http://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/c88g8svk No online items Collection of Cased Photographs and Related Images photDAG Suzanne Oatey The Huntington Library October 2020 1151 Oxford Road San Marino, California 91108 [email protected] URL: http://www.huntington.org Collection of Cased Photographs photDAG 1 and Related Images photDAG Contributing Institution: The Huntington Library Photo Archives Title: Collection of cased photographs and related images Identifier/Call Number: photDAG Physical Description: 14 Linear Feet (154 boxes and 4 folders) Date (inclusive): approximately 1840s-1900s, 1992-2012 Date (bulk): 1840s-1860s Abstract: A collection of chiefly 19th-century photographs mounted in their original cases, and some related images. The majority are daguerreotypes and ambrotypes, 1840s-1860s, and are primarily portraits with some outdoor views including Gold Rush miners. Language of Material: Materials are in English. Conditions Governing Access RESTRICTED. Items are fragile. Available with curatorial approval. Conditions Governing Use The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The copyright for daguerreotypes by Robert Shlaer (photDAG 116, photDAG 154) is held by Shlaer. For the rest of the collection, the responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining permission rests with the researcher. Preferred Citation [Identification of item]. Collection of cased photographs and related images, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California. Immediate Source of Acquisition Acquired from various sources. Items were either acquired individually through gift or purchase, or were transferred from manuscript collections. See container list for sources of individual items. Scope and Contents A collection of chiefly 19th-century cased photographs representing some of the earliest photography formats: daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, and tintypes. These early photographs, made on glass or metal plates, were typically placed in small, hinged wooden cases, often covered with leather and lined in velvet, with a brass mat and piece of protective glass placed over the image. The collection contains 72 daguerreotypes and 46 ambrotypes (approximately 1840s-1860s), and 58 early tintypes (approximately mid-1850-1900s). Some items in the collection are not in cases or are in frames. The Huntington Library assembled these 185 photographs into a collection from various sources over a period of many years, and some related formats were added: a miniature tintype album with 22 portraits; two opalotypes; two miniature paintings; and six photographic prints placed in cases or frames; and one stereoscopic daguerreotype in a fold-out viewing case. Also in the collection are two modern daguerreotypes, made in 1992 and 2003 by photographer Robert Shlaer, and three ambrotypes made in 2012 by Barret Oliver, of the mausoleum of Henry E. Huntington and his wife, Arabella Huntington, on the grounds of the Huntington Library in San Marino, California. Most cased items were cleaned and housed in individual, custom-sized boxes by the Conservation Department in the late 1980s. The majority of photographs are studio portraits of men, women, and children, made approximately 1840s-1865 (daguerreotypes and ambrotypes), or approximately mid-1850s-1900s (tintypes). Many are pioneers of the American West, or ancestors of families who came West, and others are unidentified or of unknown provenance. Notable portraits are: Edgar Allan Poe; Jane Thoreau (aunt of Henry David Thoreau); John B. Colton (Jayhawker of 1849); a postmortem view of a young daughter of B.D. Wilson; Theodore D. Judah; a whole plate ambrotype of a group of San Francisco businessmen; and a Civil War drummer boy and his mother. There are a few reproduction images of Abraham Lincoln, including two circular images that were campaign badges. Also in the collection are several outdoor scenes: California Gold Rush miners posed with tools at work sites; the First Baptist Church, San Francisco, 1849; a street scene in the frontier town of Orleans, California; and the locomotive "Sam Cruse," named for an executive of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad. Photographers are largely uncredited, though three have the imprint of Robert H. Vance, San Francisco, and date from 1853-1856. A whole plate daguerreotype of Lyman Beecher is by Southworth & Hawes of Boston, Massachusetts, approximately 1850. Most of the images are undated, which is common with cased photographs. If a date can be determined from writing or other material with the image, or by the image content, that date is given. When dates cannot be determined from any other source, estimated dates have been given based on dates of major usage of daguerreotypes (1840s-1850s) and ambrotypes (1855-1865). Tintypes were produced mid-1850s to early-20th century, though tintypes in this collection are estimated to date no later than 1900s. Processing Information Collection of Cased Photographs photDAG 2 and Related Images photDAG Titles were assigned by the cataloger unless otherwise noted. Dates estimated by the cataloger are in square brackets. The images were assigned numbers by Library staff over a period of many years, circa mid-20th century-2013, and these numbers have been retained. There are no items for numbers 4 and 24; item 106 is missing as of 2009. The cataloger has intellectually rearranged the items in this finding aid to group together items with shared provenance, and provide an alphabetical listing of identified persons. Arrangement Organized in three series: Series 1. Portraits, approximately 1840s-1900s Series 2. Mining scenes, buildings, and other subjects, approximately 1849-1900s Series 3. Modern ambrotypes and daguerreotypes, 1992-2012 Existence and Location of Copies Black-and-white copy prints and copy negatives of many of the images were made by The Huntington Library in the late 1980s. The copy prints are available for reference and are housed in a separate box with the collection, Box 172. Bibliography Craig, John S. Craig's Daguerreian Registry. Torrington (Conn.): John S. Craig, 1990. Deas, Michael J. The Portraits and Daguerreotypes of Edgar Allan Poe. Charlottesville (Va.): University Press of Virginia, 1989. Lenman, Robin. The Oxford Companion to the Photograph, edited by Nicholson, Angela.: Oxford University Press, 2005. Rinhart, Floyd and Rinhart, Marion. The American Daguerreotype. Athens (Ga.): University of Georgia Press, c1981. Subjects and Indexing Terms Children -- Portraits Church buildings -- California -- San Francisco Families -- United States -- History Frontier and pioneer life -- California Gold mines and mining -- California Henry E. Huntington Library and Art Gallery Henry E. Huntington Library and Art Gallery -- Officials and employees Orleans (Calif.) Postmortem photography United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Participation, Juvenile Women -- Portraits Ambrotypes (photographs) Daguerreotypes (photographs) Opalotypes Photograph albums Photographs Portraits Tintypes Beecher, Lyman, 1775-1863 Brent, Joseph Lancaster, 1826-1905 Channing, William F. (William Francis), 1820-1901 Colton, John B., 1831-1919 Couts, Cave Johnson, 1821-1874 Huntington, Henry Edwards, 1850-1927 -- Homes and haunts Jayhawker Party Judah, Theodore D. (Theodore Dehone), 1826-1863 Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865 -- Photographs Poe, Edgar Allan, 1809-1849 -- Photographs Collection of Cased Photographs photDAG 3 and Related Images photDAG Thoreau, Jane, 1784-1864 Meade Bros Oliver, Barret Pratt, William A., 1818-1879 Root, M. A. (Marcus Aurelius), 1808-1888 Shlaer, Robert Southworth, Albert Sands, 1811-1894 Southworth & Hawes Vance, Robert H., 1825-1876 Whitney, Edward Tompkins, 1820-1893 Portraits Series 1 approximately 1840s-1900s Physical Description: 12.88 Linear Feet (142 boxes and 4 folders) Physical Description: Items are in cases unless otherwise noted. Arrangement Arranged alphabetically by sitter's name, if known. Within that arrangement, identified and unidentified portraits that share the same provenance have been grouped together. Scope and Contents This series contains 155 studio portraits and a miniature portrait album of individuals alone or in groups. There are two variant postmortem views of Margaret Hereford Wilson, a daughter of B. D. Wilson, as a little girl. All are original photographs unless otherwise noted, such as a few reproduction photographs of Abraham Lincoln. When dates cannot be determined from any other source, estimated dates have been given based on dates of major usage: daguerreotypes (1840s-1850s); ambrotypes (1855-1865); and tintypes (use began mid-1850s and continued into early 20th century, though tintypes in this collection are estimated to date no later than 1900s.) Box 13 Lyman Beecher (photDAG 13) [approximately 1850] Physical Description: Daguerreotype in frame; plate 21 x 16 cm (whole plate format) Scope and Contents Lyman Beecher (1775-1863) was a New England preacher. Photographer: Southworth & Hawes. Source: Acquisition records and cited in Romer, Grant B. Young America: The Daguerreotypes of Southworth & Hawes (2005). Date based on age of sitter and photograph type. Immediate Source of Acquisition Gift of Friends of the Library, 1939. Box 80 Unidentified young man wearing a pocket watch with chain [Beecher family?] (photDAG 80) [approximately 1855-1865] Physical Description: Ambrotype; plate 8 x 11 cm (quarter plate