[Collection of Photographs, Many Annotated, Retained in the Family of W. Grady Swift, Documenting His Time with the Department of Agriculture, Along with His Hunting and Ranching Activities in South Texas]

[Various locations in Texas, including San Antonio, Laredo, and Raymondville, 1950. Very good.. Forty-six black-and-white photographs, from 3 x 2 inches to 8 x 10 inches, one tintype, and one printed certificate. Most photographs with personalized family annotations on verso. Moderate surface and edge wear to some pictures, a few creased or with minor chipping. Overall very nice condition. A small but informative collection of photographs from the family of W. Grady Swift (1904-1979), a long-time agent of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, who worked in the department's Bureau of Animal Industry, Livestock Inspection, and River Patrol Division in South Texas. Most of the annotations were written by one of Swift's four daughters, who identifies herself posed with Grady and one of her sisters, Grady Ann; given the appearance of the subject in relation to Grady Ann, the annotator is likely her twin sister, Patti. Many of Swift's family are also featured, including his wife and about twenty friends and associates. The annotations should provide a solid basis for contextualizing the subjects of the pictures within a larger South Texas photographic research collection.

The photographs capture a mixture of subjects from Swift's professional career as an agent for the Department of Agriculture, including meetings with Mexican officials, group pictures with cowboys and other staff from the various ranches where Swift worked, and several featuring cattle and fowl, combined with numerous pictures of Swift or his family members in more personal settings, such riding horses, swimming, and with Swift posed alongside some of his hunting buddies. One of the group photographs shows Swift with numerous colleagues, everyone dressed in cowboy gear, depicting a combination of Anglo and Mexican or Mexican American staff; one of the group photographs is captioned with the names of numerous additional government officials on the verso, including Swift himself. Two of the personal photos capture Swift in Raymondville, Texas posed with a dead mountain lion; in one of these shots, he poses with two of his daughters, Grady Ann and likely Patti. Some of the pictures indicate the Swifts bred dogs and perhaps even bred cattle themselves.

Identified locations include the Franklin Ranch and the La Mesa Ranch in Eagle Pass. A handful of the largest photographs from Swift's professional work are stamped on the verso, "Army Air Forces Photographic Dept. LAAF, Laredo, Texas." According to the obituary of Grady Ann Swift McAllister, the family lived in Laredo during this time. Many of the family photographs include an ink backstamp from a San Antonio photographic developer, likely indicating they moved there shortly afterwards.

About ten of the photographs feature roosters, with a few of the pictures suggesting that they were bred for cockfighting. A couple of the pictures show two roosters squaring off against each other; and in fact, one of these photographs is captioned in manuscript on the verso, "Jimmie Burns in picture of sparring cocks." One of the smaller photographs is captioned on the verso: “A Damon bred cock…won in Austin $200 derby. Won blind after first pitting in Corpus $150 derby 3 yrs ago. Died on my yards as a brood cock.”

W. Grady Swift died in 1979 in Fairview, Texas, north of Dallas. The present photographs are accompanied by a certificate issued to Swift on May 15, 1965 by the Department of Agriculture, “in recognition of the completion of thirty years of service as a Federal employee.” A handful of later reproductions of family photographs and a greeting card also accompany the collection.