Of Bricks & Light: Details and Glimpses

 

Fisher & Co. (Valley City, North Dakota): Entrance to State Normal School. Silver or Platinum-Silver print, 7-1/2″ x 9-1/2″, circa 1905

The college building is glimpsed here through an opening in the trees. A companion photograph shows it criss-crossed by electrical wires. Another wire cuts through the top of the image above, and the ornate front arch is used to frame not a human figure or the college building–but a utility pole. The implied message: despite its remote location this is a modern school, with electricity (and perhaps telephones). Nearly a century ago, the State Normal School of North Dakota was “wired”–and obviously proud of it.