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Lucius H. Cathan photograph collection

Call Number

PR 132

Date

[1880-1890], undated, inclusive

Creator

Cathan, Lucius H., 1817-1890?

Extent

2.3 Linear feet (5 boxes)

Language of Materials

This collection is primarily visual. Any text is likely to be in English.

Abstract

Collection of negatives and photographs taken by Lucius H. Cathan consisting of studio portraits of unidentified individuals, portraits of the Cathan family, and views of the Brattleboro & Whitehall Railroad in Vermont.

Biographical Note

Lucius H. Cathan was an early daguerreotypist, innovator, and photographer who worked in both Vermont and Massachusetts in the mid-19th century. Cathan is particularly known for developing a speculum that reversed daguerreotype images.

Cathan was born in the small town of Townshend, Vermont in 1817 to Emery and Mary Hall Cathan. He began creating daguerreotypes a few years after Louis Daguerre introduced the technology in 1839. Cathan first advertised himself as a daguerreotypist in Townshend in 1843; later the same year he advertised his studio in the Byers Building in Springfield, Massachusetts. In 1844 he moved to Boston, Massachusetts where he would work until 1851. From 1848-1849, he worked in partnership with photographer Joseph Petee in the firm Pettee & Cathan. In September of 1850 he exhibited in the Sixth Exhibition of the Massachusetts Charitable Mechanic Association at Faneuil and Quincy Halls in Boston. Cathan did not advertise again until 1854, this time in nearby Cambridge, Massachusetts. By 1860, he had moved back to Townshend where he would spend the remainder of his career as a photographer and peddler of photographic equipment. He died circa 1890.

Arrangement

The collection is organized in two series based on size:

Series I: Small Format
Series II: Large Format

Scope and Contents

The Lucius H. Cathan Photograph Collection primarily consists of glass negatives of views of the Brattleboro & Whitehall Railroad in Vermont and portraits of unidentified individuals. Included are views of landscapes, unidentified buildings, and the Cathan family. An ambrotype, a glass positive and a photographic print are also present. During processing, image descriptions were written on negative sleeves; those which have been provided by N-YHS staff have been written in brackets.

Access Restrictions

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Use Restrictions

Taking images of documents from the library collections for reference purposes by using hand-held cameras and in accordance with the library's photography guidelines is encouraged. As an alternative, patrons may request up to 20 images per day from staff.

Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New-York Historical Society, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org. Phone: (212) 873-3400 ext. 282.

Copyrights and other proprietary rights may subsist in individuals and entities other than the New-York Historical Society, in which case the patron is responsible for securing permission from those parties. For fuller information about rights and reproductions from N-YHS visit: https://www.nyhistory.org/about/rights-reproductions

Preferred Citation

This collection should be cited as: Lucius H. Cathan Photograph Collection, PR 132, Department of Prints, Photographs, and Architectural Collections, The New-York Historical Society.

Location of Materials

Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Mrs. T. K. Boardman, Jr. on July 7, 1948.

Related Materials

Numerous daguerreotypes and ambrotypes by Lucius H. Cathan are available in the Cased Photograph File (PR 12).

Collection processed by

Jennifer Lewis

About this Guide

This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-08-21 15:47:58 -0400.
Language: Description is in English.

Edition of this Guide

This version was derived from cathan.xml

Repository

New-York Historical Society
New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West
New York, NY 10024