From right to left:
A box-in-box design, solid rosewood, rear
loading, with mirror back. Manufactured for John Plumbe, Boston, MA. Lens is of
early manufacture, with swivel shutter instead of lens cap for exposure control.
Based on the design of the world's first production camera, the French Giroux of
1839, but in reduced scale. The rear mirror allowed the image to be viewed
upright, rather than upside down. Used mostly ca. 1841-45. One of three known
surviving examples.
A sliding box-in-box, solid mahogany, single
trap door, top-loading design. The body and lens were probably made in the New
York City area. Note the typical American dovetail joinery. Lens is of very
early design and proportion, with swivel shutter instead of lens cap to control
exposure. An identical lens is known on only one other early camera. Used mostly
ca. 1842-1844.
Rosewood veneer over mahogany, rear-loading
design, with early focusing scale. Ivory label on top reads “J. Roach OPTICIAN
72 Nassau St., New York.” Lens has black metal stops in front of elements. The
ivory focusing knob in rear of camera, though beautiful to behold, made focusing
slow. Obtained in Cincinatti from grandson of Ohio daguerreotypist; one of less
than six extant examples. Used mostly ca. 1843-1845.
Rosewood veneer, double trap-door, top-loading
design. This popular design was produced with many variations throughout the
daguerreian period. This example was probably the work of a cabinetmaker. Many
of the early chamfered units were taller rather than wider; note the crude
high-profile design. The mirror below the rear trap door allows image to be
viewed upright from behind ground glass. Lens is of unknown European
manufacture, with tangential drive focusing mechanism missing. Used mostly ca.
1844-46.
Rosewood veneer, double trap door, top-loading
design with expandable back for close-up copy work. Probably made in New York
City area, possibility by W. & W. H. Lewis or C. C. Harrison. Lens is of
early 1840s manufacture, by Voigtländer & Sohn in Wien. This premium lens
predates this particular chamfered design and was probably transferred from an
earlier camera. Used mostly ca. 1847-1852.
Single trap door, top-loading bellows design.
The firm of W. & W. H. Lewis, in New Windsor, N.Y., was the first to
incorporate the bellows into an American camera. Lens engraved “J. M. Harrison
New York,” but the mechanism has tangential drive usually associated with
European manufacture. Rear box slid on bed by means of grooved rail on one side
and skid on other. Used mostly ca. 1851-1857.
Sliding box-in-box, solid mahogany, interior
hinged flaps, top loading design. Most of these cameras have been found in the
region of Boston and upper New England. More than one slot for plate holder
permitted focusing from close-up to infinity. The camera’s flexibility was
further enhanced by two focusing devices: a front metal drive knob, and a lens
knob for fine tuning. Used mostly ca. 1851-1855.
Sliding box-in-box, solid mahogany, interior
hinged flaps, top loading design. Note the wide dovetailing. Lens engraved “No.
860 Holmes, Booth & Haydens, New York,” with typical American radial drive
focusing knob. Many of these cameras came with paper label reading “John Roberts
Boston.” The hardware and wood construction differs from standard “Boston Box,”
but the function is identical. Used mostly ca. 1851-1855.
This, the last of the chamfered box designs,
had a unique construction: chamfered to a thin ridge rather than to the corner
so that front and back look like a framed chamfer. Lens engraved “Manufactured
for S & B Boston No. 108”; probably Seaver & Butler, who were
daguerreotypists at 140 Washington Street, Boston, in 1854-56. Plate holder
slipped in front of the spring loaded ground glass, as with modern view cameras;
the rear section slid out for easier close-up work. Used mostly ca.
1853-1856.
The last of the single trap door, top-loading
bellows cameras; with rosewood veneer body. Lens engraved “EA Trade Mark.” In
the rear center of the camera bed is stamped “H. J. Lewis Maker New York”
(probably son of William Lewis). The chamfered front is gone, the bellows
disappears into the box when closed, and the bed rail and skid are on opposite
sides to all other Lewis models. Used mostly ca. 1855-1856.