Coyotero Apache Scouts, at Apache Lake, Sierra Blanca Mountains, Arizona. Two members of the Expedition in the back-ground, No. 31 from the series "Geographical Explorations and Surveys West of the 100th Meridian"
Medium
Albumen print, stereo
Dimensions
Each image: 9.3 × 7.4 cm (3 11/16 × 2 15/16 in.); Card: 10 × 17.7 cm (3 15/16 × 7 in.)
Classification
stereograph (albumen)
Department
Photography and Media
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
210764
Rights
Public Domain
Art Historical Context
In this stereograph, two nearly identical albumen prints sit side by side, inviting viewers to experience depth as they gaze across a tranquil lakeside clearing. Tall trees frame the scene on both sides, their branches arching over a still body of water that reflects the distant, tree-covered hills. Several figures occupy the foreground: men on horseback others standing or seated near the water’s edge, dressed in practical clothing suited to rugged terrain. The soft sepia tones and fine detail of the albumen process capture the textures of foliage, rock, and fabric with quiet precision. Timothy O’Sullivan made this image in 1873 while working with the Geographical Explorations and Surveys West of the 100th Meridian, led by Lieutenant George M. Wheeler. The work belongs to a series of stereo views intended to document the landscapes, peoples, and resources of the American West for government and public audiences. O’Sullivan’s photographs balanced the demands of scientific record-keeping with a sensitive eye for composition, presenting both the scale of the land and the individuals who moved through it. Today the print offers modern viewers a direct glimpse of a specific moment in Arizona’s Apache Lake region, preserving the presence of Coyotero Apache Scouts alongside members of the expedition. Its stereo format, popular in the nineteenth century, reminds us how photography once brought distant places vividly into parlors and lecture halls across the country.
About the Artist
Timothy O'Sullivan · 1840–1882
Timothy H. O'Sullivan (c. 1840–1882) emerged as one of America's pioneering photographers during a transformative era. His early life remains sparsely documented, with records suggesting he was born either in New York City or Ireland before immigrating young, possibly growing up on Staten Island. As a teenager, he apprenticed under Mathew Brady at his Fulton Street gallery in New York, mastering w...