The Charles Baptie photograph collection

Access and use

Location of collection:: George Mason University

2400 Fenwick Library

Special Collections Research Center

Fenwick Library MS2FL

George Mason University

Fairfax, VA 22030

Contact for questions and access:: POC: Mieko Palazzo

Email: speccoll@gmu.edu

Phone: (703) 993-2220

Fax: (703) 993-2669

Web: scrc.gmu.edu

Summary

Extent:: 26 linear feet (24 document boxes, 35 3-ring photo boxes, and 12 oversize boxes)
Creator:: Charles Baptie, 1914-2000
Abstract:: Mid-20th century photographs of Washington, D.C., area landmarks, including Gunston Hall, the White House, and embassies; local businesses, including Texaco stations and Hot Shoppes; and more common subjects, like artwork, animals, nature, or people. These images are in several formats: negatives, slides, prints, and publications.
Language:: English

Background

Scope and content:

The Charles Baptie Photograph Collection contains color prints and negatives of Gunston Hall, the home of George Mason; color transparencies from the Encyclopedia of United States History; color transparencies and prints from the Great Houses of Washington, D.C.; black & white negatives of the Washington metropolitan area; and photographs of George Mason College. There are, in addition, aerial photographs, photographs of malaria prevention overseas, and publicity photographs for various publications. Also included in this collection are photographs pertaining to the childrens' book, Herkie the Pup, written by Charles Baptie. The total volume of the collection is 26 linear feet, consisting of 24 document boxes, 35 3-ring photo boxes, and 12 oversize boxes.

Series 1 is a group of images of buildings, both interior and exterior, including facades of famous houses and embassies around DC as well as images of the interior decorations; also included are images of churches, DC monuments, hotels, restaurants, schools, laboratories, service stations, theaters, hospitals, and personal homes.

Series 2 consists of images of the Belgian, Brazilian, French, Irish, Mexican, Peruvian, Spanish, and Turkish embassies; most of these items are also found in series 1.

Series 3 contains images of artwork, including of paintings, sculptures, dolls, trophies, and architecture; also images of artwork used for publications such as a baseball book, an Encyclopedia of American History, a History of the Civil War, and a Northern Virginia guidebook.

Series 4 is for Publications for which Baptie either provided photos or printed at his studio including brochures and pamphlets, guide books, logos, small print books, magazines, and poetry collections.

Series 5 shows images of Texaco stations in the area, both on the ground and in the air throughout the Washington, D.C., area included are aerial views and on-the-ground images, as well as plans, blueprints, portraits, and vehicles.

Hot Shoppes restaurant photos make up Series 6, Hot Shoppes were a chain of restaurant owned by the Marriott Company and the series includes images of food, their Airline service, their kitchens, and the dining rooms of the restaurants.

Series 7 includes photographs of D.C. monuments and landmarks including Capitol Hill, the Lincoln Memorial, the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument, the White House, and Mount Vernon.

Series 8 contains images from several other series that happen to be aerial shots, as well as general aerial views from around the country; images of nearby locations include Alexandria, Annandale, Texaco service stations, construction sites, DC monuments, Gunston Hall, Sully Plantation, and the Potomac River.

Series 9 consists of nature scenes, such as trees, mountains, clouds, gardens, fireworks, sunsets, clouds, bodies of water, landscapes, and cemeteries.

Series 10 contains maps and building plans, such as blueprints or architectural renderings, specific topics include St. Agnes School, Baltimore, Texaco, Hazelton labs, Woodbridge Toll Center, and Fairfax Hills.

People make up the subject of Series 11, where the people are doing something else or just taking a portrait. Many photos have unidentified subjects, while others show notable Washingtonians and politicians, athletes, scientists, wedding guests, presidents, actors, the National Symphony, and military leaders.

Series 12 consists of pictures of food from restaurants, Hot Shoppes, and holiday events.

Series 13 is made up of museum exhibits and artifacts including the Star Spangled Banner, dolls, and various Smithsonian objects and exhibits.

Series 14 documents various animals including monkeys, horses, birds, bees, cattle, dogs, hippopotamuses, snakes, butterflies and animals for scientific testing.

Series 15 shows different types of technology such as science labs, computers, a space shuttle, factories, and a camera.

George Mason College is featured in Series 16 with images of athletic teams, staff members, buildings, campus, students, graduations, George Mason Day, and printed materials.

Series 17 includes pictures of vehicles, such as cars, baby carriage, planes, trains, ships, helicopters and bicycles.

Series 18 consists of images from Gunston Hall, the historical home of George Mason. Images in the series include the Mason coat of arms, publications, postcard images, aerial views, and a car show hosted by Gunston Hall.

Series 19 is consists of images of international subjects taken during Baptie's many travels, including various settings in Central America, like Brazil, Honduras, and Ecuador; and other locations, such as Paris or India.

Series 20 is made up of documents consisting of correspondence between Charles Baptie and others about photograph orders and publications.

Finally, Series 21 contains electronic media, specifically a number of 5 1/4 inch floppy discs used for a program called Wordstar.

Biographical / historical:

Charles Baptie, a photographer, printer, and publisher, was born in Munhall, PA on March 13, 1914. Early in life, Baptie became interested in photography and airplanes, interests that would eventually lead to him becoming a photographer and public relations agent for Capital Airlines. His camera recorded the life of the airline for many years. When Capital Airlines merged with United Airlines, Baptie left the company and formed his own business, Charles Baptie Studios, Inc.

While operating his own studio, Baptie provided photographs for more than fifty books and other publications, including: Capital Airlines: A Nostalgic Flight Into the Past, Great Houses of Washington, Camera on Assignment (with Ollie Atkins), the sixteen volume Encyclopedia of United States History, Guest House of the Presidents, the story of the Blair Lee House, and Mid the Hills of Pennsylvania. As a photojournalist, Baptie covered feature stories for leading magazines and other news publications. Over the course of his journalistic career, Baptie met and photographed many world leaders and public figures. He passed away in 2000.

Acquisition information:

The collection was donated in several stages by Charles Baptie and J. Roger Bentley. Charles Baptie, in November 1993, donated GMU materials and other material relating to Northern Virginia. He donated 2.4 linear feet of negatives in July 1994. He donated more photographic negatives and other material in September 1994. In May 2002, J. Roger Bentley donated 1900 negatives, 1,400 photographs, and some publication materials. The next year, May 2003, he donated approximately 2,000 negatives, slides, and photographs, as well as pamphlets, postcards, news clippings and other documents.

Arrangement: