Minneapolis Photos: Searching Tips

By Keyword

A keyword query searches all fields in the record. Enter one or more words or a phrase.

Examples of keyword searches:

Ames
Ames A A
Automobiles
Basilica
4th St
7th Ave
Hennepin Ave
Hennepin Avenue Bridge
Orpheum
Streetcars

Note: When searching for streets and avenues, and use the ordinal number for the numbered streets and avenues (e.g. 2nd, 3rd, 10th), and use the abreviations of St or Ave unless it is a formal name for a structure (e.g. Hennepin Avenue Bridge).

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Subject

For subject searches use category terms (e.g. airplanes, athletes, churches, hats, politicians, theaters) as well as building names, store names and clubs and organizations (e.g. Minneapolis Civic and Commercial Association or charitable organizations). Note: many of the descriptive search terms are entered as plurals.

The Special Collections Department has compiled a photo thesaurus (an authoritative list of terms used as subject terms) for describing the photographs. View photo thesaurus.

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Personal Name

Individual's names are searched in lastname firstname order. Punctuation is not necessary but spaces are important.

O’Brien, Daniel or O Brien Daniel
De Mariano, Eva or De Mariano Eva
Van de Water, Janet or Van de Water Janet
Sully, Alfred H. or Sully Alfred H

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Place Name

Place names include street names, neighborhoods, communities and bodies of water.

Street name: When searching for streets and avenues use the ordinal number for the numbered streets and avenues (e.g. 2nd, 3rd, 10th) and use the abbreviations St or Ave. Usually directions of the street aren't critical to the search.
Neighborhood: When searching for neighborhoods you may also wish to search under the name of the community (communities often encompass several neighborhoods). The ten Minneapolis communities are Calhoun Isles Camden, Central, Longfellow, Near North, North, Northeast, Phillips, Powderhorn, Southwest, University.
City: Use the abbreviation of Mpls for Minneapolis. Other cities represented in the database include Excelsior, Stillwater, and St. Paul.
Bodies of water: Use the complete name (e.g. Mississippi River, Lake Harriet, Lake of the Isles, Lake Minnetonka, etc.)

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Year/Decade

A Year/Decade query searches for a year or a decade during which the photo was made.

Examples of year/decade searches:

Use an ampersand (&) between dates if you want each date to be present. 1890 & 1900 would search for photos that have both the years 1890 and 1900.
Use a slash (/) between years if you want either date to be present. 1850 / 1860 would search for either 1850 or 1860.
Use an asterisk (*) to truncate your search terms. 194* would search for photos from the 1940 decade.
Use the exclamation mark (!) for the search term "not". 1950 / 194* ! 1940 would search for photos from 1941-1950 but not 1940.

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Type of View

A Type of View query is selected from the drop down menu. The view is helpful when searching for specific types of photos.

Action
Aerial
Cityscape
Exterior
Interior
Landscape
Night
Portrait
Reproduction from another medium
Skyline
Still Life
Waterscape

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Notes

A note provides further description or additional information about the photograph. A note may indicate other similar photographs or provide more narrative about the photograph. To search in the note field, use keyword strategy.

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Photographer

When searching for a photographer’s work, searching by just last name is usually sufficient. There are some organizations or businesses that are listed as the photographer.

Illingworth (William H. Illingworth)
Roth (A.D. Roth)
Mortimer (F.L. Mortimer)
Hibbert (C.J. Hibbert)
Bromley (Edward Bromley)
Minneapolis Community Fund

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Source photos

The sources of photos that are part of the Minneapolis Collection are varied. The photos have been given by individuals, clubs, organizations, businesses, and from the local newspapers including the Minneapolis Journal, Minneapolis Times and the Minneaplis Star. To search by source, enter the name of the individual or the organization that may have provided the photo to the collection.

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Collection

All photographs are part of a collection, either the general Minneapolis collection, identified by M in the ID number (e.g.M0001) or a special collection (indicated by a two-letter code at the beginning of the ID number). Special collections are made up of photographs given by collectors or photographers (e.g. BR001 is from the Bromley collection) or were from specific projects (e.g. MC001 is from the Model City project).

[Return to Minneapolis Photos Search]

By Accession Number

An Accession Number searches for a photo by its unique number. All accession numbers begin with one or two letter(s) followed by two to four numbers. Some accession numbers also have a letter at the end of the sequence; these photos were part of a subject series, such as photos of Eloise Butler (M2632A) or William A. Anderson (M2595A).

Examples of accession number searches:

M2778A Elizabeth Quinlan
D42 Washburn `A' and `B' flour mills
R064 Refectory Building at Minnehaha Park
Br0251 The Minneapolis Journal Building at the Minnesota State Fair

Return to Minneapolis Photos Search | Minneapolis Public Library Home Page