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19th Century Colorado Photographers

More than 1,000 photographers worked in Colorado in the 19th century. This blog focuses on the lesser known image makers–their lives and their images. I hope you find the stories interesting.

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Researching George Mellen’s Journey to Colorado
George Mellen arrived in Gunnison, Colorado in 1880 and immediately began making finely composed stereoviews and boudoir cards of the new and growing town. A few years later, Mellen worked for the renowned landscape photographer, William Henry Jackson in Denver, Colorado. This post will try to answer several questions about his early life. When was […]
John E. Beebe, Photographer, Dry Plate Manufacturer, and Advertising Executive
John E. Beebe was born into a prominent family on December 11, 1851, in Galena, Illinois, the fifth of ten children. His father, Thomas Hempstead Beebe (1819-1906), was the president of the Peshtigo Lumber Company, and his mother, Catherine Eddowes Beebe, was a native of Delaware. They met and married in Galena. The family moved […]
Britton Bros. and Their Unusual Photo Mount
Buffalo natives, Walter Raleigh Britton (1868-1934) and his brother, George Francis Britton (1870-1939), worked as photographers in Denver in the mid-1890s. Their cabinet card mounts provide many interesting details about their business. The back of the card shows portraits of both men. We learn that Walter worked behind the camera as the operator, while George […]
Watermelon Day In Rocky Ford, Colorado by J. E. Orr
In 1878, Rocky Ford farmer G. W. Swink offered slices of watermelon to train passengers passing through town. The following year, using the door of a Santa Fe boxcar for table space, a crowd of about fifty people celebrated the local melon. During the next decade, the celebration moved into the watermelon grove with a […]
Photo Studios in Mineral County, Colorado
In 1889, Nicholas C. Creede and his mining partners discovered silver at the Holy Moses vein up East Willow Creek in Mineral County. New mineral strikes in 1891, combined with the extension of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad to Upper Creede, brought an influx of people to the region. Three months later, the […]
Summer Road Trips
Part of my research involves visiting Colorado’s small history museums. Many of these museums are only open from Memorial Day to Labor Day. I aim to make one research trip a month during the summer. In June, I traveled to Creede, Colorado, more than 300 miles from home. Before my trip, I compiled biographical entries […]
Horace S. Poley and Co., The Pike’s Peak Photographers
Best known for his photographs of Native Americans, Horace Swartley Poley was born on August 1, 1863, in Norristown, Pennsylvania, to Dr. Francis Boyer Poley and Barbara K. Swartley Poley. He arrived in Boulder, Colorado, around 1886, where he met photographer B. F. Sooy. Together, they operated a photography studio in Colorado Springs, Colorado, […]
Views of Colorado by Benjamin E. Hawkins
Benjamin E. Hawkins was born in Steubenville, Ohio. In 1865, IRS tax assessment records place him as a photographer in New Castle, Pennsylvania. On November 24, 1866, he married Ellen Spaulding in Steubenville. They had three children before divorcing in the 1870s. Hawkins operated a photography studio in Steubenville in the late 1860s and early […]
A Trip to a Denver Photo Studio
In 1892 or 1893, an unidentified couple arrived at the Central Photo Parlors at the corner of 15th and Lawrence Streets in Denver. They posed for a full-length portrait, likely dressed in wedding attire, in front of a painted backdrop. In the 19th century, marriage ceremonies were typically held at the home of the bride’s […]
William R. Armington, Photographer and Painter in Brighton
William Richard Keys Armington was born in Lansing, Iowa, around 1860. By 1880, he resided in Colorado and worked as a painter, making both signs and landscape paintings. A man of many interests, Armington led the Harvey Light Guards, a military company established in Brighton in 1888. He began pursuing photography in the 1890s and […]

19thcenturycoloradophotographers_d5uooh on Researching George Mellen’s Journey to ColoradoNovember 1, 2025
Hi Kathy, I'm co-authoring a longer article about Mellen's stereoviews. I'll let you know what we find out about the…
Kathy Gibson on Researching George Mellen’s Journey to ColoradoNovember 1, 2025
I'm looking forward to what you learned about Mellen photographing in the San Juan Mountains and Durango, and when.
John on John E. Beebe, Photographer, Dry Plate Manufacturer, and Advertising ExecutiveOctober 14, 2025
He reinvented himself well!
Martha H. Kennedy on John E. Beebe, Photographer, Dry Plate Manufacturer, and Advertising ExecutiveOctober 14, 2025
Interesting post and so well done. Thank you!
19thcenturycoloradophotographers_d5uooh on Picturing Longmont LectureOctober 7, 2025
Let me know if you would like to partner on a blog post about Boynton.

19th Century Colorado Photographers

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