[Glass Lantern Slide Showing African American Women Caretakers in a Day Nursery with White Children].

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Glass lantern projection slide showing two African American women working in a nursery room as childcare caretakers for white children. A handwritten caption reading “Children’s Bld., Creeche [Crèche], older Children” suggests the nursery scene was made at an orphanage or foundling hospital. The clean, well-appointed nursery includes a variety of toys, a framed print depicting a child, fixed cribs, and two hanging or swinging cribs. A broadside hanging on the wall appears to be a notice concerning “Cribs and Bassinettes.” A childcare giver in the back holding a child in a crib is likely caucasian. One woman is out of frame, seated. A man and woman look into the room from behind a large, multi-pane window.

Though the image was made in New York City by manufacturing optician T.H. McAllister, the context in which it was discovered suggests a Washington, D.C. location. One possible candidate: the Washington Asylum for Foundlings. An intriguing documentary image; an unusual subject matter to be found photographed. Accompanying the slide are high-resolution files that can be used for print-quality or web output.

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