FASC Rat

The best way to date this photograph without seeing the original is to look at the style of clothes the subject is wearing. The stiff collar looks like something worn near the turn of the century. If the subject was born around 1804, then he should be around 100 years old when photographed.

RodeoMan Loc: St Joseph, Missouri

Do you happen to know your great grandfather's name? Even last names can be helpful if not too common such as Smith, or Jones. Do you know where he or other members of the family lived? Findagrave can be helpful in finding ancestors? The photograph looks like something made after 1850, at the earliest, meaning that the man in the image would have appeared older if he had been born in the early 1800's.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

I would certainly question that your ggfather was born 215 years ago. My ggggrandmother was born in 1804. I’m 80. Average generation intervals are probably 30-35 years these days. Generational intervals around 60-70 years would be very unusual.

I am not a sartorial expert but the dress does look similar to photos of my ancestors in the late 19th century.

1904 I could believe.

Timmers Loc: San Antonio Texas.

First, this is not a Daguerreotype. The first two earliest studios were in the New York area the second is in San Antonio Texas and it is still there on Broadway in down town. The setting (background is that of a studio painted backdrop) which is done much later, possibly the 1890's. The image is in the standard commercial style done just before or after the turn of the century.

I down loaded the tiny image and so could not see the critical detail. Images like this often have surface retouching made on the glass plate. A fluid like lacquer is applied and dried so that retouching can be done to the image. This often shows in the copy process of modern copy systems that would never show I the prints of the period of time.

My final opinion is that this is a studio portrait done between 1910 and 1930, using dry glass plate process, most likely on split 5X7 in glass plate.

Reference info:
Nicephore Niepce invention of photography 1826.
Daguerreotype, 1839. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daguerreotype
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tintype :Think American Civil War period.

Bill 45

He right, that picture is from 1910s to the 1920s. I have pictures of my grandfather on both side from that period in time. Both men are dress like the person in the picture.

Dossile

In reference to the age of a great grandparent. I am 58, my grandparents were born in 1881, my great grandfather was born in 1845. A great grandfather born in 1804 seems extremely unlikely and impossible if he comes through your grandmother’s linage. Born in 1864, or even 1840, a typo or transposition, seems much more likely. The photo then seems more plausible in regards to the era’s technology with a man in his 30’s.

Timmers Loc: San Antonio Texas.

Lewis Carol, also the Reverend Dodgson of Alice In Wonderland fame. He did photography and at the time it was something that you learned by doing it by learning from someone who knew how to work the magic. It simply was not an easy thing to do and few knew how to succeed at doing photography.

These are amazingly good photographs and are called Salted Silver Prints. They are typical of the high quality of these type of image from that period. The negatives are on glass plate, the process is wet collodion.

Lewis Carol 1850.

(Download)

Lewis Carol 1863.

(Download)

Lcfitt Loc: Cameron Park, CA

I appreciate the responses. Very Helpful. The family records are pretty accurate as far as available data is concerned. We have always tried to find certified copies of original documents to verify dates and this family was well documented. I do have one photograph of the man in question taken much later in life (Posted below). The one in the original post is the same image as the one identified in my personal family records as that of my Mother's Father - 1878-1973.

After posting, I had an idea and did a search of early photographs of US presidents - thinking their prominence would give a pretty good historical idea of the timing of photographs in the general population. Interestingly the first president photographed - according to my search - was:

"John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States, was the first president to have his photograph taken. The daguerreotype was shot in 1843, a good number of years after Adams left office in 1829. The first to have his picture taken in office was James Polk, the 11th President, who was photographed in 1849."

This pretty much confirms that the photo in question is more likely my grandfather than my great grandfather.

whatdat Loc: Del Valle, Tx.

I’m confused. If your great-grandfather could not have been photographed in 1804, how could your grandfather, a generation later been in the photograph in 1804?

Lcfitt Loc: Cameron Park, CA

The question initially arose when the original photo was posted on a genealogy site as that of my ggf born in 1804. I questioned whether photography had developed in time to have a photograph of someone as young as the man pictured being born back then. Being born in 1804 and if the photo was taken at age 35 the date of the photograph would have been1839 - possible, but he was an obscure resident of a small town in Illinois at age 35. My grandfather, born in 1878? - photography well developed by then.

DirtFarmer Loc: Escaped from the NYC area, back to MA

So your ggfather was born in 1804 and gfather in 1878? That’s encouraging to all us aging guys.

Lcfitt Loc: Cameron Park, CA

Major typo on this one. Thanks for noticing. GG grandfather - 1804. G father - yes 1878. His father - g grandfather 1838. Thanks.

Sam9987

With the pasted on hair and the soft coat, I would agree that this is most likely a photo of a painting, albeit a very well done one.