HAGERMAN, Idaho β A new exhibition at the Hagerman Valley Historical Society Museum is showcasing the work of Sheldon "Doc" Thayer, a talented photographer who captured Idaho's beauty and history for more than 50 years.
"This was Doc and Bernice on the top of the mountain up in the Wood River country," said Sarah Skaar, archivist at the Hagerman Valley Historical Society Museum. "They spent a lot of time in the Stanley basin."
Thayer was an electrician for most of his career, first running his own Wood River business, then working for Idaho Power in Hagerman. He always had an interest in photography, bringing his camera on work trips and adventures throughout Idaho.
"He was technically very gifted," Skaar said.
Take a look at the historic collection now on display in Hagerman β
Skaar now cares for a massive collection of Thayer's images. The museum is hosting the first-ever gallery showing of his work.
"He was active at a unique time in all of our history, running a line, a powerline to a ranch out in the lost river country or to a mine," Skaar said.
Skaar told me about the two-year process of sorting through more than 2,500 film negatives that offer a unique view of life in Idaho.
"It started as 4 x 5 negatives... boxes and boxes and boxes of 4 x 5 negatives," Skaar said.
The negatives have now been scanned and digitized, and a curator has printed a selection for public display.
Joan Parish, Thayer's adopted daughter, remembers the camera always being present in the 1940s.
"And he had a boat, so sometimes he would take me, and we would go up to river or whatever you call it, the backwaters, until he saw something that was unusual," Parish said. "And I know that they sold some, gave some away, and I just always felt that some days they would really be recognized. I really did."
The museum has invited the community to help identify people and places in the photos.
"He also in his later days, was a community photographer and that combination helps span this collection from photos that are of interest to the family to photos that touched the community," Skaar said.
You can see the Doc Thayer photos through January 2026 at the Hagerman Valley Historical Society Museum, open 1-4 p.m. on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
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