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Ruth and Louis Kirk Moving Image Collection

Kirks' Camera: Opening Credits, 1976
Kirks' Camera: Opening Credits, 1976

The Ruth and Louis Kirk Moving Image Collection is a substantial body of regionally important work directly related to the history, the landscape, and the people of the Pacific Northwest. The films document subjects including Native American communities, national parks, environmental issues, historic preservation and archaeological projects in the Northwest, including the Marmes Rockshelter, the Ozette Indian Village and the Manis Mastondon sites.

The Ruth and Louis Kirk Moving Image Digital Collection is a selection of clips taken from the films and television shows produced by the Kirks from 1968 through 1991. The Kirks created over fifty films and television shows including episodes produced for Klahanie on the CBC in Vancouver, Canada, and Kirks' Camera on KPEC/KCPQ-TV in Tacoma, Washington. They also produced films for companies like Kumsheen Raft Adventures and Weyerhaeuser Real Estate and for public entities such as Tacoma Public Utilities and the National Park Service.


About the Database

This digital collection was researched and prepared by the UW Libraries Special Collections Division in 2010 with a grant from the Women's History Consortium and the University of Washington Libraries 21st Century Awards. The original films in this collection were selected from the Ruth and Louis Moving Image Collection (PH Coll 1000), residing at the UW Libraries Special Collections Division. Selection of films was done by Hannah Palin, and the research and descriptive data was prepared by Ryer Banta, Jonathan King and Rachel Chabra. Films were imported into iMovie from the original 16mm and from DVDs of previously transferred material. 3-5 minute files were created using Quicktime and linked with descriptive metadata.

Funded through a National Endowment for the Humanities "We the People" grant for Washington Women's History to the Washington Women's History Consortium, a part of the Washington State Historical Society. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this website do not necessarily reflect those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.


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