Elizabeth S. Keast Photograph Collection

The Elizabeth S. Keast Photograph Collection consists of 77 black-and-white photographs depicting aviation activities, planes, and personalities in the United States and Canada from about 1908-1930, as well as various other subjects.

The collection is sub-divided by subject and files have been organized alphabetically. The first folder contains 29 prints of assorted aircraft. Of note are images of The Aerial Experiment Association's Red Wing, Silver Dart, and the Loon; two images of a plane crashed by Elinor Smith; and one of Amelia Earhart's planes. These images date from 1908-1931. The second folder contains nine images of assorted subjects from 1929-1930, not all aviation related. Subjects in this folder include a mountain, various aerial views, ships, and an international polo game between Great Britain and the U.S. at Meadowbrook Cub, Westbury, New York, September 10, 1930. The third folder contains four images related to Richard Byrd's first Antarctic expedition in 1928, with two images of dogs, one of men digging ice, and one of a plane. The fourth folder consists of 20 images showing competition aircraft from Guggenheim's Safe Aircraft Competition at Mitchel Field, Long Island, New York in December 1929. An image of the winner, the Curtiss Tanager, is present. Many of these images appeared in The Daniel Guggenheim International Safe Aircraft Competition : final report, January 31, 1930. The fifth folder contains 11 prints of military subjects such as a group portrait of the 9th Observation Group, a U.S. Navy destroyer, an aerial view of Curtiss Field, U.S. Navy and German dirigibles, U.S. Navy planes formation flying, and the world's largest dirigible. Some of these date to 1930 and some are undated. The last folder consists of four portraits of aviation personalities including Lincoln Beachey, Glenn Curtiss, Ruth Law, and Charles Lindbergh.

The photographs are a mix of snapshots and professional photographs. They are various sizes, including 8x10 inches, 4x5 inches, and smaller sizes. Some have typewritten captions on their versos, some have handwritten captions, and some are unidentified.

Digitized Materials: This collection has been digitized in its entirety.