The North American Indians in Early Photographs A photographic book providing a record of the Indians of North America between 1850 and the First World War as seen by early photographers. From the first pictures, prompted by a sense of curiosity, to the later images capturing the change in the Indian way of life, these photographs document the confrontation between white and Indian cultures. The 300 images, some of which have never before been published, combine with the text to provide an important history of North American Indian life. The book also traces the evolution of photographic technique of the period and includes short biographies of over 200 photographers. Contemporary reviews rated it in the top ten books on photo history. It remains a classic today. A .PDF copy of my book.
	Grand Endeavors of American Indian Photography Chronicling the history of attempts to record native American culture by combining skilled artistry with ethnographic detail, this photographic study examines the work of such turn-of-the-century photographers as Edward Curtis, Sumner W. Matteson, and Roland W. Reed. Grand Endeavors contains many previously unpublished works reproduced in high-quality plates. It offers a balanced yet haunting portrait of a tumultuous period in U.S. history and is an outstanding addition to all anthropology, history, and photography collections.
	Native American Photography at the Smithsonian The Shindler Catalogue These images form the core of the Smithsonian Institution's extensive collection of Native American photographs and make up the first known exhibition of photography in an American museum. Dating from to the 1850s and 1860s, these portraits reflect Indian leaders who traveled to Washington, D.C. in the mid-nineteenth century to negotiate treaties with the U.S. government. Also included are early daguerreotype portraits and drawings copied for deposit in the Smithsonian. Shindler Catalogue entries do not always contain correct creator credits, identifications or dates. These omissions have been corrected when possible, and background provided for the various delegations. The images were later disseminated to major museums and collectors around the world, references to which are in an extensive appendix.
	Diableries Stereoscopic Adventures in Hell  Diableries were stereoscopic tableaux depicting life in hell, which were all the rage in nineteenth century France. Some were religious in nature, while others were purely for fun, but a large number were subtle political statements about Napoleon III which could not be made publicly because of rigid censorship. Over the years these stereo images lost their hidden meanings. The book uncovers those stories as well as providing an illustrated guide to all known Diableries.
Published Papers	<-- These are some of my published articles.

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    I am an emeritus member of the Board of Directors of the National Stereoscopic Association and have published numerous award-winning papers in their journal, Stereo World, which are reprinted here. In 2019 I was honored by the Smithsonian to be featured as a groundbreaking researcher in their "Wonderful Women Wednesday" web feature.

As a result of my decades of researching photographs, I have many file cabinets of research notes which I want to share. This website was created to provide free access to these files. While this information is given freely, I would ask that I be credited for my work and that none of my website is reproduced without my permission.

My specialization at the museum was 19th-century ethnographic photography, especially Native American Indian delegation imagery. Using original photographs I recreated the Institution's first photography exhibit of Indians which was on display in the Smithsonian "Castle" starting in 1869. This was the first photography exhibit in the United States in a public museum. The exhibit was accompanied by a catalogue, the "Shindler Catalogue" which listed the 304 images. Many photographer credits were incorrect, as were identifications, tribal designations and dates. In 2003 I published a fully illustrated, corrected and annotated version of the catalogue. In order to correctly date and identify the sitters, I read through every available contemporary newspaper and extracted relevant news stories. These transcriptions appear on this website under "Indian Delegation Newspaper Transcripts". Tangential to this research I also did in-depth research on contemporary photographers who were active in Washington, D.C. from the later 1840s-ca. 1875. This material will appear in the "Washington, D.C. Photographers" section once it is transferred from an obsolete data format.

I am also an avid collector of 19th-century stereoscopic photographs, specializing in the stereographs of the United Kingdom. An incredible amount of information about these views is covered by reviews, advertisements and photographic expedition notes in contemporary photographic journals (1850s-1870s). As these important primary documents are inaccessible to most museums, collectors, and interested researchers, I transcribed all relevant articles. These can be found below in the section, "Transcriptions of British Photographic Journal articles". In doing this work I realized that there was still a vast amount of data that was not covered. As such I have created an annotated bibliography of these journals as well as the London Gazette (which lists legal actions), and the London Times which was a popular outlet for advertising photographic studios and their works. This is an on-going project, the current results of which can be found under, "Annotated Bibliography of Photographic Journals". A necessary adjunct to my transcriptions and bibliography are my indexes, specifically those for photographers, photographic societies, geographic locations, and subjects. The photographer section is operative, whereas the others will be populated in due course. I have also included two specialized lists of articles. One list covers published reviews of photographs; the second covers articles about early astronomical photography. These can be found as "Special Lists" under the "Indexes" section.

My love of stereographs also includes a very special format known as a "French Tissue". These are albumen photographs that are frequently tinted on the verso which is covered with a second tissue, all of which are placed in an open framework mount. A very special series was made in Paris starting in the 1860s. These are known as "Diableries" and they depict life in hell. The scenes range from religious to humorous, but many have subtle hidden messages about Napoleon III. I am privileged to share my passion for the Diableries with Brian May (the Queen guitarist), and Denis Pellerian, a French photo historian, with whom I published a book, "Diableries: Stereoscopic Adventures in Hell." Another special French tissue is called a "surprise tissue". When it is held up to the light, a surprise scene appears. A sampling of these are included for your enjoyment. They appear in the section, "Surprise Tissues".

I hope this website is useful to you. If you have any questions, please contact me. I would like to reiterate that while this information is given freely, I would ask that you credit my work, and that none of my website is reproduced without my permission.