Trace the School Photographer
School photographs are often taken by the same local photographer or company for many years. Finding that business could help you track down the original negative, contact sheet, or order record. Start by asking your classmates if their copies came in a printed folder with a company name on it.
Look at other school photographs from the same period. A logo, stamp, reference number, or studio address may appear on the back or along the edge. The school may also remember which photographer it used. Search for the company name online, even if the business appears to have closed. Its archive may have been transferred to or purchased by another studio.
When contacting a photographer, provide the school, town, year, class, and teacher. Keep in mind that many studios did not keep negatives indefinitely, and searching an archive may incur a fee. Ask for confirmation that the correct material exists before paying. If the photographer’s trail has gone cold, there is still one important place left to search—and it may hold far more than just ordinary class portraits.