The Acquisitions Table: Tintypes and Ambrotype

Hollis Jubal Haven with American flag, tintype, 1861; Unidentified Civil War soldier with bayonet, ambrotype; and Albertina Haven Revere, tintype.

Occasionally AAS visitors bring along objects they wish to donate to the Society. This autumn we had several visits from Dr. Christian W. Aussenheimer, a Worcester resident with connections to the Haven and Hoar families. Among his gifts to AAS were these three Civil War-era photographs. Hollis Jubal Haven (1835-1922), shown in front of an American flag, enlisted at Worcester in the Union Army in 1861, at the age of 26. He initially served in the Massachusetts 15th Infantry band as a drummer, but later joined the Brigade Band. Haven’s tintype was made in Alexandria, VA, and is stamped with the Neff Patent mark, which was first used by Peter Neff in 1856. The ambrotype of an unidentified man with a bayonet, and the tintype of Albertina Haven Revere (1831-1872), the sister of Hollis J. Haven, complete the gift.  Gift of Dr. Christian W. Aussenheimer.

Published by

Lauren Hewes

Andrew W. Mellon Curator of Graphic Arts, American Antiquarian Society

5 thoughts on “The Acquisitions Table: Tintypes and Ambrotype”

  1. I’ve never seen a finer CW tintype portrait: handsome sitter, imaginative pose, close view, and that nearly square format! A generous gift.

  2. The above photograph is the “unknown” soldier? that was a gift? or is it Hollis Jubal Haven ? It was unclear in the information, as it mentions 3 photographs.

  3. The image shown here is a tintype of Hollis J. Haven. The unknown soldier is an ambrotype and is not shown in this post.

  4. Is the Albertina Haven Revere tintype in the online collection? I can’t seem to locate her amongst the group.

  5. The tintype of Albertina Haven Revere has not yet been digitized and added to the online resource. If you can send me an email (lhewes@mwa.org) with your contact information, I can see about getting you an image.

Leave a Reply to KevinH Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *