University of Louisville Photographic Archives

02/07/2025

03/29/2023

Roughly 11 million historical images, including photos of Marilyn Monroe, the Moon Landing, and Albert Einstein, are kept tightly locked by armed guards in the famed Bettmann Archive.

02/08/2023

10/06/2022

We are so happy to announce the acquisition of the Barry Bingham, Jr. Courier-Journal Photograph Collection to the University of Louisville's Archives & Special Collections!

This invaluable collection consists of an estimated 3 million photographic images that document life in Louisville, as well as regional, national, and global events, from the 1930s through the 1990s. Major moments are richly chronicled, including the civil rights movement, World War II, Derby through the years, presidential visits, changes in the built environment, and numerous public appearances and behind-the-scenes images of Muhammad Ali and other celebrities. At the same time, the collection shows us everyday life through an array of intimate local-interest stories.

We are grateful for this significant donation from the Courier-Journal and the newspaper's parent company Gannett, which has been many years in the making. Protecting and preserving this collection for future use and research would have been impossible if not for the efforts of CJ Senior Photographer Pat McDonogh and generous donations from the Bingham family, who owned the Courier-Journal from 1918 to 1986.

The massive size and scope of this collection means that it will take years for our archivists to organize and make it available to the public. Our goal is to process the entire collection and make it openly available to the public in phases, the first of which will take around 2 to 3 years. Any donations made toward this project will help the team reach this goal as quickly as possible.

If you wish to contribute to the Courier-Journal Photograph Collection endowment, follow this link: https://give.louisville.edu/binghamphotoendowment

07/12/2022

The Photographic Archives is mourning the loss of its longtime Photo Wrangler, Bill Carner.

Bill arrived in Louisville in 1978 to be the Darkroom Manager at the Photographic Archives and continued to administer all printing, scanning, and reproduction imaging for the next 34 years. Bill worked tirelessly printing photographs for the archives, exhibitions, and publications, and oversaw the transition from traditional darkroom production to digital imaging, all while mounting countless exhibitions in the gallery, mentoring photo students, hosting workshops, and building collections.

A gifted photographer himself, Bill worked meticulously from historic images of Louisville to shoot contemporary photographs for the 2006 book Louisville Then and Now. Bill’s most recent contribution to our collections are his exhilarating photographs documenting the early 1980s Louisville music scene, forming the foundation of our Louisville Underground Music Archive photographic holdings.

Bill was a constant champion of the Photographic Archives and always eager to share his wealth of knowledge about photography, Louisville, music, and so much more. We are proud to forever preserve Bill’s legacy of fantastic photographs, beautiful reproductions, enhanced collections, and notable exhibitions.

07/14/2021

Charles "Bud" Ford Dorsey Jr. was an influential Louisville photographer who continued telling stories through photos well into his retirement.

07/14/2021

We join the city of Louisville in mourning the passing of photojournalist Bud Dorsey. His legend lives on in all of the beautiful and significant photographs he created, as well as the younger photographers he inspired. We will celebrate Bud's life and work with friends, family, and fans at the public memorial happening this Saturday.

Public memorial service for Bud Dorsey is Saturday at the Kentucky Center for African American Heritage. Visitation at 12:00, service at 1:00. All are welcome.