Early Photo of Buildings in Elmira, New York (1856)

 

"Elmira, N.Y., from Haight's Hotel." Early photo of buildings in Elmira, New York, c. 1856. Taken by photographer Frederick Langenheim and originally published as a stereoscopic photo in an album.

Source: Library of Congress.

Early Photo of Cattle in a Stockyard in Chicago, Illinois (1870's)

 

"Chicago Stock Yards No. 1." Early photo of cattle in a stockyard in Chicago, Illinois, c. 1870s. Taken by photographer Louis Magnus Melander and originally published as a stereoview.

Source: Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site.

Early Photo of a Group of Men Posing With the Bottom Portion of Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts (1859)

 

"Forefathers' Rock, Plymouth, Mass." Photo of a group of men posing with the bottom portion of Plymouth Rock a few years before the first stone memorial was built around it in Plymouth, Massachusetts, c. 1859. Taken by photographer Deloss Barnum. This is probably the earliest surviving photo of any portion of Plymouth Rock.

Source: J. Paul Getty Museum.

Early Photo of an Architectural Model of the New US Capitol Dome and the Building's Expanded Wings Designed by Thomas Ustick Walter (1856)

 

Photo of an architectural model of the new US Capitol dome and the building's expanded wings designed by Thomas Ustick Walter, c. 1856. Taken by photographer John Wood and originally published as a stereoview.

Source: J. Paul Getty Museum.

Photo of a Large Crowd on 4th Street Possibly Watching Firemen Battling a Building Fire in St. Louis, Missouri (1868)

View of a large crowd on 4th Street possibly watching firemen battle a building fire in St. Louis, Missouri, c. 1868. Note the stream of water in the street gutter in the foreground which probably is coming from the firemen's efforts. Originally published as a stereoview.
 

Source: Missouri Historical Society.

Bird's Eye View Photo of Saint Paul, Minnesota (1870's)

 

Bird's eye view photo of Saint Paul, Minnesota, 1870s. Taken by Charles Zimmerman and originally published as a stereoview.

 Source: Library of Congress.

Photo of a Scale Model of the Civil War-Era McClellan Hospital on Display During the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1876)

 

Photo of a scale model of the Civil War-era McClellan Hospital on display during the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1876. McClellan Hospital was constructed in 1863 and located in the Nicetown area of Philadelphia.

Source: Wellcome Collection.

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Photo of a Mill or Factory Building, Location Unknown (1860)

 

View probably showing an old mill or factory building taken somewhere in the Northeastern United States, c. 1860. Originally published as a stereoview.

Source: Library of Congress.

Early Bird's Eye View Photo of Houses and Businesses in Sioux City, Iowa (1860's)

 

View of houses and businesses in Sioux City, Iowa, c. 1860s. Taken by photographer Byron Gurnsey and originally published as a stereoview.

Source: Library of Congress.

Photo of an Unidentified Hallway in the US Capitol Building in Washington DC (1860's)

 

"Corridor of Capitol, Washington, USA." View of an unidentified hallway in the US Capitol in Washington, D.C., c. 1860s. Originally published as a stereoview.

Source: New York Public Library.

Photo of a Steamboat Named Yellowstone Possibly Photographed on the Missouri River Near Sioux City, Iowa (1860's)

View of a steamboat named Yellowstone possibly photographed on the Missouri River near Sioux City, Iowa, c. 1865-1870. Taken by photographer Byron H. Gurnsey and originally published as a stereoview. Other stereoviews in the Library of Congress' collection by Gurnsey with the same mount were taken in and around Fort Berthold in Dakota Territory.

Source: Library of Congress.

Photo Taken From the Third Floor of the Logan House Hotel in Altoona, Pennsylvania (1860)

 

View taken from the third floor of the Logan House Hotel showing the town of Altoona, Pennsylvania, c. 1860. Taken by Amateur Photographic Exchange Club member Joseph Miller Wilson and originally published as a stereoview.

Source: Library of Congress.

Photo of a Road Near Flying Hills, Pennsylvania (1870's)

View of a road near Flying Hills, Pennsylvania, c. 1870s. Taken by photographer James Cremer and originally published as a stereoview. What is probably Cremer's photography wagon is visible on the left hand side of the road. A bucket is visible next to the right rear wheel.

Source: Library of Congress.

Photo of a Man Posing at the Door of the Weeping Willow Schoolhouse in Chester County, Pennsylvania (1860)

 

Portrait of a man posing at the door of the Weeping Willow schoolhouse in Chester County, Pennsylvania, c. 1860. The small building looks like it is probably a one-room schoolhouse. Attributed to Amateur Photographic Exchange Club member Joseph Miller Wilson and originally published as a stereoview.

Source: Library of Congress.

Early Photo of the US Treasury Building in Washington DC (1856)

 

View of the Treasury Building in Washington, D.C., taken at 4:30 PM on October 14, 1856. Attributed to Titian Ramsay Peale.

Source: National Museum of American History.

Photo of a Large House or Mill Possibly Along Rock Creek in Washington DC (1850s)

View of a large house or mill possibly along Rock Creek in Washington, D.C., c. 1855-1860. Attributed to Titian Ramsay Peale. An outbuilding is prominently visible at center left.

Source: National Museum of American History.

Photo of a House With Gatehouse in Front Probably Taken in Washington DC (1863)

 

View of a house with a gatehouse in front of it probably taken in Washington, D.C., c. 1863. Attributed to Titian Ramsay Peale. Originally published as a stereoview.

Source: National Museum of American History.

Photo of a Small Wood and Stone Dam Holding Back a Stream on a Hillside Possibly Along Rock Creek in Washington DC (1850's)

View of a small wood and stone dam holding back a stream on a hillside possibly along Rock Creek (in the foreground) in Washington, D.C., c. 1855-1860. Attributed to Titian Ramsay Peale.

Source: National Museum of American History.

Early Photo of Chain Bridge Over the Potomac River Connecting Virginia With Washington DC (1860)

 

View of Chain Bridge over the Potomac River connecting Virginia (area where the bridge ends at left in distance) with Washington, D.C., c. 1860. The two men posing in the rowboat in the foreground might be Peale's photographic assistants or else simply out for a day of fishing. Attributed to Titian Ramsay Peale. Originally published as a stereoview. This is probably the earliest known photo of the bridge if it was taken before or during the early days of the Civil War.

Source: National Museum of American History.

"A 60 lb. Columbia River Salmon" (1861)

 

"A 60 lb. Columbia River Salmon." Possibly taken by a member of the British North American Boundary Commission in 1861.

Source: Library of Congress.