2026 SPE Annual Conference: Catalyst for Exchange
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print this pageWilliam O. Field: Scientist with a Camera
Teaching Methodology & Research: Angela Schmidt
Friday, September 13 - 3:00PM to 3:45PM
Gruening 409
William Osgood Field (1904-1994) is generally regarded as the father of modern glaciology in North America. His work in northern regions – in Canada and especially Alaska from the 1920s through 1950s – advanced scientific knowledge about glaciers, and contributed to current understanding about global climate change. Most of Field's professional career was with the American Geographic Society, where he was head of the exploration and research department for over two decades until his retirement in 1969. Throughout his life of travel and exploration, Field carried a camera at all times, and captured thousands of still images as well as hundreds of motion picture films. He was an accomplished scientific photographer with an eye for the beauty of landscapes, wilderness, and northern towns and people.
The editor of William O. Field's life history, C. Suzanne Brown, wrote in the preface of her 2004 publication, "With a Camera in My Hands," that Field was highly interested in documenting life and the changing world around him. "Reading Bill's life story in conjunction with using his collection helps create a better understanding of exploration in Alaska in the late 1800s and the first third of this century, of the people involved, and of the hardships they faced" (Brown, xvi).
The Alaska and Polar Regions Collections & Archives (APRCA) at the University of Alaska Fairbanks holds the William O. Field Papers. The collection, which arrived at the university in batches between 1987 and 2007, contains approximately 350 cubic feet of material, and is one of the largest held by the archives.
I aim to introduce the audience to Field's work, and to show photos from his collection and clips from some of his early motion picture films. I'll highlight brief snippets from oral history interviews with Field – particularly ones in which he talks about photography and filmmaking. I'll talk about the work of archives, how we organize and store our collections, and answer audience questions.
The Alaska Film Archives is a unit of the Alaska and Polar Regions Collections & Archives (APRCA), which holds exceptional resources for the study of Alaska's history, politics, and culture, as well as significant international polar research materials (http://library.uaf.edu/apr). APRCA serves a local, national, and international research community by making available its wealth of monograph and serial volumes, rare books and maps, historical photos and films, and oral history recordings.
speaker
Angela Schmidt
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