Mathew Brady: The Presidents' Photographer Bankrupted by His War Archive

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!

Mathew Brady gave conflicting accounts of his birth, in Warren County, New York, or in Ireland. As a teenager in Saratoga he studied under portrait painter William Page, who introduced him in New York City to Samuel Morse, then promoting Louis Daguerre's process. Brady started by making cases for daguerreotypes, opened a Broadway studio in 1844, exhibited a portrait of Edgar Allan Poe, and opened a Washington studio in 1849. He photographed 18 of the 19 presidents of his era, missing only William Henry Harrison, and stamped every image Photo by Brady, whoever operated the camera.

When the war began he sold cartes de visite to families of departing soldiers, then won Lincoln's permission to photograph the armies at his own expense. With failing eyesight, he directed a team of more than 20, including Alexander Gardner and Timothy O'Sullivan, who hauled wet plate darkroom wagons to battlefields. His October 1862 exhibition The Dead of Antietam showed corpses to New Yorkers for the first time. He spent over $100,000 on about 10,000 plates, but a war-weary public lost interest, Congress paid only $25,000 in 1875, and he died penniless in 1896.

The Brady stand used an iron neck rest to hold sitters still during long exposures.
He was the first to persuade the New York Herald to run distinct fonts in his advertisements.
Brady came under fire at First Bull Run, Fredericksburg and Petersburg.
His negatives passed to supplier E. & H.T. Anthony, and the story of plates becoming greenhouse glass is considered a myth.
Historian Bob Zeller notes most of the team's war photographs were stereoscopic 3D images.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(16184)

The Art of Adult Friendship: Why Quality Matters More Than Quantity

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore how our understanding of friendship changes as we grow old...

9 Nov 18min

Summer Explained: The Science, History, and Traditions of the Warmest Season

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore summer, the season most closely associated with sunshine, ...

7 Nov 18min

Sir Patrick Stewart: From Shakespeare to Star Trek, the Life and Legacy of a Legend

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the extraordinary life of Sir Patrick Stewart, the acclaim...

7 Nov 49min

Larry David: The Genius of Social Awkwardness, Seinfeld, and Curb Your Enthusiasm

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the life and career of Larry David, the comedian, writer, ...

6 Nov 38min

Why Australian Shepherds Aren't From Australia

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the history of the Australian Shepherd, an intelligent, en...

5 Nov 45min

Labrador Retriever: From Newfoundland Fishing Dogs to Modern-Day Heroes

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore the remarkable history of the Labrador Retriever, one of t...

4 Nov 53min

Discovering Ireland: A Journey Through History, Culture, and the Wild Atlantic Way

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!In this episode of pplpod, we explore Ireland through the philosophy of slow travel: go slower, ...

3 Nov 48min

Willie Hutch: An Overnight I'll Be There Lyric and The Mack's Soundtrack

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!William McKinley Hutchins was born in Los Angeles in December 1944 and raised in Dallas, where h...

2 Nov 21min