Photographs and Images at the Missouri State Archives

The Missouri State Archives is home to approximately 829,500 images and photographs. The formats include, but are not limited to, glass plates, tintypes, lantern slides, prints, negatives, transparencies, 35mm slides and several digital formats. The bulk of the collection covers the late 19^th through mid-20^th centuries, although the earliest image dates from 1855 and the latest through the present day. Subjects include people, events, places, nature, state government facilities and more.

The collection is organized by the originating agency. Many images are digitized and available on our websites. Click on a Record Group (RG) collection below to learn more.

State Agency Collections

Collection	Approximate # of Images
RG003 Office of the Governor	13,000
RG005 Office of Secretary of State	30,000
RG102 Department of Agriculture	6,500
RG103 Department of Conservation	5,000
RG104 Department of Economic Development	220,000
RG107 Department of Transportation	226,200
RG110 Department of Natural Resources	58,500
RG112 Department of Revenue	22,000
RG114 Department of Corrections and RG213 Missouri State Penitentiary	200,000
RG115 Department of Health and Senior Services	10,800
RG395 State Capitol Commission	550
RG550 General Assembly	3,800
RG600 Supreme Court and Office of State Courts Administrator	700

Federal and Local Collections

Collection	Approximate # of Images
RG650 Little River Drainage District	3,078
RG820 Kansas City Parks and Recreation	2,320
RG960 Civilian Conservation Corps	163

RG998 Manuscript Collection (˜ 50,000 images)

There are many images in Archives manuscript collections. Visit the manuscripts webpage to learn more.

For other agencies not listed above or related questions, contact Archives Reference at (573) 751-3280 or [email protected].

What is the difference between an image and a photograph?

An image is a graphical representation of the visual appearance of someone or something in any medium.

A photograph is a still picture created by reflected light projecting an image of someone or something onto a light-sensitive surface like a chemically treated plate, film or an electronic light receptor (digital photograph).

Definitions based on Pearce-Moses, Richard. A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology. 7 vols. Archival Fundamentals Series II. Chicago, IL: Society of American Archivists, 2005 and related fine arts and humanities literature.