Impressive archive of photographs taken by US Navy photographer Paul Begley, who was enlisted from 1942 through 1963 and assigned as the presidential photographer for both Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower. The archive is comprised of twenty-two presidential photos plus dozens of photos depicting other subjects. Archive includes:
Seven 4 x 5 contact prints of Harry S. Truman with matching negatives, including: three of Truman and Winston Churchill on the USS Williamsburg in 1952; and four of Truman on vacation and relaxing with family, one of which shows the president shirtless on the beach.
Eleven 4 x 5 contact prints of Dwight D. Eisenhower with matching negatives, with three depicting official events: Eisenhower with Queen Elizabeth reviewing the Canadian military; President Eisenhower being sworn in for his second term by Chief Justice Earl Warren in the East Room of the White House on January 20, 1957; and Vice President Richard Nixon being sworn in at the same time. The others primarily show Eisenhower's personal life or informal events, including his family at Camp David in 1954; Eisenhower practicing his favorite hobby of painting; four of Eisenhower and Winston Churchill at a bachelor party in London in 1959, one of which catches Churchill dozing off on the couch; a photo of Ike's painting of Churchill; and one of Eisenhower looking through a periscope.
The final presidential shots are of John F. Kennedy, with three glossy 10 x 8 contact sheets from 1962 showing John F. Kennedy deplaning from Air Force One and talking with various military officials, then giving a speech on the tarmac. A fourth contact sheet shows Kennedy visiting one of the Navy's warships. These contact prints each have twelve images, for a total of forty-eight. Also includes a glossy 10 x 8 photo of Kennedy in a Lincoln Continental Convertible, date stamped November 26, 1962, on the reverse. None of the JFK negatives are present.
The balance of the collection consists of dozens of other photos and negatives of non-presidential events, military officers, and assorted other subjects, and some other supplemental material and ephemera such as a hardbound book about Eisenhower's cruise on the USS Williamsburg. In overall fine condition. This archive originates from the estate of Begley’s niece, and the variety of photographs—many of which are unpublished—provide a fascinating look into this period of American history.
