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Items Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching
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Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching

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LIBRARY DIVISION
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division

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COLLECTION
Military

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SUB-COLLECTION
World War II

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SUB-COLLECTION
Ship launchings (Liberty ships)

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This Item

Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching

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Title
Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching
Names
Smith, Roger (Photographer)
Collection

Military

World War II

Ship launchings (Liberty ships)

Dates / Origin
Date Created: 1943-10-10
Place: Portland, Maine
Library locations
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division
Shelf locator: Sc Photo Military
Topics
African Americans
African-American soldiers
Armed Forces -- United States
World War, 1939-1945
Liberty ships
Clothing & dress
African American men
Navies -- Officers
Portland (Me.)
Widows
Handshaking
Genres
Photographs
Notes
Content: Caption on back: "Two of the crew members of the liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann, which was launched October 10 at the Portland, Maine, yard of the New England Shipbuilding Company, receiving the congratulations of Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann, who christened the ship; Shown with Mrs. Vann are: Walter E. Harris, Jr., who will be deck engineer, and William E. Simmons, Jr. Warrant Officer."
Physical Description
Gelatin silver prints
Extent: 1 photographic print : Gelatin silver ; 8 x 10 in.
Type of Resource
Still image
Identifiers
NYPL catalog ID (B-number): b13049857
RLIN/OCLC: NYPG96-F156
Universal Unique Identifier (UUID): 86327760-c645-012f-023a-58d385a7bc34
Rights Statement
The copyright and related rights status of this item has been reviewed by The New York Public Library, but we were unable to make a conclusive determination as to the copyright status of the item. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use.

Item timeline of events

  • 1943: Created
  • 2015: Digitized
  • 2024: Found by you!
  • 2025

MLA Format

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, The New York Public Library. "Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1943. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47df-f9a5-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Chicago/Turabian Format

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, The New York Public Library. "Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching" New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed April 23, 2024. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47df-f9a5-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

APA Format

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Photographs and Prints Division, The New York Public Library. (1943). Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching Retrieved from https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47df-f9a5-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Wikipedia Citation

<ref name=NYPL>{{cite web | url=https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47df-f9a5-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99 | title= (still image) Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching, (1943)|author=Digital Collections, The New York Public Library |accessdate=April 23, 2024 |publisher=The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations}}</ref>

Two African American crew members (at left: Walter E. Harris, Jr., deck engineer; at right: William E. Simmons, Jr., Warrant Officer) of the Liberty ship SS Robert L. Vann shaking hands with Mrs. Jessie Matthews Vann (Robert L. Vann's widow) on the day of the launching