Finding aid for the Thomas Root Aerial Photographs of Cleveland, Ohio


Title:
Thomas Root Aerial Photographs of Cleveland, Ohio
Repository:
Western Reserve Historical Society
Phone: 216-721-5722
http://www.wrhs.org
Creator:
Thomas Root
Dates:
1956-1985
Quantity:
0.20 linear feet (1 container)
Abstract:
Thomas F. Root (b. 1923) of Plymouth, Ohio, was a ceramics engineer, salesman, pilot and aerial photographer. He learned to fly an airplane at the Mansfield Airport in 1939, and subsequently owned a series of small aircraft. From 1966 until his retirement in 1994, Root ran his own business, Tom Root Air Photos, Inc. His principal clients included the American Shipbuilding Company, Denison and Oberlin colleges, General Electric, Timken, Ford, General Motors, and many field tilling contractors. Root's company specialized in single photograph verticals for field tilling operations, zoning, and single views of entire towns. Many of his aerial photographs documented newsworthy events; some were distributed to the national media. The consists of 74 black and white photographs, size 8 1/2" x 11", plus 70 black and white copies, size 3 3/4" x 5", and 71 black and white negatives, size 4" x 5", of aerial views of different parts of the Cleveland, Ohio area.
Identification:
PG 570
Location:
closed stacks
Language:
The records are in English

Biography of Thomas Root

Thomas F. Root (b. 1923) of Plymouth, Ohio, was a ceramics engineer, salesman, pilot and aerial photographer. He learned to fly an airplane at the Mansfield Airport in 1939, and subsequently owned a series of small aircraft. From 1966 until his retirement in 1994, Root ran his own business, Tom Root Air Photos, Inc. His principal clients included the American Shipbuilding Company, Denison and Oberlin colleges, General Electric, Timken, Ford, General Motors, and many field tilling contractors. Root's company specialized in single photograph verticals for field tilling operations, zoning, and single views of entire towns. Many of his aerial photographs documented newsworthy events; some were distributed to the national media.

Scope and Content

The Thomas Root Aerial Photographs of Cleveland, Ohio, 1956-1985 and undated, consist of 74 black and white photographs, size 8 ½" x 11", plus 70 black and white copies, size 3 ¾" x 5", and 71 black and white negatives, size 4" x 5", of aerial views of different parts of the Cleveland, Ohio area.

This collection is of value to researchers studying the history of Cleveland, Ohio, in particular its geographic changes over time in the second half of the twentieth century. The photographs show a number of prominent locations at different time periods, including downtown, the Flats, University Circle, a series of interstate highways, and different suburbs.

Statement of Arrangement

The collection is arranged alphabetically by subject and then chronologically. It also includes a partial index containing image number and description of image.

Restrictions on Access

None.

Related Material: Related Material

The researcher should also consult PG 19 Aerial Photographs of Cuyahoga County, Ohio and PG 75 Aerial Surveys Inc. Cleveland, Ohio, Photographs.


Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Aerial photogrammetry -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
Aerial photography -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
Aerial photography in geography -- Ohio -- Cleveland.
Cleveland (Ohio) -- Aerial photographs.
Cleveland (Ohio) -- History.
Tom Root Air Photos, Inc. -- Aerial photographs.

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___] PG 570 Thomas Root Aerial Photographs of Cleveland, Ohio, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

Thomas Root, 2010

Processing Information

Processed by Scott Ondercin in 2011


Detailed Description of The Collection



Thomas Root Aerial Photographs of Cleveland, Ohio, 1956-1985, undated

Box 1 / Folder 1
Index, selected images and image numbers, undated




Box 1 / Folder 2
Airport, unidentified; Burke Lakefront Airport; Cleveland Clinic; and Cleveland Municipal Stadium, 1963, 1961-1968, 1985, 1958, 1961, 1981




Box 1 / Folder 3
Downtown Cleveland, 1956-1985




Box 1 / Folder 4
East Shoreway; Edgewater Park; Euclid Avenue; Euclid Mall; The Flats; Great Northern Mall; Hopkins Airport; and Innerbelt, 1961-1963, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1968-1970, ca. 1976, 1963-1978, 1961, 1970




Box 1 / Folder 5
Interstate 90; Interstate 480; Interstate, unidentified; Lakewood; Randall Park Mall; Richmond Mall and county airport; Rocky River Bridge and Yacht Basin; Thistledown; University Circle; and Willow Cloverleaf, 1963-1965, 1971-1978, 1963, 1968, 1982, 1982, 1960, 1983, 1985, 1969