About the Collection
- Repository: Palmer Museum of History and Art
- Collection Number: N/A
- Processed By: Matthew Akers & Richard Estelle
- Date Collection Processed: 06-1-2016
- Collection Creator: Jack Snodgrass
- Dates Covered by Collection: 1912-1961
- Size of Collection: 126 digital files
- Access: The collection is open for research.
- Copyright: To obtain permission to publish or reproduce images from this collection, please contact Richard Estelle, Collections Manager.
- Acquisition Information: The M.D. Snodgrass Photo Collection was donated to the Palmer Museum of History and Art by Jack Snodgrass on June 1st, 2016.

Biographical Note
Milton “M.D.” Snodgrass was greatly involved in locating and managing the Matanuska Experiment Farm and remained associated with farming for the rest of his life in the Valley. Born in Jasper County, Indiana on March 14th, 1876, his family moved to Little River, Kansas in 1881. Snodgrass was a veteran of the Spanish-American war, serving from 1898-1899. He graduated with a B.A. in animal husbandry from the Kansas Agricultural College in 1906 before working as a Crop Production assistant in the Kansas Experiment Station. In June 1907 he married Margaret before moving to Kodiak, Alaska, accepting the superintendent position on the Kodiak Experimental Station for the Federal Department of Agriculture to investigate cattle-raising on the island. They remained on Kodiak from 1907 to 1917, during which time Milton Snodgrass established the Matanuska Valley Experiment Station at the request of the U.S. Agricultural Department in Palmer. He was later transferred to the Seward and to the Fairbanks Agriculture Experiment Stations, until August 1921, after which he was assigned to Palmer, where he led the Matanuska Valley Experiment Station until 1929.
Mr. Snodgrass later became a colonization agent for the Alaska Railroad and brought 55 families to settle in the Matanuska Valley before resigning his post to engage to farm his homestead in the Matanuska Valley. He became a member of the Board of Regents from 1921 to 1929. He was elected to a term as Senator in November 1922-1925 and later served as a member of the territorial House of Representatives from 1953-1954. He received an honorary degree from the University of Alaska in 1961 and in 1964 was presented with the “Citizen-of-the-Year” Award by the Kiwanis club of Palmer. Milton and Margaret had two sons, John “Roland” and William “Bill” Snodgrass and three daughters: Mrs. Margaret “Maggy” McCartney, Mrs. Agnes “Aggie” Reed, and Mrs. Mary Verrall. Snodgrass died at the Pioneers’ Home in Fairbanks on December 1st, 1967 at the age of 91.
Scope and Content of Collection
The M.D. Snodgrass Collection, provided by Jack Snodgrass, consists of approximately 126 digital photos from a single disc, and 2 scans of a note which details known information of each original photo. Ranging from 1912 to 1961, Snodgrass’s photo collection includes images of early days of the Matanuska and Fairbanks Experiment farms and early homesteaders of the Valley, as well as Cordova, Kodiak, Resurrection Bay, the Yukon, Valdez, and the Kansas State Agricultural College. Other individuals represented include: the Minis Family, Milton and Margaret’s 5 children, John Bugge, Al Walters, and others as yet unidentified. The majority of this collection focuses on agriculture via farmsteads, the Experiment Stations, various equipment, and farm animals.
The files maintain their original organization, in line with the notes provided by Jack Snodgrass (included as the final two files). There are copies of some files that have been enhanced as higher resolution files used in the Matanuska Valley Historic Photo Project.
Subjects/Locations Included
- Fairbanks, AK and Fairbanks Experiment Station
- University of Alaska, Fairbanks
- Palmer, AK and Matanuska Experiment Station
- Kansas State Agricultural College
- Cordova, AK
- Yukon, AK
- Kodiak, AK
- Resurrection Bay, AK
- John Bugge’s Palmer homestead
- Al Walter’s homestead (formerly the Hickey homestead)
Names of individuals identified
- Milton D. Snodgrass
- Margaret J. Snodgrass
- Roland Snodgrass
- William Snodgrass
- Margaret McCartney (Snodgrass)
- Agnes Reed (Snodgrass)
- Mary Verrall (Snodgrass)
- Al Walters
- John Bugge
- Minis Family
- “Wingfield”
Arrangement:
File Name & Description |
---|
MDS001.tif – [Margaret J. Snodgrass 98th birthday article] |
MDS002.tif – [possible photo of William Henry Harrison Snodgrass (Milton’s Father)] |
MDS003.tif – [possibly Mr. and Mr.s Minis, Margaret J. Snodgrass’s parents] |
MDS004.tif – [clearing timber] |
MDS005.tif – [Minis Family with Margaret J. Snodgrass second from the right in back row] |
MDS006.tif – [Fairbanks, AK, 1922] |
MDS007.tif – [Fairbanks, AK, 1922] |
MDS008.tif – [Fairbanks, AK, 1922] |
MDS009.tif – [Fairbanks, AK, 1922] |
MDS010.tif – [Fairbanks, AK, 1922, unidentified man] |
MDS011.tif – [Fairbanks, AK, 1922] |
MDS012.tif – [Fairbanks, AK, 1922] |
MDS013.tif – [Milton D. Snodgrass, possibly in the Matanuska Valley] |
MDS014.tif – [possibly Kodiak, AK] |
MDS015.tif – [possibly Kodiak, AK] |
MDS016.tif – [possibly Kodiak, AK] |
MDS017.tif – [possibly Kodiak, AK] |
MDS018.tif – [unidentified glacier] |
MDS019.tif – [iceflow on the water with mountains in the background] |
MDS020.tif – Elephant Rock Alaska |
MDS021.tif – Resurrection Bay, Alaska 1912 |
MDS022.tif – K-8-22-226 (1920) [unidentified man and cattle herd] |
MDS023.tif – Holy Cross Mission on the Yukon Alaska |
MDS024.tif – Cordova Dock |
MDS025.tif – Valdez Alaska |
MDS026.tif – [possibly Baronoff Island, Sitka, AK] |
MDS027.tif – [possibly Baronoff Island, Sitka, AK] |
MDS028.tif – [unidentified farm and farmer] |
MDS029.tif – [unidentified farm] |
MDS030.tif – Russian Church Kodiak Alaska |
MDS031.tif – [unidentified steam-ship] |
MDS032.tif – [Milton D. and Margaret J. Snodgrass in back row with three unidentified people] |
MDS033.tif – [possibly Roland Snodgrass as a baby] |
MDS034.tif – [Milton Snodgrass feeding a cat near a boat] |
MDS035.tif – [unidentified woman with a child, possibly William or Roland Snodgrass] |
MDS036.tif – [Milton D. and Margaret J. Snodgrass in back row with three unidentified people] |
MDS037.tif – John Roland Snodgrass 1 year 11 days old |
MDS038.tif – [Roland and William Snodgrass] |
MDS039.tif – [Roland and William Snodgrass] |
MDS040.tif – [Agnes Reed] |
MDS041.tif – [Margaret J. Snodgrass with 20 unidentified people] |
MDS042.tif – [Agnes Reed with two dogs] |
MDS043.tif – [William Snodgrass, Agnes Reed, Roland Snodgrass] |
MDS044.tif – [William Snodgrass, Roland Snodgrass, Margaret McCartney, and Agnes Reed] |
MDS045.tif – [Agnes Reed] |
MDS046.tif – [Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS047.tif – [unidentified man standing amongst large sunflowers at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS048.tif – [unidentified man standing amongst large sunflowers at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS049.tif – [Milton D. Snodgrass at a cabin with dogs and goats] |
MDS050.tif – [Alaska College of Agricultures and School of Mines (UAF)] |
MDS051.tif – [vegetable field, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS052.tif – [four unidentified people, two men and two women, in a grain field possibly the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS053.tif – [field of hay, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS054.tif – [five unidentified people, two men and three women, in a grain field, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS055.tif – [unidentified man in a grain field, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS056.tif – [unidentified field, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS057.tif – [Roland Snodgrass nearest to car on right, four unidentified children and a man also pictured, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS058.tif – [vegetables displayed on porch] |
MDS059.tif – [William and Roland Snodgrass and dogs] |
MDS060.tif – [Milton D. Snodgrass, Margaret J. Snodgrass, William Snodgrass, Margaret McCartney, Agnes Reed, and Roland Snodgrass] |
MDS061.tif – [Margaret J. Snodgrass in center] |
MDS062.tif – [William Snodgrass Agnes Reed with puppies] |
MDS063.tif – [chickens and coop] |
MDS064.tif – [man with chickens at unidentified farm] |
MDS065.tif – [chickens at unidentified farm] |
MDS066.tif – [hay shocks in a field, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS067.tif – [unidentified field] |
MDS068.tif – [two unidentified men threshing grain in winter at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS069.tif – [three unidentified men threshing grain in winter at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS070.tif – [unidentified man feeding three goats at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS071.tif – [three goats on a farm in winter at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS072.tif – [two goats and an unidentified person at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS073.tif – [two children in a patch of corn and cabbage at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS074.tif – [tractor being used to raise windmill at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS075.tif – [finished windmill at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS076.tif – [raising a windmill at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS077.tif – [wide view of the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS078.tif – [three men with horse teams working an unidentified field] |
MDS079.tif – [unidentified woman feeding a calf from a bucket] |
MDS080.tif – [open field, possibly the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS081.tif – [Hay shocks in a field, possibly the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS082.tif – [Hay shocks in a field at Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS083.tif – [unidentified, hilled field] |
MDS084.tif – [unidentified man and cabin on a wooded hill] |
MDS085.tif – [unidentified man operating horse-drawn hand plow at Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS086.tif – [hay shocks in an open field, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS087.tif – [three unidentified men stacking with tractor and hay stack, possibly at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS088.tif – [unidentified man operating tractor-drawn cultipacker at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS089.tif – [two unidentified men with two dogs stacking hay at the Fairbanks Agricultural Experiment Station] |
MDS090.tif – [hogs in a field at the Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS091.tif – [hay shocks on poles at Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS092.tif – [hogs in a field at the Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS093.tif – [hay shocks on a pole in Palmer] |
MDS094.tif – [hay shocks at the Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS095.tif – Matanuska Valley Farm [John Bugge’s homestead in Palmer, AK] |
MDS096.tif – [cows in wooded field, under power-lines] |
MDS097.tif – [homesteaders Al Walters (left) and John Bugge (right) with three unidentified women at Bugge’s homestead] |
MDS098.tif – [Al Walters and two unidentified people at the Walter’s homestead] |
MDS099.tif – [Al Walters and John Bugge in a field at the Walter’s homestead] |
MDS100.tif – [John Bugge obscured by a field and wire fence at the Walter’s homestead] |
MDS101.tif – [House at the Matanuska Experiment Station in winter] |
MDS102.tif – [wide view of the Matanuska Experiment Station including adjoining fields] |
MDS103.tif – Wingfield [Man, “Wingfield” at the Matanuska Experiment Station, Pioneer Peak in background] |
MDS104.tif – [Milton D. Snodgrass standing amongst chest-high plants] |
MDS105.tif -[unidentified man carrying large turnip and farm implements] |
MDS106.tif – [Matanuska Experiment Station as viewed from the West] |
MDS107.tif – [Matanuska Experiment Station, SouthEast view facing Pioneer Peak] |
MDS108.tif – [Northern field at Matanuska Experiment Station, possibly growing berries] |
MDS108A.tif – [hay barn at Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS109.tif – [unidentified man plowing with horses] |
MDS110.tif – [partially cut and shocked hayfield at the Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS111.tif – [unidentified man operating horse-drawn cultipacker] |
MDS112.tif – [“Wingfield” with hay shocks at the Matanuska Experiment Station, Lazy Mountain and Matanuska Peak visible in the distance] |
MDS113.tif – [field (possibly hay) at the Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS114.tif – [three unidentified men digging up potatoes at Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS115.tif – [unidentified man piling hay into shocks at Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS116.tif – [man, possibly “Wingfield,” digging potatoes at the Matanuska Experiment station] |
MDS117.tif – [hogs in a field at the Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS118.tif – [litter of hogs with a sow] |
MDS119.tif – [Milton D. Snodgrass with hogs] |
MDS120.tif – [Hogs at the Matanuska Experiment Station, Pioneer Peak and unidentified man in background] |
MDS121.tif – [Northern field at Matanuska Experiment Station, possibly growing berries] |
MDS122.tif – [Milton D. Snodgrass (center) with two unidentified persons at the Matanuska Experiment Station] |
MDS123.tif – KSU [Kansas State Agricultural College] |
MDS124.tif – [Kansas State Agricultural College, class of 1906 55th reunion in 1961, Milton D. Snodgrass in center, back] |
Note 1of2.tif – [page one of notes supplied by Jack Snodgrass when he supplied photo files] |
Note 2of2.tif – [page two of notes supplied by Jack Snodgrass when he supplied photo files] |