A 1934 travelogue captures the Saguenay River and the tropical landscapes of Bermuda

History · Published 30 September 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: This archival film offers a rare look at a 1934 journey spanning from the Canadian wilderness to the Caribbean. It documents a river cruise through the Saguenay region before transitioning to the lush flora and grand estates of Bermuda, providing a visual record of mid-1930s travel.

The footage, preserved by the Penn Museum, presents a unique aesthetic due to its lenticular color process. Because the original film was not refiltered, the images appear as black and white with distinct vertical stripes, creating a textured, scratched appearance that highlights the technical limitations of early color cinematography.

Beyond the river and island scenery, the film includes a brief glimpse of a Galapagos tortoise, noted as a specimen collected by Mrs. John Jacob Astor. This detail underscores the era's fascination with exotic natural history, which often found its way into the personal travel records of the time.

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