Raynors HCA 2017-02
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 2/23/2017
BRADY, Matthew (1822-1896) was one of the first American photographers, best known for his scenes of the Civil War. He studied under inventor Samuel F. B. Morse, who pioneered the daguerreotype technique in America. Signed Photograph “M.B. Brady” “Wassh. D.C” on front mount of albumen photo, 9” x 7” mounted to larger mount. The studio image of eight well dressed men including Henry Kellogg Willard (seated 2nd from the right). Signature is dark, focus sharp, VG. Of course, the Williard Hotel was the center of political power in Washington DC for decades. In 1850 the hotel property came under the able management of the Willard brothers from Vermont. They redecorated and enlarged the building, helping to make it an influential meeting place for Washingtonians. During the Civil War, author Nathaniel Hawthorne said Willard's "may be much more justly called the center of Washington and the Union than either the Capitol, the White House, or the State Department..." Lincoln used his hotel stay to conduct official business, complete his Cabinet appointments, and make adjustments to the First Inaugural Address which he had written in Illinois. By the time the inauguration rolled around, the hotel overflowed with visitors, squeezing as many as 10 people into a room.
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