Every picture tells a story
continued

These particular autochromes - more than 200 of them - apparently belonged to a Tolstoyan named Michael Tregubov, who died in 1932. He left instructions in his will that they should be sent to Canada, but it's not clear how or when they arrived at the museum. They were kept in three wooden boxes and didn't generate much interest.

"I've always been aware of them since I've been here," says curator Larry Ewashen, "but they never really had A serious examination. A previous board member who was a photographer looked at them but didn't think they were very interesting or significant."

It was only last year when the museum was digitizing its music collection that the autochromes came to light again. "We started paying more attention to them," Ewashen says, "and realized they were a real find.

The images cover everything from the Doukhobor immigration to life on the prairies to the death of Peter (Lordly) Verigin. Many show unique views of Doukhobor industry, such as the inside of brick factories and flour mills. A few are signed by studios like Gushul of Bellevue, Alta., and Campbell of Nelson, but the majority don't have dates or descriptions.

Ewashen, however, noticed some of the plates had Russian writing on the edges that said "Korcini." He eventually established that Alexandra Korcini was A Russian pacifist and photographer who knew Leo Tolstoy.