Louis Charles McClure, ca. 1930 |
|
Louis Charles McClure
b.1867, d. 1957 Although turn-of-the century photographer L.C. McClure's name remains relatively obscure, his cityscape pictures of Denver are among the most accurate and artistic depictions of any American city during the City Beautiful era. Having studied with noted photographer William Henry Jackson, McClure made a career of photographing railroads and landscapes throughout Colorado, but his most interesting work documented the Denver of the 1890's through the 1920's. McClure's artistry brought him considerable success as a commercial photographer during his lifetime. With his gift of over 4,000 glass plate negatives and prints to the Denver Public Library, today people are beginning to recognize McClure's distinctive signature as a sign of photography that is of great historic and aesthetic value.
|
Robert Walter Speer, ca. 1918 |
|
Robert Walter Speer b.1855, d. 1918 Mayor of Denver 1904-1912, 1916-1918 "Ugly things do not please. It is much easier to love a thing of beauty -- and this applies to cities. Fountains, staues, lights, music and parks make people love the place in which they live," proclaimed mayor Robert Speer in 1916. Speer, tough city boss, civic idealist and Denver booster, discovered the City Beautiful concept when he visited the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. With his master plan to build parks, fountains, parkways and grand civic buildings, all based on a classical European model, he oversaw and successfully promoted almost all city improvement in Denver from 1904 through 1918. Believing that city beautiful was spiritually uplifting to the citizenry and would boost the city's image, Speer reshaped Denver into the city that L.C. McClure recorded with his camera. |
|
|