Inventory of the John K. Hillers Photographs, 1871-1889 and undated
[top]Descriptive Summary
Repository
Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke
University
Creator
Hillers, John K., 1843-1925
Title
John K. Hillers Photographs, 1871-1889 and undated
Language of Material
Material in English
Extent
1.6 Linear Feet
40 Items
Abstract
40 Items
John K. Hillers was an important early American photographer and one of the first to photograph the Grand Canyon and
the high plateaus of central and southern Utah.
Collection contains albumen photographs spanning the years 1871-1889. Most of them are landscapes made in Utah, but there are also landscapes from California and several photographs of Native Americans made in New Mexico. The
photographs are organized into six series.
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Administrative Information
Access RestrictionsCollection is open for research.
However, collection may contain materials to which the Acknowledgment of Legal Responsibilities and Privacy Rights form applies. Patrons must sign this form before using this collection.
Also, all or portions of this collection may be housed off-site in Duke University's Library Service Center. Consequently, there may be a 24-hour delay in obtaining these materials.
Please contact Research Services staff before visiting the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library to use this collection.
Copyright Notice
The copyright interests in this collection have not been transferred to Duke University. For more information, consult the copyright section of the Regulations and Procedures of the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], John K. Hillers Photographs, Rare Book,
Manuscript, and Special Collections Library, Duke University.
Provenance
The John K. Hillers Photographs were received by the Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library as a
purchase in 1972.
These and other photographs by western expeditionary photographers
were purchased from Lowdermilk's bookstore in Washington, D.C. prior to its
liquidation.
Processing Information
This collection was previously processed by Bill Erwin in 1982. Erwin conducted a great deal of research used to identify photographs made by western expeditionary photographers. Every effort was made to retain both the organization and informational aspects of his work except when they conflicted with more modern practices.
Information folders contain copies of earlier catalog records and bibliographic information for related sources including sources in which these photographs have been published.
Additional folders contain photocopies of photographs annotated by the National Archives, and reference prints made from copy negatives held in this collection.
Quotation marks indicate a title taken directly from the photograph, or from a printed caption on the mounting board. A title taken from a handwritten caption on the mounting boards is not enclosed in quotation marks.
Processed by Chris Black, November 2004
Encoded by Chris Black, Michael Shumate
Completed September 2006
Accession is described in this finding aid.
Descriptive sources and standards used to create this inventory: DACS, EAD, NCEAD guidelines, and local Style Guide.
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Biographical Note
| 1843 | Born in Hanover, Germany |
| 1852 | Arrived in the U.S. |
| circa 1861-1865 | Served in the Civil War |
| 1870 | Resigned from the U.S. Army |
| 1871 | Joined the John Wesley Powell Expedition as a boatman and photographer's assistant. |
| 1872 | Became Powell's photographer-in-chief |
| 1881-1900 | Served as the Geological Survey's chief photographer |
| 1900-1919 | Retired from the Geological Survey, but still worked for the Survey on a part-time basis |
Collection Overview
John K.Hillers, one of
America's most important early photographers, was
one of the first to photograph the Grand Canyon and most of
the high plateaus of central and southern Utah. In the fall
of 1872, at the request of the survey, Hillers turned his
lens from features of the landscape to its Native American
inhabitants and photographed the Zuni and San Juan Pueblos.
The 40
albumen photographs in this
collection span the years 1871-1889. Thirty-three are
landscapes, many of which Hillers made in Utah. Five of the
landscapes are from California. Seven photographs are of
Native Americans, primarily in New Mexico. The
photographs are organized into six series:
Official Identification of the Survey
Series, Gold Border
Series, Indian Series,
1873 Powell Survey Series,
Black Border Series, and the
California Series.
The government included photographers on western
expeditions to make a visual record of the landscape and
its inhabitants. The photographs created during these
expeditions served to create maps used to plan for the
construction of roads and railways; locate natural
resources; facilitate future military operations; as well
as to collect ethnographic information on and locate Indian
tribes. Perhaps most importantly, the commanders of western
expeditions used the resulting photographs as a public
relations tools to gain support for future expeditions, and
to record geological information, the study of which had
become a popular science during the period. By the time of
their completion, the surveys had explored much of the
region between the Great Plains and the Pacific Coast. This
recording made Hillers and the other western expeditionary
photographers some of the earliest participants in the
American tradition of documentary photography.
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Subject Headings
These are searchable subject entries for this collection. Performing a search on these subjects in the Duke University Libraries online catalog will bring up other related research materials.
- Hillers, John K., 1843-1925.
- Geological Survey (U.S.)
- Photographers.
- Documentary photography.
- Landscape photography--West (U.S.)
- Landscape photography--Southwest, New.
- Indians of North America--New Mexico--Pictorial works.
- Indians of North America--Pictorial works.
- Pueblo Indians--Pictorial works.
- Zuni Indians--Pictorial works.
- California--Pictorial works.
- Utah--Pictorial works.
- Photographs.
- Albumen prints.
Related Material
The following collections in the Duke University Rare Book, Manuscript
and Special Collections Library may contain related material:
William Bell Photographs,
1872
William Henry Jackson Photographs,
1869-1878 and undated
Timothy H. O'Sullivan Photographs,
1868-1873
Detailed Description of Collection
Official Identification of the Survey Series, 1875-1877
(1 box)
The photographs are not dated, but eight of
the landscapes have printed headings for the "Geological and Geographical Survey of
the Territories, Second Division, J.W. Powell, Geologist in
Charge." John Wesley Powell became the director
of the Second Division in 1875, and the organization was
renamed the
Geographical and Geological Survey of
the Rocky Mountain Region in 1877. Thus, these
eight pictures were printed and mounted during 1875-1877.
Additionally, an artistic gold border surrounds each image.
The photographs were not numbered or captioned, but someone
has pencilled captions on the back of the boards. The
following list uses these captions.
Box JKH1
Print JKH.P1
On Boulder Creek,
Utah, Foot Logs (caption pencilled on verso)
7.25-7.5 x
9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P2
On Boulder Creek,
Utah, Mabel's Rapids (caption pencilled on verso)
7.25-7.5 x
9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P3
On Boulder Creek,
Utah, Driftwood Falls (caption pencilled on verso)
7.25-7.5 x
9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P4
Ward's Cascade near
Red Gate, Utah (caption pencilled on verso)
7.25-7.5 x
9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P5
Falls (caption
pencilled on verso)
7.25-7.5 x
9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P6
He-och Creek (caption
pencilled on verso)
7.25-7.5 x
9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P7
Spring Creek (caption
pencilled on verso)
7.25-7.5 x
9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P8
Lake on the Back of
an Ancient Moraine (caption pencilled on verso)
7.25-7.5 x
9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Gold Border Series, undated
(1 box)
The gold borders around the images are
identical to the gold borders around the photographs on
which the name of the Survey was printed. In this series
there is no printing. These photographs were also not
numbered or captioned, but someone has written captions on
the front of the boards using purple ink. Someone else has
further identified some of the photographs with pencilled
notations on the back of the boards. The list below uses
these handwritten captions.
Box JKH1
Print JKH.P9
View on Boulder Creek
(handwritten in ink on front of board)
7-7.5 x
9-9.5 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P10
Sloping Walls
(handwritten in ink on front of board)
7-7.5 x
9-9.5 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P11
Annie's Glen
(handwritten in ink on front of board)
Print
JKH.P12
*
Or Winslow's Cascade, Winslow Creek, Utah
(caption pencilled on verso)
7-7.5 x
9-9.5 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Mouth of Tantalus
Cañon (handwritten in ink on front of board)
7-7.5 x
9-9.5 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P13
Boulders (handwritten
in ink on front of board)
Print
JKH.P14
*
on Boulder Creek, Utah (caption pencilled
on verso)
7-7.5 x
9-9.5 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Logs (handwritten in
ink on front of board)
Print
JKH.P15
*
on Boulder Creek, Utah (caption pencilled
on verso)
7-7.5 x
9-9.5 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Goblin's Archway
(handwritten in ink on front of board)
7-7.5 x
9-9.5 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Indian Series, undated
(1 box)
The gray mounting boards and the printed
black borders around the images are the same as in the
Black Border Series. The Zuñi and San Juan pueblos in the
following photographs once existed in New Mexico.
Box JKH2
Print JKH.P16
Old Man, Seated in
Full Dress. Photographed in studio setting.[?]
7.5 x 9.25
inch print mounted on a 10.75 x 13.75 inch board
copy negative available: JKH.N16
Print
JKH.P17
"Zuñi Watching"
7.25 x
9-9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch
gray board with a printed black border around the image
copy negative available: JKH.N17
Print
JKH.P18
"Zuñi Transportation"
7.25 x
9-9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch
gray board with a printed black border around the image
Print
JKH.P19
"Governor of San
Filipi, Showing Manner of Using ______" [Pump Drill].
7.25 x
9-9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch
gray board with a printed black border around the image
Print
JKH.P20
"Woman Polishing
Pottery"
7.25 x
9-9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch
gray board with a printed black border around the image
copy negative available: JKH.N20
Print
JKH.P21
"Moki Hairdresser"
7.25 x
9-9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch
gray board with a printed black border around
the image
Print
JKH.P22
"Ke _____ Ox Cart"
[Kesushe?].
7.25 x
9-9.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch
gray board with a printed black border around the image
Black Border Series, undated
(1 box)
The images in this series are mounted on
boards that have black decorative borders around the
photographs that are very similar in conception but
different in detail from the gold borders around the images
of the above two series. The tone of the images in this
series is distinctly darker than in other series. In one
case, a direct comparison is possible. There are identical
views of Winslow's Cascade in both this series and in one
of the others. Someone has pencilled captions on the backs
of the boards, and the list below uses these captions.
Box JKH2
Print JKH.P23
Winslow's Cascade on
Winslow Creek, Utah (caption pencilled on verso)
Print
JKH.P24
*
(same as Annie's Glen and Winslow's
Cascade in preceding series)
9.25 x
7.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Old Time Rocks,
Tantalus Cañon, Utah (caption pencilled on verso)
9.25 x
7.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
Print
JKH.P25
Driftwood Falls,
Boulder Creek Utah (caption pencilled on verso)
9.25 x
7.25 inch print mounted on a 13 x 15 inch board
1873 Powell Survey Series
(1 box)
Hillers made these ten photographs on the
Powell Survey during 1873. He took most, if not all, of
them in Utah and in the Grand Canyon. The photographs do
not have captions or other marks of identification.
Comparison with prints and negatives at the National
Archives has provided the identification of these
photographs. The relevant National Archives number has been
provided in the list below.
Box JKH3
Print JKH.P26
Mary's Veil, Bullion
Canyon (source: National Archives)
National Archives Number 57-PM-27
:
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
Print
JKH.P27
Grand Canyon Looking
East from Toroweap (source: National Archives)
National Archives Number:
57-PS-431 and PM-51 (431) :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
Print
JKH.P28
Colorado River at
Mouth of Little Colorado River (source: National Archives)
National Archives Number:
57-PS-435 and PM-15 (435) :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
Print
JKH.P29
Aquarius Plateau
Lake. Bee Lake (?). (source: National Archives)
National Archives Number 57-PS-448 and
PM 29 (448) :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
Print
JKH.P30
Grand Canyon. The
Sockdologer. Heaviest Single Drop. (source: National
Archives)
National Archives Number 57-PS-449 and
PM-12 (449) :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
copy negative available: JKH.N30
Print
JKH.P31
Grand Canyon (source:
National Archives) National Archives Number:
PM-14 (451) Negative destroyed :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
Print
JKH.P32
One of Three Lakes in
Kanab Canyon above the Village of Kanab, Utah (Middle Lake)
(source: National Archives)
National Archives Number 57-PS-464 and
PM-31 (464) :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
Print
JKH.P33
Renshawe's Cascade or
Pilling's Cascade (source: National Archives)
National Archives Number:
PM-28 (465) Negative destroyed :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
Print
JKH.P34
One of Three Lakes in
Kanab Canyon above the Village of Kanab, Utah (Lower Lake)
(source: National Archives) National Archives Number:
57-PS-466 and PM-26 (466) :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
Print
JKH.P35
The Race Looking up
Bullion Canyon (source: National Archives)
National Archives Number:
PM-24 (470) Negative destroyed :
7.25 x
4.25 inch print mounted on a 9 x 14 inch board
California Series, circa 1880-1889
(1 box)
These five photographs have either printed
titles or else titles handwritten on the back of the
boards. The photographs themselves do not indicate the
photographer's name. The Still Pictures Branch of the
National Archives examined copies of these photographs, and
identified them by comparison with photographs attributed
to Hillers. Mr. Joe D. Thomas, Chief Still Pictures Branch,
of the National Archives has written, however, that Hillers
"may not have been the actual photographer." The
photographs may date from the early 1880s. The images are
mounted on gilt-edged and are identical in size and
mounting to two photographs by
William Henry Jackson. See
his Yellowstone National Park Series. The numbers for the
negatives to which they relate in the National Archives are
provided below.
Box JKH3
Print JKH.P36
"Three Bothers,
Yosemite"
National Archives number:
57-PS-33:
14 x 11
inches
Print
JKH.P37
"Capitan, Looking
West, Yosemite Cal."
National Archives number: 57-PS-37
:
14 x 11
inches
Print
JKH.P38
Home of the Storm
Gods, Yosemite
14 x 11
inches
Print
JKH.P39
Big Trees. Mariposa.
National Archives number:
57-PS-43:
14 x 11
inches
Print
JKH.P40
Granite Dome in Kings
River Canyon, Fresno County.
National Archives number: 57-PS-48
:
14 x 11
inches
