In February, I documented the General Administration Building on the Capitol Campus in Olympia with my 4×5 view camera. The negatives and proof prints have now been approved for inclusion in the Historic American Building Survey (HABS), part of the Heritage Documentation Program at the Library of Congress.
This photo of my light table shows how each view is recorded. The 4×5 negative (top right) has the HABS file number written on it with India ink. It is stored in an archival 5×7 envelope (bottom right). A “Photo Print Card”, which will be stored separately, has a contact-print sized image on it, with the file number (left). This was made digitally, using a scan of the negative. There is also an “Index to Photographs” with captions, printed on archival bond paper, which is not shown. In addition to my work, my client Drayton Archaeology will be submitting a written historical narrative, and copies of the original plans of the building. Meanwhile, the primary contractor, Dickson Demolition and Abatement, is preparing to salvage historical items from the building before they demolish it..
