howell Keith Stock Company at the Opera House
136. Low Water When Dam Broke after 1913 Flood
137. Repair of Small Lock for Mill
138. On to Mexico, five images
139. Autowreck at Railroad Crossing
140. Victor Dog, Brady Lake
141. Chessindia
142. Balloon and Firetower
143. Dirigible
144. Normal Hill
145. Entrance from East Main Street
146. View of Forest donated by Mr. W.S. Kent
147. Big Spring
148. View of Kent from Clapp Farm
149. Laying the Cornerstone of Kent Normal School
150. Normal School
151. Coed
152. Coeds
153. The Bookstore
154. Bookstore, interior
155. A.J. Trory in his Bookstore, Kent, Ohio
156. Coeds Outside the Bookstore
157. Dam in Winter
158. High Water Flood, Cuyahoga River
159. Flood Taken from Crain Avenue Bridge Area
160. View of Flood from Crain Avenue Bridge
161. Erie Train Delayed by Flood
162. Broken Lock
163. Two Men Watching Waters Rise to the South
164. Cuyahoga River Flood, 1913: American Legion Building
165. Water Rising to Floor of Stow Street Bridge
166. Twelfth Company, Third Battalion
167. Young Soldier
168. Trenches, Camp Sherman
169. Bayonett Practice
170. Armistace Parade
171. Armistace Parade
172. Armistace Parade
173. Armistace Parade
174. Mabel and Infant Elizabeth
175. Dr. Krappe's Nurse Lizzie and Elizabeth Jeanne Trory
176. Elizabeth Jeanne and Victor Dog
177. Elizabeth Jeanne and Victor Dog
178. Elizabeth Jeanne and Victor Dog
179. Elizabeth Jeanne and Victor Dog
180. New Coat and Muff
181. New Coat and Muff
182. New Coat and Muff
183. New Coat and Muff
184. Little Drummer Girl
185. Brown-eyed Susans
186. Mason Tire and Rubber Company
187. Grocery and Meat Market
188. Armistace Day Parade
189. Burning of the Spellman Ice House, Brady Lake, Jine 6, 1924
190. Magic Gas
191. Reflections
192. Sunset
193. Railroad Tracks
194. West Main, winter
195. Street Car Tracks, West Main, Winter 1921
196. Moonlight
197. Total Eclipse of Sun

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