Collection of Six Photographs of Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth and The Ford's Theatre – Incl. Meserve Print - Vintage Prints from the Lloyd Ostendorf Collection

The offered collection of six photographs hail from the late 19th and early 20th centuries and feature Abraham Lincoln, his assassin John Wilkes Boothe and the scene of his assassination, Washington's Ford's Theatre. It's a group assembled by noted Lincoln artist and historian Lloyd Ostendorf, and it includes a print from a negative from the Frederick Hill Meserve collection. For Lincoln photographs, there can be no better provenance that to emanate from the Meserve collection. Starting in the 19th century, Meserve started collection every existing photo of Abraham Lincoln, amassing the foremost collection in the world. He discovered and purchased the remaining Mathew Brady glass plate negatives in the early 20th century. Meserve's collection was so extensive and revered, he provided the image for the U.S. penny, the $5 bill, and even provided images used by the sculptors of Lincoln on Mt. Rushmore. Also included is a piece Ostendorf acquired from the famous Anton Heitmuller collection. Heitmuller collected Lincoln artifacts for 50 years, from 1890 to 1940. 

The group includes the following photos:

• Lincoln in profile, 3 7/8 x 5 1/4 inches, notated "A Meserve early print, 1911--from his original negative," photo taken by Mathew Brady on February 9, 1864;
• Lincoln and son Tad, 2 3/4 x 4 1/8 inch, notated on reverse "Rec'd November 18, 1864, Washington, D.C., A. Lincoln & Son, photo taken by Anthony Berger in the Mathrew Brady studio February 9, 1964;
• Lincoln seated, 2 7/8 x 4 5/8, taken by Alexander Gardner in Washington in August of 1863, notated on the reverse "from Heitmuller Collection Feb. 15, 1959, Washington, D.C., Lloyd Ostendorf";
• Lincoln seated, 3 x 4 3/8 inches, covered notation on reverse reads "from original negative 1964," taken by Mathew Brady 1864, later print;
• John Wilkes Booth, 2 1/2 x 4 inches, in pencil on front "J. Wilkes Boothe," notated on reverse "Lincoln Murder," later print; and 
• Ford's Theatre, 2 7/8 x 4 7/8 inches, in pencil on the front "Ford's Theatre," memo adhered to reverse reads "Army Medical Museum. This building was formerly Ford's old theatre, and the scene of the assasination [sic] of President Abraham Lincoln on the night of the 14th of April, 1865. And since that time has been closed as a theatre and ocupied [sic] by the government as an army medical museum."

The Ford's Theatre photo was most-likely printed between 1966 and 1887, when it was still in use as a Army medical museum, and the Booth photo could be from the late 19th century--it was reproduced many times after the assassination. The other prints are most-likely of early 20th century vintage, and though the Lincoln and Tad photo is marked as being "Rec'd November 18, 1964," it is unlikely it emanates from so early a time. This photo was reproduced widely. Excellent condition overall, with most having some sort of distresses to the edges and reverse.