COLLECTION GUIDES

ca. 1846-1885

Guide to the Photograph Collection

Restrictions on Access

Use of Albums 7, 8, and 9 is restricted. This collection is available as color digital facsimiles (see links below). Color digital facsimiles of Albums 7, 8 and 9 are available in the MHS Reading Room, DF-003. Album 8 is also available at the MHS online presentation "Marian Hooper Adams: Selected Photographs and Letters.

Glass plate negatives, glass plate positives, and lantern slides of any size are not available for research use. Copy photographs or scans may be available for alternative viewing. Consult the Reference Librarian for more information.


Collection Summary

Creator: Adams, Marian, 1843-1885, photographer
Title: Marian Hooper Adams photographs
Dates: ca. 1846-1885
Physical Description: 137 photographs in 2 boxes (1 narrow) and 3 volumes in cases
Call Number: Photo. Coll. 50
Location: In the Massachusetts Historical Society Photo. Archives.
Repository:
Massachusetts Historical Society
1154 Boylston StreetBoston, MA 02215library@masshist.org

Abstract

This collection consists of three albums of photographs taken by Marian "Clover" Hooper Adams from 1883-1885. These images include formal and informal portraits of U.S. politicians, various members of the Adams and Hooper families, family friends, and portraits taken by others of Marian Hooper Adams. Also included are photographs of Washington, D.C.; Bladensburg, Md.; Old Sweet Springs, Va.; and the Adams family homes in Quincy and Beverly Farms, Mass.

Biographical Sketch

Marian Hooper Adams (MHA) was born in Boston, 13 Sep. 1843, to Robert W. Hooper, an ophthalmologist, and Ellen (Sturgis), a Transcendental poet. Her maternal grandfather was William Sturgis, a prominent merchant and pioneer of the Boston-China trade. Known to friends and family as "Clover," she and her two siblings were raised by her father after her mother died when she was only five. Clover married historian and writer Henry Adams (HA) in 1872, and the couple spent their honeymoon in Europe. They moved to Washington in 1877, where Clover was known for her "salon" and hostess abilities. She took up photography in 1883 and her work was widely admired, although Henry Adams apparently discouraged publication of her photographs.

After her father's death in 1885, Clover suffered from an overwhelming depression, an illness that seemed to plague a number of her family members. In early December of 1885, she took her own life. Henry Adams erected a memorial monument to Clover by Augustus St. Gaudens in Rock Creek Park, Washington, D.C.

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Collection Description

This collection of Clover Adams photographs was created by gathering together all of the known photographs by her, and of her, at the Massachusetts Historical Society. The majority of the photographs were removed from the Henry Adams photographs (Photo. Coll. 40), the Adams-Thoron photographs (Photo. Coll. 42), and the Hooper-Adams papers. The remainder of the photographs came from either loose miscellaneous photographs or are of an unknown origin. Some of the photographs in this collection remain in their original locations, and this is noted in the list. These include 1 daguerreotype of Clover, 7 glass-plate negatives taken by her, and the images in Henry Adams's photograph albums 5 and 6.

Clover kept a chronological notebook (in the Hooper-Adams Papers) from May 1883-Jan. 1884 listing many of her photographs and commenting on exposures, lighting, etc. A photocopy of the notebook is located with this collection for reference. This guide notes (where it has been determined) that an image is mentioned in the notebook, as "Notebook, [date], [number]" in the photograph list.

The Marian Hooper Adams photographs consists of 3 photograph albums and 25 loose photographs by or of Marian "Clover" Hooper Adams (MHA). These three albums are numbered 7, 8, and 9, from their original order in the Henry Adams photographs (Photo. Coll. 40). Album 7 contains 47 images; Album 8 contains 48 images, and Album 9 contains 18 images. There are 14 other (loose) images taken by or possibly taken by MHA. There are 9 images of MHA, one of which (Photo. #50.128) have in the past been considered to be images of her but which are now questionable. In addition, there are 2 photographs (Photos. #50.132-133) of pages from a steamer letter written to her father in July 1872. The original letter is in the Adams papers at the MHS.

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Acquisition Information

The majority of the photographs were removed from the Henry Adams photographs (Photo. Coll. 40), the Adams-Thoron photographs (Photo. Coll. 42), and the Hooper-Adams papers.

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Restrictions on Access

Use of Albums 7, 8, and 9 is restricted. This collection is available as color digital facsimiles (see links below). Color digital facsimiles of Albums 7, 8 and 9 are available in the MHS Reading Room, DF-003. Album 8 is also available at the MHS online presentation "Marian Hooper Adams: Selected Photographs and Letters.

Glass plate negatives, glass plate positives, and lantern slides of any size are not available for research use. Copy photographs or scans may be available for alternative viewing. Consult the Reference Librarian for more information.

Other Formats

The MHS online presentation, "Marian Hooper Adams: Selected Photographs and Letters," includes digital images of all of the photographs in Album 8, as well as selected letters by Marian Hooper Adams and Henry Adams and other items.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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I. Photographs by Marian Hooper AdamsDigital Content

Inscription inside cover: "Marian Adams/ 1883-1884/ Washington." Inscription on an inside page: "Marian Adams/ May 1883 -/ Washington/ D.C -/ Vol 1 - ." All photographs taken by Marian Hooper Adams, except where otherwise noted.

NOTE: Copies of most of the photographs in the albums are located in Box 1.

Close I. Photographs by Marian Hooper AdamsDigital Content
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About reproduction of these images

These images are available for researcher use and reproduction. Please see the Reference Librarian when requesting reproductions of original images. The list below refers to books that contain illustrations of photographs from this collection. These books are:

Eugenia Kaledin, The Education of Mrs. Henry Adams, Philadelphia, 1981.

J. C. Levenson, et al, editors, The Letters of Henry Adams, Volume II: 1868-1885, Cambridge, 1982.

Ward Thoron, editor, The Letters of Mrs. Henry Adams, 1865-1883, Boston, 1936.

Otto Freidrich, Clover, New York, 1979.

Photo #
#50.5 -In Kaledin, p. 207
-In Thoron, p. 374
#50.6 -In Letters II, facing p. 572
#50.7 -In Kaledin, p. 200
-In Letters II, facing p. 358
#50.8 -In Kaledin, p. 201
#50.9 -In Letters II, facing p. 235
#50.11 -In Kaledin, p. 212
-In Letters II, facing p. 572
-In Friedrich, after p. 128
#50.15 -In Kaledin, p. 209
#50.16 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 298
#50.17 -In Kaledin, p. 204
#50.20 -In Kaledin, p. 203
#50.29 -In Kaledin, p. 211
#50.40 -In Kaledin, p. 200
-In Letters II, facing p. 358
#50.43 -In Kaledin, p. 202
#50.45 -In Kaledin, p. 201
#50.46 -In Kaledin, p. 205
#50.49 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
#50.50 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 414
#50.52 -In Kaledin, p. 203
#50.56 -In Kaledin, p. 210
-In Letters II, facing p. 234
#50.59 -In Kaledin, p. 207
#50.60 -In Kaledin, p. 202
-In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 388
#50.65 -In Kaledin, p. 205
#50.67 -In Kaledin, p. 208
-In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 298
#50.68 -In Kaledin, p. 208
-In Friedrich, facing p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 230
#50.70 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
#50.71 -In Thoron, p. 260
#50.74 -In Thoron, p. 332
#50.79 -In Kaledin, p. 204
#50.87 -In Letters II, facing p. 234
-In Friedrich, after p. 128
#50.93 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 298
#50.103 -In Kaledin, p. 210
-In Letters II, facing p. 496
#50.105 -In Kaledin, p. 206
#50.115 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 64
#50.117 -In Letters II, facing p. 497, dates it 13 Aug. 1883
#50.118 -In Kaledin, p. 199
-In Letters II, frontispiece
#50.122 -In Letters II, facing p. 573
-In Friedrich, after p. 128, dated Dec. 1884
#50.130 -In Friedrich, facing p. 128
#50.131 -In Letters II, facing p. 132
-In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, frontispiece
#50.132 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 14
#50.133 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 14
#50.134 -In Friedrich, after p. 128
-In Thoron, p. 132
#50.135 -In Letters II, facing p. 159
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Name Subject Index

Photos without album or page numbers are loose photographs stored in boxes 1 and 2. Note that many of the loose photographs are located in another collection. Consult the Guide for further details.

Name Photo #
Adams, Abigail Brooks #50.60
Adams, Brooks, 1848-1927 #50.61
Adams, Charles Francis, 1807-1886 #50.60
Adams, Charles F. (Charles Francis), 1835-1915 #50.43
#50.44
Adams, Charles F. (Charles Francis), 1866-1954 #50.49
#50.54
#50.55
Adams, George C #50.45
#50.49
#50.54
#50.55
Adams, Henry , 1838-1918 #50.50
#50.52
#50.71
#50.114
#50.115
#50.116
#50.117
#50.118
Adams, Marian, 1843-1885 #50.128
#50.129
See also Photo. 1.433 [daguerreotype]
#50.130
#50.131
#50.132
#50.133
#50.134
#50.135
#50.136
#50.137
#50.138
Adams, Mary #50.45
#50.49
#50.54
#50.55
Adams, Mary Ogden, 1843-1935 #50.49
#50.54
#50.55
Bancroft, George, 1800-1891 #50.7
Bancroft, Elizabeth Davis, 1803-1886 #50.8
#50.40
Bartlett, Sidney, 1799-1889 #50.77
#50.78
Bell, Mrs. Joseph #50.66
Bonaparte, Jerome #50.20
Dodge, Rebecca #50.9
#50.10
#50.23
#50.106
#50.109
#50.110
Dupuy de Lome, Enrique #50.12
Dupuy de Lome, Señora #50.13
#50.31
Evarts, William Maxwell, 1818-1901 #50.29
#50.30
Field, J. W. #50.25
Field, Mrs. #50.26
Frelinghuysen, Lucy #50.35
Graff, [Miss] #50.46
Gordon, John Brown, 1832-1904 #50.19
Hay, Alice #50.90
Hay, Del #50.91
#50.92
Hay, John, 1838-1905 #50.5 7
#50.6
Hayward, Daisy #50.96
Hegermann-Lindencrone, L. de (Lillie de), 1844-1928 #50.81
#50.82
Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 1841-1935 #50.13
#50.15
Hooper, Ellen #50.75
Hooper, Eunice #50.70
Hooper, Loulie #50.75
Hooper, Polly #50.75
Hooper, Robert W., 1810-1885 #50.69
Howe, George D. #50.65
LaFarge, John, 1835-1910 #50.103
Lamar, L. Q. C. (Lucius Quintus Cinncinnatus), 1825-1893 #50.18
Langdon, [Miss] #50.51
Lowndes, James #50.73
#50.73
Lyman, Mrs. Theodore (Mimi) #50.62
#50.119
Lyman, Theodore, 1833-1897 #50.62
#50.119
McLean, Emily Beale #50.85
Miles, Nelson Appleton, 1839-1925 #50.105
Millet, Elizabeth Greely (Lily) Merrill, 1853-1932 #50.21
#50.22
Minot, Grace #50.79
#50.88
Moulton, N. #50.83
Parkman, Francis, 1823-1893 #50.58
#50.59
Pendleton, [Miss] #50.36
Peters, Mrs. [Willius?] #50.32
#50.33
#50.34
Pratt, Alice #50.65
Pratt, Mrs. Ellerton #50.65
Pumpelly, Raphael, 1837-1923 #50.4
Richardson, Clifford #50.106
#50.107
Richardson, H. H. (Henry Hobson), 1838-1886 #50.11
Sargent, Marian Appleton Coolidge #50.84
Scott, Mrs. James #50.63
#50.64
See also Photo. 6.2.2 [glass plate negative]
Silsbee, Patty #50.24
Valera, Señor #50.102
Whitney, Helen Hay, 1875-1944 #50.91
#50.92
Wilder, Betsy #50.67
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Place Subject Index

Place Photo #
Adams National Historic Park (Quincy, Mass.) #50.42
#50.60
Arlington National Cemetery #50.41
#50.94
Beverly Farms (Mass.) #50.46
#50.47
#50.48
#50.49
#50.53
#50.54
#50.55
#50.56
#50.65
#50.66
#50.72
#50.74
#50.80
#50.85
#50.86
#50.87
#50.88
#50.121
#50.123
#50.131
Bladensburg (Md.) #50.98
#50.99
#50.100
#50.101
Cleveland (Ohio) #50.89
Falmouth (Mass.) #50.96
#50.97
Manchester (Mass.) #50.63
#50.64
Marblehead (Mass.) #50.70
Mount Vernon (Va.: Estate) #50.138
Old Sweet Springs (Va.) #50.106
#50.107
#50.108
#50.109
#50.110
#50.111
#50.112
#50.113
Washington (D.C.) #50.1
#50.2
#50.3
#50.37
#50.38
#50.39
#50.122
Wenlock Abbey (England) #50.134
#50.135
#50.136
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Preferred Citation

Marian Hooper Adams photographs, Photo. Coll. 50, Massachusetts Historical Society Photo Archives.

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Access Terms

This collection is indexed under the following headings in ABIGAIL, the online catalog of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related persons, organizations, or subjects should search the catalog using these headings.

Persons:

Adams, Abigail Brooks 1808-1889--Photographs.
Adams, Brooks, 1848-1927--Photographs.
Adams, Charles Francis, 1807-1886--Photographs.
Adams, Charles Francis, 1835-1915--Photographs.
Adams, Charles F. (Charles Francis), 1866-1954--Photographs.
Adams, George Caspar, 1863-1900--Photographs.
Adams, Henry, 1838-1918--Photographs.
Adams, Marian, 1843-1885--Photographs.
Adams, Mary Ogden, 1843-1935--Photographs.
Bancroft, George, 1800-1891--Photographs.
Dodge, Rebecca--Photographs.
Evarts, William Maxwell, 1818-1901--Photographs.
Hay, John, 1838-1905--Photographs.
Holmes, Oliver Wendell, 1841-1935--Photographs.
Hooper, Robert W., 1810-1885--Photographs.
La Farge, John, 1835-1910--Photographs.
Lyman, Theodore, 1833-1897--Photographs.
Parkman, Francis, 1823-1893--Photographs.
Quincy, Mary Adams, 1845-1928--Photographs.
Richardson, H. H. (Henry Hobson), 1838-1886--Photographs.
Whitney, Helen Hay, 1875-1944--Photographs.

Subjects:

Adams National Historical Park (Quincy, Mass.)--Photographs.
Beverly Farms (Mass.)--Photographs.
Bladensburg (Md.)--Photographs.
Old Sweet Springs (Va.)--Photographs.
Photograph albums.
Politicians--United States--19th century--Photographs.
Slides.
Tintypes.
Washington (D.C.)--Photographs.
Women photographers--19th century.

Collection processed by Katherine H. Griffin, 14 March 2002.

Revised 19 Feb. 2021

Encoded by Kathleen J. Barker, March 2004

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