Theodor Horydczak

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Folger Library interiors. Exhibition hall at Folger Library I. LC-H814-T-L04-113 (interpositive)

Theodor Horydczak (1889-1971) was a photographer who documented the architecture, culture, and social life of Washington, D.C. in the first half of the 20th century, especially the 1920s-1940s. The bulk of his work resides in the Prints and Photographs division of the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress Horydczak collection consists of a donation by

The photographer's daughter and son-and-law, Norma and Francis Reeves, [who] presented the collection, consisting of more than 32,000 items, including approximately 17,450 black-and-white photographs, 14,000 negatives, and 1,500 color transparencies, to the Library of Congress in 1973.

Horydczak captured the progress of many Washington, D.C. landmarks including: the National Archives, Washington Monument, and Memorial Bridge. In the course of his work, he was engaged to photograph the early days of the Folger Shakespeare Library building, selected collection materials, as well as some personnel, including the Library's first director Joseph Quincy Adams and one of the founders, Emily Jordan Folger.

In January 2017, research was conducted by a Folger staff member to date the photographs taken of the Folger, using Horydczak's log book held at the Library of Congress.

Researching the collection

Logbook and call number codes

Theodor Horydczak kept a logbook of his various photography jobs arranged in the numerical order of his photographic negatives. The logbook should be consulted from the microfilm (LOT 11504), unless absolutely necessary, as it is very fragile. Each numbered line of the logbook contains a short description of the subject or client photographed. Few of the lines are dated, but enough of them are that the researcher can ascertain an approximate date of most of the photographs taken. In many cases, Horydczak took photographs of recently completed buildings, so research into various buildings' completion dates allows for a close approximation of the date of the other photographs. Along with numbering each negative in order, Horydczak's photographs were organized by the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs division by assigning a numerical code to each type of negative.

The list of these 4-digit numbers appears below:

Code	Size	Approximate number	Negative type
LC-H812	5x7 in.	450	Safety negatives
LC-H813	4x5 in.	765	Safety negatives
LC-H814	8x10 in.	7,975	Safety negatives
LC-H822	5x7 in.	575	Nitrate film negatives
LC-H823	4x5 in.	1,010	Nitrate film negatives
LC-H824	8x10 in.	2,350	Nitrate film negatives
LC-H832	5x7 in.	135	Glass negatives
LC-H833	4x5 in.	40	Glass negatives
LC-H834	8x10 in.	90	Glass negatives
LC-H8	8x10 in. and smaller	940	Color transparencies

Finding photographs of the Folger

Horydczak also, later in his career, selected some photographs for resale and renumbered them during this process. Relevant alpha-numerical codes for finding images in and of the Folger are:

L04

Folger Shakespeare Library Interior and Exterior

L03

Exterior Library of Congress and Library of Congress Annex (Adams Building)

C01

U.S. Capitol Exterior

Therefore, an example of a call number coded with the above systems would appear as such: LC-H814- L04-040—a Folger Library photograph in safety negative format, the 40th negative.

Logbook, notebooks, and subject cards

In order to find the original entry for a renumbered negative, Horydczak's logbook, notebooks, and subject cards must be used in concert. When the photographer renumbered his negatives in the alpha-numerical system, he created subject cards for his own organization and reference. After he finished listing the various negatives on the subject cards, he typed a cross-referenced list kept in alphabetized 3-ring notebooks. The Folger can be found under "L" for "Library, Folger Shakespeare" and is the fourth entry, therefore making the code for the Folger "L04."

Once the researcher ascertains the original negative numbers from the cross-reference notebooks, they should find the relevant entry in the logbook to understand the date and context of the photograph.

Resources

The resources listed below provide some information about the little-known photographer Theodor Horydczak.

Digitized photonegative collection at Library of Congress

"Searching for Theodor Horydczak, elusive photographic chronicler of Washington" by John Kelly, The Washington Post, 13 September 2013. Accessed 12 January 2017.

"Waverly Rare Books in Falls Church to auction iconic Washington photos by Theodor Horydczak" in Art Daily. Accessed 12 January 2017.