• CASE 1—WHAT IF...?

• CASE 2 —PHOTOGRAPHY ARRIVES

• CASE 3—VISIBLE REMNANTS

• CASE 4 —ATTITUDES TOWARDS THE PAST

• CASE 5—PEELING BACK THE LAYERS

• CASE 6—TIMELESS ACTIVITIES

• CASE 7 —ENCROACHMENT OF URBANIZATION

• CASE 8 —COLONIAL SITES DURING THE CIVIL WAR

• CASE 9—EVOLUTION OF HISTORIC SITES

• CASE 10 —RESTORATIONS

• CASE 11—RE-ENACTMENTS

• CASE 12 —HENRY WHEELER'S EYE PT. I

• CASE 13—HENRY WHEELER'S EYE PT. II

• CASE 14 —HENRY WHEELER'S EYE PT. III

• CASE 15 —HENRY WHEELER'S EYE PT. IV

• CASE 16—DOCUMENTING OF CONDITION

• COLONIAL AMERICANA TODAY

• EXHIBITS PAGE

• CLEMENTS LIBRARY

Colonial Photography—Viewfinder on the Past

Henry M. Wheeler's Eye for History

Case 15

Colonial milestones, many of which have been relocated during modern road widening, appear here in their original spots. Colonial headstones appear prior to a century of exposure, vandalism, and neglect.

The natural world plays a large role in Wheeler's broad historical vision. The glacial boulders Wheeler photographed were artifacts of geological history as well as local landmarks. The mature elm trees of New England were sublime spectacles in themselves, and provided dramatic settings for many Wheeler photos. He couldn'wt have known that the species would be nearly erased from the region by 20th century disease and development.

Among Wheeler's most evocative images are those that document colonial architecture now lost.

Henry M. Wheeler. King House, Leicester. Cyanotype print. Ca. 1890s.

Henry M. Wheeler. Stone Ruin, Princeton. Gelatin silver print. Ca. 1890s.

Henry M. Wheeler. Pollard House, Billerica. Gelatin silver print. Ca. 1890s.

Henry M. Wheeler. Whitney House, Main St., New Worcester. Destroyed. Cyanotype print. Ca. 1890s.

Henry M. Wheeler. Elm, No. Andover. Gelatin silver print. Ca. 1890s.

Henry M. Wheeler. Elm, No. Andover. Gelatin silver print. Ca. 1890s.