Hans Groenhoff Photographic Collection Kristine L. Kaske-Martin 2005 National Air and Space Museum Archives 14390 Air & Space Museum Parkway Chantilly, VA 20151 NASMRefDesk@si.edu http://airandspace.si.edu/research/resources/archives/
Table of Contents Collection Overview... 1 Administrative Information... 1 Scope and Contents... 2 Biographical/Historical note... 2 Arrangement... 2 Names and Subjects... 3 Container Listing... 4 Series 1: HGA, undated... 4 Series 2: HGB, undated... 5 Series 3: HGC, undated... 6 Series 4: HGD, undated... 7 Series 5: Copies, undated... 8
Collection Overview Repository: National Air and Space Museum Archives Title: Identifier: Date: circa 1930s-1975 Extent: 5.27 cubic feet (18 boxes) Creator: Groenhoff, Hans Language: English English Summary: The Hans Groenhoff Photographic Collection consists of 8 linear feet (4.5 cubic feet) of photographic material. It contains a total of 2630 single items and 343 rolls of film for an approximate total of 14,900 original images. The collection is in good condition with very little deterioration. Administrative Information Acquisition Information Hans Groenhoff, Purchase, 1962, 1984, XXXX-0359, NASM Provenance The Hans Groenhoff Photographic Collection was a gift to the National Air and Space Museum. The copyright to the images in the collection has been transferred to the Museum. Additional collection items were obtained for the Smithsonian in 1984. Upon donation in 1962, the collection was held in the Museum's Aeronautics Division. In 1985, curator E.T. Wooldridge and the Museum staff produced an exhibit of Groenhoff's work. That same year, Wooldridge's book, Focus on Flight, was published. The collection was then transferred to the Archives Division, where it is now housed. The collection has been transferred from acidic paper jackets to mylar enclosers and acid free boxes. Processing Information Arranged and described by Kristine L. Kaske-Martin, 2005. Encoded by Rihoko Ueno, January 2012. Preferred Citation Hans Groenhoff Photographic Collection, Acc. XXXX-0359, National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution. Page 1 of 8
Restrictions No restrictions on access Conditions Governing Use Material is subject to Smithsonian Terms of Use. Should you wish to use NASM material in any medium, please submit an Application for Permission to Reproduce NASM Material, available at Permissions Requests. Biographical Note Hans Herman Hugo Ernest Wilhelm von Groenhoff (1906-1985) was an aviation photographer. He was born in Hamburg, Germany, to a Lutheran minister and his wife on October 15, 1906. He attended law school in Germany briefly prior to leaving for the United States in 1927. He married Freda Groenhoff in 1928 and became a naturalized American citizen in 1936. Hans Groenhoff followed in his brother Gunther's professional footsteps by learning to fly. He did so at Bendix Field in New Jersey and at Flushing Airport in New York. His professional life was spent as an aviation photographer, writer, editor, and correspondent. Hans Groenhoff was most well known for his aviation photography that appeared in such publications as Life, Colliers, Esquire, National Geographic, and the Saturday Evening Post, as well as those included in Flying, Flying and Popular Aviation, Air Trails Pictorial, Sportsman Pilot, and Aero Digest. Groenhoff spent most of his career in the New York area. He later lived and worked in Florida. His last major photography contract was with the Bahamas Ministry of Tourism, which led him all over the Caribbean and then to Europe to promote the Bahamas as a tourist destination. Hans Groenhoff's aviation photography career is documented in the book Focus on Flight: The Aviation Photography of Hans Groenhoff by E. T. Woodridge (Smithsonian Institution, 1985). Scope and Contents The images in the Hans Groenhoff Photographic Collection are primarily of American aircraft and were taken from 1933 to 1967. Most were taken while he worked under contract for aircraft manufacturers shooting publicity photography. Some of the represented manufacturers are Curtiss, Piper, Beech, Grumman, and Aeronca. Groenhoff also took many images of gliders during soaring and gliding contests in Elmira, New York. This collection consists of Groenhoff's collection of aviation negatives, contact sheets and transparencies, spanning his entire photography career, and includes the following subjects: military and civilian aircraft; military events; glider and sailplane activities; air shows and races; and aerial images. Arrangement This collection is organized into five series: Series I: Hans Groenhoff A (HGA). HGA contains 6 rolls of 35mm black and white film and one roll of color transparency film (unmounted slide film). Series II: Hans Groenhoff (HGB). HGB contains 723 120mm black and white negative, 207 120mm color transparencies, and 35 color slides that are duplicates of images in this section. Page 2 of 8
Series III: Hans Groenhoff (HGC). HGC contains 1700 original 4x5 inch color transparencies, many of which have color negative and black and white negative copies filed after their associated originals in the boxes. Series IV: Hans Groenhoff (HGD). HGD contains 322 rolls of 35mm black and white roll film. Series V: Copies. Copies contains 8x10 color negatives for four Groenhoff covers from Flying and Popular Aviation as well as copy prints, negatives and 35mm slides of materials found elsewhere in the collection. The images in Series I and II were taken in the Bahamas and other locations in the Caribbean during the latter part of Groenhoff's career. The remainder of the collection relates to various aviation topics. The images in HGC and HGD are cataloged in the NASM photographic database. Every HGC 4x5 image and every piece of HGD roll film has an entry in the NASM image database. Each database record contains the image's subject, Groenhoff image number, format and condition information, and NASM caption. Researchers may wish to contact the Archives Division in order to obtain access to the information contained in this database. Limited access to the database can be provided to researchers in our Reading Rooms, and written queries will be answered. In addition there is a written index of HGD at the beginning of that series. Names and Subject Terms This collection is indexed in the online catalog of the Smithsonian Institution under the following terms: Subjects: Aerial photography Aeronautics Aeronautics, Commercial -- United States Aeronautics, Military Types of Materials: Aerial Photographs Photographs Names: Groenhoff, Hans Page 3 of 8
Series 1: HGA Container Listing Series 1: HGA, undated This series contains 6 rolls of 35mm black and white film and one roll of color transparency film (unmounted slide film). The images in this section are of the Bahamas and other Caribbean islands from the air and aircraft on the ground. Groenhoff took these images during the latter part of his career. Box 1, Folder 1 6 rolls of 35mm black and white negative film Box 1, Folder 2 1 roll of color transparency film (unmounted slide film) Return to Table of Contents Page 4 of 8
Series 2: HGB Series 2: HGB, undated This series contains 723 120mm black and white negatives, 207 120mm color transparencies and 45 duplicate color slides made from HGB images. The images in this section are of the Bahamas and other Caribbean islands from the air and aircraft on the ground. Groenhoff took these images during the latter part of his career. Box 1, Folder 3 723 120mm black and white negatives Box 1, Folder 4 207 120mm color transparencies Box 1, Folder 5; Box 1, Folder 5 45 35mm duplicate color slides Return to Table of Contents Page 5 of 8
Series 3: HGC Series 3: HGC, undated This series contains 1700 original 4x5 inch color transparencies. Many have duplicate color negatives and black and white negatives filed after the original items in the boxes. These images are of aircraft and aviation related topics. Box 2 HGC-1 Aero Commander 500A -- HGC-139 Aeronca 7 Champion Box 3 HGC-140 Aeronca Group Photos -- HGC-297 Boeing B-29 Superfortress Box 4 HGC-298 Boeing B-47 Stratojet -- HGC-488 Curtiss C-46 Commando Box 5 HGC-489 Curtiss C-46 Commando -- HGC-755 Curtiss SB2C-4 Helldiver Box 6 HGC- 756 Curtiss SB2C-4 Helldiver -- HGC-913 Johnson Bullet 185 (Texas Bullet) Box 7 HGC-914 Kirby Gull Sailplane -- HGC-1060 Martin XPB2M-1 Mars Box 8 HGC-1061 Martin XPB2M-1 Mars -- HGC-1196 Piper PA-11 Cub Special Box 9 HGC-1197 Piper PA-11 Cub Special -- HGC-1335 Prue 160 Box 10 HGC-1336 Republic YP-43 Lancer -- HGC-1475 Waco CG-13A Box 11 HGC-1476 Airfields -- HGC-1700 nonaviation topics Box 12, Folder 1 1672 -- 1676 (out of order, these are 3.5 x 5.75 inch b/w negatives and 4x5 inch duplicates) Return to Table of Contents Page 6 of 8
Series 4: HGD Series 4: HGD, undated This series contains an item level index and contact sheets for its 322 rolls of 35mm black and white film. The index and contact sheets are in Box 12 and the originals are in Boxes 13 --15. These images are of aircraft and aviation related topics. Box 12, Folder 2 HGD index Box 12, Folder 3 HGD index Box 12, Folder 4 HGD-1 -- HGD-25 Box 12, Folder 5 HGD-26 -- HGD-50 Box 12, Folder 6 HGD-51 -- HGD-75 Box 12, Folder 7 HGD-76 -- HGD-100 Box 12, Folder 8 HGD-101-- HGD-125 Box 12, Folder 9 HGD-126 -- HGD-150 Box 12, Folder 10 HGD-151 -- HGD-175 Box 12, Folder 11 HGD-176 -- HGD-200 Box 12, Folder 12 HGD-201 -- HGD-225 Box 12, Folder 13 HGD-226 -- HGD-250 Box 12, Folder 14 HGD-251 -- HGD-275 Box 12, Folder 15 HGD-276 -- HGD-300 Box 12, Folder 16 HGD-301 -- HGD-336 Box 13 HGD-1 -- HGD-140 Box 14 HGD-141 -- HGD-280 Box 15 HGD-281 -- HGD-322 Return to Table of Contents Page 7 of 8
Series 5: Copies Series 5: Copies, undated 8x10 inch color negatives of four Groenhoff magazine covers are in Box 16, and duplicates of collection materials are in Boxes 16--18. These images are of aircraft and aviation related topics. Box 16, Folder 1 Covers of Flying and Popular Aviation, June, July, and December 1941 and February 1942; copy 35mm slides, contact prints, and photocopies of original captions Box 16, Folder 2 8x10 inch copy prints, copy negatives, and copy 35mm slides of selected images from Series IV: HGD (HGD-3-24 -- HGD-97-34) Box 16, Folder 3 8x10 inch copy prints, copy negatives, and copy 35mm slides of selected images from Series IV: HGD (HGD-102-2 -- HGD-198-44) Box 16, Folder 4 8x10 inch copy prints, copy negatives, and copy 35mm slides of selected images from Series IV: HGD (HGD-202-26 -- HGD-248-44) Box 16, Folder 5 8x10 inch copy prints, copy negatives, and copy 35mm slides of selected images from Series IV: HGD (HGD-257-4 -- HGC-315-36) Box 17, Folder 1 Unnumbered 8x10 copy prints from collection items, subjects listed: P-80, F4U, B-17, F7F, TBM, SOC-1, F-82 "Bettie Jo" Box 17, Folder 2 Unnumbered 8x10 copy prints from collection items, subjects listed: P-80, F4U, B-17, F7F, TBM, SOC-1, F-82 "Bettie Jo" Box 17, Folder 3 Unnumbered 8x10 copy prints from collection items, subjects listed: L-4, L-19, PQ-14, PT-19 Box 17, Folder 4 Unnumbered 8x10 copy prints from collection items, subject listed: Gliders, Civil Box 18, Folder 1 Unnumbered 8x10 copy prints from collection items, subjects listed: PT-17, Corsair, EC-121/WV-2, T-28, T-34 Box 18, Folder 2 Unnumbered and unidentified 8x10 copy prints made from collection items Box 18, Folder 3 Unnumbered and unidentified 8x10 copy prints made from collection items Box 18, Folder 4 Unnumbered and unidentified 8x10 copy prints made from collection items Box 18, Folder 5 Unnumbered and unidentified 35mm black and white and color slides made from collection items Return to Table of Contents Page 8 of 8