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Portrait
of Key West Naval Air Station fire rescue Assistant Chief Dale
M. McDonald (1998) |
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This exhibit contains selected images from over 5,000 slides and photographs
in the Dale
M. McDonald Collection which document art exhibits, businesses, boating
events, attractions, community events, landscapes, residences, and street
scenes in Key West.
Firefighter and photographer Dale McDonald was born in Key West, Florida
on October 2, 1949. McDonald began taking photographs while a student
at Key West High School. After graduation in 1968, McDonald enlisted in
the United States Air Force. During his service in the Air Force, McDonald
was assigned to Mather Air Force Base in Sacramento, California as a Still
Photographic Specialist.
McDonald left the Air Force in 1972
and returned to Key West, where he began a career as a firefighter
with the Naval Air Station. McDonald was promoted several times and,
in 1987,
he became an Assistant Fire Chief.
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| Outdoor
portrait of Ann McDonald |
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With the help of his wife Ann, Dale McDonald opened his photography studio,
"Keys Photographic Services," in 1993. The McDonalds performed
aerial, underwater, wedding, and other types of photography assignments.
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Sergeant
2nd Class Dale M. McDonald, base photographer, in his barracks
room (1971) |
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In 1986, they began taking photographs of the Key West Fishing Tournament.
Until 2000, they captured images of prized fish and tournament contestants.
In 2001, Ann McDonald succumbed to breast cancer and diabetes. Following
her death, Dale McDonald closed his photography business and retired
from
the fire service. He continued to take photographs for documentation
and archival purposes. Dale M. McDonald passed away on April 22, 2007.
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| Portrait
of Key West photographer Cory McDonald (1993) |
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The Archives also houses the Cory
McDonald Collection. Dale's brother Cory McDonald was born in Key
West, Florida on March 30, 1946 and lived there most of his life. This
collection contains over 500 color and black-and-white photographs, negatives,
and slides taken in and around the Key West area, including aerials; public
figures such as Presidents John F. Kennedy and Harry S. Truman and concert
pianist Yehuda Guttman; military boats and planes; and hurricane damage.
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