Historical Portrait
Aaron Butler (World War I, Tulare County)
Archive record
Public-domain historical photograph of Aaron Butler from Dinuba, California, taken in 1914 during World War I era. Part of Tulare County archives.
About this photograph
The archive record dates this photograph to 1914, though the United States did not enter the First World War until April 1917. The date range given as 1914/1918 may reflect uncertainty about when exactly Aaron Butler sat for this portrait.
Tulare County lies in California's San Joaquin Valley, a farming region built on irrigated agriculture and settled heavily in the late nineteenth century. Butler was from Dinuba, a community within the county.
Once the United States joined the war, local photography studios photographed enlistees in uniform before they shipped out. These sittings were often the only formal portrait a young man ever had made. Many were done so a copy could remain at home with family.
The county library holds a large local history photograph collection. Its subjects are mostly ordinary residents, families, schools and businesses rather than public figures. This photograph has been digitised as part of California Revealed, a statewide programme that makes material held by California libraries, archives, museums and historical societies publicly available online.
The photographer is not identified in the record.
Compiled from the catalogue record and reference notes on the formats and events involved. The archive record above is the primary source.
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