New Hampshire photographer Henry Moore traveled to South Caroline in 1862 to photograph the Civil War victories of the 3rd New Hampshire Regiment. Among other campaigns, they had been part of the November 7, 1861 takeover of the sea islands. Moore spent much of his time photographing the newly freed men and women who had subsequently taken over the plantations where they once worked as slaves.

Edward Wilson (1838-1903) was also photographing the Civil War in 1862 and may have come in contact with Moore. When Wilson began publishing the Philadelphia Photographer in 1864, he looked for images he could include as original prints in each issue. Wilson purchased one of Moore’s glass plate negatives and had John Slaney edition enough prints to paste one into each copy of his September 1865 issue.

“Now our dreadful civil war is ended,” wrote Wilson, “every one is anxious to possess some relic or remembrance of it. Photography has done much to cater to these desires in the way of views of ransacked, burned and deserted cities, fields of battle, and of the dead martyrs, and portraits of the various officers of rank and merit on both sides.”

“Views may yet be taken, such as we have described, but such a one as we present in this issue can never more be taken . . . The jaded donkey and the sable field-hands with their implements, all explain themselves. When they were taken, they were slaves; now they are free men and women. The view was made (in 1862) with a single Jamin View lens, by Henry P. Moore, of Concord, N. H., on Edisto Island, S.C., at the plantation of James Hopkinson. The planters on this island left their homes at the time Port Royal was taken. About fifty slaves were found on this plantation at the time our view was made, living in the parlors of the mansion, and some of them sleeping on the piano . . . .”

Wilson continued, “As there will doubtless be a demand over and above our issue for this picture, we can only supply them to our subscribers.” The prints are made from Moore’s negative by John M. Slaney of Camden, and additional copies were sold at Wilson & Hood’s shop on Arch Street. Wilson was right about the popularity of the image. Most of the copies of this magazine have had the photograph removed, including the digital copies available from online sources.

 

In October 1885, a brief notice in The Princetonian mentioned that the Harvard Crimson was promoting “the advisability of securing a composite photograph of the Senior Class.” The technique of superimposing multiple photographic portraits of one entire class was being attempted at Smith College and the students from other universities were encouraged to undertake similar studies.

By June 1887, it was noted that Harvard seniors were preparing the photography for such a project, as were the students at Wellesley College.

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The March and November 1887 issues of The Century Magazine contained a two-part article entitled, “College Composites,” with illustrations of portrait photographs created from the classes of students at Harvard, Amherst, Bowdoin, Cornell, Smith, Williams, and Wells.

By late fall 1887, Princeton had still declined to join this endeavor. One last attempt was made to convince their fellow students when the May 1889 Princetonian pointed out that Cornell Juniors were also having a composite photograph taken. Princeton opted out.

It is not known why Princeton decided not to undertake composite photographs, which were extremely popular at the time. Above are a few from the other institutions.

We are all interested in typical representations. The novelist or poet holds and gratifies us as we feel that the character which is portrayed with skillful words is the type of a class. The artist draws an ideal head, his expression of a type for which no single model will serve, and we look with satisfaction and pleasure at the product of his fancy. Both artist and author seek to sketch a face or character that has grown in their minds by the blending of impressions gained from the observation of many individuals. The result at which they aim is a generic portrait which shall retain the typical characteristics of the class for which it stands, while the peculiarities and idiosyncrasies of the individuals are left out.

The generalized image, which the creative mind is able to seize upon and express, rises with more or less vividness in the mind of every one as the representative of the class or group of objects which is present in his thought. This image is often a vague and unsatisfactory one, and the mind, in its efforts to gain clearness, runs rapidly over the more distinct images of members of the class, and not infrequently ends in selecting some one of these to stand as the type of all. . . — John T. Stoddard, College Composites, Century Magazine 1887.

The Century illustrated monthly magazine (New York : The Century Co., 1882-1913). http://digital.library.cornell.edu/c/cent/index.html