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Timothy H. O'Sullivan

February 15, 2024

For other people named Timothy O'Sullivan, see Timothy O'Sullivan (disambiguation).

Timothy H. O'Sullivan (c. 1840 – January 14, 1882) was an American photographer widely known for his work related to the American Civil War and the Western United States.

O'Sullivan c. 1871–1874

Biography edit

O'Sullivan's history and personal life remains unclear as there is little information to work from. For example, he was either born in Ireland and came to New York City two years later with his parents or his parents traveled to New York before he was born. There is no way of finding out which of the two stories is true. We do know that as a teenager, he was employed by Mathew Brady, a photographer who also became known for his Civil War photographs.

O'Sullivan claimed that when the Civil War began in early 1861, he was commissioned a first lieutenant in the Union Army (though Joel Snyder, O'Sullivan's biographer, could find no definitive proof of this claim in Army records). There is no record of him fighting. Alexander Gardner worked as a photographer on the staff of General George B. McClellan, commander of the Army of the Potomac, and was given the honorary rank of captain. Gardner described O'Sullivan as the "Superintendent of my map and field work." Biographer James D. Horan writes that O'Sullivan was a civilian photographer attached to the Topographical Engineers. His job was to copy maps and plans, but he also took photographs on his own time. Although he later listed himself as a first lieutenant, the rank was likely honorary, like Gardner's. From November 1861 through April 1862, O'Sullivan, working for Gardner, followed Union forces to Fort Walker, Fort Beauregard, Beaufort, Hilton Head,[1] and Fort Pulaski.

After being honorably discharged, he rejoined Brady's team. In July 1862, O'Sullivan followed Maj. Gen. John Pope's Northern Virginia Campaign. By joining Gardner's studio, he had his forty-four photographs published in the first Civil War photographs collection, Gardner's Photographic Sketch Book of the War.[2] In July 1863, he created his most famous photograph, A Harvest of Death, depicting dead soldiers from the Battle of Gettysburg.

He took many other photographs documenting the battle, including Dead Confederate sharpshooter at foot of Little Round Top,[3] Field where General Reynolds fell,[4] View in wheatfield opposite our extreme left,[5] Confederate dead gathered for burial at the southwestern edge of the Rose woods,[6] Bodies of Federal soldiers near the McPherson woods,[7] "Slaughter pen",[8] and others.

In 1864, following Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's trail, he photographed the Siege of Petersburg before briefly heading to North Carolina to document the siege of Fort Fisher. That brought him to the Appomattox Court House, the site of Robert E. Lee's surrender in April 1865.

 
Timothy H. O'Sullivan, Pueblo San Juan, New Mexico, 1874, stereoscopic albumen prints, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, Department of Image Collections.

From 1867 to 1869, he was the official photographer on the United States Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel under Clarence King. The expedition began at Virginia City, Nevada, where he photographed the mines, and worked eastward. In so doing, he became one of the pioneers in the field of geophotography.[9] In contrast to the Asian and Eastern landscape fronts, the subject matter he focused on was a new concept. It involved taking pictures of nature as an untamed, pre-industrialized land without the use of landscape painting conventions. O'Sullivan combined science and art, making exact records of extraordinary beauty.

In 1870 he joined a survey team in Panama to survey for a canal across the isthmus. From 1871 to 1874 he returned to the southwestern United States to join Lt. George M. Wheeler in his survey west of the 100th meridian. His job was to photograph the West to attract settlers. O'Sullivan's pictures were among the first to record the prehistoric ruins, Navajo weavers, and pueblo villages of the Southwest.[10] He faced starvation on the Colorado River when some of the expedition's boats capsized; few of the 300 negatives he took survived the trip back East.[citation needed] He spent the last years of his short life in Washington, D.C., as official photographer for the U.S. Geological Survey and the Treasury Department.

O'Sullivan died in Staten Island of tuberculosis at age 42.

In 1986 O'Sullivan was inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum.[11]

Gallery of O'Sullivan photographs edit

References edit

  1. ^ Horan, James D. (1966). Timothy O'Sullivan, America's Forgotten Photographer. Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company. pp. 34–35. OCLC 638552.
  2. ^ . The Getty. Archived from the original on June 26, 2007. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  3. ^ "Battle-field of Gettysburg – Dead Confederate sharpshooter at foot of Little Round Top [i.e., Devil's Den]". Library of Congress. 1863. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  4. ^ "Field where General Reynolds fell, Gettysburg". Library of Congress. 1863. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  5. ^ "Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. View in wheatfield opposite our extreme left". Library of Congress. 1863. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  6. ^ "Gettysburg, Pa. Confederate dead gathered for burial at the southwestern edge of the Rose woods, July 5, 1863". Library of Congress. 1863. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  7. ^ "Gettysburg, Pa. Bodies of Federal soldiers, killed on July 1, near the McPherson woods". Library of Congress. 1863. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  8. ^ "Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. "Slaughter pen" on left wing". Library of Congress. 1863. Retrieved August 28, 2018.
  9. ^ Trachtenberg A. 1990.
  10. ^ . Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology. Archived from the original on March 31, 2005.
  11. ^ "Timothy H. O'Sullivan". International Photography Hall of Fame. Retrieved July 23, 2022.
  12. ^ Frassanito, pp. 315, 317.

Sources edit

  • Horan, James D. (1966). Timothy O'Sullivan, America's Forgotten Photographer. Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company. OCLC 638552.
  • Frassanito, William A. Early Photography at Gettysburg. Gettysburg, PA: Thomas Publications, 1995. ISBN 1-57747-032-X.
  • from The Getty Museum
  • The Life of Timothy H. O'Sullivan from the Tucson Weekly, March 31, 2003, by Margaret Regan. Accessed July 29, 2010.
  • Trachtenberg A. (1990), Reading American Photographs, New York: Hill & Wang

Further reading edit

  • Naeff, W; Wood, J & Heyman, T (1975). Era of exploration : the rise of landscape photography in the American West, 1860–1885. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Timothy H. O'Sullivan.

February 15, 2024
timothy, sullivan, other, people, named, timothy, sullivan, timothy, sullivan, disambiguation, 1840, january, 1882, american, photographer, widely, known, work, related, american, civil, western, united, states, sullivan, 1871, 1874, contents, biography, galle. For other people named Timothy O Sullivan see Timothy O Sullivan disambiguation Timothy H O Sullivan c 1840 January 14 1882 was an American photographer widely known for his work related to the American Civil War and the Western United States O Sullivan c 1871 1874 Contents 1 Biography 2 Gallery of O Sullivan photographs 3 References 4 Sources 5 Further reading 6 External linksBiography editO Sullivan s history and personal life remains unclear as there is little information to work from For example he was either born in Ireland and came to New York City two years later with his parents or his parents traveled to New York before he was born There is no way of finding out which of the two stories is true We do know that as a teenager he was employed by Mathew Brady a photographer who also became known for his Civil War photographs O Sullivan claimed that when the Civil War began in early 1861 he was commissioned a first lieutenant in the Union Army though Joel Snyder O Sullivan s biographer could find no definitive proof of this claim in Army records There is no record of him fighting Alexander Gardner worked as a photographer on the staff of General George B McClellan commander of the Army of the Potomac and was given the honorary rank of captain Gardner described O Sullivan as the Superintendent of my map and field work Biographer James D Horan writes that O Sullivan was a civilian photographer attached to the Topographical Engineers His job was to copy maps and plans but he also took photographs on his own time Although he later listed himself as a first lieutenant the rank was likely honorary like Gardner s From November 1861 through April 1862 O Sullivan working for Gardner followed Union forces to Fort Walker Fort Beauregard Beaufort Hilton Head 1 and Fort Pulaski After being honorably discharged he rejoined Brady s team In July 1862 O Sullivan followed Maj Gen John Pope s Northern Virginia Campaign By joining Gardner s studio he had his forty four photographs published in the first Civil War photographs collection Gardner s Photographic Sketch Book of the War 2 In July 1863 he created his most famous photograph A Harvest of Death depicting dead soldiers from the Battle of Gettysburg He took many other photographs documenting the battle including Dead Confederate sharpshooter at foot of Little Round Top 3 Field where General Reynolds fell 4 View in wheatfield opposite our extreme left 5 Confederate dead gathered for burial at the southwestern edge of the Rose woods 6 Bodies of Federal soldiers near the McPherson woods 7 Slaughter pen 8 and others In 1864 following Gen Ulysses S Grant s trail he photographed the Siege of Petersburg before briefly heading to North Carolina to document the siege of Fort Fisher That brought him to the Appomattox Court House the site of Robert E Lee s surrender in April 1865 nbsp Timothy H O Sullivan Pueblo San Juan New Mexico 1874 stereoscopic albumen prints National Gallery of Art Washington DC Department of Image Collections From 1867 to 1869 he was the official photographer on the United States Geological Exploration of the Fortieth Parallel under Clarence King The expedition began at Virginia City Nevada where he photographed the mines and worked eastward In so doing he became one of the pioneers in the field of geophotography 9 In contrast to the Asian and Eastern landscape fronts the subject matter he focused on was a new concept It involved taking pictures of nature as an untamed pre industrialized land without the use of landscape painting conventions O Sullivan combined science and art making exact records of extraordinary beauty In 1870 he joined a survey team in Panama to survey for a canal across the isthmus From 1871 to 1874 he returned to the southwestern United States to join Lt George M Wheeler in his survey west of the 100th meridian His job was to photograph the West to attract settlers O Sullivan s pictures were among the first to record the prehistoric ruins Navajo weavers and pueblo villages of the Southwest 10 He faced starvation on the Colorado River when some of the expedition s boats capsized few of the 300 negatives he took survived the trip back East citation needed He spent the last years of his short life in Washington D C as official photographer for the U S Geological Survey and the Treasury Department O Sullivan died in Staten Island of tuberculosis at age 42 In 1986 O Sullivan was inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum 11 Gallery of O Sullivan photographs edit nbsp nbsp Elk Mountain Maryland signal tower 1862 nbsp Alfred Waud sketching at the Battle of Gettysburg nbsp A Harvest of Death Union dead on the battlefield at Gettysburg Pennsylvania photographed July 5 6 1863 12 nbsp John Burns veteran of the War of 1812 and a hero of the Battle of Gettysburg 1863 nbsp Rock carved by drifting sand below Fortification Rock in Arizona 1871 nbsp White House Ruins Canyon de Chelly National Monument 1873 nbsp Inscription Rock El Morro National Monument 1873References edit Horan James D 1966 Timothy O Sullivan America s Forgotten Photographer Garden City New York Doubleday amp Company pp 34 35 OCLC 638552 Timothy H O Sullivan The Getty Archived from the original on June 26 2007 Retrieved August 28 2018 Battle field of Gettysburg Dead Confederate sharpshooter at foot of Little Round Top i e Devil s Den Library of Congress 1863 Retrieved August 28 2018 Field where General Reynolds fell Gettysburg Library of Congress 1863 Retrieved August 28 2018 Gettysburg Pennsylvania View in wheatfield opposite our extreme left Library of Congress 1863 Retrieved August 28 2018 Gettysburg Pa Confederate dead gathered for burial at the southwestern edge of the Rose woods July 5 1863 Library of Congress 1863 Retrieved August 28 2018 Gettysburg Pa Bodies of Federal soldiers killed on July 1 near the McPherson woods Library of Congress 1863 Retrieved August 28 2018 Gettysburg Pennsylvania Slaughter pen on left wing Library of Congress 1863 Retrieved August 28 2018 Trachtenberg A 1990 The World in a Frame Photographs from the Great Age of Exploration 1865 1915 Phoebe A Hearst Museum of Anthropology Archived from the original on March 31 2005 Timothy H O Sullivan International Photography Hall of Fame Retrieved July 23 2022 Frassanito pp 315 317 Sources editThis article includes a list of general references but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations May 2012 Learn how and when to remove this template message Horan James D 1966 Timothy O Sullivan America s Forgotten Photographer Garden City New York Doubleday amp Company OCLC 638552 Frassanito William A Early Photography at Gettysburg Gettysburg PA Thomas Publications 1995 ISBN 1 57747 032 X Biography of Timothy H O Sullivan from The Getty Museum The Life of Timothy H O Sullivan from the Tucson Weekly March 31 2003 by Margaret Regan Accessed July 29 2010 Trachtenberg A 1990 Reading American Photographs New York Hill amp WangFurther reading editNaeff W Wood J amp Heyman T 1975 Era of exploration the rise of landscape photography in the American West 1860 1885 New York The Metropolitan Museum of Art External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Timothy H O Sullivan Timothy O Sullivan gallery at The Atlantic Four Southwestern photos at Phoebe A Hearst Museum of Anthropology American Treasures LOC Western Development The Wall Street Journal 30 March 2010 Encyclopaedia Britannica Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Timothy H O 27Sullivan amp oldid 1193466150, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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