Imperial Hotel: Restoring the Past

Like many photographs, this snapshot needed some restoration. The goal in restoring is not to strip away the patina of age or to improve upon the photograph but rather to restore the visual information contained in the original. It is also important to preserve the intent of the photographer and to respect the conventions of photography from that time period. Canton Photographer Roland Osborne has carefully restored and enlarged this historical photo with these goals in mind.

So when was this photo taken? Here are some facts to consider. The Imperial Hotel (at center) was originally a private residence. Purchased in 1910 and converted into a hotel, it doubled in size by 1916. During the construction of a three-story commercial building on the west side of the house in 1911, workers removed the hotel’s perimeter fence. Electricity came to Main Street between 1909–10 and the town paved its first roads in 1917. Would you agree that this photograph was taken around 1910?

Photograph courtesy of Henry Foy, Canton Historical Museum