The retired originals collection consist of approximately 292 photographs dating from the 1860s to the 1960s. These are images that were removed from the "A-board photographs" for preservation reasons and replaced with substitute copies. A-board photographs are images that were mounted onto boards, cataloged individually, and put into filing cabinets. These photographs are searchable through the card catalog located in the Special Collections reading room. There are three types of A-boards, Utah State University (USU) boards; Compton Photograph Studio genre and landscape scenes from Box Elder County, and miscellaneous images. Most of the photographs are of Utah State University, Cache Valley, or Utah. The remainder are formal studio portraits, photos from Mormon history, or images of the American West.

If the original photograph is listed as missing please see the board photograph for the copy. The type or format of the photograph is noted. Collodion and Gelatin are very similar in appearance. In cases where the photograph could be either gelatin or collodion the listing collodion/gelatin is used.