Western Americana

Detroit: Detroit Photographic Company, 1900. Hardcover. Fine. Item #2602017 W. H. Jackson, one of the greatest of America’s 19th century Western photographers who lived well into the 20th century, left an immense body of work, much or most of which became the property of the Detroit Photographic Company. The latter used the exquisite Swiss photochrom process of making gorgeous color photographic prints. Offered here are two, Ute Chief Buckskin Charlie and Apache subchief James A. Garfield. The prints outside the frames are 11″ x14″. The frames, which provide an oval presentation of the men, are 14 7/8″ x 18 ¼”. The wooden frames present a cross-cut pattern which do not show up well on my photos, but I have provided a couple of close-ups. The frames have chips and blemishes which require some restoration should the buyer desire it. The prints were backed on paper which, as you can see on the reverse, has oxidized, most likely from the wooden boards holding them in place. I removed the wooden board from one portrait back and the other replaced by a former owner with cardboard, which I removed. This material has been replaced with archival foam board. We find no evidence of oxidation on the surface of the prints. It will be up to a conservator to determine if any preventative work should be carried out. As you can see, I photographed the prints outside the frames, and they are brilliant. The Library of Congress has a photochrom of Garfield, size 18cm x 24cm. From Autry’s Online re Buckskin Charlie: “1842 – 1936 Buckskin Charlie was the last traditional chief of the Southern Ute. Entrusted by Chief Ouray in 1880 to lead the Utes into the 20th Century. He served as a bridge between the old and new ways and counseled for peace. Reportedly born near the Garden of the Gods, Buckskin Charlie subsequently returned many times to the areas known as Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs. In 1912 he dedicated the ancient Ute Trail near Manitou Springs to future generations of all races. Chief Buckskin Charlie died on May 8, 1936 and was succeeded by his son, Antonio Buck, Sr. As hereditary chief, Antonio Buck, Sr. became the first elected Chairman of the Southern Ute Trail.” From the Metropolitan Museum of Art website: “Chief James Garfield Velarde. This leader of the Jicarilla Apache Nation took the name Chief James Garfield after receiving a peace medal from President Garfield, and he later adopted the surname Velarde. In this studio portrait-taken twelve years after his people were relocated to a reservation-he wears a mix of Euro-American clothing and Native regalia: a white collared shirt and a waistcoat, a fur sash decorated with conchos, shell ear ornaments, and a shell necklace. The image was published by the Detroit Photographic Company, which Jackson joined in 1897.” The Met’s print appears to be about the same size as this one. As to the company, “The Detroit Photographic Company began as a photographic publishing firm in the late 1890s. It became one of the largest American publishers of postcards and photographic views in the early 1900s. The founders, Detroit businessman and publisher William A. Livingston, Jr., and photographer and photo-publisher Edwin H. Husher, obtained the exclusive rights to use the Swiss color photolithography “Photochrom” process. This process permitted the mass production of color postcards, prints, and albums for sale to the American market. In 1897 William Henry Jackson became a partner in the firm, adding thousands of negatives to the inventory. The company became known as the Detroit Publishing Company in 1905. The Detroit Publishing Company went into receivership in 1924, and liquidated its assets in 1932.” (Archivegrid. less