Parsons, Jeffrey R.

Washington City in the Fifties: A Photographic Essay

n/p (Ann Arbor, MI): Jeffrey R. Parsons, 2017. First Edition. Hardcover. "When I was growing up in the northern Virginia suburbs, many "old-timers" I met- residents of longstanding in the region, and especially country people- would typically refer to nearby Washington, D.C. as "Washington City." This contrasted to the simpler terms- usually "D.C." or "Washington" or "the district"- that younger people and more recent arrivals used. It has now been many years since I last heard the archaic "Washington City" used in common speech, but the term always appealed to me, and so I have brought it back in the title for this collection." (from Introduction, pg. 8) A compilation of photographs taken by Jeffrey R(obinson) Parsons (1939-2021) during 1957-1959 when he was in his late teens. The subjects of these photographs are various neighborhoods of Washington D.C., near which he & his family lived. The captioned photographs are arranged "...into six loosely thematic groups, in no particular internal order: The Waterfront, Tearing down Southwest, Kids, Downtown, The C&O Canal, Dumbarton Oaks, and Here and There." (pg. 8) None of these images show the world-famous monuments & buildings of the U.S. Capitol City in their entirety, most not at all. Here is a riveting time-capsule of everyday scenes & people of a long-lost, then highly segregated time & place. Of particular poignancy is the "Tearing down Southwest" section, which shows the demolition phase of "Urban Renewal" where a humble but close-knit African-American neighborhood was giving way to expressways & housing projects (& by this writing to gentrification). While never a professional photographer, Parsons had a keen eye for composition & subjects. With an evocative, informative introduction by the author-photographer. A beautiful production, large hardcover in glossy illustrated boards without dust jacket as issued; with very high-quality reproductions. A most rewarding, haunting & elegiac compilation of images that we cannot recommend enough; an enchanting collectible. See also our item No. 5420, "Glimpses of the 1930s" by the author's parents. In very fine, virtually as-new condition with only a touch of rubbing, faint scratching to front, back covers & spine, otherwise substantially mint inside & out. Very Fine. [Item #5728]

Price: $50.00