Panorama of orphans' home, Galveston /

"The camera focuses on the building indicated as the Orphans Home, showing damage created by either the wind of the hurricane or the backwash from the tidal wave, and including debris around the yard. As the camera begins to pan for about 25 degrees, it shows further damage of the buildings"--Early motion pictures.

"Galveston cyclone series. At the first news of the disaster by cyclone and tidal wave that devastated Galveston on Saturday, Sept. 8th, 1900, we equipped a party of photographers and sent them by special train to the scene of the ruins. Arriving at the scene of desolation shortly after the storm had swept over that city, our party succeeded, at the risk of life and limb, in taking about a thousand feet of moving pictures. In spite of the fact that Galveston was under martial law and that the photographers were shot down at sight by the excited police guards, a very wide range of subject has been secured. The series, taken as a whole, will give the entire world a definite idea of the terrible disaster, unequaled since the Johnstown flood of 1889"--Edison films catalog.

D18564 U.S. Copyright Office

Copyright: Thomas A. Edison; 24Sept1900; D18564.

Camera, Albert E. Smith.

Duration: 0:50 at 16 fps.

Filmed between September 11-19, 1900, in Galveston, Texas.

According to the description in the Edison films catalog, "this is the building in which so many of the poor orphans met their death", however, according to the Texas State Historical Association, the Galveston Orphans' Home building was damaged, but no children were injured. The catalog may be confusing this building with St. Mary's Orphan's Asylum (not depicted), which was washed away by the hurricane; all ten sisters drowned, and only three of the orphanage's ninety-four children survived.

Paper print shelf number (LC 1381) was changed when the paper prints were re-housed.

Additional holdings for this title may be available. Contact reference librarian.

Available also through the Library of Congress Web site as digital files.

Sources used: Copyright catalog, motion pictures, 1894-1912; Musser, C. Edison motion pictures 1890-1900, p. 636-37; Niver, K. Early motion pictures, p. 238-239; Edison films catalog, no. 105, July 1901, p. 14-15 [MI]; Texas State Historical Association WWW site, viewed January 2, 2015 (Diana J. Kleiner, "Galveston Children's Home"; Sister M. Declan Moroney, "St. Mary's Orphanage, Galveston", both entries in the Handbook of Texas online).

Early motion pictures : the Paper Print Collection in the Library of Congress / by Kemp R. Niver. Library of Congress. 1985.

natural disasters texas galveston buildings natural disaster effects orphanages orphans death hurricanes floods flood damage streets disaster victims galveston tex 20th century galveston orphans home hurricane damage panorama home 19th century history of new york city actualities motion pictures silent films short films nonfiction films inventing entertainment the early motion pictures and sound recordings of the edison companies motion picture broadcasting and recorded sound division paper print collection library of congress albert e albert edward smith inc thomas a edison film video library of congress

01/01/1900

Library of Congress

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