Willard D. Straight in Korea
About this collection
This collection includes approximately two hundred of the 380 photographs and sketches created by Willard D. Straight during his two spells in Korea in 1904 and 1905. The photographs document landscapes, urban scenes, people (both common, notable or noble ones), and, most interestingly, record numerous important events. These images together offer a unique view of the country, and a rare insight into a Korea during the very early twentieth century which - through various diplomatic and other means - was not permitted to migrate into independent nationhood at the time. The also includes Japanese postcards (some of them hand-colored) on Korean customs, a small collection of which was found in the Straight archives, and which we felt added value to the overall presentation of the cultural and historic circumstances of the era.
Historical context
Willard D. Straight was born on January 31, 1880 in Oswego, New York and spent four years in Japan during his childhood. After majoring in architecture at Cornell University (1897-1901), he was appointed to a position with the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs Service, and from 1902-04 he was personal secretary to Sir Robert Hart, Inspector General of the Service in Peking. He was a correspondent during the Russo-Japanese war, which brought him to Korea in 1904. In that capacity, he remained in Korea (mostly in its northern parts around Pyongyang, the port city of Nampo and the Yalu River). In June 1905, he was appointed personal secretary to the American ambassador to Korea, Edwin V. Morgan, and was at the same time named vice-consul to Seoul by the Foreign Affairs Office. He enlisted in the U.S. Army to participate in WWI in 1917. In 1918, while arranging for the arrival of the American Peace Mission in Paris, Straight, exhausted from his toils and labors in France, contracted pneumonia, passing away on December 1, 1918.
Using the collection
For questions about this collection, contact the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections at rareref@cornell.edu.
More information
- Collection steward
- Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections
- Metadata creation
- Cornell University Library
- Credits
- This collection overview was last reviewed in 2025.
- Collection sources