Samuel McDill negatives of the Solomon Islands, ca.1915

ON 430/Boxes 1-11

fonds

ca.1915

Graphic Materials, Photographs

913409

116 negatives (11 boxes) - glass - quarter plate

The negatives were taken by Samuel McGill, the brother-in-law of the donor Eric Dunlop. According to the donor's correspondence with the Mitchell Library, McDill was in the Solomons as a government carpenter for seven years, believed to be 1914-1921. He was a Scot and had come to Australia by 1923, when Dunlop first met him. In July 1970 Dunlop wrote that McDill had died "about two years ago, and my sister a little earlier".

The collection was presented to the Mitchell Library by Keast Burke on behalf of Dr Eric Dunlop. Keast Burke also prepared a contents list of the negatives for the Mitchell Library.

Contents list prepared by Keast Burke, 1970. The original terminology has not been updated. A few boxes are marked with brief notations of place and date, including Yandina plantation, Malayta and Zoon? caves; dates include January, May and September 1915 and [Christmas?] trip 1915-1916. The order of the negatives is not consistent with the original notations on the boxes.

ON 430/Box 1
House under construction
Entrance to cave(?)
Open launch (2)
Hut with natives
Young banana plantation
Cloud study
Cattle in coconut plantation

ON 430/Box 2
Landscape [corner of neg cracked]
Man with young banana plant
Hunting party in scrub
? Party ready to fertilise dates
People in a cave
Europeans at lunch
Portraits of young natives (good)
Man outside native house (good)
Coastal scene (good)
Men working on new wharf (and woman)
Man & date tree (?)
Fishing in a mountain creek
Store office (name could be read)

ON 430/Box 3
Large tree in plantation
New house on waterfront
Large boathouse
2 new European houses
Group of Europeans
Luncheon on verandah
Men outside huts (galv?)

ON 430/Box 4
Native outrigger
Unusual rock formation
Group (in Aust. picnic ground?) (3)
Same place - "Spearmint Girls"
European man with young palm tree
2 canoes
Natives outside church?
Two men on beach - one white, one perhaps a chieftan
Wharf under construction
Cattle in plantation
Close up of coconuts on palm

ON 430/Box 5
Men in limestone cave, one holding a bat
Panorama of plantation (3)
2 young natives (good)
Natives in jungle (2)
Elderly European man & wife
Cat-a-maran
Children at picnic
[?] Sanitarium (very poor)

ON 430/Box 6
(- most v. good negatives)
House & store under construction
Men outside cave or mine drive
European house amongst palms
Copra drying oven
European home with tennis court
Group of Europeans & natives in jungle
Large English house
Party cutting down palm tree
Group of natives
Man husking coconuts (2)
Europeans outside house, having a tea (? tennis) party
2 natives
Limestone cave (? flash)

ON 430/Box 7
? Schooner at a new wharf
3 men
2 men (5)
Portrait of man in uniform
Interior of cave
Plantation

ON 430/Box 8
Group at house
2 men at house
Husking coconuts
New plantation
Men in cave
Elderly couple (dup.)
Clearing jungle
Large house
Schooner "Joan of Arc"

ON 430/Box 9
Portrait of man
2 men & young palm
Men & women - native hut
6 school girls
Hunting party at mountain lagoon
Clearing timber for plantation
New plantation
Schooner in harbour

ON 430/Box 10
Portrait of man
Liner at anchor (name visible) [Kulanbangra]
Portrait of man
Pleasant sunset
Typical Pacific waterfront
Picnic group (Aust.?) (2)
3 men
4 men
Group of school children (Australian?)

ON 430/Box 11
Full box of native portraits (13)

As listed by Keast Burke

Out of copyright: Created before 1955
Please acknowledge:: Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales

Transferred from Pic.Acc.1977 as part of the eRecords project, 2011-2012