The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 45, July 1941 - April, 1942 Page: 189
409 p. : ill., maps ; 24 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Texas Collection
and while it is slight in amount, it still is very much
more extensive than what Taft has given in his para-
graph on pp. 259-60 of his book above mentioned.
I can't say who was the first photographer in Texas.
James H. and J. Selkirk of Matagorda advertised in
the Daguerrean Journal of 1851 (Sept. 15, November
15, Dec. 1, 1851). They seem to have been highly com-
petent, for in Humphrey's Journal, 4, 1852, 271, the
following statement is made: "J. H. and J. Selkirk of
Matagorda, Texas, are producing some fine Daguerreo-
types, a specimen of which was shown to us a few days
since by a friend from that state. We can fully concur
with the opinion of a contemporary: 'Indeed, we have
never seen more faithful pictures from the hands of
the most celebrated in the art. Every liniament [sic]
of the features and expression of the countenance is
thrown out in bold relief so faultlessly that you could
almost imagine the inanimate picture to be possessed
of vitality.' " I can't say what relation James H. Sel-
kirk bore to William Selkirk, one of the founders of
Matagorda; nor do I know much of J. H. Selkirk's life
there. The minutes of the Conventions of the Protestant
Episcopal Church in Texas show him as a lay-delegate
from Christ Church in 1860 and 1874, and Senior
Warden there in 1860-61. But Selkirk certainly was
not the first photographer who resided in Texas. He
was preceded by William Langenheim (d. 1874), one
of the few who escaped the massacre at Goliad (see
F. Roemer, Texas ..., 1849, 205-207, for Langenheim's
experiences in Texas, as a settler in the Aransas Bay
region, 1833 to 1836). After the Texas Revolution,
W. Langenheim joined (1840) his brother Ferdinand
in Philadelphia, where they operated one of the most
notable photograph galleries in America. (See Phila-
delphia Photographer, 11, 1874, 185; 16, 1879, 94-5.) W.
Langenheim and his brother devoted much attention to
the albumen process, both for negatives and positives,
and brought their results to a high standard of excellence.
Langenheim and his brother bought the American
rights for the "Talbot process," and spent a good deal of
money in introducing and perfecting it. "He worked out
the LeGray process on albumen to a perfection that ex-
cited the wonder and admiration of all who beheld the
glass positives that he exhibited at the first World's Fair
in London (1851). His micro-photographs have never
been surpassed, or even approached." (supra, 1874,
185). At the London Exhibition they received a gold
medal, over all competitors and a letter and medal from
the King of Saxony, a gold medal from the King of189
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 45, July 1941 - April, 1942, periodical, 1942; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth146053/m1/203/?rotate=270: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.