Browse Items (993 total)
- Collection: Chester Smolski Photographs
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Zaragoza: Narrow Street Scene
Zaragoza is an old city whose collective architecture is a pastiche of Roman ruins, Islamic palaces, cathedrals and pst-modern architecture. This photograph shows narrow streets and historic buildings typical to Zaragoza (Saragossa in English). The…
Ypres: World War I Trenches
A1969 photograph of World War I trenches in Ypres. Ypres was the starting point of the famous Christmas 1914 truce when German soldiers decorated their trench with candles and sang carols on Christmas Eve 1914. British soldiers quickly joined, and in…
Worcester City Hall, Renovation
Worcester City Hall photographed from an office building at 120 Front Street.
Worcester City Hall opened in 1898, and features aspects of the Italianate Renaissance Revival style, such as its projecting porches, window balconies, and grand central…
Worcester City Hall opened in 1898, and features aspects of the Italianate Renaissance Revival style, such as its projecting porches, window balconies, and grand central…
Worcester City Hall
On Main St. in Worcester, Massachusetts, is Worcester City Hall with its notable clock tower.
Worcester City Hall, completed in 1898, features aspects of the Italianate Renaissance Revival style, such as projecting porches, window balconies, and…
Worcester City Hall, completed in 1898, features aspects of the Italianate Renaissance Revival style, such as projecting porches, window balconies, and…
Worcester Center Galleria
The Worcester Center Galleria was a suburban mall which opened in 1971 as part of the Worcester Common urban renewal project. It was shut down and reopened in the 1990s as an outlet called the Worcester Common Fashion Outlet, which then closed in…
Worcester Center Galleria
The Worcester Center Galleria was a suburban mall which opened in 1971 as part of the Worcester Common urban renewal project. It was shut down and reopened in the 1990s as an outlet called the Worcester Common Fashion Outlet, which then closed in…
Woonsocket: Urban Renewal Social Flatlands
By 1970 Woonsocket was being referred to as a lost city (Providence Journal). In response the city entered a resurgence phase. The biggest change was the creation of a new downtown in the area known as the Social Flatlands. The black high rise in the…
Woonsocket: St. Germain Manor, Elderly Housing
Named for Congressman Fernand J St. Germain, the elderly high rise was one of two new high rise structures to be built during the 1970s in Woonsocket. It was part of a greater city revitalization that developed the Social Flatlands into the new…
Woonsocket: Depot Square
Formerly a railroad depot, Woonsocket Depot was rehabilitated as retail & office space during the process of urban renewal that revitalized the city in the 1970s. The station is located in Depot Square.
(date of photograph has been…
Woonsocket: City Hall
Purchased from the Harris Institute in 1902, Woonsocket’s acquisition of a central administration building ended a decade long search for such a structure. The Harris Institute, which had donated the state’s first free public library in 1868, sold…
Woonsocket Village, Urban Renewal
Woonsocket Village was built as part of city wide urban renewal in the 1970s. The neighborhood has 284 houses in an area that used to house 80. The housing project was built on a neighborhood in the Social Flatlands, previously it had been the Gaulin…
Woonsocket Village & Marquette Building
Woonsocket under went a revitalization process in the 1970s, specifically in an area known as the Social Flatlands. This photograph shows Woonsocket Village, a housing development that replaced neighborhoods that had formerly been multiple family…
Woonsocket Village
Housing in Woonsocket Village. This affordable housing project was constructed in the 1970s as part of the new Social Flatlands. The project replaced multifamily homes that and mills that had fallen into a state of disrepair since the late 19th…
Wisconsin: Tenney Park & Yahara River in Madison, Aerial Photograph
The Yahara River is a tributary of the Rock River that connects all of the lakes around which Madison was built. This photograph shows a section of the stream that passes Tenney Park, a public park named for the local lawyer, Daniel K. Tenney, who…
Wisconsin: Milwaukee Skyline
Photographed from Milkwakee Bay, this photograph shows the Milwaukee skyline as it was in 1962. Conspicuously absent are the sky scrapers that now dominate the skyline, which would be built in the following decades.
Wisconsin: Lake Wingra and Lake Monona, Aerial Photograph, Madison
Lake Wingra and Lake Monona are two of the lakes the Yahara River passes through on it’s way to the Rock River. This aerial photograph shows the lakes and surrounding city of Wisconsin.
Wisconsin: Lake Medota
Lake Mendota is one of the two lakes that creates the isthmus which is home to Madison Wisconsin. This photo, from the summer of 1964, shows a Volkswagen Microbus parked by the shore of the lake, which is a popular destination for water sports and…
Winchester Cathedral: Interior, Nave
The nave of Winchester Cathedral is the longest of the medieval cathedrals in England. The nave was remodeled in 1394, and the original Norman style was modified as the building evolved into that of the gothic and Romanesque styles.
Winchester Cathedral: East End
The eastern end of Winchester Cathedral photographed from a garden off of Colebrook St. The Winchester Cathedral has the longest nave of all the medieval cathedrals in England. This view show’s the cathedral’s gothic style architecture. While the…
Winchester Cathedral: Cheyney Court
The Porter’s Lodge and Cheyney’s court at Winchester Cathedral, both 15th century constructions, are wonderful examples of half-timber architecture. Cheyney Court was the home of the Bishop’s court in the medieval days. Presently it is the home for…
Winchester Cathedral: Buttresses
Winchester Cathedral is one of the largest cathedrals in England. This image shows the massive buttresses that support this stone cathedral. Winchester Cathedral, known for being the longest of the medieval cathedrals in Britian, is also a popular…
Willingboro Secondary School and the Levitt High School in Willingboro, NJ
Willingboro Secondary School and the Levitt High School in 1970. As of 2016, Willingboro has the Willingboro High School, the Levitt Middle School, one alternative education program school to include gifted and talented students, and five elementary…
Willingboro Secondary School and Levitt High School in Willingboro, NJ
Willingboro Secondary School and Levitt High School in 1970. As of 2016, Willingboro has the Willingboro High School, the Levitt Middle School, one alternative education program school to include gifted and talented students, and five elementary…
Willingboro Plaza
The Willingboro Plaza in Levittown, New Jersey was a 614,000-square-foot regional shopping center that was built as a centerpiece of the city. After 7 years of construction, Willingboro Plaza was completed in 1967 with featured stores like Acme,…
Willingboro Plaza
The Willingboro Plaza in Levittown, New Jersey was a 614,000-square-foot regional shopping center that was built as a centerpiece of the city. After 7 years of construction, Willingboro Plaza was completed in 1967 with featured stores like Sears and…
Willingboro Plaza
The Willingboro Plaza in Levittown, New Jersey was a 614,000-square-foot regional shopping center that was built as a centerpiece of the city. After 7 years of construction, Willingboro Plaza was completed in 1967 with featured stores like Sears and…
Willingboro Plaza
The Willingboro Plaza in Levittown, New Jersey was a 614,000-square-foot regional shopping center that was built as a centerpiece of the city. After 7 years of construction, Willingboro Plaza was completed in 1967 with featured stores like Sears and…
White House Tourists
Tourists visiting the White House in Washington D.C., photographed by Chet Smolski. Until the early twentieth century, The White House was open to the public, but has since been restricted due to security concerns. However, free and public tours of…
White House - North Side
The White House has served as the home for the American Presidents and their families for more than 200 years. The first cornerstone was laid in 1792, and the building was completed around 1800. George Washington commissioned the construction of the…
Weybosset St: Loew's Theatre (PPAC) and Beneficent Church
Weybosset St. in Providence featuring Loew's Theater and the Beneficent Congregational Church. Loew's was threatened with demolition in 1977 and it was saved by a consortium of local businesses, foundations and government agencies. In 1978, the…
Weybosset Hill and Cathedral Square
The Weybosset Hill area is bounded by Empire St. on the east, Broad and Washington Streets on the south and north, and Interstate 95 on the west. Redevelopment of this area stemmed from a 1959 recommendation of the City Plan Commission's master plan…
Westminster Street Pedestrian Mall
In the early 1960s this section of Westminster street was closed to vehicular traffic and became a pedestrian mall. Pictured here in 1970, a game of Frisbee takes place while shoppers traverse closer to the buildings. In 1986 the street was opened…
Westminster Street Pedestrian Mall
A compressed view of Westminster Street in 1974 taken from I. M. Pei's Cathedral Square. In 1964 Westminster Street was closed to vehicular traffic between Dorrance Street and Snow Street. The move was an attempt to compete with suburban malls.…
Westminster Street from Cathedral Square
According to Woodward, Cathedral Square is the “most problematic of Providence’s open spaces.” Despite being designed by world class architects and urban planners, namely I.M. Pei and Zion & Breen, the space has been universally decried as an…
Westerly- Weekapaug Beach
An aerial view of Misquamicut Beach in Westerly. Atlantic Avenue runs parallel to the shore line, which is lined with attractions. Hurricanes in 1938 and in the 1950’s permanently altered the landscape and destroyed much of the establishments.…
Welwyn: Sir Ebeneezer Howard Memorial
This memorial to Sir Ebeneezer Howard sits within Welwyn Garden City, founded in 1920. Howard’s 1898 publication, Garden Cities of To-morrow, lead to the development of garden cities in which people live harmoniously with nature. Welwyn Garden City…
Welcome to Providence “Safest City” Sign on Providence Biltmore Hotel
The Providence Biltmore Hotel is an upscale hotel that opened in 1922 as part of the Biltmore Hotel chain. It was founded by John McEntee Bowman and Louis Wallick, and is currently owned by Grand Heritage Hotels International. It was added to the…
Waterplace Park
The relocation of Providence
Washington, DC: Trompe l’Oeil Wall Mural
Shown on the side of this building is the optical illusion trompe l’oeil. Translated, the term stands for “deceive the eye”. This technique is achieved by using realistic imagery in order to give the optical illusion that the image is in 3D.
(date…
Washington Street
Washington Street and the corner of Mathewson Street, photographed in 1978. The Shepard Building, pictured at the left, was home to the Shepard Department store. At its height the company occupied surrounding buildings, expanding to cover two-blocks.…
Washington St. Columbus Day Parade
Washington Street on Columbus Day, 1974. On the left is the Providence Public Library.
Washington Monument at Night
The Washington Monument, the most prominent fixture in the D.C. skyline, was completed in 1884 in honor of the first American president, George Washington. The monument stands over 555 ft tall and offers views over thirty miles. A design competition…
Washington Monument
The Washington Monument, the most prominent fixture in the D.C. skyline, was completed in 1884 in honor of the first American president, George Washington. The monument stands over 555 ft tall and offers views over thirty miles. A design competition…
Washington D.C. Cityscape
A distant view of the Washington D.C. cityscape. The Washington Monument, the most prominent fixture in the D.C. skyline, was completed in 1886.
Washington Circle - Washington D.C.
The George Washington Equestrian Statue stands at the center of Washington Circle. The bronze statue depicts George Washington on horseback fighting the 1776 Battle of Princeton. Clark Mills sculpted the Washington Circle statue, as well as another…
Washington Capitol
A view of the expansive United States Capitol building in Washington, D.C. The Capitol building covers approximately four acres of land and is host to 3-5 million visitors every year. First built in 1793, the home of the Senate and House of…
Warwick: Midland Mall, Warwick Mall and CCRI’s Knight Campus
Although now considered a dead mall, the construction of the Midland Mall (renamed the Rhode island Mall in 1985), completed in 1968, was a milestone in the states economic history as it initiated the shift of retail trade from Providence into the…
Warren/Barrington: Aerial Photograph
This aerial photograph was taken over Warren and looks west across Barrington and to Narragansett Bay. This photograph shows the distinctive shoreline of Belcher Cover and Tyler Point. Barrington had been a part of Warren from the 1747 until 1770.…
Walt Disney World: Mickey’s 50th Birthday
November 18, 1978 marked Mickey Mouse’s 50th Birthday. Several times that year, Walt Disney World celebrated with a special parade in his honor that spanned the entire magic kingdom Main Street. The characters were staged on oversized floats…
Walt Disney World: Indian Village in Frontierland
Frontierland is one of the themed lands in Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. It is based on the 19th century American West. This photograph shows an Indian Village and train tracks of the Walt Disney World Railroad passing in the background.