James and Eleanor Moose Collection

Two photographic print albums created by James and Eleanor Moose, circa 1950s, which include images of the architecture and landscape of Syria. Photographs are all gelatin prints, mostly 7" x 9" or smaller. Album 1 contains prints, mostly of Syrian architectural monuments. Many of the photographs are signed "Amin Sharif". Album 2 contains prints, mostly of Syrian architecture and ancient sites. Some of the prints are captioned in Arabic. The album includes studio portraits of James and Eleanor Moose from 1954 and 1955.

The series of color slides were photographed by James Moose, Jr., during his travels as an American foreign service officer, 1942-1973. The majority of the slides are individually labeled or grouped together by feature or location and date in English (with some placenames written in another language). Some folders are only labeled by country and may contain slides with more specific site labels. They are held in plastic, paper, and metal mounts. The slides depict mostly archaeological, geological, and architectural features in Syria, Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Italy, Greece, France, Austria, Yugoslavia, and Sudan, with the largest portions from locations in Syria, Turkey, Lebanon, and then Sudan.

James S. Moose, Jr., (1903-1989) was a foreign service officer of the U.S. Department of State. James was born in Morrilton, Arkansas on October 3, 1903, to James S. Moose, Sr., and Ellen Howard Moose. Eleanor Duncan Wood, Jr. (1903-1989) was born in Maysville, Kentucky on September 30, 1903, to Clarence L. Wood and Eleanor Duncan Wood (1868-1936).

James and Eleanor both graduated from the University of Missouri, and in 1922, they wed. James and Eleanor would have two children together, James Moose, III (b. 1937), and Eleanor Duncan Wood Moose (b. 1942).

After passing the foreign service exam in 1928, James was subsequently stationed in Greece, France, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Sudan. James was appointed Ambassador to Syria in 1952 and was recalled in 1957. He went on to serve as Ambassador to Sudan, 1958-1962. Eleanor traveled with her husband during his overseas appointments and is featured in some of the slides. James retired from the State Department in 1962, after 34 years of service. After his retirement, he taught international relations at the University of Massachusetts for one year. In the 1960s, James and Eleanor returned to Arkansas. They both died in 1989 in Virginia.

FSA A2008.03

Moose, James S., 1903-1989.

Moose, Eleanor Wood, 1903-1989

Syria

Turkey

Jordan

Lebanon

Egypt

Italy

Greece

Austria

Yugoslavia

Sudan

James and Eleanor Moose Collection

Gift of Duncan Whittome, 2008.
Gift of James S. Moose, III, 2016-2020.

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives

Collection descriptions

Archival materials

Photographs

Photograph albums

Slides (photographs)

James and Eleanor Moose Collection, FSA.A2008.03. National Museum of Asian Art Archives. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.

Organized into two series.

Series 1: Two Photograph Albums (One box of 133 black and white prints)

Series 2: Slides (8 boxes of color slides)

Permission to publish, quote, or reproduce must be secured from the repository.

Photographs -- 1950-1960 -- Black-and-white photoprints -- Silver gelatin

Photograph albums

Slides (photographs)

Collection is open for research.