The Massillon Museum houses over 60,000 photographic images in its permanent collection. Among these are various types of images, including daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, cyanotypes, glass plate negatives, and paper prints. Many of the photographs date to the late 19th and early-20th centuries, and document people, places, and significant events in Massillon’s history, as well as on a national level. The images document changes in fashion, social movements, key political events and artistic innovation.

Some of the key photographers represented in the Museum’s collection are Massillon native and paper negative pioneer Abel Fletcher, Nell Dorr, Belle Johnson, William L. Bennett, Aaron Siskind and Harry Callahan. The subject matter covered in this collection includes a variety of topics. Sports and leisure, portrait photography, world travel, business and industry, weather events, and art photography are just a few of the many areas represented by our photographs. In addition to its extensive image collection, the Museum also houses photographic equipment such as cameras, enlargers, and stereoscopes.

The Museum’s photography gallery is located on the second floor, and images are rotated approximately every three months. While only a small number of photographs from the vast collection are displayed at any given time, appointments can be made to view photographs in storage. Please view our Research Request Form, or make arrangements by contacting the Museum Archivist. Research fees do apply.

As part of the Massillon Museum’s grant-funded Web Expansion Program, the Massillon Museum is creating a series of educational web components and teachers’ guides, of which photography is the first phase. Of all the Museum collections, photography is that most frequently accessed by patrons and researchers, and therefore has grown to be among our most significant holdings. For this reason, the Museum continues to expand and actively research its photography collection.
With a generous contribution from local historian and Museum supporter Margy Vogt, a photography endowment was established to preserve, maintain, and expand upon the Massillon Museum’s photography collection.

With the exception of a few images, such as those by Dorr, Siskind and Callahan, the Massillon Museum offers photograph reproductions available for purchase in various sizes and formats. For inquiries about photograph reproductions, please view the Photograph Reproduction Form on this website, or contact the Museum Archivist.