Personal and Family Life
The Personal and Family Photographs series (1894-1908 and undated, .25 linear feet), depict the Johnston family on camping and picnic outings and reflect the early 20th-century interest in the "great outdoors" as a national pastime. Johnston's family was doubly inclined to outdoor recreation due to the nature of his engineering work and by their location in Wyoming. Throughout the collection are images of great natural beauty. Johnston traveled extensively through Yellowstone National Park, the Grand Tetons, and the Jackson Lake area. The series therefore yields photographs of some of the most beautiful scenery in North America. There are photographs that show Johnston's engineering cameras and tripods, and there are also photographs that capture his two sons playing with smaller family cameras on the picnic blanket. Also, there seems to be an even mix of engineer's eye and tourist's appetite on the travel pictures from Egypt and Tacoma, Washington.
The beginning of Johnston's relationship with Bessie Vreeland is documented with a group of photographs of her home and relatives. Although there are no wedding pictures in this collection, the Johnston children were photographed as the family grew. The photographs also reflect the comfort and quality of life in Wyoming at the turn of the century--not all of the state was relegated to cowboys and the range. The Wild West stereotype is undermined by images of a very civilly planned Cheyenne Park and of pleasantries such as a colonial costume party celebrating George Washington's birthday. On the other hand, a young woman in fashionable mutton sleeves aiming her rifle at some object beyond the camera's range reminds one that the picnic she is attending could only be taking place in a spirited western state.