Search William M. McCarthy Photograph Collection

Caption: "Empire State Building in Center, Lower Manhattan in the Distance. View from Radio City Bldg. New York. Aug. 3, 1934." The Empire State Building dominates this bird's eye view of New York. Construction began on this iconic 102-story building, designed by William F. Lamb, in 1930. Completed by early 1931, it held the title of world's tallest building for almost 40 years, until being surpassed in 1970 by the construction of the World Trade Center's North Tower. It is now the fifth-tallest building in the U.S., and the 28th-tallest in the world.

Date: 8/3/1934

No caption, c. 1915-1920. Photograph taken from plane, with an unidentified lake below.

Date: 1915

No caption, c. 1915. William (driver's seat) and Grace (front passenger seat) McCarthy posing in an automobile with a group of unidentified friends and/or family members.

Date: 1915

Caption: "Vernal Falls [sic]," c. 1917. The Merced River tumbles over boulders downstream of the 317-foot tall cascade of Vernal Fall.

Date: 1917

Caption: "Street Scene -- El Paso, May 26, 34." Street scene in El Paso, Texas. Residences line the street in the foreground, while what appears to be a city center can be seen in the center distance.

Date: 5/26/1934

No Caption: An unidentified woman wearing a marching band costume.

Date: 1938

Caption: "Santa Rosa Parade," c. 1907. A view of drummers in band attire leading a parade down a dirt street in Santa Rosa.

Date: 1907

Caption: "Government Building. Chicago Fair. Sept. 18, 1934." View of the Federal Building at Chicago's Century of Progress Exposition, as seen from across the harbor. The three tall towers represent the three branches of the federal government. This building, towering over the Exposition, was featured on a commemorative US Postage Stamp issued in honor of the Exposition. A world fair attended by thirty-nine million people, the Expo celebrated Chicago's one-hundred year anniversary of incorporation. Originally planned to only run from May to November in 1933, it was such a success that its organizers decided to keep it running for a second season from May through October the following year. The central theme of the Exposition was technological innovation, with a motto of "Science Finds, Industry Applies, Man Conforms."

Date: 9/18/1934

No Caption: An unidentified California Indian woman wearing a long skirt and shawl, and carrying a small pail at Yosemite National Park, c. 1935.

Date: 1935

No caption. A large group of unidentified people posing for a group photograph on what appears to be a stage, at an unidentified location, c. 1908.

Date: 1908