Skip to main content

George L. Beam photograph of Royal Gorge Bridge

 Item — Folder: 1
Identifier: MSS 7954

Scope and Contents

Photograph taken by Beam of the dedication and opening of the Royal Gorge Bridge in Colorado, December 8-9, 1929.

Dates

  • 1929 December 8 or 9

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

Open for public research. Kept in cold storage; access requires 24 hours advance notice.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to publish material from the George L. Bean photograph of Royal Gorge Bridge must be obtained from the Supervisor of Reference Services and/or the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Board of Curators.

Biographical History

George L. Beam (1868-1935) was an American photographer for the Denver & Rio Grande railroad company.

George L. Beam was born May 18, 1868 in New Paris, Ohio. At the age of five him and his family moved to Lawrence, Kansas where he grew up and saw the deaths of his mother and two siblings. When he was twenty-one years old he established himself as a used foreign and domestic postage stamps dealer. He and his father moved to Denver, Colorado around 1890. In Denver Mr. Beam worked for the Chain Hardy & Co. as a stenographer, but soon there after he began working as a stenographer for the Chief Storekeeper and Purchasing Agent of the Denver & Rio Grande until 1893. In 1894 he became a secretary to Shadrach K. Hooper (the general passenger and ticket agent) for the Rio Grand. He was skilled with photography and was well established as the Rio Grande company photographer by 1905 when he photographed President Theodore Roosevelt in the Royal Gorge. He became a well respected photographer, taking photographs for the Denver & Rio Grande company along with other scenic views of the Western United States. At the age of 62 he married Fay L. Kuellmer in Colorado Springs on June 7, 1930. He died March 16, 1935 at the age of 66 in Denver and was buried in Lawrence, Kansas.

Extent

1 folder (0.01 linear ft.)

Language of Materials

English

Custodial History

This item was included in the James L. Ozment Collection of George Edward Anderson photographs when Doug Ozment sold it to the L. Tom Perry Special Collections.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Purchased; Doug Ozment; 2011.

Appraisal

Photographs (Photograph Archives).

Existence and Location of Copies

Scanned copy from negative (GB-5949). Denver Public Library, Denver, Colo.

Processing Information

Processed; Lionel Thomas, student photograph processor; 2011.

Title
Register of the George L. Beam photograph of Royal Gorge Bridge
Status
Completed
Author
Lionel Thomas
Date
September 19 2011
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English in Latin script.

Repository Details

Part of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Repository

Contact:
1130 HBLL
Brigham Young University
Provo Utah 84602 United States