Abraham Lincoln, Silver Print Photograph of O-42

Description

This photograph was originally taken in 1860, by C.S. German. This silver print was created by Herbert George Studio in 1941. We’re not sure when it was broken, but later versions of this photo show a broken plate. 

A pencil notation on the mount just beneath the image reads:  “German – Butler – McNulty photograph of Abraham Lincoln from original negative made in Springfield in 1861 / Owned by Herbert Wells Fay.” 

This photograph is inscribed and dated to Dr. J. C. Newell in Springfield, May 7, 1941. Two people with Lincoln associations provide the inscriptions: Herbert Wells Fay, and Isaac Diller. Fay was custodian of the Lincoln Tomb from 1921 to 1949. Diller was the son of Lincoln’s pharmacist and neighbor. As a child, Diller played with the Lincoln boys Willie and Tad, and also appeared in the street in two photographs taken by J. A. Whipple in the Summer of 1860.  

Fay’s inscription reads:  “With the Compliments of one collector to another / H.W. Fay Custodian Lincoln Tomb.”
Diller’s inscription reads:  “Congratulations and best wishes from the only living person ever taken in a picture with Abraham Lincoln / Isaac R. Diller.” 

Abraham Lincoln. Silver print of photograph by  C. S. German in 1861. Printed on card stock taken directly off the original 1861 Glass Plate Negative before it was broken; then owned by Lincoln Tomb Custodian, Herbert Wells Fay.  Springfield:  Herbert George Studio (c1941).