Benton Township Families

When Samuel S. Cole and Grace B. Baird married on May 27, 1859, they united two families, who were early immigrants to Lake County, Illinois and Benton Township.

James Cole and Nancy Swetnum Cole left Ireland to emigrate with their children to America in 1837. They landed at Quebec, Canada and proceeded to Rochester, New York where they remained for two months before moving to Chicago.

The Cole's son, Samuel S. Cole,
was born in County Cork, Ireland on July 25, 1820.
Photographed circa 1880, BBDM 62.62.4.7

Among the items the Coles brought with them to America was a wooden couch. It is remarkable the family brought such a large piece of furniture across the Atlantic from Ireland. Perhaps the couch was considered useful for their journey since it included a storage compartment. The couch remained in the family's possession until it was donated to the Bess Bower Dunn Museum of Lake County in 1963.

Partial view of 8-foot long wooden couch
brought from Ireland by the Cole Family in 1837.
BBDM 63.22

About 1840, James Cole sold his land in Chicago and moved the family to Lake County, Illinois, settling in Shields Township along Greenbay Road.

Another unusual artifact that came down through the generations—
a bear trap used by the Coles while living in Shields Township, circa 1840. 
BBDM 62.62.15

In April 1856, Samuel Cole and his father sold their combined farms (201 acres) to the Lake Forest Association. This organization was created by Chicago Presbyterians to establish a Presbyterian college, which today is known as Lake Forest College.

The Coles took their profits from the sale and moved to Benton Township. Samuel purchased land on the west side of Sheridan Road at the intersection of today's Shiloh Boulevard in Zion.

In Benton Township, the Coles became acquainted with the Baird family, who had settled there several years previously.

John Baird and Jean Wilson Baird immigrated from Glasgow, Scotland to the United States with their three children, traveling on the Commodore, and arriving at New York on July 3, 1849.

Passenger list for the Commodore showing the Baird family.
Source: Ancestry.com New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 (online)

From New York, the Bairds most likely traveled via the Erie Canal before taking a ship around the Great Lakes to Southport (now Kenosha) Wisconsin, and settling in Lake County, Illinois. Like many Scottish immigrants before him, John Baird had worked in the textile industry, but chose to take up the plow in America.

The Baird farm was near today's Galilee Avenue and 33rd Street in Zion.

Scottish immigrant, Jean Wilson Baird (1810-1896)
Photographed circa 1893. BBDM 62.62.4.3

The Baird's daughter, Grace Baird Cole, was
born in Glasgow, Scotland on September 22, 1837. 
Photographed circa 1880, BBDM 62.62.4.1

Shortly after settling in Benton Township, John Baird sent a letter to his brother-in-law Thomas Wilson, who was living in New York City. Baird was trying to encourage Wilson to settle in Lake County.

In a letter dated November 19, 1849, Baird regales about the quality of farm land and the loveliness of Benton Township: "I am very well pleased with this district of country it is so hilly... the water is good & plenty... to dig down for it if you dig in low ground you will get it in a few feet & if you dig in higher ground you have to go farther down but then the water is colder & purer." (Original letter in the collections of the Chicago History Museum). Thomas Wilson did re-settle his family in Benton Township not long thereafter.

With the Cole and Baird properties relatively close to one another, Samuel Cole and Grace Braid found opportunities to meet through farming activities and Methodist meetings. Within three years of the Coles arriving in the neighborhood, Samuel and Grace were married.

Samuel and Grace had six children: Mary Jane Ferguson (Robert Ferguson), James S. Cole who died in infancy, Samuel N. Cole, Grace N. Ferry (Hiram W. Ferry), Eva E. Carman (Owen Carman), and John J. Cole who died at the age of 26.

Samuel and Grace Cole's residence as photographed in 1881.
The house was located on the west side of Sheridan Road at today's
Shiloh Boulevard in Zion. BBDM 62.62.

The Cole farm consisted of 220 acres, a beautiful brick house on Sheridan Road and out buildings. According to Cole's biographical sketch: "All of the surroundings plainly indicate the thrift of the owner, who is regarded as one of the enterprising, public-spirited and representative men of the community."

Samuel died in July 1895, and left portions of his property to each of his children. Grace died in 1915. Both Samuel and Grace are buried at Lake Mound Cemetery in Zion.

Samuel and Grace's granddaughter, Elsie Ferguson Bairstow, donated the photographs and objects featured in this post (and other items) to the Dunn Museum in the early 1960s to ensure that her family's immigrant history would be preserved and shared with future generations.

Illinois National Guard, Camp Logan

Camp Logan in Zion was an Illinois National Guard rifle range. This Guard training facility operated from 1892 to 1974 in what is now the Illinois Beach State Park.

John Alexander Logan (1826-1886), namesake of Camp Logan, Zion, Illinois. 

Congressional Portrait Collection, Library of Congress

The camp was named for General John Alexander Logan, a politician who raised and commanded the 31st Illinois Volunteer Regiment from southern Illinois in 1861. 

The camp was located east of Sheridan Road and adjacent to the Chicago & North Western Railroad. The property was purchased by the State legislature in 1892 to facilitate National Guard training in the region.

Camp Logan, circa 1900. Private collection.

By 1900, the camp was well established and included a headquarters office, four regimental barracks, range office, mess hall, kitchen and arsenal. From an early date, regular Army marksmen from the U.S. Army post at Fort Sheridan preferred the rifle range at Camp Logan over their own facilities. Naval Militia from the Naval Training Center Great Lakes also utilized this facility. 

Firing line, Camp Logan. Date unknown. 

The camp's arsenal is visible in the background at right. 

Private collection. 

U.S. Naval rifle range, Camp Logan. Date unknown. Private collection. 

Before World War I, the Illinois National Guard put great emphasis on rifle marksmanship. It was one of the few Guard activities that was judged by strict Army regulations.

Training at the camp included handling of small weapons, tactical maneuvers, and rifle marksmanship. Soldiers performed a variety of marksmanship scenarios on targets located from 100 to 1,000 yards oriented toward Lake Michigan. In 1902, over 6,000 soldiers attended the camp and expended over 640,000 rounds of ammunition.

Two key innovations were incorporated into the Camp Logan range, the echelon target system and Aiken targets. For more on the inventor of the Aiken targets, see my post on Illinois National Guardsman, Robert Aiken. 

Corp. Rex Coniglio, Lieut. D.E. Zealand, and Private M. Cherion 

using 3-inch trench mortar at Camp Logan. 

Circa 1937. Dunn Museum 2013.18.28

From 1933 to 1937, Colonel George Marshall was assigned as the senior instructor at the camp. Marshall would become U.S. Secretary of State in 1947 and thereafter develop the Marshall Plan for the economic recovery of Europe after World War II. 

Following World War II, training became more restrictive due to the development of more powerful weapons and the increasing civilian population near the camp. The camp’s use dwindled until it was closed in 1974.

View of some of the buildings, and more construction underway at Camp Logan. 

Circa 1918. Dunn Museum 99.7.6

In 2000, the 243-acre Camp Logan National Guard Rifle Range Historic District, including the remaining 1890s - 1950s buildings and landscape structures were listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Camp Logan was placed on the list because of its status as the best remaining example of a pre-World War II National Guard training facility in Illinois and the role it played in the evolution of the Illinois National Guard. 

One of the remaining structures at the Camp Logan National Guard Rifle Range Historic District. 

Photo courtesy of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. 

- Diana Dretske, Curator ddretske@lcfpd.org

Special thanks to Dunn Museum volunteer researcher, Al Westerman. 

Robert H. Aiken, Tilt-Up Construction Inventor

In 1907, Robert H. Aiken (1859 - 1925) of Winthrop Harbor, Illinois invented "tilt-up construction."

Col. Robert Aiken. Cement World, August 15, 1908, p. 327.

Aiken's fast and economical method of building concrete-walled buildings revolutionized construction and is still in use today. The process involves pre-fabricating concrete wall sections and lifting or tilting them into position on a concrete foundation.

Aiken was born in Abingdon, Knox County, Illinois. He came to Lake County, Illinois by 1895, when he was promoted to the rank of Colonel and assigned as the range officer at the new rifle training center at Camp Logan in today's Zion. Camp Logan was an Illinois National Guard training facility established in 1892.

On December 16, 1895, Robert Aiken married Jannette Kellogg (1879 - 1953) of Winthrop Harbor.

Jannette was the daughter of George P. Kellogg and Phoebe F. Landon Kellogg. Jannette was also the granddaughter of Nelson Landon (1807-1884), one of Lake County's most influential and wealthy pioneer settlers. Jannette and Robert resided on her father's farm along the east side of Sheridan Road just south of Kellogg Creek in Winthrop Harbor.

Aiken came up with his idea of constructing buildings using pre-cast concrete walls and raising them into position in early 1907, when he built concrete target walls for use at Camp Logan. Previously, the Camp's targets were made of wood. The new concrete targets kept ordnance from being shot into Lake Michigan and endangering boaters, and allowed the lead to be retrieved and reused.

After filing for a patent on a "method and apparatus for constructing concrete buildings," Aiken built a factory to manufacture the concrete targets and steel target frames, and used his new tilt-up method to construct it. The factory stood on his farm in Benton Township along Sheridan Road and was 80 x 75 feet and 14 feet high.

His next project was an ammunition and gun house at Camp Logan (above), and then a large mess hall at Camp Perry in Ohio. His first commercial store was built near Kenosha and was 30 x 40 feet with a cellar.

On November 14, 1908, Aiken organized the Aiken Cement Home company and incorporated it in the State of Maine (for tax purposes).

In 1909, he made plans to build a residential subdivision on his farm on Sheridan Road, using his tilt-up technique. The houses were to be concrete and two-stories high with six large rooms, front hall, stairways and bathroom. The subdivision was never built.

In February 1909, Aiken had a booth for his Cement Home Company at the 2nd Annual Cement Show held at the Coliseum in Chicago. The Chicago Tribune called him, "the novelty of the show" for demonstrating his invention of building concrete homes by actually constructing one inside the Coliseum.

In 1910, Aiken completed a new church for the Memorial United Methodist at 2935 Sheridan Road in Zion (above).

 

Memorial United Methodist Church as it looks today.

By 1910, Aiken had formed a partnership with Frederick H. Sears of Chicago with Sears organizing the Aiken Home Company of Chicago with offices at the Peoples Gas Building. Fred Sears expanded the company across the country, including in Los Angeles. The business was valued at $1,000,000.

It is unclear when and if Aiken and Sears parted ways.

Jannette Kellogg Aiken Black and grandson Hector Aiken

History of Lake County, Illinois (1939).

In 1924, Aiken and his wife, Jannette, and her sister Josephine Kellogg, subdivided the northern portion of their property south of Kellogg Creek into the "Kellogg's Home Site Subdivision." The site was improved with one and two bedroom concrete, Spanish-style bungalows that were rented on a daily basis to tourists. In addition, there was a campground and sandwich shop on site. This was Robert Aiken's last project using his method of tilt-up construction.

Josephine Kellogg was the proprietor of the tourist camp (above), which she named "Hollyhock Hill." Aiken's concrete bungalows are still visible today on Sheridan Road in Winthrop Harbor.

Aiken's tilt-up construction remains a dominant form of construction throughout the United States. He is honored each year by the presentation of the Robert Aiken Memorial Award at the annual World of Concrete Convention.

Inventor Robert Aiken's grave marker at Lake Mound Cemetery, Zion, Illinois.

Special thanks to museum volunteer, Al Westerman, for his extensive research on Robert Aiken. 

Diana Dretske, Curator ddretske@lcfpd.org 

Dr. James Brister, Zion, Illinois

Dr. James Brister, D.D.S. (1858 - 1916) was the first African American dentist in Lake County. Dr. Brister arrived in Zion, Illinois about 1903.

James Brister, 1903. Collections of University of Pennsylvania Archives and Record Center. 

Brister was born in Philadelphia to Dr. Joseph Brister, D.D.S. and Olivia Parker Brister. He entered the University of Pennsylvania's dental school in 1879, receiving his diploma in 1881. He was the first African American to earn a degree from Penn. From 1880 until shortly after 1890, James practiced dentistry with his father.

By 1893, James Brister moved to Chicago and opened a dental office on Dearborn Street. In 1897, he married Anna Murrell. Brister's dental office was located on State Street from 1898 to 1901, and then on Michigan Avenue from 1902 to 1903.

While in Chicago, Brister came into contact with John Alexander Dowie's Zion Movement. Chicago's large population, and Dowie's Tabernacle location across the street from the main gate of the World's Columbian Exposition were significant in attracting new members to his church, including Brister.

Official portrait of John Alexander Dowie taken in 1903. Dunn Museum. 

Born in Scotland and raised in Australia, John Alexander Dowie (1847-1907) was a charismatic preacher and faith healer who established the Christian Catholic Church.

Dowie came to Illinois in 1893 to preach his message of “clean and faithful living” outside the entrance to the Columbian Exposition. By 1899, his followers numbered in the tens of thousands, and had donated enough money for Dowie to consider establishing a socialist utopia. Ultimately, Dowie purchased 6,000 acres of farmland in Benton Township, Lake County for his "City of God," which became Zion, a theocracy under his control.

Dowie was a controversial figure and his leadership was criticized for anti-democratic tendencies, but he was ahead of his time when it came to social issues. He believed in an eight-hour work day at a time when 12 to 14-hour days were common, and allowed women to vote in local elections. He also believed in diversity and strongly enforced a policy against racism, making his church and Zion attractive to African American families.

About 1903, James Brister moved his family to Zion, Illinois as part of Dowie's Christian Catholic Church. By 1905, 200 of Zion’s 10,000 residents were of African American, South African or Caribbean heritage. Possibly the most influential of these African American citizens was the town’s dentist, Dr. Brister.

Brister’s dental practice was in the “Temple Cottage” on Sheridan Road. His family lived on Ezekiel Avenue and later Enoch Street.

Photo showing James Brister - 2nd row left - as a member of the first city council of Zion, 1903. 

Collections of University of Pennsylvania Archives and Record Center.

In Zion, to become a leader in the church or hold public office Dowie had to personally choose you. Dowie selected Brister to be a deacon of the church, and his wife, Anna, a deaconess. Brister was also selected to be a member of the first Zion City Council in 1903. 

Dr. Brister, "The only TRUE ZION dentist." The Zion Herald, April 8, 1908 p2.

- Diana Dretske, Curator ddretske@lcfpd.org 

Memorial Day

Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day, a time set aside to honor the nation’s Civil War dead by decorating their graves.

"Fort Sheridan Decoration Day, May 30, 1916." (above) View looking south toward barracks row. (Dunn Museum 92.24.2622)

It’s difficult to pinpoint the origins of the day, but it seems likely that it had many separate beginnings, including women’s groups in the South who decorated graves before the end of the Civil War.

The first widely observed Decoration Day was on May 30, 1868, commemorating the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers by proclamation of General John Logan (1826-1886), national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic. Logan who was from southern Illinois and pro-Southern before the Civil War, decided to join the Northern cause to preserve the Union, and eventually became a general. After the war he served as an Illinois senator from 1871-77 and 1879-1886, and in 1893 was honored with a National Guard weapons training camp named for him—Camp Logan in Zion.

During the 1868 celebration, General James Garfield (1831-1881), later the 20th President of the United States, made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery after which 5,000 participants decorated the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers buried there.

The letter above is addressed to Frank Peats, formerly of the 17th Illinois Regiment (Civil War), April 9, 1880. It reads:

Dear Comrade, at our regular meeting last night it was the unanimous wish of the 'Boys' that you be invited to orate for us on Memorial Day and your humble servant was instructed to write you in regard to it - not a long talk you know but one of your usual patriotic efforts will please them. How is it Frank. Can you come? I wish you would. Yours Hastily, Y.R. Swieley.

When the Civil War broke out in April 1861, Peats wrote his fiancee saying that he had to engage in the "struggle between the sons of freedom and traitors to every principle of right and justice." (Frank Peats Collection, Dunn Museum 94.5.211)

By 1890, Decoration Day was recognized by all of the northern states. The South continued to honor their dead on different days until after World War I when the holiday changed from honoring just those who died fighting in the Civil War to honoring Americans who died fighting in any war. In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated the last Monday in May.

"German War Veterans' Memorial Day Service, May 29, 1972, Fort Sheridan." (Dunn Museum 92.24.1821) 

In 1944, Fort Sheridan assumed control of prisoner of war camps in Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin—a total of 15,000 prisoners of war. German POWs were housed in newly constructed barracks at the south end of the Fort. Nine German POWs are buried at the Post Cemetery. However, none of these men died at Fort Sheridan.

"Memorial Day Services held at the Post Cemetery flagpole at Fort Sheridan, May 27, 1974." 

(Dunn Museum92.24.1785)

Goodson-Bales Family Photo Album

I have worked in the museum's archives for 21 years and am still making discoveries. Of course, there is always something new to be learned, but there are also mysteries that need solving. The mysteries often lie in the fact that when some items were donated, insufficient information was collected from the donor.

One such mystery came to my attention several weeks ago in the shape of a small photo album donated in 1964 by Mrs. Arthur Bales (nee Lucy Jane Crosby) of Zion. Though most of the photos are identified, there is no information in the donor file to ascertain if these individuals lived in Lake County. Much research would need to be done to assess the connection to the county. (The Goodson-Bales photo album appears to have been heavily used by the family as evidenced by the wear on the cover and the effort to mend it with a hand-stitched seam along the spine. Dunn Museum 64.23.8).

Archives volunteer, Al Westerman, took on the task of researching the stories of the individuals in the photo album. Since the donor had long since passed away, census records and genealogy sites would be a great source.

After hours of research, Westerman determined that the Bales family lived in Davis County, Iowa, and only one family member lived in Lake County, the owner of the album, Arthur Bales. Arthur moved to Zion, Illinois, circa 1900, probably to join John Alexander Dowie's Christian Catholic Church.

Being so far away from his family would have made the photo album a precious possession to Arthur. Arthur Bales (1870-1959), photographed as a child, circa 1872. Dunn Museum 64.23.8

Of the twenty-seven photographs in the album, three are unidentified. One of the unidentified images is of a handsome young couple. It is very possible that they are Arthur's parents, Martin and Juliet Bales (nee Goodson).

There are several reasons to think this is a tintype of Martin Bales (1847-1927) and Juliet Goodson Bales (1841-1899), circa 1868: 1) The man holds a strong likeness to photos of Andrew and Albert Bales (Martin's brothers), 2) the woman holds a likeness to photos of Polina Goodson Miller, Juliet's sister, and 3) the opening in the album for Martin and Juliet's photo is empty, while this photo was placed in an opening without identification, possibly having been removed for viewing and put back in the wrong page. Sadly, we can never be 100% certain.

Album page for Martin & Juliet's photo. The page is empty though it is apparent that a photo of Arthur Bales' parents was once held within.

In addition to the striking tintype of the couple, the album holds other image treasures.

 Tintype (above) of Martin Bale's older brother, Andrew,
with his woodworking tools, circa 1880. Andrew moved his family
from Davis County, Iowa to Harper, Kansas about 1880.

Carte-de-visite photo of Juliet's sister,
Polina Goodson Miller (1837-1900). 

This lovely tintype of a young man was simply identified in the album as "Juliet's half brother killed in the Civil War." Without a name it was especially difficult to research him. He is probably Samuel R. Payne, Juliet Goodson Bales' step brother. In 1856, he was a member of the Iowa State Militia. No record of his Civil War service has yet been located.

The open album shows the page at left missing a photo, and at right a photo of
Reverend Jacob Peck Goodson (1822-1895), Juliet Bales' uncle.
Goodson was a minister with the Methodist Episcopal Church in Louisville, Kentucky. 

As part of the care of materials in the museum's collections, it is important to properly identify and research them. With more information and understanding, items can be more fully utilized in exhibitions and by researchers.

Booker T. Washington Progressive Club

Booker T. Washington Progressive Club brochure, 1939-1940. Booker T. Washington Progressive Club Collection, Dunn Museum, 94.26.

One of the most active community-based organizations in Lake County was the African-American led Booker T. Washington Progressive Club of Zion (1936 - 1982).

The club was founded by retired railroad porter, Richard Henry Williamson (1865 - 1953), who came to Zion in 1902 to join John Alexander Dowie's church. Dowie's strongly enforced policy against racism attracted African-Americans to join his church and settle in Zion.

Club brochure page listing officers and committees. Booker T. Washington Progressive Club Collection, Dunn Museum, 94.26.

The Booker T. Washington Progressive Club's purpose as stated in its constitution was to "bring together at frequent intervals those who are interested in promoting the cause of good citizenship, better civic relations and any topic that may improve local relationships." 

Membership was open to all, not only African-Americans. People from Kenosha, Zion, Waukegan and neighboring communities joined.

Club members during one of their regular broadcasts on WKRS Radio in Waukegan, circa 1955. At left is Naomi Williamson Marshall (1895-1968), club president and the daughter of the club's founder. Standing to the right of Mrs. Marshall (left to right) are Samuel Payne, Pearl V. Payne, Beatrice Carter, unidentified man, and Rachel Penny. Booker T. Washington Progressive Club Collection, Dunn Museum 94.26.78.

The Club collaborated with local schools and organizations to present musical programs and plays. Shown at this program are Naomi Marshall at far left and Rachel Penny singing. Booker T. Washington Progressive Club Collection, Dunn Museum 94.26.68.

The club's civic and social contributions included sending care packages to service men and women during World War II, contributions to the Piney Woods Country Life School in Piney Woods, Mississippi, raising money to build the Pierce Campus for Zion High School, raising money to maintain the Faith Sunshine Nursery in Waukegan, and sending clothing for the students of the Tuskegee Institute, an African-American college in Alabama founded by Booker T. Washington.

Club members in costume for a play production, circa 1960. Booker T. Washington Progressive Club Collection, Dunn Museum 94.26.77.

The Booker T. Washington Progressive Club’s Labor Day Parade float, circa 1960, represented a message of equality and inclusiveness with beauty queens of different races, and individuals in traditional ethnic clothes. Booker T. Washington Progressive Club Collection, Dunn Museum, 94.26.83

The club was instrumental in bringing well known African-American artists to the community to perform, including the popular tenor, Pruth McFarlin, and Booker T. Washington's son, who spoke at a club ceremony.

Cornerstone placed on the Club's clubhouse in Zion, Illinois, 1956. On exhibit at the Bess Bower Dunn Museum, Libertyville, Illinois. Booker T. Washington Progressive Club Collection, Dunn Museum 2020.0.1.

 
The club was most active through the 1960s after which membership began to decline. In 1982, the club dissolved and sold its clubhouse at 2103 Gabriel in Zion. Today, the building is used as a gathering place for Islamic worshippers.

For more information on the Booker T. Washington Progressive Club Collection at the Dunn Museum, please email collections staff at Lake County History Archives LCHA@LCFPD.org. 

- Diana Dretske ddretske@lcpfpd.org

George Lawrence Photographer

Chicago photographer George R. Lawrence (1868-1938) was a renowned inventor of cameras and an innovator of photographic processes. 

George Lawrence. Online photo.

In 1896, Lawrence opened a photographic studio in Chicago with the motto: "The hitherto impossible in photography is our specialty."

One day while walking along Chicago's Michigan Avenue, Lawrence observed a kite trailing an advertising banner. This inspiration led him to develop cameras which could be taken aloft by kites. (As early as 1895, another American photographer, William Eddy, experimented with this idea).

 

Lawrence with his kite camera.

Lawrence's new kite cameras were suspended below 5 to 17 kites. With his kite-flying cameras, he took aerial photos around the region including at the U.S. Army Post Fort Sheridan, North Chicago, Zion, Waukegan and Rockefeller (Mundelein).

Fort Sheridan 1908 by George Lawrence. Library of Congress.

Rockefeller (later Mundelein) about 1906 by George Lawrence. Library of Congress.

Zion parade about 1906 by George Lawrence. Library of Congress.

In 1906, he traveled to San Francisco to photograph the aftermath of the earthquake and fire.

San Francisco Ruins, May 28, 1906 by George Lawrence. Library of Congress.

The panoramic, kite-flying camera created a photograph of San Francisco so stunning in detail, clarity and objectivity of the disaster that it became famous and was reprinted many times. Sales of the photo earned Lawrence $15,000 (equivalent to $300,000 today). 

In 1909, Lawrence abandoned photography to design and build airplanes. After World War I, government contracts for airplanes declined and Lawrence turned to analyzing lenses.

Lawrence pioneered aerial photography before airplanes were able to fly high enough to capture the spectacular photographs he took with his "kite cameras." He is also known for building the world's largest camera in order to photograph the Chicago and Alton Railroad's new passenger train. To capture the entire train in one photo, Lawrence used a glass plate negative measuring 56 x 96 inches.