Rio Grande Historical Collections Photographs, 1885-1930
Subject (LCSH)
New Mexico
Landscapes
Forests and forestry
Historical context
The Dorothy Emry Photograph Collection consists of 20 mounted photographs that document northern New Mexico pueblos, Alamogordo, Santa Fe, and scenes from an early 1880s survey expedition led by civil engineer George C. Reed, Emry’s grandfather. These photographs capture the rugged landscapes and communities along the Arizona-New Mexico border during a critical period of westward expansion and growing U.S. interest in the Southwest. Many of the images are annotated on the verso, providing valuable geographic and contextual details that link them to the expedition and its participants. A rich historical backdrop is provided by a 1920 letter from Chester D. Potter, a member of the survey crew who later became a political editor and journalist. In his letter to Reed, Potter recalls their time in New Mexico and discusses his career covering major national events and regional conflicts for newspapers like the St. Louis Globe Democrat, Chicago Inter-Ocean, and Pittsburgh Gazette Times. His reflections, including mentions of the Coxey’s Army march, McKinley’s campaigns, the influenza epidemic in Pittsburgh, and his sons' military service during and after World War I, offer a personal and national context that enhances the understanding of the photographs. Together, the visual materials and Potter’s letter form a rare and compelling record of the American Southwest during a time of transformation