Thomas Boyle Photograph Album of Aerial Photographs of Hurricane of 1938
Scope and Contents
The collection consists of 55 photographs and four negatives of aerial photography taken in the aftermath of the hurricane and tidal wave that struck Rhode Island on September 21, 1938. The photographs were taken by Thomas Matthew Joseph Boyle and the aeroplane was operated by Melvin Tilden Holbrook, Jr. Compiled into a scrapbook, the photographs show both coastal and landlocked wreckage caused to beaches, industrial zones, and residential areas in Providence, East Providence, Barrington, Pawtucket, Pawtuxet Village, Warwick, Rumford, Edgewood, Bristol, Narragansett, North Kingstown, Jamestown, Portsmouth, and Newport. Because these photographs were taken on September 22 and 23, 1938—respectively one and two days after the hurricane’s landfall—the scrapbook offers a view into the immediate state of Rhode Island’s industrial, residential, and environmental landscape in the hurricane’s aftermath. The collection includes a colored scan of the original envelope, labelled and captioned, that the negatives were enclosed in.
Dates
- 1938
Creator
- Boyle, Thomas Matthew Joseph (1916-1945) (Photographer, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
PPL does not claim copyright to this collection. Users of this item are responsible for determining copyright restrictions.
Biographical / Historical
Thomas Matthew Joseph Boyle was born on April 3, 1916 in Cranston, Rhode Island. Boyle lived in Providence, attended Brown University, and worked as a photographer for an aerial photography company called Malaga Films started by his schoolmates at Brown. After being drafted as a Lieutenant in the US Navy during WWII, Boyle was killed in action in Guadalcanal in 1945, and was survived by his mother Agnes Waters Boyle.
Melvin Tilden Holbrook, Jr. was born on February 11, 1911 in Quincy, Massachusetts. Holbrook lived in West Warwick and North Kingstown, Rhode Island, married Hope Eleanor Mae Lindeberg in 1941, and worked as a pilot in the aeroplane industry. Holbrook served as a Colonel in the US Air Force during WWII, and was part of the Rhode Island National Guard’s 152nd Observation Squadron which flew photographic reconnaissance missions during the war. Holbrook continued to work as a pilot after the war, and died on July 19, 1958.
Extent
1 Volumes (1 photograph album )
Language of Materials
English
Arrangement
Materials are contained within a single photograph album.
Custodial History
Unknown.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Materials found in collection; there is no documentation concerning the provenance of these materials.
Processing Information
Collection was processed by Audrey Buhain in September 2023.
Creator
- Boyle, Thomas Matthew Joseph (1916-1945) (Photographer, Person)
- Holbrook, Melvin Tilden , Jr (1911-1958) (Person)
- Title
- Thomas Boyle Photograph Album of Aerial Photographs of Hurricane of 1938
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Audrey Buhain
- Date
- September 2023
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Providence Public Library Repository
150 Empire Street
Providence RI 02903 United States of America
401-455-8021
special_collections@provlib.org