Miyamoto photograph collection
Scope and Contents
Masao Miyamoto grouped the photographs into three main categories (these groupings explain the types of material found in the collection but do not necessarily represent its current organization; see note on arrangement). The smallest group comprises images Miyamoto rescued, primarily when the University administration moved from Hawai'i Hall to the newly completed Bachman Hall about 1953. Having heard from another that people were dumping photographs, Miyamoto rescued numerous images, including glass-plate as well as film-based negatives illustrating the first two decades of the university's existence—then known as the College of Hawai'i.
The second group, consisting of four subgroups, documents the faculty and staff of the University of Hawai'i. There is a relatively small group ranging from 1948 to 1955; then comes a grouping about twice the size in volume, ranging from 1955 to 1964; then a large group, holding over ten times the number of negatives as in the first group, covers faculty and staff from 1965 to approximately 1980. The last remaining photographs in this group are a small number of miscellaneous photographs of people which possibly should be interfiled into the other three subseries.
Miyamoto classified the final main group of photographs, "Events." Similar to his treatment of faculty photographs, where he assigned a number to the faculty person, not a separate number to each image he created of the faculty person, Miyamoto assigned numbers to the event he photographed. Thus an event number may refer to only one photograph, but usually, the number includes numerous images. Although another numbering system was created for storage, Miyamoto's numbering has been recorded with the images for future reference.
Dates
- Creation: 1939 - 1982
- Creation: Majority of material found within 1955 - 1978
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open to researchers with no restrictions. For the viewing public, the major disadvantage of the Miyamoto Collection is that it includes only a scattering of positive prints. When prints are available, the archival staff pull them for patrons to view; but when only negatives exist, the patron must become accustomed to "reversing" his/her vision, seeing dark where the negative is light and light where it is dark. Archival use entails some special requirements. In addition to the normal requirements the staff place upon patrons of the Archives, patrons using the University Archives Photographs must wear the cotton gloves supplied by the Archives when they use photographs.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright is retained by the University of Hawai'i. It is the responsibility of the user to determine any copyright restrictions, obtain written permission, and pay any fees necessary for the reproduction or proposed use of the materials.
All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the University of Hawai'i Library as the owner of the physical items.
Biographical / Historical
Masao Miyamoto (1913-1995) dedicated fifty-five years to photographing the University of Hawai'i.
Miyamoto was born in Kona, Hawai'i, to coffee farmers. He was the youngest of five children. When he was six years old his parents moved to the Kaimuki area of
Honolulu.1
He had two lifelong commitments outside his home: scouting and photography. He joined Boy Scout Troup 10 at the age of 12 in 1925 and completed the requirements for Eagle Scout in 1932. About the same time he became the Assistant Scoutmaster of the troop. When the founding scoutmaster retired in 1945, Miyamoto became the second scoutmaster of Troop 10. He continued in this position until April 12, 1992.2
Scouting led Miyamoto to his lifelong career in photography. After initially learning photography in the Scouts, he pursued it as a hobby during his high school years. At McKinley High School, he was president of the Photography Club and photographer for the Daily Pinion. After graduating in 1932, he took a job with the silent movie library at the University of Hawai'i. He eventually persuaded university officials that they should hire him as a photographer.3
Masao Miyamoto began his career as official photographer for the university on April 1, 1936. In the course of the next 41 years, he photographed four presidents of the United States and 11 presidents of the University of Hawaii. He captured the images of numerous foreign dignitaries and national leaders who visited the university. Among these were President Sukarno of
Indonesia, Madame Chiang Kai-shek, Professor Daisetsu Suzuki, Mr. Ralph Bunch, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. His extensive collection of negatives and prints present a visual record of the University of Hawai'i's growth and development, its faculty and student life, as well as campus events over most of the 20th century.
Though he officially retired on the last day of June 1977, he continued to work as a volunteer from 1977 to 1991. In February 1991, the collection of negatives and photographs came to the University Archives.
Masao Miyamoto died November 19, 1995, at his home in Manoa. One of his former scouts said, “If anyone ever wonders whether or not a single person can make a difference in this world, they need only look at Masao Miyamoto and his life of service.”4
Notes
1. "Masao Miyamoto," Honolulu Star Bulletin, 22 November 1995, p. A9.
2. " -- ," Honolulu Advertiser, 12 April 1992, p. E1.
3. Star Bulletin, ibid.
4. Ibid.
Extent
100 Linear Feet
Language
English
Overview
Masao Miyamoto (1913-1995) served as the official photographer for the University of Hawai'i for over 41 years. After retirement, he continued to volunteer his talents on a part-time basis for another 14 years.
The extensive collection consists of approximately 70,000 negatives and numerous contact prints. It presents a visual record of the University of Hawai'i's growth and development, student life, and campus events over most of the past century. The negatives and prints are arranged by the format size of the film and grouped into four main categories: The “Faculty” series (1948-1980) and the three “Events” series A, B, and C (early 1900s undated negatives to 1982), plus a small fifth series, Miscellaneous.
Arrangement
The photographs have been organized into four main series: Faculty, A-Events, B-Events and C-Events,
plus a small fifth series, Miscellaneous.
The Faculty series runs from the 1940s to the early 1980s and documents teaching, administrative, and support personnel at the University of Hawai'i. It is further divided into four subseries by date and arranged alphabetically from A-Z within the subseries. Most of the prints have been separated from the negatives and are housed in a 4x6x12-inch card box.
The A-, B- and C-Events series document campus activities including groundbreaking ceremonies, building construction, mural painting, visits by presidents and dignitaries, campus protests, fashion shows, and ceremonies such as graduations, awards, and dedications. It is arranged by film format size and then chronologically within each format. It spans the years
1939 to 1980 with some overlap of dates in each series. A-Events are 4x5-inch negatives; B-Events are 120mm negatives; C-Events are 35mm negatives. The numbering system within these series begins with a capital letter (A, B, or C) representing the size of the negative, two digits representing the year, and additional digits for chronological ordering within each year. It should be noted that the dates in all the series overlap and that the same subjects might be covered by two or more series. The researcher should consult each of the series for a specific topic or time period.
Prints, when available, are coded by size under the “Print” column in the Inventory as follows:
P = 4”x3” print housed in a card file box
CP = 35mm contact print strip housed in large binders
OP = oversize prints housed in folders in a document case
A small group of miscellaneous prints and Masao Miyamoto’s four subject file boxes were added at the end of the C-Events series. These subject files are a cross reference to the MM# and are available to the researcher upon request.
Provenance
Transferred by University of Hawai'i Office of External Affairs & University Relations to the Archives & Manuscripts Department, University of Hawai'i at Manoa Library.
Existence and Location of Copies
A few images have been digitized and may be viewed on the University Archives website.
Physical Description
The material is generally in good condition. Negatives were rehoused into polymer sleeves and acid-free preservation envelopes. Most of the prints have been separated from the negatives and rehoused in archival sleeves. They are stored in 4x6-inch card boxes and three large binders.
Processing Information
Processed by Patricia Ogburn, CA. Completed May 2006.
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the University of Hawaii at Manoa Libraries Repository