When President and Eleanor Roosevelt visited Austin during World War II, there were a great number of photographers present to record the event. Mrs. Roosevelt, however, singled out one woman photographer, making the observation that a woman doing a man's job was what would help America win the war.
Elnora Douglass, the woman photographer, preserved the history of wartime Austin for future generations. Married to Austin American-Statesman photographer Neal Douglass in 1929, Elnora learned photography by developing and printing his film while he studied photography at the University of Texas, and started her own commercial photography business. When Neal Douglass went into military service in 1942, the newspaper turned to Elnora Douglass to operate its photographic department.
The three photos below were taken by Elnora Douglass. They are just a sample of the larger collections of her and her husband's work housed in the Austin History Center.
"She often stayed up all night printing pictures for mothers who wanted to get their new babies' pictures to their daddies before they were killed in action. For years after the war, people would thank her for getting their picture overseas in time."
Connie Douglass Vanzura,
Elnora Ruddell Douglass, Photographer,
February 28, 1992
