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RARE! WWI Photo African American Lab Tech 1919 St Nazaire France US Official ARC
WWI Photo African American LaboratoryTechnician1919 St. Nazaire, France U.S. Official American Red Cross
Item Description
AUTHENTIC ORIGINAL WORLD WAR 1 PHOTOGRAPH – U.S. OFFICIAL SIGNAL CORPS PRINT
TITLE: View of Laboratory, Camp Hospital No. 11, St. Nazaire, Loire-Inférieure, France
DATE TAKEN: February 13, 1919
PHOTOGRAPHER: Pvt. W. W. Soper, U.S. Army Signal Corps (S.C.)
OFFICIAL NEGATIVE/CATALOG NUMBER: 156101
DIMENSIONS: 8-3/8\" x 6-1/2\"
HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE & BLACK AMERICANA INTEREST
This exceptional, genuine 1919 vintage print offers a rare and compelling visual record of an African American service member operating in a highly skilled, technical environment during World War 1. Captured three months after the Armistice, the photograph depicts five personnel inside the Base Section medical laboratory.
While the U.S. military was strictly segregated during the war, this image uniquely documents an African American laboratory orderly/assistant working directly alongside white military and Red Cross personnel. St. Nazaire was the vital debarkation port for celebrated Black combat regiments like the 369th Infantry (\"Harlem Hellfighters\") and extensive labor battalions. This laboratory was critical to managing troop health, medical instrument sterilization, and the ongoing 1918–1919 Influenza Pandemic before soldiers sailed home.
DETAILED SCENE ANALYSIS
- Personnel: Includes an African American lab assistant positioned near the chemical shelving, collaborating with colleagues and an officer.
- Equipment Visible: Features a specialized monocular compound microscope on the curved counter, a massive vertical steam autoclave/sterilizer on the left, rows of glass chemical reagent apothecary bottles, and a central cast-iron potbelly heating stove.
PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION & CONDITION
- Front: Clear, high-contrast black-and-white/sepia-toned silver gelatin matte finish. Features the original penciled archive catalog number \"156101\" in the upper right margin and the official \"U.S. OFFICIAL\" government stamp in the bottom right corner.
- Reverse: Features period handwritten notations explicitly reading \"Red Cross\" and the matching archive catalog number \"156101\".
- Condition: Excellent vintage condition for a 106+ year-old historical print. Clean borders, strong paper integrity, and excellent clarity. (Please review the high-resolution listing pictures carefully to assess edge condition and surface details).
- Important Authenticity Detail (Glass Negative Fracture): A distinct white hairline fracture is visible in the upper right quadrant running through the ceiling beams, not affecting the subjects. This is a classic, authentic artifact of a cracked wartime glass plate negative. Because the light passed through the split emulsion during the 1919 darkroom exposure, it left this permanent mark on the paper. This perfectly documents its immediate post-war printing origin and proves it was not made from a digitally cleaned, modern reproduction file.
SHIPPING & HANDLING
This valuable historical artifact will be housed in an acid-free protective sleeve. Tracked shipping.
(please see pictures)
This is not a reproduction or a copy
Please see my 100% positive response and buy with confidence.
