About the Exhibit:

Alta Cole was a native to Cherry Valley and an elementary teacher and who lived at 46 Main Street. One day Alta heard the sound of breaking glass and went across the street to 39 Main Street to find workers clearing out the attic which was filled with photography equipment such as cameras, lenses, prints, and glass plate negatives. She realized that the glass plate negatives had images on them, and convinced the workers to give her a few boxes because she believed pictures of her relatives would be in the boxes. The negatives happened to be 5”x 7” glass plate negatives that were made around c.1890, the photographer was, and is unknown. Alta passed away in 1979, and her family contacted longtime resident Elmer Baldwin to clean out her home.

Elmer took the boxes of the negatives home thinking they were window panes and put them in his shed for 25 years. In 2014 Elmer was cleaning out his garage and brought the glass plate negatives to the Cherry Valley Museum. In 2021 the negatives were brought to the attention of photographer Andy Baugnet, who met with museum members and volunteered his services to digitize the collection so they could be properly viewed. A fundraiser followed, and here they are on view for you to enjoy courtesy of the Cherry Valley Museum. Many thanks to Alta Cole, Elmer Baldwin, and the unknown photographer who made these images. Also thanks to the generous people who donated to help fund this entire project that helps put light on Cherry Valley’s past and a remarkable collection of images Additional images are on view at the Cherry Valley Post Office.