Oldest Photos

In 1839, Robert Cornelius, a Dutch chemist who immigrated to Philadelphia, took a daguerreotype portrait of himself outside of his family’s store and made history: he made the world’s first human photograph.

The oldest known color photograph was taken by Louis Ducos du Hauron in 1872. The photo is of a view of Angouleme in Southern France.

In the 1920s, a brass birdie was often used by photographers to grab the attention of children during a portrait session. A rubber hose and squeeze bulb were connected to the short length of open brass tubing. The brass base was filled with water. Squeezing the rubber bulb caused the bird to make a whistling and warbling sound. Watch the birdie. . .