Art
This formal photograph captures John Ritchie as a Harvard student in 1861, the year he graduated. College yearbooks had just become a widespread tradition, marking a major shift in American education—they turned college into a documented milestone in a young man's life, preserved for memory and social standing.
Art · Full story
You lean in close to examine the portrait. John's face is serious, almost stern—this is how you presented yourself to the camera, sitting still for long seconds while light etched your image onto paper. The photographer has signed his work: G. K. Warren, a Boston studio artist capturing hundreds of young men just like him, all frozen in their moment of arrival into adulthood.
Reflect
What milestone moments in your own life do you preserve with photos or records?