A Tourist's Album of Japan

Katherine Wolcott and her uncle, Robert Hull Fleming, compiled this photo album on their visit to Japan in 1909. Part of a larger Asian trip, the two stopped in Japan and collected photos, postcards, bookmarks, and other materials. Fleming was a graduate of the University of Vermont, and in 1929 Katherine Wolcott helped to fund the construction of the Robert Hull Fleming Museum in memory of her late uncle. This album, a memento from their trip, was part of Wolcott’s own collection. There are nearly 40 leaves of collected photographs and postcards, numbering two to three per album page. The pictures range in content, some depicting staged photos of daily life while others portray landscapes and countryside. The album itself measures approximately 11 x 14 x 4 inches and is currently housed at the Robert Hull Fleming Museum at the University of Vermont. Wolcott’s album captures a unique view of Japan at the brink of burgeoning Western influence. After defeating the Russians in the Russo Japanese War (1904-05), Japan began to cement itself as a global power, and its efforts to modernize began to attract Westerners. The images in this album depict a Japan with a strong national heritage and cultural appreciation as well as a newfound embrace of modernization and technology. Most of the pictures in the album sold commercially as a form of postcard. In the early 1900s, the Japanese populace began consuming millions of these types of commercially produced picture postcards. Eventually, the medium became so popular that it started to replace the more traditional wood block print. The citizenry sought pictures of their budding nation, wanting to hold a still image of the rapidly modernizing and changing countryside.

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129 1909
Miniature of The severed heads of criminals at a watch post
The severed heads of criminals at a watch post
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    • Date Created: 1909
    • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
    Miniature of Castle in the countryside
    Castle in the countryside
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      • Date Created: 1909
      • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
      Miniature of Woman crossing bridge over pond
      Woman crossing bridge over pond
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        • Date Created: 1909
        • Description: A woman in a kimono is walking through a residence. She is crossing a small pond, walking over a wooden bridge.
        • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
        Miniature of Two female performers
        Two female performers
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          • Date Created: 1909
          • Description: The woman on the right is holding a Shamisen, while the woman on the left is posed in a position as if she were about to begin dancing.
          • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
          Miniature of Two carpenters
          Two carpenters
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            • Date Created: 1909
            • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
            Miniature of Two Ainu posing in traditional attire
            Two Ainu posing in traditional attire
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              • Date Created: 1909
              • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
              Miniature of The streets of Kyoto
              The streets of Kyoto
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                • Date Created: 1909
                • Description: The streets are filled with people, American and Japanese flags flying from buildings. In the background, you can see an advertisement for Kirin beer, written in both Katakana and English. On the streets, there are men dressed in the more traditional clothing as well as men dressed in western appearing clothing.
                • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
                Miniature of Mount Fuji
                Mount Fuji
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                  • Date Created: 1909
                  • Description: A view of Mount Fuji through the trees.
                  • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
                  Miniature of Two women posing in front of a mural of Mt Fuji
                  Two women posing in front of a mural of Mt Fuji
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                    • Date Created: 1909
                    • Description: Two women are depicted as walking through a rural setting. A mural of Mt Fuji is seen in the background. The women are wearing rather large Geta (Footwear).
                    • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs
                    Miniature of Female musician with koto and Ōtsuzumi
                    Female musician with koto and Ōtsuzumi
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                      • Date Created: 1909
                      • Description: The instrument leaning against the wall behind the woman is a Koto. The drum she is holding and the one laying on the floor next to her are ≈åtsuzumi.
                      • Parent Collections: A Tourist's Album of Japan, Album of Japanese Photographs