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Mathew
B. Brady- (1823-1896) Mathew Brady is
considered the "Father of
Photojournalism," for his work in
photographing the American Civil War in
the 1860s. His parents were immigrants
from Ireland, and Mathew was born in
Warren County in New York
State. Mathew Brady studied
under Samuel Morse beginning in 1839. Also
that year, he met Louis Daguerre, the
inventor of the early photograph, the
Daguerreotype. Brady took his newfound
knowledge in photographic science back to
the United States and opened his own
gallery. In 1850, Brady
published a collection of photographs
featuring the most famous Americans of his
time, called "A Gallery of Illustrious
Americans." Among the important
Americans posing for Brady's portraits was
an Illinois politician named Abraham
Lincoln. Lincoln later used Brady's
portrait of him in his presidential
campaign. He met Juliette Handy at his
photography studio, and they married in
1851. When she died in 1887, he became
depressed and alcoholic. By the time of the
secession crisis and the beginning of the
Civil War, Mathew Brady was already quite
famous as the leading photographer of his
day. Determined to record the history of
the war in photographs, Brady organized a
team of professional photographers to
follow the Union army as it fought. The
collection of photos from this enterprise,
titled "The Photographic History of the
Civil War," is considered an important
and stunning record of the war, capturing
not only the glory of the war, but also
the horrible cost of combat. While considered today
as a valuable book, at the time, his
profits from its sale did not make up for
his cost in outfitting his staff of
photojournalists, which cost at least
$100,000 (a very large amount of money in
the 1860s). In addition, a post-war
economic depression cost him many of his
other investments, and, by the time he
died in 1896, he was a poor man, suffering
from alcoholism and loneliness. Most of
Brady's photographs now reside in the
public domain (meaning they belong to the
public, and are not the private property
of any one person or business), because
Congress bought his collection for $2,840
in 1875. Your
Ad Could Be Working For You On This
Page! Links
and Resources Internet
Links: Photo-Seminars.com:
Mathew Brady
--Biography
and career summary of the famous
professional photographer of American
history. Photography
at Temple: Mathew
Brady
--Photos and a biographical profile of
the pioneer of Civil War
photography. A
History of
Photography--by
Robert Leggat. Smithsonian
National Portrait Gallery: Mathew
Brady's
Portraits
--Includes a biographical timeline,
essays, photo technique descriptions,
and a collection of portraits by the
American legend of
photography. Sons
of the South: About Mathew
Brady
--Exhibits photographs and a summary of
the life and career of the man
responsible for most of the photographs
made during the Civil War. Spartacus
Education: Mathew
Brady
--Overview of the master of portrait
photography. "The
History Guy" is a Registered Trademark. Contact
the webmaster |
Citation http://www.worldbiography.net/brady_mathew.html
Personal
Data Role
in the war years: Mathew Brady
recorded the Civil War in an impressive
collection of photographs. Many of the
images used in most books and websites on
the American Civil War are from Brady's
collection. Also, at the time of the war,
his photos enabled civilians on the
homefront to see what the war really
looked like. Brady
is considered the "Father of
Photojournalim." Date
of Birth: 1823 Date
of Death: January 15, 1896 Occupation:
Photographer Post-War:
Professional Photographer, owner of his
own photo gallery World
Biography-More
pages on contemporaries of Mathew
Brady Clara
Barton--
The "Angel of the Battlefield"
who brought nursing care to
wounded soldiers during the Civil
War and later founded the
American Red Cross. Mathew
Brady--
The "Father of Photojournalism"
whose photos of Civil War
battlefields brought the horrors
of war home to civilians on the
homefront. Dr.
Benjamin
Rush--
Signer of the Declaration of
Independence, member of the
Constitutional Convention, noted
physician and ardent supporter
for the abolition of
slavery. Thomas
Nast-American
political cartoonist. General
George Armstrong
Custer--
Famous American Cavalry officer
who died at the Battle of the
Little Bighorn in
1876. General
Robert E.
Lee--
The commanding general for the
South in the American Civil
War.--New Lorenzo
de
Zavala--First
Vice-President of the Republic of
Texas. Site
Map--revision
in progress |
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