Edmund L. Mitchell: Photographer of a Changing Boston

With over 5,700 photographs, the Edmund L. Mitchell Collection, now housed at the Boston Public Library, offers a snapshot of Boston and the West End in a period of transition. As an amateur photographer, Mitchell nonetheless captured the city as it became something new.

Edmund Lombard Mitchell (1905-1981) was a prolific amateur photographer and lifelong resident of Somerville, MA. His father was born in New York and his mother had immigrated from Ireland.  He attended Somerville High School. In the 1930s, he was a stage technician with the Somerville Community Theatre and a member of the Somerville Community Players. 

Mitchell had several jobs throughout his life. He taught woodworking at Southern Junior High School and was a founding member and president of the Somerville Recreation Camera Club. According to census data, at various points in his life he worked as a meat cutter, a leather cutter, and a retail store clerk. Mitchell lived much of his adult life in his brothers’ homes. 

Edmund began to learn about photography when he served as a Sergeant in the Army during World War II. He traveled whenever possible, documenting his experiences with color 35mm positive slide film developed in the darkroom that he built. Most of his photographs were taken in the United States, but part of his collection captured his visits to cities throughout Europe and a trip to Ireland to meet family.

The majority of Mitchell’s photographs were taken in and around Boston. He returned to sites of destruction and construction, capturing the city’s transition from the late 1950s into the 1970s. Dispersed within recognizable scenes of the city are photographs of the leveling of the West End and Scollay Square and the building of Government Center. 

Edmund died at the age of 76 in 1981. He is remembered as a kind friend and neighbor whose community became an extension of his family. 

A collection of over 5,700 of his slides were a generous gift to the Boston Public Library from Richard and Kellie Gutman in 2017. Below is a selection of Mitchell’s photos of the West End and Government Center Project areas. The entire collection can be viewed at online using Digital Commonwealth.