Bullitt Family Photographs – Oxmoor Collection, ca. 1850s-1980s
Collection held by the Filson Historical Society, Louisville, Kentucky
Creator: Bullitt Family
Title: Photographs – Oxmoor Collection, ca. 1850s-1980s
Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for this collection, contact the Collections Department at gro.l1777440620aciro1777440620tsihn1777440620oslif1777440620@hcra1777440620eser1777440620
Size of collection: 6.5 cu. ft. (3 r.c. boxes; 2 ovsz. boxes; 28 wrapped albums)
Location number: 016PC50
Finding aid created by: Hailey Brangers
Date finding aid created: 10 April 2026
Date finding aid last updated: 10 April 2026
Abstract
Collection of photographs related to the Bullitt and associated families of Louisville, Kentucky, who lived at Oxmoor Farm. The bulk of the collection consists of photographs and photograph albums of William Marshall Bullitt (1873-1957), Nora Iasigi Bullitt (1881-1976), Oscar Iasigi (1846-1884), and Thomas W. Bullitt (1914-1991), as well as photographs of Oxmoor Farm in Louisville. Also represented in the collection are the following associated families: Christian, Cummins, Fry, Iasigi, Logan, Marshall, Speed, Thompson, Walker, and Wallace.
Scope and Content Note
This collection consists of photographic material related to members of the Bullitt family of Louisville, Kentucky, and Stockbridge, Massachusetts. The Bullitts were one of the earliest settlers in the Louisville area, originating with Captain Thomas Bullitt (1730-1778), who surveyed the Falls of the Ohio in 1773. Several generations of Bullitts worked as attorneys and politicians on both state and national levels. The collection centers around Capt. Bullitt’s son, Alexander Scott Bullitt (1762-1816), and his descendants: William C. Bullitt (1793-1877), John C. Bullitt (1824-1902), Thomas W. Bullitt (1838-1910), William Marshall Bullitt (1873-1957), and Thomas W. Bullitt (1914-1991).
Also represented in the collection are the following associated families: Christian, Cummins, Fry, Iasigi, Logan, Marshall, Speed, Thompson, Walker, and Wallace.
The collection is divided into four series based loosely on content and photograph format/size.
Series one includes photographs of individuals depicted in photographs, organized alphabetically by surname and concluding with folders of individual, miscellaneous images of people, both identified and unidentified.
Series two consists of photographs of Oxmoor Farm, the Bullitt family home in Eastern Louisville.
Series three consists of miscellaneous oversized photographs. See folder list for details of what is represented.
Series four includes wrapped photograph albums organized by family members. Most of the albums document the travels of William Marshall Bullitt and his wife, Nora Iasigi Bullitt, throughout the twentieth century.
Related collections:
Bullitt Family papers – Oxmoor Collection, papers, 1683-2003 [Mss. A B937c]
Bullitt Family papers – Oxmoor Collection, additional papers. 1920-1968 [Mss. A B937d]
Bullitt-Chenoweth Family papers, ca. 1876-1930 [Mss. A B937a]
Bullitt-Chenoweth Family additional papers, 1817-1949 [Mss. A B937b]
Bullitt, Thomas Walker, 1838-1910. Diary, 1862-1864 [Mss. A B937]
Bullitt Family Added Photographs [001PC4]
Biographical Notes
Alexander Scott Bullitt (1761-1816) and Priscilla Christian Bullitt (1770-1806)
Alexander Scott Bullitt was one of the most prominent and influential Kentuckians of the eighteenth century. Before immigrating to Kentucky from Virginia in 1783, he was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates. He was appointed as a major in the Prince William County Militia by Patrick Henry in 1785. He married Priscilla Christian—a daughter of Colonel William Christian—in 1785. As part of this marriage, Christian gave the Bullitts 1,000 acres of his military land grant, just north of modern-day Shelbyville Road in Louisville. Bullitt sold 500 acres to his friend Benjamin Sebastian, who in turn sold Bullitt the land he owned south of Shelbyville Road. This land would become the Oxmoor Plantation and would remain in the family for over 175 years. Alexander Scott and Priscilla Bullitt had four children: Annie Bullitt Howard, Cuthbert Bullitt, Helen Bullitt Key, and William Christian Bullitt.
Bullitt served as county lieutenant for Jefferson County; a trustee of Louisville; member of the Kentucky Convention at Danville in 1788; a delegate to the Constitutional Convention in 1792; and Speaker of the Senate. He also served as the president of the Constitutional Convention that framed Kentucky’s second constitution in 1799. After implementation of the 1799 constitution, he was elected as the first lieutenant-governor of Kentucky. Upon Bullitt’s death in 1816, he left Oxmoor to his youngest son, William Christian Bullitt.
William Christian Bullitt (1793-1877) and Mildred Fry Bullitt (1798-1879)
William Christian Bullitt was born to Alexander S. and Priscilla Bullitt at Oxmoor in 1793. William worked as a lawyer for a few years, but following his marriage to Mildred Ann Fry in 1819 he began farming at Oxmoor full-time. A brick addition was added to the house in 1829 to accommodate the Bullitts’ growing family. At the time, they had five children and would end up having five more: Joshua Fry Bullitt, Alexander Scott Bullitt, John Christian Bullitt, Martha Bell Bullitt, Susan Bullitt Dixon, David Bell Bullitt, Helen Bullitt Chenoweth, Thomas Walker Bullitt, James Bell Bullitt, and Henry Massie Bullitt.
Bullitt and his family lived in the family house at Oxmoor Farm. He oversaw the plantation, enslaving numerous African Americans for farm labor for over 40 years. William Bullitt ceased operations at Oxmoor in the early 1860s due to a dwindling number of enslaved laborers and three of his sons fighting for the Confederacy. He rented out the land and moved the family into the city. By 1870, William and Mildred had moved in with their daughter Helen and her husband, Henry Chenoweth. Upon William’s death in 1877, Oxmoor was divided among his six surviving children.
Thomas Walker Bullitt (1838-1910) and Annie Logan Bullitt (1847-1925)
Thomas Walker Bullitt was born to William C. and Mildred Bullitt at Oxmoor in 1838. He graduated from Centre College in 1858 before attending law school at the University of Pennsylvania. Upon graduation in 1861, he was admitted to the Philadelphia bar. Bullitt joined the Confederate Army in 1862 and served for one year. He began practicing law in Louisville in 1865. He married Annie Logan in 1871, the couple having eight children together: William Marshall Bullitt, James Bell Bullitt, Agatha Bullitt Grabisch, Alexander Scott Bullitt, Mildred Ann Bullitt, Keith Logan Bullitt, John Christian Bullitt, and Mirah Bullitt Rush.
Bullitt was a member of many organizations and groups in Louisville: Golf Club; Commercial Club; Filson Club; Lawyers Club; Tavern Club; Conversation Club. He was director of the Kentucky Title Company, Kentucky Title Savings Bank, First National Bank, Union National Bank, and founder of the Fidelity Trust Company.
William “Marshall” Bullitt (1873-1957) and Nora Iasigi Bullitt (1881-1976)
William “Marshall” Bullitt was born to Thomas and Annie Logan Bullitt in Louisville in 1873. He graduated from Princeton University in 1894 and obtained his law degree from the University of Louisville in 1895. Like his predecessors, he became a successful lawyer in Louisville. In 1912, President Taft appointed Bullitt to Solicitor General of the United States. He argued over fifty cases in front of the United States Supreme Court. He held the position for less than a year, as Taft was not re-elected. In 1914, he made an unsuccessful run for one of Kentucky’s Senate seats, bringing an end to his political career.
Bullitt turned his attention to his law career and transformed his law firm into one of the most successful and largest firms in the state. He also taught at Harvard University and authored/edited numerous books. In 1918, he accepted a position with the American Red Cross as deputy commissioner and traveled through Europe immediately after the war. Bullitt became an influential figure in Louisville. He sat on the board for many banks, insurance companies, and businesses. He was also a member of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Marshall married Nora Iasigi in 1913. Nora Iasigi was born to Oscar and Amy Walker Iasigi (1858-1927) in Massachusetts in 1881. Before her marriage to Bullitt, she wrote several published articles and was an avid sculptor. The Bullitts had three children together: Thomas Walker Bullitt (1914-1991), Nora Bullitt Leake (1916-1980), and Barbara Bullitt Christian (1919-2000). Nora Iasigi Bullitt was an active member of many local groups in Louisville—including the Historic Homes Foundation—and was also an extensive traveler throughout her entire life, as evidenced in her travel photograph albums.
Thomas W. Bullitt was born in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, in 1914. He attended prep schools in England and Massachusetts before attending Harvard University and Harvard Law School. After his graduation in 1941, he briefly joined his father’s law firm. Bullitt joined the U. S. Army after the bombing of Pearl Harbor and was sent to England to assist Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. Bullitt’s military career lasted until 1946.
He then returned to Louisville and began practicing law again with his father in the firms of Bullitt & Middleton and Bullitt, Dawson & Tarrant. After the death of his father in 1957, Bullitt was left the bulk of the Oxmoor estate and right away began thinking of developing some of the property. He developed Oxmoor Center shopping mall in the 1970s and drew up a master plan of development for the rest of the estate after his death. An avid horseman, Bullitt established the Oxmoor Steeplechase—an annual charity horse race held from 1940 to 2002. Having had no children or heirs, the estate went into trust upon his death in 1991. Sixty acres, including the main house and all the outbuildings, have been preserved.
Nora Bullitt Leake was born to William and Nora Iasigi Bullitt in Louisville in 1916. She attended boarding schools in Massachusetts and briefly attended Bryn Mawr College. She married Eugene Leake in 1939, and they lived in Connecticut, Kentucky, and Maryland as they followed Leake’s career opportunities as an artist. They had two daughters together: Nora Leake Cameron and Nina Leake Richardson. Nora Bullitt Leake died in 1980.
Barbara Bullitt Watkins Christian was born to William and Nora Iasigi Bullitt in Louisville in 1919. She attended boarding schools in Pennsylvania. She married Lowry Watkins in 1942 and together they had three children together. After divorcing Watkins in 1960, she remarried Virgil Christian. Barbara was active in the Republican Party and an avid horsewoman. She died in 2000.
Folder List
| Series one: Bullitt family and individuals |
| Box 1 | |
| Folder 1 | Alexander, Sallie Rudd Fetter (1822-1904) – copy of 1858 portrait by Peter Baumgras |
| Folder 2 | Apthorp, William, ca. 1910s |
| Folder 3 | Bullitt, Alexander Scott (1877-1932), ca. 1870s-1922 |
| Folder 4 | Bullitt, Annie Logan (1847-1925), ca. 1884-1910s |
| Folder 5 | Bullitt, Elizabeth Smith (1824-1902), ca. 1860s-1900 |
| Folder 6 | Bullitt, Henry Massie (1842-1908), ca. 1870s-1890s |
| Folder 7 | Bullitt, James Bell (1840-1863), ca. 1861 |
| Folder 8 | Bullitt, James Bell (1863-1946), ca. 1897-1920s |
| Folder 9 | Bullitt, James B. (1874-1964) family, ca. 1900s-1920s |
| Folder 10 | Bullitt, James B. (1874-1964), ca. 1870s-1946 |
| Includes group photographs of Sally Booth’s school group. | |
| Folder 11 | Bullitt, John C. (1824-1902), ca. 1860s-1902 |
| Folder 12 | Bullitt, Keith L. (1881-1940), ca. 1890s-1920s |
| Folder 13 | Bullitt, Logan McKnight (1863-1921), ca. 1870 |
| Folder 14 | Bullitt, Martha Bell (1827-1847), ca. 1845. Daguerreotype. |
| Folder 15 | Bullitt, Mildred Fry (1798-1879), ca. 1866 |
| Folder 16 | Bullitt, Nora Iasigi (1881-1976), 1882-1970s |
| Folder 17 | Bullitt, Nora Iasigi (1881-1976) – friends and family, ca. 1900-1940s |
| Folder 18 | Bullitt, Nora Iasigi (1881-1976) – Russia, 1934 |
| Folder 19 | Bullitt, Nora Iasigi (1881-1976) – misc. vacations, ca. 1910s-1930s |
| Folder 20 | Bullitt, Nora Iasigi (1881-1976) – Clovercroft (Stockbridge, Mass.) and sculptures, 1890s-1930s |
| Folder 21 | Bullitt, Charles “Stimson” (1919-2009), ca. 1930s-1949 |
| Folder 22 | Bullitt, Thomas Walker (1838-1910), ca. 1860s-1900s |
| Folder 23 | Bullitt, Thomas Walker “Tommy” (1914-1991), ca. 1910s-1920s |
| Folder 24 | Bullitt, Thomas Walker “Tommy” (1914-1991), ca. 1930s-1980s |
| Folder 25 | Bullitt, Thomas Walker “Tommy” (1914-1991), ca. 1930s-1980s |
| Folder 26 | Bullitt, Thomas Walker “Tommy” (1914-1991) – Europe, ca. 1940s (negatives) |
| Folder 27 | Bullitt, Thomas Walker “Tommy” (1914-1991) – Central Pacific Area, World War II |
| Content warning: contains postmortem photographs of soldiers. | |
| Box 2 | |
| Folder 28 | Bullitt, William Christian (1793-1877), ca. 1830s-1980s |
| Includes a steel engraving plate for the print of Bullitt and copy photograph of daguerreotype and portrait | |
| Folder 29 | Bullitt, William Christian (1891-1967), ca. 1920s-1941 |
| Folder 30 | Bullitt, William Marshall (1873-1957), ca. 1900-1944 (includes photo negatives) |
| Folder 31 | Bullitt, William Marshall (1873-1957) – family, 1870s-1950s |
| Folder 32 | Bullitt, William Marshall (1873-1957) – friends, ca. 1900-1940s |
| Folder 33 | Bullitt, William Marshall (1873-1957) – office shots, 1905-1949 |
| Folder 34 | Christian, Barbara Bullitt (1919-2000), ca. 1920s-1963 |
| Folder 35 | Coles, Therese Bullitt (1851-1922), 1855-1880s |
| Folder 36 | Cummins, Mary Logan (1851-1938), and Dr. David Cummins, ca. 1860s-1900s |
| Content warning: contains postmortem photographs of their son, Logan. | |
| Folder 37 | Davenport family, ca. 1880s-1900s |
| Folder 38 | Dewey, Henrietta Massie Bullitt (1896-1918), ca. 1910s |
| Folder 39 | Dixon, Minna Logan (1860-1922), ca. 1910s |
| Folder 40 | Dixon, Susan Bullitt (1829-1907) and family, ca. 1859-1907 |
| Folder 41 | Fitzhugh, Lafayette (1830-1905) and Ann Eliza Bullitt Fitzhugh (1831-1908) and family, ca. 1860s |
| Folder 42 | Gross, Julia Bullitt Dick, (1861-1917), ca. 1880s |
| Folder 43 | Iasigi, Amy Walker (1858-1927), ca. 1910s |
| Folder 44 | Iasigi, Amy Walker (1858-1927) – house in Boston (129 Malboro St.), ca. 1880s |
| Folder 45 | Iasigi, Amy Walker (1858-1927), dismantled album, ca. 1860s |
| Cartes-de-visite removed from an album from Amy Walker’s visit to Temple House (Ireland) in July 1867 | |
| Folder 46 | Iasigi, Oscar (1846-1884), 1857-1872 |
| Folder 47 | Iasigi, Oscar (1846-1884) photograph albums, 1876-1878 |
| Four volumes documenting photography processes used, exposure, and weather conditions when taken. Processes listed: Using Liverpool Collodio-Bromide, Kennett’s Gelatino-Bromide, and Uranium | |
| Folder 48 | Iasigi, Oscar (1846-1884), tintype album, 1871-1874 |
| Folder 49 | Iasigi related family, ca. 1870s-1880s (pt. 1) |
| Folder 50 | Iasigi related family, ca. 1860s-1880s (pt. 2) |
| Box 3 | |
| Folder 51 | Leake, Nora Bullitt (1916-1980), ca. 1920s-1930s |
| Folder 52 | Leake, Eugene (1911-2005) and Nora Bullitt (1916-1980) – wedding, June 1939 |
| Folder 53 | Leake, Eugene (1911-2005) and Nora Bullitt (1916-1980) – children, ca. 1940s-1964 |
| Folder 54 | Logan, William (1776-1822), copy of 1820 portrait |
| Folder 55 | Logan family, ca. 1860s-1890s |
| Folder 56 | Logan Cemetery, Nov. 1914 |
| Folder 57 | Marshall, Agatha Logan (1844-1904), ca. 1860s |
| Folder 58 | Marshall, John (1755-1835) copy of portrait, ca. 1930s |
| Folder 59 | Marshall, Louis (1773-1866) copy of ca. 1820s-1850s portrait |
| Folder 60 | Marshall, Mary Keith (1737-1809) copy of ca. 1790s-1800s portrait, 1938 |
| Folder 61 | Marshall, Thomas F. (1801-1864), ca. 1860s |
| Folder 62 | Marshall, William L. (1803-1879), 1855-1860s |
| Folder 63 | Marshall, Martin P. (1798-1883), and John C. Marshall (1810-1895), ca. 1880s |
| Folder 64 | Marshall family homes: “The Hill” and “Buckpond,” ca. 1940s |
| Folder 65 | O’Ferrall, Anne Bullitt, ca. 1926 |
| Folder 66 | Randolph, Mary Isham (1713-1753) copy of ca. 1750s portrait |
| Folder 67 | Riggs, Mary Boswell (1826-1891) copy of ca. 1840s portrait |
| Folder 68 | Rush, Mirah Bullitt (1885-1952), ca. 1885-1920s |
| Includes a tintype of a Black woman holding Mirah as a baby. | |
| Folder 69 | Smallwood, Gen. Williams, house and farm in Maryland, 1931 |
| Folder 70 | Thompson, Kate Fumess (1887-1965), ca. 1910 |
| Folder 71 | Walker, Annie (1848-1895) grave, ca. 1895 |
| Folder 72 | Walker, Susan Grant (1824-1903), ca. 1880s |
| Folder 73 | Walker, Thomas (1715-1794), ca. 1860s-1900s (Carte-de-visite of a woman; postcards of Walker State Park) |
| Folder 74 | Wing, Elizabeth McKnight (1823-1895), ca. 1880s |
| Folder 75 | Misc. places, identified, ca. 1890s-1930s |
| Includes W. M. Bullitt’s home in Princeton (N. J.); Bushy Park; Fish-Ballard wedding in South Bend (Ind.); Fort Farragut | |
| Folder 76 | Misc. places and events, unidentified, ca. 1870s-1930s |
| Folder 77 | Misc. people, identified, ca. 1860s-1960s |
| Includes a tintype of a Black nurse/caretaker of the Bullitt children named “Betsy” or “Mammie”; Blair family; Dr. Henry Chenoweth; Alexander family; de Blourney | |
| Folder 78 | Misc. people, unidentified, ca. 1860s-1930s |
| Folder 79 | Misc. negatives, unidentified |
| Contains copy negatives of an 1843 survey of Ridgeway, Helen Key’s farm | |
| Series two: Oxmoor Farm | |
| Folder 80 | Oxmoor Farmhouse, interior and exterior, ca. 1900s-1950s |
| Includes photographs of social events at Oxmoor; people playing badminton; swimming; gardens; horseback riding; aerial views; | |
| Folder 81 | Oxmoor Farm photograph albums, ca. 1920s |
| Two photograph albums of interior and exterior photographs of Oxmoor Farmhouse and buildings. | |
| Folder 82 | Oxmoor Farmhouse, interior, ca. 1920s-1940s |
| Contains a photograph of a Black woman identified as “Emily” working in the basement kitchen; photographs of the uncovering of original wallpaper/painting in the house. | |
| Folder 83 | Oxmoor Farm, ca. 1920s-1950s |
| Folder 84 | Oxmoor Cemetery, ca. 1920s |
| Folder 85 | Oxmoor Farm – people, ca. 1920s-1930s |
| Folder 86 | Oxmoor Farm – land and gardens, ca. 1900s-1930s |
| Contains snapshots from construction and development work in the 1920s. | |
| Folder 87 | Oxmoor Farm – houses and buildings, ca. 1900s-1920s |
| Folder 88 | Port Tobacco, Maryland, 1930s (home of Joseph Bullitt) |
| Series three: Oversized photographs | |
| Box 4 (ovsz.) | |
| Folder 89 | Walker, Grant (1851-1920) and Mabel Shaw (1858-1943), ca. 1870s-1920s |
| Folder 90 | Bullitt, William Marshall, ca. 1920s-1953 |
| Folder 91 | Bullitt, William Marshall, National Distillers, Dec. 1949 |
| Folder 92 | Bullitt, Nora Iasigi – family, ca. 1859-1890s |
| Folder 93 | Oxmoor and Nashville Steeplechase, 1940s |
| Folder 94 | Bullitt family, ca. 1882-1940s; Content warning: contains post-mortem photographs of John C. Bullitt. |
| Folder 95 | Misc. oversized photographs, ca. 1907-1929 |
| Includes an old photograph of Mrs. Schmitt’s 8-mile house; St. Mark’s School (1929); dinner with Prince of Wales (1929); signed portrait photograph of President Taft; sheriffs and deputies of Jeff. Co (1907); Princeton Bicentennial Conference; Buttermann Ice Cream Co. truck | |
| Box 5 (ovsz.) | |
| Folder 96 | Bullitt, Thomas Walker (1838-1910), 1902-1908 |
| Folder 97 | Oxmoor Farm, 1909-1984 |
| Includes aerial photographs of the farm. | |
| Folder 98 | Bullitt, William Marshall – family, ca. 1890s |
| Series four: Photograph albums | |
| Album 99 | Walker and Iasigi family carte-de-visite album, ca. 1860s-1870s |
| Album 100 | Walker family photograph album, ca. 1860s-1880s |
| Album 101 | Walker and Iasigi family photograph album, ca. 1860s-1880s |
| Album 102 | Iasigi family cabinet card album, ca. 1868-1870s |
| Album 103 | Amy Walker Iasigi photograph album, ca. 1880s-1900s |
| Album 104 | Amy Walker Iasigi European trip photograph album, 1905 |
| Album 105 | William M. Bullitt photograph album, 1901-1905 |
| Album 106 | Nora Iasigi photograph album, ca. 1890s-1930s |
| Album 107 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt photograph album, 1906-1909 |
| Album 108 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt travel album, 1910-1911 |
| Album 109 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt photograph album, 1913-1917 |
| Album 110 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt photograph album, 1914-1926 |
| Album 111 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt photograph album, 1917-1921 |
| Album 112 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt and William M. Bullitt photograph album, 1910s |
| Album 113 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt and William M. Bullitt photograph album, 1922-1932 |
| Album 114 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt and William M. Bullitt photograph album, 1938-1940 |
| Album 115 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt and William M. Bullitt photograph album, 1940s |
| Album 116 | Nora Iasigi Bullitt and Barbara Bullitt Watkins photograph album, 1959 |
| Album 117 | Thomas W. Bullitt photograph album, 1932-1942 |
| Album 118 | Thomas W. Bullitt photograph album, 1934 |
| Album 119 | Thomas W. Bullitt photograph album, 1940s |
| Album 120 | Thomas W. Bullitt photograph album, 1942-1945 |
| Album 121 | Thomas W. Bullitt photograph album, 1948 |
| Album 122 | Thomas W. Bullitt photograph album, 1953-1958 |
| Album 123 | Thomas W. Bullitt photograph album, ca. 1955 |
| Album 124 | Bullitt family photograph album, ca. 1900s-1910s |
| Album 125 | Bullitt family weddings album, 1939-1955 |
| Album 126 | Oxmoor Mall photograph album, 1971 |