Using photographs to learn About the Past

   "I have Seized the light, I have arrested its flight!"  Louis J.M. Daguerre

Nearly a century and a half after Louis J.M. Daguerre's success in capturing a photographic image on a silver coated copper plate in 1839 we have a treasure chest of historical evidence in the form of photographic images.  These forms of evidence, unlike most written records, provide a unique glimpse into the past - allowing the viewer to be transported back to a frozen place in time.  The following links hope to shed light upon and promote this valuable source of evidence in learning about the past.  

What Photographs Can Tell Us      Selection of CCHS's Photograph Collection       Activities Involving Photographs       Sources of Photographs

Document last modified on 20 April 2001

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