Abstract
The William S. Park Photograph Collection (approximately 1870-1960) consists of black-and-white photographic prints and negatives of the families of William S. Park, John S. Park, and John William Park, as well as photographs of the Thomas children, half-siblings of John William Park's daughter Virginia. The majority of the images show locations in Las Vegas, Nevada with a smaller number taken in Kentucky, Oklahoma, Colorado, and California. Also included are three photograph albums of William S. and John William Park as children.
Finding Aid PDF
Date
Extent
Related People/Corporations
Scope and Contents Note
The William S. Park Photograph Collection (approximately 1870-1960) consists of black-and-white photographic prints and negatives of the families of William S. Park, John S. Park, and John William Park, as well as photographs of the Thomas children, half-siblings of John William Park's daughter Virginia. The majority of the images show locations in Las Vegas, Nevada with a smaller number taken in Kentucky, Oklahoma, Colorado, and California. Also included are three photograph albums of William S. and John William Park as children, and a smaller number of holiday and school photographs. Notable images include the 1933 Bendix International Air Race in Los Angeles, California.
Access Note
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.
Arrangement
Materials remain in original order.
Biographical / Historical Note
Dr. William S. Park (1879-1946), son of John S. and Nancy Park, was born in Kentucky and completed his education in California and Illinois, receiving his degree in dentistry in 1900. In 1907, William followed his father, John S. Park, to the new town of Las Vegas, Nevada, initially working alongside him at the First State Bank. In 1912 he established his dental practice. He married Mary Belle Viley in 1909 and in 1915 the couple had their only child, John William Park. John William Park married Joan King on June 30, 1940 and he died six weeks later in an airplane accident. Joan gave birth to their daughter Virginia in 1941 and maintained a close relationship with William S. and Mary Belle Park.
After his retirement, William S. Park became interested in the geology and archaeology of southern Nevada. He worked with Dr. Mark R. Harrington on the excavations of the Lost City site in 1924 and the Gypsum Cave site in the early 1930s. His interest continued after these excavations and alongside Richard "Chick" Perkins, he developed an extensive collection of pre-ancestral Puebloan pottery, spear and arrow points, and other artifacts from the Lost City area; these artifacts later formed the basis of the Lost City Museum in Overton, Nevada. Park also developed his interests in rock collecting and petroglyphs, which he expanded through expeditions into the desert areas around Las Vegas. It was during one such hike that he suffered a fatal heart attack, dying in Boulder City, Nevada in 1946.
Sources:
"The Lost City." National Park Service. Accessed April 18, 2019, https://www.nps.gov/lake/learn/the-lostcity.htm
"William S. Park dies suddenly." Las Vegas Review-Journal (Las Vegas, Nevada), February 25, 1946, pgs. 1-2.
Preferred Citation
William S. Park Photograph Collection, approximately 1870-1960. PH-00261. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Acquisition Note
Materials were donated by Maureen Hubbard Wilson; accession number 90-44.
Processing Note
Materials were originally inventoried by Special Collections and Archives staff. In 2019, as part of an archival backlog elimination project, Melise Leech wrote the finding aid and entered the data into ArchivesSpace.