1998.4
Passengers in the Greyhound Bus Terminal, NYC
Artist
Esther Bubley
(Phillips, WIsconsin, 1921 - 1998, New York City, New York)
Title
Passengers in the Greyhound Bus Terminal, NYC
Creation Date
1947
Century
20th century
Dimensions
9 1/16 in. x 13 3/16 in. (23.02 cm. x 33.5 cm.)
Classification
Photographs
Creation Place
North America, United States, New York
Medium and Support
gelatin silver print
Credit Line
Museum Purchase, Lloyd O. and Marjorie Strong Coulter Fund
Copyright
This artwork may be under copyright. For further information, please consult the Museum’s
Copyright Terms and Conditions.
Accession Number
1998.4
This photograph of two African American men at a terminal in New York City was part of a larger project to photograph bus facilities around the country, a commission Esther Bubley received from Standard Oil in 1947. Bubley had much experience traveling on assignment, having focused her lens on public transportation before. In 1943 she journeyed from Washington, D.C. to Memphis and back with the goal of documenting wartime bus routes for the Office of War Information. Two years later she was in Texas to record the field operations of Standard Oil, again taking the bus to get around. Given the success of that project, executives at Standard Oil hired her for this project, perhaps hoping to improve the company’s reputation after allegations that it had collaborated with Germany during World War II.