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Photographs of African American Soldiers at Camp Desert Rock, Nevada, 1953

39 Photographic Prints
Collection Creator:
Princeton University. Library. Special Collections
Dates:
1953
Located In:
Box P-000218, Folder 1
Extent:
39 Photographic Prints
Dimensions:
9 x 12 cm, 4 x 3 cm, and 21 x 26 cm
Physical Description:
black and white photographs
Languages:
English
Content Description

Consists of 39 black and white photographs depicting African American soldiers at Camp Desert Rock, Nevada. The photographs mostly feature two African American men captioned with names "Ike" and "Griff" interacting with each other with scenes of the Camp as backdrop. One shows "Griff" in front of a "CO B 412th ENGR CONST BN" sign. Three of the photographs show the bomb detonated in the distance — one of which is captioned "Atomic Bomb May 12, 1953."

Twenty-two of the photographs are mounted to album pages, 8 are loose with remnants of mounting on the back, and 8 are trimmed portraits of African American women. The album photographs are 4" x 3" and the portraits average 1" x 1.5".

There are also two album pages, one with a newspaper clipping from the Los Angeles Examiner, October 4, 1953, about a football game between Bakersfield High School and Jordan High School. The other has an 8" x 10" photograph of a football game.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Acquisition:

Purchased from Michael Vinson Americana in June 2023 (AM 2025-022).

Credit this material:

Photographs of African American Soldiers at Camp Desert Rock, Nevada; Princeton University Library Single Photograph Acquisitions, C1778, Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Storage Note:
Firestone Library (mss)
Boxes P-000218
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Processing Information:

Item processed and described by Lauren C. Williams in November 2024, using description provided by the dealer.

Subject Terms:
African American soldiers -- History -- 20th century -- Pictorial works
Nuclear weapons -- Nevada -- Testing
Nuclear weapons -- Testing
Places:
Nevada National Security Site (Nev.) -- History -- Pictorial works

Collection Overview

Collection Description & Creator Information

Content Description

Consists of 39 black and white photographs depicting African American soldiers at Camp Desert Rock, Nevada. The photographs mostly feature two African American men captioned with names "Ike" and "Griff" interacting with each other with scenes of the Camp as backdrop. One shows "Griff" in front of a "CO B 412th ENGR CONST BN" sign. Three of the photographs show the bomb detonated in the distance — one of which is captioned "Atomic Bomb May 12, 1953."

Twenty-two of the photographs are mounted to album pages, 8 are loose with remnants of mounting on the back, and 8 are trimmed portraits of African American women. The album photographs are 4" x 3" and the portraits average 1" x 1.5".

There are also two album pages, one with a newspaper clipping from the Los Angeles Examiner, October 4, 1953, about a football game between Bakersfield High School and Jordan High School. The other has an 8" x 10" photograph of a football game.

Collection History

Acquisition:

Purchased from Michael Vinson Americana in June 2023 (AM 2025-022).

Appraisal

No material was separated during processing.

Processing Information:

Item processed and described by Lauren C. Williams in November 2024, using description provided by the dealer.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.

Credit this material:

Photographs of African American Soldiers at Camp Desert Rock, Nevada; Princeton University Library Single Photograph Acquisitions, C1778, Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Location:
Firestone Library
One Washington Road
Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
(609) 258-3184
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Storage Note:
Firestone Library (mss)
Boxes P-000218