Jack London's view of the world through his photography

Whether covering the Russo-Japanese War from the Korean front, exploring the lives of London’s slum-dwellers, sailing to the Solomon Islands, covering the Mexican Revolution or documenting the 1906 earthquake that shook San Francisco and caused extensive damage in Santa Rosa, Jack London proved himself to be a talented and prolific photojournalist. Between 1900 and 1916, he reportedly made more than 12,000 of photos, many of which have been preserved by the Huntington Library and California State Parks.

“In his photographs as in his fiction, London most often sought to capture the common emotional life of his subjects,” write authors Jeanne Campbell Reesman, Sara S. Hodson and Philip Adam is in “Jack London Photographer” (University of Georgia Press, 2010). “London sought to depict the potential for human drama.”

These photos represent his time in Korea, Solomon Islands, Manchuria and Santa Rosa, all part of the California State Parks collection.