The Special Collections historic photograph and graphic images collections are comprised of several individual holdings.

Newspapers

The archives of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram newspaper constitute the largest collection of newspaper photographs at UT Arlington. This collection of photographs and negatives covers major events in North Central and West Texas from 1890 to 1990. In addition to prints and negatives, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram archives includes clipping files, maps, World War II information, and data on the petroleum industry in Texas. A Guide to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram is available online.

Approximately 100 prints and 390,000 film negatives comprise the Arlington Citizen-Journal Collection.

The Fort Worth News-Tribune collection contains approximately 8,000 prints and clippings relating to Tarrant County people and subjects, 1970-1989. A Guide to the Fort Worth News Tribune is available online.

Commercial Photographers Collections

The Basil Clemons Photograph Collection concentrates on the town of Breckenridge, Texas, in the 1920s and 1930s. Clemons, a well known and well traveled commercial photographer, settled in Breckenridge and recorded the changes this town experienced when oil was discovered nearby. The Clemons Collection contains 20,000 prints and negatives.

The William S. Wood, Jr. Photograph Collection covers the years 1947-1968, offering images of families and individuals as well as private and commercial organizations in Fort Worth, Texas. This collection consists of 6,500 photographs and negatives.

The Jack White Photograph Collection is comprised of fine examples of advertising photography in Fort Worth from the 1950s to the 1990s, both collected and produced by White and, in addition, a substantial assortment of original and copied vintage photographs from the 19th and early 20th centuries.

The W. D. Smith, Inc., Commercial Photography Collection documents Fort Worth and Tarrant County from 1941 through 1989 and includes 200,000 negatives. It is a large selection of copied photographs from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Creation of a searchable database to the W. D. Smith negatives is in process. Series I, the 1940s, has been completed and is available for research in Special Collections and will soon be available online.

Other Photograph Collections

The J. W. Dunlop Photograph Collection is comprised of approximately 1000 images focused on Arlington, Texas, and its environs. Spanning a century in time, it is believed to be the largest collection of Arlington photographic images in existence.

Photographs are also found in numerous family, labor union, and UT Arlington archives collections. Examples include the Texas Photograph Collection, the Russell Torti Photograph Collection, the Bill Wright Photograph Collection, and the Mexico, Egypt, Morocco & Spain Photographs.

Graphic Collections

Engravings, lithographs, posters, drawings, and other works of art -- approximately 1200 images -- help illustrate the history of the Republic of Texas, the U.S. War with Mexico (1846-1848), and the early days of Texas statehood.

The Texas Post Card Collection and the Jenkins Garrett Texas Post Card Collection show buildings and landscapes of Texas cities, ca. 1903-1990s, among other subjects.

A number of the graphics are cataloged and available in the UT Arlington Library Catalog. Finding Aids are available for a few collections with more planned. All the historic photograph collections are listed with a detailed description in A Guide to Archives and Manuscripts Collections in the Special Collections Division of The University of Texas at Arlington Libraries. An online version of the Guide is available, and a loose-leaf paper version of the Guide is available at the Special Collections reference desk.  Plans are underway for the digitization of selected photographs, and they will be available in the catalog at a future date.

If you have questions about the Photographs and Graphics Collection, please contact the Special Collections Reference Desk.