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The Heath Hen, circa 1932 (35 mm, 1 reel)

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Identifier: M078.7.3

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The Heath Hen, circa 1932 (35 mm, 1 reel)

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Series Description

From the Sub-Series:

The Heath Hen film (circa 1932) comprises one reel of silent black and white 35mm film (14:03 minutes) recorded on Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts in 1928 and 1931 showing the last surviving Heath Hens in their natural habitat. Gross filmed three male birds in 1928, but by 1929 only one male, named “Booming Ben” by the local press, remained. In 1931, Alfred Gross, accompanied by the well-known naturalist and children’s author Thornton Burgess, came to Martha’s Vineyard to make a complete record of the last Heath Hen. They trapped, banded, photographed, filmed, and then released the bird; the film documents all of these activities and explains them with intertitles.

Dates

  • Creation: 1883-1970

Creator

Access Restrictions

No restrictions.

Extent

From the Collection: 45 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

From the Collection: English

Digital Material

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the George J. Mitchell Department of Special Collections & Archives, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine 04011 Repository

http://library.bowdoin.edu/arch/index.shtml
Contact:
3000 College Station
Brunswick Maine 04011 USA
(207) 725-3288

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