| Show Next Year Will Be Celebrated The of Photography And In His Recently-Published Recently Book Photography and the American Scene Dr Robert Taft Has Not Only Given an Authoritative Account of the First 50 Years of Picture- Picture Taking but Has Made an Important Contribution to the Social History of the United States States- I C CI Western Newspaper Union By Dy ELMO SCOTT WATSON N JANUARY 1939 will be I IN celebrated the birthday birthday birthday birth- birth day of the greatest boon ever conferred upon the common common common com com- mon man in recent years That benefaction according to John Richard Green the historian who made this statement statement statement state state- ment was photography Throughout photography's centennial year of 1939 we Americans who are probably the most picture minded people in the world will be asking such questions as Who was the inventor of photography how was it started who started who were the pioneers pioneers pio pio- pioneers in the field who field who did most to bring it to its present high stage of development fortuna Fortunately tely for us the answers to tho those e questions and many others arc re to be found in a recently published book which is one of the most important important important im im- im- im contributions to the social history of the United States that has appeared in recent years It is Photography Photography Photography raphy and the American Scene A Social History 1889 1839 written by Robert Taft and published by the Macmillan company Six years ago Dr Taft who as professor of chemistry at the University University University Uni Uni- of Kansas has always been interested in the history of photography from a purely technical technical technical tech tech- standpoint was reading an account of the explorations of Gen John C C. Fremont the so- so called Pathfinder of the West A question arose aros in his mind as asto asto asto to the first use of photography in the exploration of the West and when he sought enlightenment enlighten enlighten- ment on this point he found a curious curious curious cu cu- cu- cu rious dearth of information about it He then began to accumulate data on the subject Out of that grew his history of American photography photography-a a monumental volume vol ume of pages illustrated with more than pictures a book bookas as distinguished for its lively and readable style as for the scholar- scholar liness of the research back of it Importance of 01 Photography In the introduction n Dr Taft declares declares declares de de- clares that Green the historian can not be far wrong in his estimate of the importance of photography to the common manIll man He Ill says Photography affects the lives of modern individuals so extensively that it is ls difficult to enumerate all of its uses In addition to preserving ng for us the portraits portraits portraits' of loved ones it illustrates illustrates illustrates illus illus- our newspapers our magazines magazines mag mag- our books It enables the physician to record the inner structure of man and thus aids in alleviating mans man's il ills illy By its means man has been able to study the infinitely small to explore explore ex ex- ex- ex 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 recorded recorded re re- re- re corded the past educated our youth and last but not least it has given us the most popular form of amusement ever de de- Louis Jacques Mande Daguerre Daguerre Daguerre Da- Da guerre the Frenchman little realized realized realized re re- how all ail of those benefits would come from the process the discovery of which he announced in January 1839 and which was to immortalize his name in the word daguerreotype lie He was wasa a painter of the diorama a succession succession succession suc suc- cession of scenes painted on a canvas which was caused to pass slowly before the eyes of the ob ob- server Seeking a way to reproduce reproduce reproduce duce scenes upon the canvas without the labor of painting them Daguerre began a series of experiments to find such a meth meth- od Then he learned that thaI another another another an an- other Frenchman Joseph Nicephore Nice Nice- was engaged in a similar quest The two men decided decided decided de de- de- de to join forces and in 1829 formed a partnership which was to continue for 10 years died in 1833 but Daguerre contin contin- continued continued his experiments which eventually eventually eventually even even- enabled him to tB reproduce the most minute details of a scene with an exactitude and sharpness well-nigh well incredible That was the characterization of his process by Arago secretary secretary secretary secre secre- tary of the French Academy of Sciences and the most influential French scientist of 01 the time who was instrumental in securing from his government an annuity of francs later increased to for Daguerre and one of for Nie x as a's heirs In return re reo turn for this Daguerre was to describe de scribe his pr process cess publicly and I make it available to anyone who r fI Lb p 1 i s a Samuel F. F B. B Morse inventor of the telegraph and his first daguerreotype camera which Is now In the United States National museum Photograph by A A. A Bogardus New York 1871 1811 might wish to use it Daguerre did not describe his process publicly until August 19 1839 but already word of the new marvel had been spread through the popular and scientific press of France and England and the news reached America as early as March 1839 The editor of the Knickerbocker a New York magazine declared that the daguerreotypes daguerreotypes daguerreotype's daguerreotypes daguerreotype's da da- da exquisite perfection perfection tion almost transcends the bounds of sober belief Enters S. S F. F D B. B Morse One of the accounts in an American newspaper the New NewYork NewYork NewYork York Observer for April 20 1839 was written by a man who was to play an important part in the development of photography inthis in inthis inthis this country He was Samuel Finley Finley Fin Fin- ley Breese Morse destined for fu- fu 1 I. I to ari i MATHEW B. B BRADY ture ture fame as the inventor of the telegraph Morse who had already already already al al- ready achieved fame as a portrait portrait portrait por por- trait painter had gone abroad in the summer of 1838 to secure secure secure se se- se- se cure patents in England and France for his magnetic electro telegraph on which he had been working for several years After securing a French patent he remained remained remained re re- re- re in Paris for several months while negotiating with the Russian government for a contract contract con tract for his invention and during during during dur dur- ing this time Daguerre made his historic announcement Morse who as a portrait painter paint paint- er had experimented unsuccessfully unsuccessfully fully with the same idea was Immediately immediately im mediately interested in the Frenchmans Frenchman's discovery and sought an interview with the suggestion sug sug- suggestion that if Daguerre would show him his daguerreotypes Morse would demonstrate his tel tel- Daguerre consented and from this interview grew the story story story sto sto- ry that the Frenchman generously generously gener imparted the secret of the new art to the American by whom it was carried across the ocean and successfully introduced into the United States After examining all of available available ble evidence in regard to the claims made in behalf of Morse and others for the title of the first person to make a successful daguerreotype in the United States Dr Taft awards that distinction distinction distinction dis dis- to D D. D W W. Seager an Englishman Englishman Eng lishman living in New York in 1839 On September 27 Seager made a picture which showed a apart apart apart part of St. of-St. St St. Pauls Paul's church the sur sur- rounding g shrubbery and houses and a corner of the Astor house The First Portrait The author of Photography and the American Scene also examines the evidence in an attempt attempt at at- tempt to answer the question Who made the first photographic photograph photograph- ic portrait That honor has also been claimed for Morse and for Professor John W. W Draper who made the famous portrait of his sister Miss Dorothy Catherine Draper which has often been reproduced reproduced reproduced re re- re- re produced as the first photographic photograph photograph- ic portrait But according to Dr Taft it was not That honor goes to Alexander S. S W Wolcott of New NewYork NewYork York an instrument maker and manufacturer of dental supplies who became interested in daguer- daguer when his partner John Johnson secured a copy of Daguerre's Daguerre's Daguerre's Da- Da guerres guerre's directions for making pictures by his new process On October 7 1839 Wolcott made a successful profile portrait of Johnson Johnson Johnson John John- son and this Taft calls the first But Dut more important than establishing establishing establishing lishing these historic firsts is the complete story of the development development development devel devel- of the various photographic photographic photo photo- photographic graphic processes which Dr Tafts Taft's book gives nor gives gives not primarily ly from a technical viewpoint but from that of social history as he explains I have endeavored endeavored endeavored ored to trace however howe imperfectly imperfect imperfect- ly the effects of photography upon the social history of America America Amer Amer- ica lea and in turn the effect of social so so- social cial life upon the progress of photography pho pho- So in this book we read how Yankee ingenuity soon made the American daguerreotypes superior or to those made in any other country and how this first phase of photography reached its zenith in the work of Mathew B. B Brady to whose studio came all of 01 the great and near near great great as well as distinguished foreign visitors to have their portraits made Bradys Brady's greatest fame of course rests upon the work he did in making a pictorial history of the Civil war Dr Taft while giving full credit to him as a photographic photographic photographic photo photo- graphic historian also rescues from oblivion the names of many of the operators in his employ who made the photographs credited cred credo to Brady as well as other Civil war photographers Notable Notable Nota Nota- ble among these were Alexander Gardner and T. T H H. O'Sullivan who in the early morning of July 4 1863 made the picture of the Battlefield at Gettysburg which was to become famous under the title of The Harvest of Death After the era of the daguerreotype type came the era of the ambro- ambro type the tintype the carte de viste which Oliver Wendell Holmes once called the social currency the sentimental greenbacks greenbacks greenbacks green backs' backs of civilization and the stereoscope which in its day was found in the parlor of virtually every ery American home Then rame the day of the cabinet photograph photograph pho pho- photograph and finally the new era began with the introduction of the sensitive dry plate and the flexible film All Ali of this appropriately appropriately appropriately illustrated is told in Dr Tafts Taft's book which in its odd pages recreates more vividly than has ever before been done the story of American life during the five most picturesque and most interesting decades of its entire history In so far as Dr Tafts Taft's book is the direct result of his curiosity as to the first use of photography i in the exploration of the West it itis it itis I I is especially fitting that two of the finest chapters in it U deal with Photographing the Frontier The first instance of the use of a camera on a government expedition expedition tion was when the distinguished artist John Mix Stanley I panted the party which in 1853 began surveying the northern I railroad route to the Pacific under under un un- der the command of Gov I. I I I. I I Stevens of 01 Washington Territory When Fremont set out upon his expedition in the same year I I he persuaded S. S N. N Carvalho of of Baltimore an artist and daguer daguer- 1 to accompany him Carvalho Carvalho Carvalho Car Car- wrote a lengthy account of his experiences and one sentence I from it is significant of the handicaps handicaps handicaps han han- under which these pioneer photographers of the frontier frontier I worked worked Tp Tp make a daguerreotype type view generally occupied from one to two hours the principal principal prin prin- cipal part of that time was spent in packing and reloading the ani ant mals Although t tie the e Civil war halted government exploring expeditions expeditions expeditions and therefore expeditionary phot photography raphy both were resumed after th this war and from that time on the photographer was an im im- important important member of 01 the personnel of any exploring party Outstanding among these photographers photographers photographers pho pho- were T. T II 11 O'Sullivan an already well known for foT his work during the Civil war and John JohnK K Hillers Millers who accompanied Maj J. J W. W Powell on his historic trip down the Colorado river through the Grand Canyon of Ari Ari- zona But the best known of 01 all Western photographers was aman a aman aman man who is still stUl living in New NewYork York York 95 95 years young and still keenly interested in photography I William WilHam H. H Jackson is his name A h native of New York he went west after the Civil war He opened a studio in the tte growing grow ing frontier town of Omaha in 1868 but becoming dissatisfied with the sedentary life of a vii vil village lage photographer fitted up a traveling dark room on a buckboard buck buck- board and toured the country around Omaha photographing In In- In 1869 he took a trip along the newly completed Union Pacific Pacific Pa Pa- railroad and this brought him into contact with Professor F. F V. V Hayden who was engaged in making one of the United States geological surveys of the West From that time until 1879 M rn ss x t laA PA PAe e W. W II It Jackson lackson and his bis work Ing lag outfit along the line Une of 01 the Union Pacific railroad In 1869 1669 Jackson was the official photographer photographer of 01 the Hayden surveys and in that role did some of his most important photography He lie took thousands of 01 pictures picture of Indians which are interesting historically because they anamong are an among the relatively few that tha were made of the red man before before before be be- fore he was forced to live on a reservation and his picturesque native life was greatly modified by contact with the whites But even more important wor work was done by Jackson in another field The Hayden survey of 1871 was in the region now known a as Yellowstone National park In fact the park probably owes its present status to the Hayden survey survey sur sur- vey of this year declares theauthor the theauthor theauthor author of Photography and the American Scene and to Jackson I I r M d 5 rn W. W v. v H II Jackson as be he is today I belongs the distinction of taking the first photographs in the region region region re re- gion of scenic wonders that has become such a picture takers picture paradise The next year he took the first photographs in what isnow is isnow isnow now the Grand Teton National park and in 1874 1871 he and Ernest Ingersoll of the New York Tribune Tribune Tribune Trib Trib- une discovered and photographed the ruins of the cliff dwellings in what is now Mesa Verde National National Na park t I |
