Page 51 - South Mississippi Living - July, 2023

WILLIS W. VAIL
Many of the historic photos published here are the work of Willis W. Vail, a railroad engineer and surveyor and photography enthusiast. His work documents the construction of the new deepwater port at Gulfport in 1902 as well as the expansion of the railroad, which combined with the timber industry transformed Gulfport into a major port of call.
Glass photographic plates preceded film as the capture medium in photography and were used in some communities until the late 20th century. Vail’s glass plates were discovered in a barn in his hometown of Quakertown, New Jersey, in 1970, 19 years
after his death. More than 200
of his plates relating to the Gulf Coast were later purchased by Paul Jermyn, an avid collector of historic artifacts.
As a tribute to the photographic excellence of Vail and through
the generosity of Jermyn, a four- volume set of 50 glass plates were digitally restored and printed for the first time. A special thanks to the Historical Society
of Gulfport for sharing these images with us, and providing much of the history cited in this section!
5 Carnegie Library 6 Building
13th Street and Highway 49
Then: Northrop’s Department Store. Now: Downtown Gulfport businesses still feature the historic building’s recognizable windows.
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The United States Post Office Building
Then: Carnegie Library, which opened on November 20, 1916.
Now: Gulfport Arts Center, a 50a1(c)3 non-profit operated by the Gulfport Galleria of Fine Art.
Then: Then called The Federal Building, the post office and customhouse opened in 1910.
Now: This building still functions as a U.S. Post Office today.
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