An exciting epoch in American history comes to view in the full-color 35mm filmstrip, The Opening of the West. Produced by Life Filmstrips (9 Rockefeller Plaza, N.Y. 20), the 58 frames use pictorial materials reproduced on the pages of Time and Life from museums and private collections. These paintings, sketches, and prints of artist-reporters record events in the movement across half a continent. Scenes of natural surroundings are followed by views of Indian life, the adventures of fur traders, the appearance of early settlements, the magnetic attraction of the Gold Rush, and the enterprise of Pony Express riders. The driving of the gold spike at the completion of the transcontinental railroad is the fitting climax to the narrative. Works by George Catlin, Carl Bodmer, A. J. Miller, J. J. Audubon, W. H. Jackson, and others furnish the lively and impressive report on the Old West. The filmstrip is an extraordinary record of both our artistic and historic heritage.
One of the later artists of the West—Frederic Remington—is the object of renewed attention. Remington’s sketches, and his library of books on the West—complete with bookplate of a longhorn’s skull—are in the Remington Memorial in Ogdensburg, N. Y. The important collection of paintings, drawings, bronzes, and other Remingtoniana in the Memorial, with a life of Remington, have recently been fully catalogued by Harold McCracken in a volume published by the Knoedler Galleries (14 East 57th Street, N. Y. 22).
Gold Rush Boy, a 16mm motion picture from Churchill-Wexler Film Productions (801 N. Seward Street, Los Angeles 38) presents many fascinating details of life in the Mother Lode. Everyday activities in a typical mining community are seen through the eyes of a young boy. As a result of the convincing presentation, other youngsters will easily identify themselves with Jackie Summers, and their interest in the Gold Rush era will be aroused.
Pioneer Life
By WILLIAM G. TYRRELL
The series of nine filmstrips on The American Pioneer, produced by Eye Gate House, Inc. (2716-41st Avenue, Long Island City 1, N. Y.) is a masterful account. Drawing on the wealth of materials displayed at the Farmers’ Museum and its Village Crossroads and the collections of the Fenimore House Museum of the New York State Historical Association at Cooperstown, the survey brings to life rural society during the first half of the Nineteenth Century. While the setting is upstate New York in those decades, many of the features depicted would be appropriate to a larger area of the Northeast and even the Middle West. Few materials furnish such authentic and complete impressions of the pioneering experience as do these nine titles: “Conquering the Wilderness,” “Pioneer Home Life,” “Travel in Pioneer Days,” “Household Handicrafts,” “Pioneer Artisans,” “Children at Home and at School,” “Pioneer Professions,” “A Pioneer Village,” and “Pioneer Folk Art.”
American Buildings
By WILLIAM G. TYRRELL
The primary purpose of the filmstrip Greenfield Village: An Adventure in History, produced by the Department of Education of the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village (Dearborn, Mich.), is to supply background and orientation for visits to the Village. The filmstrip fills this need admirably. It brings together the somewhat scattered restorations into a logical and meaningful account of American history. In addition, it also serves as an absorbing survey of American homes and their surroundings. Here, too, are examples from colonial to modern times. Illustrating changes in architectural style, however, is not the sole purpose of the buildings. Many of the structures are preserved in the Village because of their associations with notable personages: Noah Webster, William Holmes McGuffey, Lincoln, Stephen Foster, Edison, Luther Burbank, George Washington Carver, Steinmetz, the Wright brothers, and Henry Ford.
A visit to the national capital is available in the colorful views of the Life filmstrip, The Capitol—Symbol of Our Nation. In a rich variety of striking prints and photographs, one may witness the development of the capital city and the completion of the Capitol edifice. Camera views also show, in intimate detail, the Capitol’s lavish decorations and some of its important assembly places. The capital’s beauty is well documented in this compilation.
The Materials of History
By WILLIAM G. TYRRELL
Two recent motion pictures breathe life into the usually static materials of history. History in Your Community, a classroom teaching film from Coronet (Coronet Building, Chicago 1), examines the evidences of the past that exist in every community. The film demonstrates methods by which intermediate and junior high students can explore changes and developments in their own area. Well designed, with ample illustration, the film should be useful for stimulating student interest in local history. The Presence of The Past is a notable achievement by a forward looking historical society, the State Historical Society of Wisconsin (816 State Street, Madison). The activities and pursuits of this organization unfold in an almost endless variety, and its work and responsibilities are effectively stated. No viewer can help but be impressed by the contributions the society is making in preserving our heritage. Wisconsin’s film should prove a stimulus in all like-minded groups.
Two Rivers
By WILLIAM G. TYRRELL
Visual reports of two of our rivers reveal contrasts in their historical connections as well as their geographic surroundings. The story of The Connecticut River is provided in a Life filmstrip. Here is a treatment, in black and white still pictures, of a river that has long been a part of our economy and history. Color views of summer fields or winter snow might enhance the appeal of this usually placid river. The Colorado River is the subject of a film released by Bill Park Films (666 N. Robertson Drive, Los Angeles 46). This river requires all the motion and color in such a production to do it justice. The grandeur of the Colorado’s natural surroundings fills the screen. Coupled with this material, the film also gives attention to the ways in which the river influenced human history along its course.
Economic History
By WILLIAM G. TYRRELL
Museum Extension Service (10 East 43rd Street, N. Y. 17) is the source of two filmstrip examinations of aspects of economic history. When Cotton Was King traces the expansion of cotton cultivation in the pre-Civil War South. The economic importance and the social consequences of the plantation system are brought to view in a selection of vivid pictures. Abolitionism and the sectional conflict are also introduced into this rewarding visual account. Industry Changes America skillfully documents the impact of mechanization on transportation, agriculture, and industry. Some critics may believe the unsatisfactory results of industrialization are overemphasized and that attention should have been given to the place of capital formation in industrial developments. Nevertheless, the excellent selection and organization of material make both filmstrips effective aids to learning in the senior high school.
The Story of Colonel Drake (Department of Information, American Petroleum Institute, 50 West 50th Street, N. Y. 19, and local petroleum distributors) explains the difficulties involved in drilling the first commercial oil well. This motion picture of more than ordinary interest dramatizes Drake’s perseverance, and the settings elaborately recreate the appearance of life in the 1850’s.
