Robert H. McNeill family collection

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Robert H. McNeill family collection

About This Item
Obtaining Copies
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Title: Robert H. McNeill family collection
Creator(s): McNeill, Robert H., photographer McNeill, Robert H., collector
Related Names:
   McNeill, William C. (William Clarence), 1878-1964 , collector
   Richards, William Henry, 1856-1941 , collector
   McNeill, Mary A. (Mary Alice), 1883-1959 , collector
   McNeill, Robert H., 1917-2005. Robert H. McNeill family papers
Date Created/Published: [between ca. 1840 and 2000, bulk 1930-1980]
Medium: whole collection ca. 39,500 items.
ca. 2,850 photographs : color transparencies ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 17,600 photographs : black and white negatives ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 65 photographs : black and white glass negatives ; sheets 13 x 18 cm or smaller.
ca. 4,800 photographs : black and white nitrate negatives ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 11,800 photographs : color and black and white prints ; sheets chiefly 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 2,375 documents : chiefly correspondence, newspaper clippings, notes, pamphlets, and postcards.
Summary: This collection of photographic prints, negatives, slides, photo albums, and cameras documents over 150 years of African American leadership and life in Washington D.C. Consisting primarily of photographs by Robert H. McNeill, an African American photographer, the images range from his time as a student at Howard University, local portraiture and photojournalism from operating his freelance news service, work from the Federal Writer's Project titled "The Negro in Virginia," his World War II military service in Alabama and Guadalcanal, and work as a U.S. military staff photographer and portrait photographer for the State Department. The collection also contains photographs and cabinet cards from William Henry Richards, a family friend of McNeill's father, and additional family photographs and albums from McNeill's parents, Mary Alice (Wheeler) and William C. McNeill.
Reproduction Number: ---
Rights Advisory: Publication may be restricted. For general information see: "Robert H. McNeill Family Collection,"(https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/res.732.mcne)
Access Advisory: Some materials stored offsite. Please contact us at least 5 working days in advance of your visit in order to view the offsite material, https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.contact Negatives are not served to the public. For reference access, an original contact sheet or printed reference copy of each safety and glass negative is available in the collection. Due to safety regulations, nitrate negatives cannot be served to the public and may not have a corresponding contact sheet or reference copy.
Call Number: Guide Record [P&P]
Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
Notes:
- Arrangement: The Robert H. McNeill family collection consists of three related collections: the William Henry Richards collection; the Mary Alice Wheeler and William C. McNeill family collection; and the McNeill family collection. Each collection contains items organized into LOTs based on themes or media types.
- Arrangement: The William Henry Richards collection is arranged in one LOT: LOT 15574 (Photographs and ephemera from William Henry Richards (Robert H. McNeill family collection)).
- Arrangement: The Mary Alice (Wheeler) and William C. Neill family collection is arranged into three LOTs: LOT 15575 (Mary Alice (Wheeler) and William C. McNeill family albums and scrapbooks (Robert H. McNeill family collection)), LOT 15576 (Mary Alice (Wheeler) and William C. McNeill family photographs (Robert H. McNeill family collection)), LOT 15577 (Mary Alice (Wheeler) and William C. McNeill album (Robert H. McNeill family collection)).
- Arrangement: The McNeill family collection is arranged into twelve LOTs representing the career of Robert H. McNeill: LOT 15578 (Robert H. McNeill albums, scrapbooks and portfolios), LOT 15579 (Robert H. McNeill and family photographs), LOT 15580 (Military photographs by Robert McNeill), LOT 15581 (Photographs of Washington, D.C. by Robert H. McNeill), LOT 15582 (Photographs from The Negro in Virginia and the Guide to the Old Dominion by Robert H. McNeill), LOT 15583 (Photographs and related materials from the United Negro College Fund by Robert H. McNeill), LOT 15584 (State Department personnel photographs by Robert H. McNeill), LOT 15585 (Color photographs by Robert H. McNeill), LOT 15586 (Cameras, tools and supplies owned by Robert H. McNeill), LOT 15587 (Events and Exhibits featuring Robert H. McNeill), LOT 15588 (Postcards collected by and written to Laura Wheeler), LOT 15589 (Postcards collected by and written to Bertha McNeill).
- Arrangement: Negatives and transparencies arrangement: Negatives and color transparencies are arranged into five filing series by size and type: LC-MC02 (includes all color sizes such as 35mm, 120mm color transparencies), LC-MC12 (includes 5x7 and smaller b&w negatives), LC-MC14 (includes 8x10 and larger b&w negatives), LC-MC22 (includes all nitrate film sizes), and LC-MC33 (includes all b&w glass sizes). Within each series negatives are arranged by subject and title. All series have Library-assigned sequential numbers.
- Title devised by Library staff.
- William Henry Richards papers holds 109 visual materials with papers transferred to LC Manuscript Division.
- Six tintypes processed from William Henry Richards papers as AMB/TIN no. 1613-1618; one tintype from the Robert H. McNeill Family papers as AMB/TIN no. 1619.
- Two daguerreotypes (from Robert H. McNeill photographs) processed as DAG no. 1460, and DAG no. 1461.
- One image showing Niagara Movement founders (from William Henry Richards photographs) processed as PH-Unattributed, no. 52.
- Digitized images of some items, along with corresponding identifying information, are available through the Prints & Photographs Online Catalog, at: https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.cph
- Purchase/Gift; Robert H. McNeill Estate; 2012; (DLC/PP-2013:179).
- Transfer ; LC Manuscript Division; 2015, 2022; (DLC/PP-2013:179).
- Finding aid is available online https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/eadpnp.pp023005
- yAR; yMO
Subjects:
Format:
Collections:
- Guide Records
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https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2015645416/

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The Library of Congress generally does not own rights to material in its collections and, therefore, cannot grant or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute the material. For further rights information, see "Rights Information" below and the Rights and Restrictions Information page ( https://www.loc.gov/rr/print/res/rights.html ).

Rights Advisory: Publication may be restricted. For general information see: "Robert H. McNeill Family Collection," https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/res.732.mcne
Reproduction Number: ---
Call Number: Guide Record [P&P]
Medium: whole collection ca. 39,500 items.
ca. 2,850 photographs : color transparencies ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 17,600 photographs : black and white negatives ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 65 photographs : black and white glass negatives ; sheets 13 x 18 cm or smaller.
ca. 4,800 photographs : black and white nitrate negatives ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 11,800 photographs : color and black and white prints ; sheets chiefly 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 2,375 documents : chiefly correspondence, newspaper clippings, notes, pamphlets, and postcards.

Generally, Guide Records describe large groups of items from which a selection must be made. The individual items in the group may or may not be represented online.

1. Determine whether the desired materials can be retrieved online.

Select the "About this Item" tab and look for a note about tools for searching the group
If there is a note such as "Digitized images of most prints along with associated descriptive information are available through the Prints & Photographs Online Catalog," try searching the name of the collection in Search All
Select the "Obtaining Copies" tab for any retrieved items that are of interest.

2. If the desired material cannot be retrieved online:

A visit to the Prints & Photographs Reading Room may be necessary. You may wish to discuss access to the group of images with reference staff. General information about service in the reading room is available at: http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/info/001_ref.html and contact information is available at: http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/address.html

Call Number: Guide Record [P&P]
Medium: whole collection ca. 39,500 items.
ca. 2,850 photographs : color transparencies ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 17,600 photographs : black and white negatives ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 65 photographs : black and white glass negatives ; sheets 13 x 18 cm or smaller.
ca. 4,800 photographs : black and white nitrate negatives ; sheets 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 11,800 photographs : color and black and white prints ; sheets chiefly 20 x 25 cm or smaller.
ca. 2,375 documents : chiefly correspondence, newspaper clippings, notes, pamphlets, and postcards.
Access Advisory: Some materials stored offsite. Please contact us at least 5 working days in advance of your visit in order to view the offsite material, https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.contact Negatives are not served to the public. For reference access, an original contact sheet or printed reference copy of each safety and glass negative is available in the collection. Due to safety regulations, nitrate negatives cannot be served to the public and may not have a corresponding contact sheet or reference copy.

Please use the following steps to determine whether you need to fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room to view the original item(s). In some cases, a surrogate (substitute image) is available, often in the form of a digital image, a copy print, or microfilm.

Is the item digitized? (A thumbnail (small) image will be visible on the left.)
- Yes, the item is digitized. Please use the digital image in preference to requesting the original. All images can be viewed at a large size when you are in any reading room at the Library of Congress. In some cases, only thumbnail (small) images are available when you are outside the Library of Congress because the item is rights restricted or has not been evaluated for rights restrictions.
  
  As a preservation measure, we generally do not serve an original item when a digital image is available. If you have a compelling reason to see the original, consult with a reference librarian. (Sometimes, the original is simply too fragile to serve. For example, glass and film photographic negatives are particularly subject to damage. They are also easier to see online where they are presented as positive images.)
- No, the item is not digitized. Please go to #2.
Do the Access Advisory or Call Number fields above indicate that a non-digital surrogate exists, such as microfilm or copy prints?
- Yes, another surrogate exists. Reference staff can direct you to this surrogate.
- No, another surrogate does not exist. Please go to #3.
If you do not see a thumbnail image or a reference to another surrogate, please fill out a call slip in the Prints and Photographs Reading Room. In many cases, the originals can be served in a few minutes. Other materials require appointments for later the same day or in the future. Reference staff can advise you in both how to fill out a call slip and when the item can be served.

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