Collection of William Henry Jackson photographs

A Guide to the Collection

Biographical Note

American photographer, artist and explorer, William Henry Jackson (1843-1942) led a long and productive life. Jackson was born in Keeseville, New York, on April 4, 1843. He started drawing at a very young age and learned the basics of watercolor painting from his mother and Chapman’s American Drawing Book. Jackson’s formal education stopped around the age of 15, when he graduated from Old Fourth Ward School in Troy, New York. Between 1858 and 1862, he worked as a photographer’s assistant in charge of retouching and coloring, first in Troy, and then in Rutland, Vermont. During the Civil War, Jackson served with the 12th Vermont Infantry (August, 1862-July, 1863). He returned to the retouching job in Rutland in 1863. In 1866 he left the East for the American frontier and, after a series of odd jobs (bullwhacker, vaquero driver, a failed attempt to become a silver miner), he became a colorist for the Hamilton Gallery in Omaha, Nebraska. In 1867, together with his younger brother, Edward, Jackson opened the "Jackson Brothers, Photographers," studio in Omaha.

Not satisfied with studio portrait photography, Jackson started taking the camera outdoors and taking views of Nebraska’s landscapes, along the Union Pacific Railroad. He also photographed several Native American tribes, some of whom had never been photographed before. Jackson became most interested in the picturesque opportunities offered by rugged landscapes, such as Utah and Wyoming. By 1869, he was producing 8 x 10-inch negatives, as well as stereoscopic views, and had established a name as a landscape photographer.

In 1870, F.V. Hayden, leader of the United States Geological Survey of the Territories, invited Jackson on the survey of Wyoming as an unpaid photographer. At the end of the summer, Jackson accepted Hayden’s offer of employment and held the position of official photographer of Hayden’s surveys until 1878. The hiring contract stipulated that all negatives made on the surveys were to be property of the USGS.

In the summer of 1871, Jackson accompanied Hayden’s survey in the Yellowstone region. He started a long friendship with the painter Thomas Moran, who also joined the survey that year. Jackson’s photographs helped convince the Congress to vote for the Yellowstone National Park bill in 1872. In the following seasons, Jackson documented Hayden’s survey in Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, and Colorado. His subjects included, among others, the Mount of the Holy Cross (1873), the Ute reservation at Las Pinos, Colorado, and cliff ruins in Mancos Canyon, near Mesa Verde, Colorado (1874). In 1876, Jackson supervised the USGS exhibit at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, where he displayed some of his most spectacular landscape photographs, as well as Indian portraits and artifacts.

In 1879, Jackson moved to Denver and opened a commercial studio: "The Jackson Photographic Co." He photographed Leadville, Colorado, a mining town. Between 1881 and 1884, he partnered with Albert E. Rinehart, a portrait photographer, under the name "Jackson and Rinehart." Jackson started using the dry-plate process exclusively. He also started taking commissions from various railroad companies to support his photographic trips and advertise the scenery along the railroads. He took trips and photographed around the United States, as well as Mexico and Canada. Between 1894 and 1896, Jackson was the official photographer of the World Transportation Commission on a tour researching public transportation. The group visited Africa, India, and Russia. Harper’s Weekly hired Jackson to document the trip and published many of his photographs.

In 1897, as a result of a financial crisis of his studio in Denver, Jackson accepted a job with the Detroit Publishing Company, as director of its subsidiary, the Photochrom Company of Detroit. He also owned stock in the company. He photographed landscape in the United States, as well as Cuba, the Bahamas, and Venezuela. After a long successful period, the Photochrom Company demised and Jackson retired in 1924. In 1929, he became Research Secretary for the Oregon Trail Memorial Association. In 1936, the Department of the Interior commissioned Jackson for a series of mural paintings commemorating the four early geological surveys: Hayden, King, Wheeler, and Powell. He also painted for the National Park Service and executed watercolors for the publication of the Oregon Trail Memorial Association. His work involved extensive traveling, even when he was in his nineties.

During his long career, Jackson employed several photographic techniques, such as wet-plate and dry-plate. Besides numerous stereographs, he produced larger size negatives, from 5 x 8 inches to 20 x 22 inches. Most times, he took at least two different size cameras on his trips.

William Henry Jackson died on June 30, 1942, at the age of 99.

References:

Hales, Peter B. 1988. William Henry Jackson and the Transformation of the American Landscape. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.

Newhall, Beaumont and Diana E. Edkins. 1974. William Henry Jackson. With critical essay by William L. Broecker. Fort Worth: Morgan & Morgan for Amon Carter Museum.

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Scope and Contents of the Collection

The collection consists of 137 photographs of Colorado, New Mexico and Utah taken by William Henry Jackson between circa 1879 and circa 1900. They are arranged in sequential order according to Jackson’s negative numbers, which are visible on the photographs along with his caption. The inscription "W.H.J. &Co." follows the caption on some of the images. Some of the photographs include paragraph-long descriptions of the subjects on verso. The photographs are albumen prints of various sizes. Most are 6 ½ x 4 ¼ inches mounted on a larger board. One folder contains 19 7½ x 4 ¼ inches photographs. The collection includes smaller and larger sizes as well. Some photographs are not mounted. Most photographs represent scenery (especially of Colorado), railroads (with or without trains), mining town life scenes, mines and ranches.

In addition, the DeGolyer Library holds approximately 360 photographs and stereographs by Jackson in other collections.

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Restrictions

Access to Collection:

Collection is open for research use. Appointments are not necessary. However, due to the fragile nature of these materials, if you are planning to visit, an appointment would be appreciated.

Publication Rights:

Permission to publish materials must be obtained from the Director of the DeGolyer Library.

Copyright Statement:

It is the responsibility of the user to obtain copyright authorization.

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Related Materials

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Collection of William Henry Jackson photographs, DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University.

Acquisition Information

Acquired.

Processing Information

Finding aid written by Ada Negraru, 2007.

Inventory by Suzanne Jackson, 2007.

Edited by Anne E. Peterson, 2007.

Encoded by

Lara Corazalla, 2007.

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Detailed Description of the Collection

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