Photography and the American scene: a social history, 1839-1889 z603qx549

Table of contents :
Frontmatter
INTRODUCTION (page vii)
I "THEIR EXQUISITE PERFECTION ALMOST TRANSCENDS THE BOUNDS OF SOBER BELIEF" (page 3)
II FIRST PORTRAITS AND FIRST GALLERIES (page 22)
III THE ERA OF THE DAGUERREOTYPE (page 46)
IV DAGUERREOTYPES AND THE PUBLIC (page 63)
V DAGUERREOTYPY AT ITS ZENITH (page 76)
VI PHOTOGRAPHY (page 102)
VII THE AMBROTYPE (page 123)
VIII THE FAMILY ALBUM (page 138)
IX THE TINTYPE (page 153)
X THE STEREOSCOPE (page 167)
XI "BOSTON AS THE EAGLE AND THE WILD GOOSE SEE IT" (page 186)
XII REAL AMATEURS (page 204)
XIII CIVIL WAR PHOTOGRAPHERS (page 223)
XIV PHOTOGRAPHING THE FRONTIER: FIRST PHASE (page 248)
XV PHOTOGRAPHING THE FRONTIER: SECOND PHASE (page 277)
XVI THE CABINET PHOTOGRAPH (page 311)
XVII KURTZ, SARONY, AND MORA (page 336)
XVIII A NEW AGE (page 361)
XIX THE FLEXIBLE FILM (page 384)
XX ZOOPRAXISCOPES AND LESS WORDY INNOVATIONS (page 405)
XXI PHOTOGRAPHY AND THE PICTORIAL PRESS (page 419)
APPENDIX (page 451)
BIBLIOGRAPHY AND NOTES (page 453)
INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS (page 517)
TO TEXT AND NOTES (page 525)

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«PHOTOGRAPHY a AND THE oe ecAMERICAN SCENE

o. . . THE MACMILLAN COMPANY .

— NEW YORK + BOSTON + CHICAGO * DALLAS .

. ATLANTA * SAN FRANCISCO .

, | : MACMILLAN AND CO., Limitep

MELBOURNE ,

. LONDON * BOMBAY * CALCUTTA * MADRAS THE MACMILLAN COMPANY “ OF CANADA, LimitEeD . TORONTO

.|

PHOTOGRAPHY

AND THE | ~ AMERICAN SCENE eA Social History, 1839-1889 —

— ROBERT TAFT

| | THE eMACMILLAN COMPANY

NEW YORK 14>

Copyright, 1938, by

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.

All rights reserved—no part of this book may be ; reproduced in any form without permission in writing

from the publisher, except by a reviewer who wishes to quote brief passages in connection with a review

written for inclusion in magazine or newspaper.

| Reprinted January, 1942. . Set up and electrotyped. Published October, 1938. .

, . PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA : AMERICAN BOOK~STRATFORD PRESS, INC., NEW YORK

| TO

, : FATHER AND MOTHER |

BLANK PAGE |

~ INTRODUCTION | No LEss a historian than John Richard Green has called photography the greatest boon ever conferred on the common man in recent times. Green cannot be far wrong. Photography affects the lives of modern individuals so extensively that it is difficult to enumerate all

of its uses. In addition to preserving for us the portraits of loved ones, it illustrates our newspapers, our magazines, our books. It en-

| ables the physician to record the inner structure of man and thus aids in alleviating man’s ills. By its means, man has been able to study the infinitely small, to explore the outer reaches of space, to discover planets, and to reveal the structure of atoms. Crime has been detected through its agency as readily as have flaws in metal structures. It has recorded the past, educated our youth, and last, but not least, it has given us the most popular form of amusement ever devised.

It is indeed strange that, with all these important contacts with mankind, its history in this country has never previously been traced, despite the fact that photography has been practiced in this country

for nearly a century. This seems all the more remarkable when one | reflects that photography is the most universally practiced of all arts

orForcrafts. | | some years I have been interested in the history of photography from a purely technical standpoint—a field in which there are several excellent handbooks. Over six years ago, in reading an ac-

count of the explorations of Frémont, the question arose in my mind as to the first use of photography in the exploration of the West. Upon looking this matter up, I found no ready reference to which I could turn for information. I then began the accumulation of facts, which as it grew, gradually evolved into a history of American photography.

[ vii | |

Since technical histories are available which are, or should be,

independent of country, the only justification for adding to such -

| literature, if it may be called that, would be a review of developments in this country. Not primarily from a technical viewpoint, but , from that of social history. And such has been my attempt. I have

| endeavored to trace, however imperfectly, the effects of photography upon the social history of America, and in turn the effect of social

: life upon the progress of photography.

| In seeking for a suitable method of expressing this thesis, which , would serve layman and professional alike, I took as my outline ©

. a discussion of the history (as it affected this country primarily) of © the various forms of photographs, each of which in its day has had its turn as the reigning favorite. After all, it is just as important historically to know who and what were photographed, and by

whom, as it is to know how the photographing was done. | , The illustrations have been collected not only from the standpoint of recording personalities and processes important in the field of photography, but also because they provide what is a more important service—a brief outline of the American scene in photograph.

, Personalities, scenes, events, incidents, dress, pathos and humor,

, work, play and progress live again in these photographs in a fashion which would be impossible from any written description, however vivid. If the efforts of one individual working largely at his own initiative and expense can make such a start as is represented by the photographs in this book, I venture to say that organized effort on a larger scale could assemble, given sufhicient time, a duplication of the —

past in photograph that would leave little to be desired. ‘The wealth

| of such material lying unused and uncared for in attics all over the country must in toto be truly astounding. In my judgment the effort would be well worth while; but it must be undertaken before many

a years pass. | Since this field has had no previous historian, my work in some

respects has been easier than if there had been previous ones. On _ the other hand, first-hand facts (reliable source material, as the his~ torian calls them) have had to be found and appraised. ‘To condense

, _ the work of a century into these pages, considering this fact, was _ too large an undertaking. For that reason, my history is largely the

| history of the first half-century in photography, 1839-1889, although [ vill |

there have been brief excursions into more modern history where

these have seemed logical. | , |

If I have seemed unduly punctilious about recording and stating _ references to the original literature, I hope the reader will bear with

me, for this is primarily the report of a research and, as such, must give the evidence. Most of the material found within these pages I have not previously published. Chapter ‘Thirteen (Civil War Photographers) , however, appeared in the American Annual of Photography for 1937 in modified form, and portions of Chapters ‘Three

and Four were published in American Photography during 1935 and ~ | 1936. The notes on this previously published portion are included in the present book for the first time. I am indebted to so many, for help in locating valuable material, that an enumeration of all such persons would itself run into several

pages of text. The correspondence involved has run into well over | two thousand letters. For this reason I have attempted to give due | credit in the text or notes and trust that I shall be forgiven any omissions. I must acknowledge, however, the very great aid or en-

couragement of the following persons: Mr. K. D. Metcalf, formerly , Chief of the Reference Department, New York Public Library; Mr. R. W. G. Vail, Librarian, American Antiquarian Society; Mr. Alfred Rigling, Librarian, ‘The Franklin Institute; Dr. A. J. Olmsted of the United States National Museum; Mr. F. R. Fraprie, editor of Ameri-

, can Photography; Mr. John A. Tennant, editor, Photo-Miniature;

Mr. Frank V. Chambers, editor, The Camera; the late Frank H.- | Hodder, Professor of American History, University of Kansas; the

late Frederick S. Dellenbaugh of New York City; Mr. C. M. Baker, | Librarian, the University of Kansas; Professor F. B. Dains, the ©

University of Kansas; Mr. Oren Bingham, photographer, the Unt1- , versity of Kansas; Mr. C. B. Neblette, the Eastman Kodak Company; Mr. Beaumont Newhall, ‘The Museum of Modern Art, New York

City; Edward Epstean, New York City; my cousin, Miss Mildred Goshow of Philadelphia; my brother, Dr. K. B. Taft, of Chicago, who

read and criticized my work in manuscript form and whose many suggestions have materially improved the readability of the text; and lastly and most important of all, Mr. W. H. Jackson of New York City, a survivor of pioneer days in American photography, who has [ix ]

given generously of his time and knowledge in answering my many

questions. I am also indebted to the committee on research of the | University of Kansas, for a grant which aided in the preparation of

the illustrations for this volume. Acknowledgment is gratefully

| made also to Harriet Magruder Bingham for suggestions used in

| designing the book cover. | |

However, any errors found in the following pages are chargeable

interested. | : |

to me alone. I should very much appreciate constructive criticism and additional information on the topics treated herein from those

UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS, , ROBERT TAFT

LAWRENCE, KANSAS | | October 19, 1937 © ,

| | [x ] | )

| CONTENTS

CHAPTER | PAGE INTRODUCTION _ vil I “THEIR EXQUISITE PERFECTION ALMOST TRANSCENDS THE

BOUNDS OF SOBER BELIEF | 3

II FIRST PORTRAITS AND FIRST GALLERIES 22 | ,

III THE ERA OF THE DAGUERREOTYPE , 46 | IV. DAGUERREOTYPES AND THE PUBLIC 63

V DAGUERREOTYPY AT ITS ZENITH 76

VI PHOTOGRAPHY - 102 ,

VII THE AMBROTYPE : : , | 123 - VII THE FAMILY ALBUM 138

IX THE TINTYPE 153 , - X THE STEREOSCOPE | 167 XI “BOSTON AS THE EAGLE AND THE WILD GOOSE SEE IT” _ 186

XII REAL AMATEURS a 204

XIE CIVIL WAR PHOTOGRAPHERS | 223 | XIV PHOTOGRAPHING THE FRONTIER: FIRST PHASE 248 XV PHOTOGRAPHING THE FRONTIER: SECOND PHASE 2777

XVI. THE CABINET PHOTOGRAPH — Q1i

XVII KURTZ, SARONY AND MORA 336 |

XVIII A NEW AGE | | 361

XIX THE FLEXIBLE FILM | 984 XX ZOOPRAXISCOPES AND LESS WORDY INNOVATIONS 405

APPENDIX | 451 | XXI PHOTOGRAPHY AND THE PICTORIAL PRESS | 419 |

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND NOTES oo AB3

INDEX TO ILLUSTRATIONS | , 517 TO TEXT AND NOTES , 525

- BLANK PAGE _

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a some notable exceptions, these were men of poor talents. ‘They were interested not so much in making it a sole means of supporting themselves as they were in adding it as a side line to their regular business, thereby augmenting their incomes. Such individuals were not willing to make any great investment or spend much time in acquiring the skill necessary to master what was really a process of

forties: |

| some difficulty. Ryder, the well known Cleveland photographer, who lived through this period, describes the situation in the early “It was no uncommon thing to find watch repairers, dentists, and _ other styles of business folk to carry on daguerreotypy ‘on the side’!

, I have known blacksmiths and cobblers to double up with it, so it | : was possible to have a horse shod, your boots tapped, a tooth pulled, —

| or a likeness taken by the same man; verily, a man—a daguerreotype man—in his time, played many parts.’ ®° No wonder their artistic

efforts were hideous. a

| _ This second group of daguerreotypists, especially those in smaller towns, made their work appear mysterious; that is, they imposed themselves as magicians on the credulous villagers. ‘The process readily lent itself to such deception, as it required a darkened closet to

which the daguerreotypist retired in order to prepare his plates and |

| develop them. Like magicians, they readily acquired the title of pro-

of omission. : ee | - Such a professor, especially if he had a smattering knowledge of |

| fessor, a title which has always covered a multitude of sins, mostly phrenology, might go far, for a time at least, in a given community,

and yet turn out very mediocre work. He would probably be be-

sieged by young men desiring to learn “the trade,” and he made many an additional dollar by selling equipment and imparting his

| knowledge to those who had the necessary funds. Such a professor

, must have been “‘a sun that could afford to shine on other and lesser | planets without dimming his own luster.” A young hopeful seeking an audience with “the professor’ would have his bumps felt, and, if ideality was prominent, color good, and form excellent (which doubtless depended upon the condition of the applicant’s pocketbook), he was assured that he was a promising candidate who would succeed at this newest of arts.

Probably the artist of the dark closet did not linger long in one , community, as his artistic efforts would call for continual explanation, but the glib professor had a stock of phrases which enabled him to put off the evil day for a time. Of these, “You moved” could

be used the most; and “You did not keep still,’ “You winked,” | “You looked too serious,’ “You breathed too deep,” could all be , used on occasion. Incidentally, it made little difference in the earliest

days of daguerreotypy whether the subject winked or not. In an exposure approximating a minute, if the sitter did not hold his eyes

shut too long, the eyes would appear open, since the process of | winking requires only a fraction of a second. But there were successful practitioners who established themselves

by virtue of good work at the beginning of this era. Among the first of these to achieve any considerable reputation was John Plumbe, Jr.

Plumbe, a Welshman by birth, was a man of restless and energetic , disposition, well trained for his day. During the early thirties he was associated with the first railroad in the South; first as a con-

struction engineer, and later as division superintendent. In 1836, | he suddenly gave up this work and moved west into the newly organized territory of Wisconsin. He traveled extensively in this country (which then included Iowa) and as a result he published in 1839 a brief book, Sketches of Iowa and Wisconsin, a written description of the country intended to increase emigration to the new territory. I imagine that the returns from this book did not yield Plumbe any great sum, but a copy of it recently (1934) sold | for two hundred dollars; probably much more than Plumbe ever made from it. But Plumbe’s place in American history rests very largely upon the fact that he was the first to advocate a railroad con- | necting the East with the West, an Oregon, or as it was also called, a Pacific, railroad. He wrote extensively in the newspapers, organized public meetings, and memorialized Congress with this object in view. Plumbe first suggested such a railroad to the citizens of Dubuque, Iowa, in 1837; during the next few years he worked for —

| [49 J

it throughout the West. In 1840, he went east, apparently with the

object of securing eastern capital and of furthering the interests of his project in Congress. Here he became acquainted for the first time with the daguerreotype, and was so struck with its possibilities

that he learned the art and began to practice it, his initial attempts

| being made the same year (1840). It is very probable that Plumbe became a daguerreotypist in order to earn a livelihood while he was

: _ fostering his railroad interests in Congress. His enterprising spirit . soon made itself manifest in his new profession, for he opened — shortly a Daguerrean gallery in Boston, then another in New York, and soon had a chain of such galleries in Philadelphia, Baltimore, Petersburg, Albany, Saratoga Springs, and other American cities.

| (Notice his advertisement reproduced on the following page.) He was careful to secure competent agents in these cities, and, as a result,

a Plumbe’s daguerreotypes became known the country over. At the | National Fair, held in Washington in the spring of 1846, his exten-

| - sive and splendid collection on display received very special com-

oe mendation from the newspapers. | |

| | Plumbe’s enterprise is also made apparent in other ways. For. | example, it has been mentioned that but one copy of a daguerreotype could be secured from each exposure of the camera; and, of course, many patrons desired additional copies. Plumbe met the situ-

oO ation by employing artists who copied the original daguerreotype on a lithographic stone, from which any number of printed lithographs could be obtained. These he sold under the name of “Plumbeo-

| types.” One other incident also indicates the business acumen of the man. Titian’s “Venus” was on display in Washington during the winter of 1845 and 1846, and was attracting large crowds. Plumbe received permission to make daguerreotype views of the painting,

and the views were then placed on sale where the painting was | exhibited. Plumbe also became a publisher and from his office in

, _ Philadelphia there appeared the National Plumbeotype Gallery , (1847), a collection of some twenty-seven portraits lithographed from daguerreotypes made in his galleries. Plumbe’s Popular Maga-

| zine was also published irregularly during the years 1846 and 1847.

[ 50 J

, , During this part of his career, while accumulating a very considerable competence, Plumbe traveled widely and continued to

| advocate the railroad to the Pacific. With so many irons in the fire he failed to pay careful attention to his daguerreotype business.

Partly because of his laxity and partly because of the dishonesty of

, - some of his agents, Plumbe met financial disaster in 1847. His gal-

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