Guide to the North Carolina Board of Photographic Examiners Record Group, SR.185
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Board of Photographic Examiners Record Group
- Call Number
- SR.185
- Creator
- Board of Photographic Examiners
- Date
- 1935 - 1949
- Extent
- 8.400 cubic feet
- Language
- English
- Repository
- State Archives of North Carolina
Restrictions on Access & Use
Access Restrictions
This record group is open for research.
Use Restrictions
This material is in the public domain.
Collection Overview
This collection consists of general correspondence, divided into two sets of files; the first is a subject file, in no particular order, and the second is a general file in alphabetical order. The collection also contains approximately 350 applications for photographer and an additional two cubic feet of applications for examination, filed alphabetically by name, with pertinent correspondence from, to, and about the applicant.
Historical Note
In 1935 the General Assembly created the State Board of Photographic Examiners to
regulate and control the practice of photography and the related photo-finishing industry.
The board's establishment grew out of a plan originally proposed by the North Carolina
Photographers Association, a statewide professional organization. The board consisted
of five citizens with a minimum of five years of photographic experience who were
elected by the North Carolina Photographers Association, then commissioned by the
governor. Initial board members served staggered terms, while their successors served
for three years.
Under terms of its enabling act, the State Board of Photographic Examiners was empowered
to elect a chairman from among its membership, appoint a salaried secretary, and adopt
and enforce all rules and regulations necessary to carry out provisions of its enabling
act. The board's duties included the following: administering examinations and issuing
certificates of registration and licenses to those qualified in terms of competency,
ability, and integrity; and revoking licenses of those found by the board to be guilty
of misrepresentation, fraud, or other unethical practices. A person so charged, however,
was permitted a public hearing and the benefit of counsel before a license was revoked.
= Any person aggrieved by the action of the board was permitted an initial appeal
to the superior court in the county of residence. All practicing photographers and
photo-finishers were required to be registered with the board, or employed by an individual
or firm duly registered. In 1939 the legislature exempted several types of practitioners,
including press photographers, those engaged in photography for personal use, and
those not dependent on photography for primary income.
By joint resolution the 1947 General Assembly authorized the governor to appoint a
commission to investigate certain examining boards and determine whether the continuation
of these boards was in the public interest. The State Board of Photographic Examiners
was among those studied. The board was further challenged in an appeal to the Supreme
Court of North Carolina and declared unconstitutional in State v. Ballance, filed 4 February 1949. The court ruled that photography was a private business that
did not imperil the public safety and welfare. In a law enacted 1 April 1949, the
General Assembly specified the following procedure for boards and agencies repealed
or declared unconstitutional by the court, including the State Board of Photographic
Examiners: all assets would be transferred to the director of the Division of Purchase
and Contract and all official records released to the Department of Archives and History.
The North Carolina State Board of Photographic Examiners was discontinued in 1949.
The records contained in this group consist of all known materials created by the
board during its fourteen year existence. Additional records may exist elsewhere.
REFERENCES:
P.L., 1935, cc. 155; 318.
P.L., 1939, c. 280.
S.L., 1947, Resolution 31.
S.L., 1949, c. 740.
G.S. 92 [1950].
Corbitt, David Leroy, ed. PUBLIC ADDRESSES, LETTERS, AND PAPERS OF
JOSEPH MELVILLE BROUGHTON, GOVERNOR OF NORTH CAROLINA, 1941-1945.
Raleigh: Council of State, 1950. P. 609.
North Carolina Photographers Association. Papers. Held in custody of
the state historian of the Professional Photographers of North
Carolina, successor to the North Carolina Photographers Association.
STATE V. BALLANCE. NORTH CAROLINA REPORTS 229 (1948): 764.
Contents of the Collection
1. Subject File, 1935-1949
Scope and Content:
Audits, board correspondence, reports, lists of licenses issued, laws, newspaper clippings, memoranda, telegrams, and information on examining boards in other states. Included are reports or material from the Federal Trade Commission, and the Commission to Study and Investigate Licensing Boards in North Carolina, as well as material on problems created by "bait advertising with coupons."
Arrangement:
Alphabetical by subject.
2. General Correspondence File, 1935-1949
Scope and Content:
Correspondence, applications, and legal files concerning problems with photographic studios; fraudulent photographers; or registrations of apprentice photographers with information on their training and experience.
Arrangement:
Alphabetical by name, or numerical by assigned number.
3. Applications and Correspondence File, 1935-1949
Scope and Content:
Correspondence and applications from photographers requesting licensure. May also include examination responses and registration information.
Arrangement:
Alphabetical by name.