Timothy H. O'Sullivan
1870 (ca)
Black Canyon, Colorado River, From Camp 8, Looking Above

Albumen print
8 x 10¥ in (20.3 x 27.3 cm)
 
Swann Galleries - New York
On the original Wheeler Survey two-toned mount with O'Sullivan's printed credit, title, plate number and the Expedition of 1871 credit on mount recto.
 
O'Sullivan began his career as an apprentice in Matthew Brady's Washington, D.C. studio in the late 1850s. The following decade he assisted Brady and Alexander Gardner during the Civil War, where he perfected the wet collodion process and became both a master of its technique and artistry.
 
In 1871 Lt. George Wheeler was assigned the responsibility for the United States Geological Surveys West of the One Hundredth Meridian and was placed in charge of collecting physical descriptions of mineral resources, topography, Native Americans and information pertaining to economy and settlement. One of the first assistants Wheeler hired was O'Sullivan, which greatly satisfied the photographer's interest in adventure.
 
This photograph was included in a lot sold at the Swann Galleries auction "Important 19th & 20th Century Photographs" (New York, Mon Oct 15, 2007).
 
LL/21783