Historical Portrait
Samuel Wallace Turk (World War I, Tulare County)
Archive record
Historical portrait of Samuel Wallace Turk from Tulare County, California, taken in 1914 during the World War I era. Public-domain photograph from archives.
About this photograph
Samuel Wallace Turk was a Tulare County resident photographed during the First World War period. The date range 1914 to 1918 spans the war years, though the United States did not enter until April 1917.
Tulare County lies in California's San Joaquin Valley, a farming region built on irrigated agriculture and settled largely in the late 1800s. The county library maintains an extensive local history photograph collection documenting ordinary residents rather than public figures.
Local photography studios photographed many enlistees in uniform before departure. For numerous young men, such a portrait was the only formal photograph ever made, with copies kept at home while the subject served. Around 24 million men registered under Selective Service, and some 4.7 million served.
The photograph comes to the archive through California Revealed, a statewide digitisation programme. Material carrying that tag originates from many different California libraries, archives, museums and historical societies, so the designation indicates where digitisation occurred rather than where the photograph was taken.
The creator remains unknown. The portrait forms part of the Tulare County Library's holdings, now accessible through the digitisation effort that has made local collections available to researchers and the public.
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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