E. & H. T. Anthony & Co.

E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. was a major American photographic business whose activities encompassed manufacturing, importing, distributing, publishing, and, at an earlier stage, operating a daguerreotype gallery. Founded in New York by Edward Anthony, the firm grew alongside the development of photography from a specialist chemical and optical practice into a broad supplier serving professional photographers, portrait galleries, studios, and photographic enthusiasts. Edward Anthony, a civil engineer educated at Columbia College, had studied photography with Samuel F. B. Morse. He entered the field in 1842 by opening a daguerreotype gallery in New York. In 1847 he established a separate retail operation devoted to photographic supplies, and the expansion of that business eventually led him to discontinue the gallery. By 1850 the company was manufacturing daguerreotype cases, camera boxes, and photographic chemicals. Edward's brother Henry T. Anthony joined the enterprise in 1852, helping it develop into a larger family business. The company supplied a wide range of photographic goods. Its offerings included cameras and camera components, chemicals, cases, albums, stereoscopic views, gallery furniture, backdrops, and other studio equipment. It also produced cameras under its own designs, including the Buckeye camera box and the more expensive Marlborough bellows-box camera. In 1883 it manufactured the Schmidt Patent Detective Camera, described in contemporary accounts as the first commercially manufactured hand instantaneous camera made in the United States. The firm also maintained important commercial relationships with photographers, including Mathew Brady, and was associated with the production and distribution of photographic images and equipment during a period of rapid technological change. Publishing formed another important part of the business. From 1870 to 1902, the company issued Anthony's Photographic Bulletin, a monthly periodical containing photographs, illustrations, technical material, practical guidance, scholarly contributions, and advertising. The bulletin helped connect the company with the professional photographic community while promoting equipment and services. The firm also issued catalogues and distributed photographic apparatus and materials on a substantial scale. The business formally adopted the name E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. in 1862. It was reorganized as a corporation in 1877, with Edward Anthony as president, Henry T. Anthony as vice-president, and Colonel V. M. Wilcox as manager and secretary. After the deaths of the Anthony brothers, Wilcox became president, while Richard A. Anthony and Frederick A. Anthony, descendants of Edward Anthony, held senior executive roles. In 1902, E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. merged with the Scovill and Adams Company. The Anthony business is regarded as a corporate predecessor of the Ansco Company. Its historical importance rests both on its role as one of the largest photographic suppliers in the nineteenth-century United States and on its connection with surviving images and photographic artifacts, including a rare daguerreotype of Andrew Jackson.

Edward Anthony entered photography in New York in 1842 after training as a civil engineer at Columbia College and studying the new medium with Samuel F. B. Morse. His first enterprise was a daguerreotype gallery. In 1847 he opened a separate shop specializing in photographic supplies, responding to growing demand from photographers and portrait studios. As the supply operation expanded, he abandoned gallery work and concentrated on the commercial side of photography. By 1850 Anthony was making daguerreotype cases, camera boxes, and photographic chemicals. His brother Henry T. Anthony joined the firm in 1852, strengthening the family partnership. The company's factory occupied a substantial portion of New York City's Harlem Railroad Depot by 1854, reflecting the scale of its manufacturing and distribution activities. It promoted itself as a leading, and at times the largest, supplier of photographic apparatus and materials. The product range broadened as photographic practice diversified. In 1859 the company added stereoscopic view cards, photographic albums, gallery furniture, and backdrops. It supplied both consumable materials and durable equipment, allowing it to serve commercial studios as well as individual practitioners. The firm also maintained a close business relationship with Mathew Brady, one of the best-known American photographers of the period. Its historical associations include the preservation or production of important photographic images, among them a rare daguerreotype of Andrew Jackson. Publishing gave the company another way to influence the trade. From February 1870 through April 1902, it issued Anthony's Photographic Bulletin. The monthly publication combined images and illustrations with technical articles, practical advice, scholarly contributions, and advertising. It functioned both as an industry periodical and as a channel for presenting photographic products and services to the company's professional audience. The firm formally became E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. in 1862 and was reorganized as a corporation in 1877. Edward Anthony served as president, Henry T. Anthony as vice-president, and Colonel V. M. Wilcox as manager and secretary. Following the deaths of the brothers, Wilcox became president, while Richard A. Anthony and Frederick A. Anthony represented the next generation in senior positions. During the 1880s and 1890s, the business participated in the shift toward more accessible and instantaneous photography. In 1883 it produced the Schmidt Patent Detective Camera, identified in contemporary accounts as the first commercially manufactured hand instantaneous camera in the United States. In the 1890s it developed the Buckeye camera box and the more expensive Marlborough bellows-box camera, alongside a broad range of cases and photographic accessories. These products show the company's movement beyond simple distribution into proprietary camera manufacturing. E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. merged with the Scovill and Adams Company in 1902. The merger ended the firm's independent identity, although its operations and corporate lineage continued to influence the later Ansco organization. The company remains significant in the history of American photography because it combined industrial supply, retail distribution, publishing, equipment manufacture, and relationships with major image-makers during photography's formative commercial era.

1. 1902Merger with Scovill and Adams Company

   E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. merged with Scovill and Adams Company and ceased operating as an independent company.

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2. 1890Proprietary consumer cameras developed

   During the 1890s the company developed the Buckeye camera box and Marlborough bellows-box camera.

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3. 1883Schmidt Patent Detective Camera produced

   The company manufactured the Schmidt Patent Detective Camera, an early commercially produced American hand instantaneous camera.

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4. 1877Business reorganized as a corporation

   The firm incorporated with Edward Anthony as president, Henry T. Anthony as vice-president, and V. M. Wilcox as manager and secretary.

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5. 1870Anthony's Photographic Bulletin begins publication

   The company launched its monthly photographic periodical, which continued until 1902.

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6. 1862Company adopts the E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. name

   The firm's formal name was changed to E. & H. T. Anthony & Co.

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7. 1859Product portfolio broadens

   The company added stereoscopic views, photographic albums, gallery furniture, and backdrops.

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8. 1852Henry T. Anthony joins the business

   Edward Anthony's brother Henry joined the growing photographic enterprise.

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9. 1850Manufacturing expands

   The business began producing daguerreotype cases, camera boxes, and photographic chemicals.

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10. 1847Dedicated photographic-supply shop opens

    Anthony established a separate business focused exclusively on photographic supplies and later discontinued his daguerreotype gallery as supply sales expanded.

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11. 1842Edward Anthony enters the photographic business

    Edward Anthony opened a daguerreotype gallery in New York, beginning the enterprise that developed into E. & H. T. Anthony & Co.

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A broad, technically oriented supplier serving the expanding American photographic trade through manufacturing, distribution, publishing, and studio equipment.

• BuckeyeCamera1890

  The Buckeye was a camera-box design developed and produced by the company in the 1890s. It represented Anthony's effort to participate in the growing consumer and enthusiast market for relatively accessible photographic equipment, rather than limiting the business to supplying professional studios.

• MarlboroughCamera1890

  The Marlborough was a more expensive bellows-box camera introduced during the company's nineteenth-century expansion into proprietary camera designs. Its positioning contrasted with the simpler Buckeye and gave the firm a higher-end offering within its camera portfolio.

• Schmidt Patent Detective CameraInstantaneous camera1883

  Produced in 1883, the Schmidt Patent Detective Camera was an early hand-operated instantaneous camera. It is historically notable because contemporary accounts identify it as the first commercially manufactured hand instantaneous camera made in the United States.

• Photographic chemicals and daguerreotype suppliesPhotographic supplies1850

  Beginning around 1850, the company manufactured and distributed chemicals and other materials required for daguerreotype and later photographic processes. These consumables formed a central part of its role as a full-service supplier to American photographers.

• Anthony's Photographic BulletinTrade publication1870

  This monthly periodical ran from 1870 to 1902 and combined photographic illustrations with technical, practical, and scholarly writing. It also carried advertising for Anthony products and related photographic services, making it both an industry resource and a promotional channel.

• 1902Merger with Scovill and Adams CompanyM&A

  After decades as a major American photographic supplier and manufacturer, the company was part of a consolidating photographic-equipment industry.

  What changed. E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. merged with the Scovill and Adams Company.

  Aftermath. The independent company disappeared, while its corporate lineage contributed to the later Ansco organization.

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• 1877Corporate reorganizationStrategy

  The business had become a large photographic manufacturer and distributor with family ownership and professional management responsibilities.

  What changed. The company was reorganized as a corporation, with the Anthony brothers in senior executive positions and V. M. Wilcox serving as manager and secretary.

  Aftermath. The corporate structure supported the company's continued expansion in equipment, supplies, publishing, and photographic distribution.

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• 1862Formal adoption of the E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. nameStrategy

  The growing family enterprise had expanded from daguerreotype services into manufacturing and distribution.

  What changed. The business formally changed its name to E. & H. T. Anthony & Co.

  Aftermath. The new identity remained associated with the company until its 1902 merger with Scovill and Adams.

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• 1902E. & H. T. Anthony & Co. merges with Scovill and Adams Company

  The photographic company combined with the Scovill and Adams Company, ending its independent corporate existence and contributing to the development of the business that later became associated with Ansco.

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1. E. & H. T. Anthony & Company
2. Anthony's Photographic Bulletin
3. Illustrated Catalogue of Photographic Equipments and Materials