We don't know much about this photo snapped in 1940. It shows Ludwig Ferraglio making a cast of a fish called Acrotus Willoughbyi but that's about all we know.
We do know a little bit about the fish's origins, though. It was originally discovered in the Washington Territory in 1887 by Charles Willoughby, an American Indian Agent. He found the large fish (around 63 inches) washed ashore, and none of the Native Americans at his agency had even seen a creature like it before. The photo came from the library of the American Museum of Natural History, where the cast resides. It's awesome to see the preservation process, despite not knowing much about the actual specimen. [AMNH]
Image credit: AMNH Library/292699