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Permission to publish material from the James Crockwell photograph collection must be obtained from the
This collection was transferred to Special Collections and Archives by former USU professor Nelson Wadsworth (who obtained them from a family descendant) in 1995. Items 1:95 and 1:96 were purchased in 2013 from Megan McElroy.
Register completed by Rebecca Ruelle, August 2002.
James Hezekiah Crockwell was born on March 21, 1855 in Woodbury, Iowa. In 1863 or 1864 young James moved to Salt Lake City after his father, Dr. John D.M. Crockwell, converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. James and his brother George started a small business coloring photographs. After George left the business, Crockwell spent nearly a year as an apprentice to C.W. Carter in 1883. Shortly thereafter he formed a partnership with William Ottinger. For the next two years Crockwell and Ottinger used Salt Lake City as a home base and worked as traveling photographers in southern Utah and Southeast Nevada. In 1886 Crockwell bought out Ottinger and spent the next two years as an itinerant photographer for the mining towns of Nevada. In 1888 he settled in Virginia City, but moved back to Salt Lake City after business there tapered off. In Utah he photographed the mining towns of Park City and Eureka before becoming Utah's official photographer at the Chicago World's Fair of 1893. Afterwards Crockwell returned to Salt Lake City, but business was not good and there were expensive medical bills to pay. By 1900 he quit photography to become a traveling salesman.
In 1877 James Crockwell and Millie Bassett were married. They would have five children, Earl, Ada, Lula, Lawrence, and Clara Nevada (nicknamed Polly Wampus). In the spring of 1889 daughter Ada was fatally burned in a fire set by an angry former employee. Lulu was also badly burned. In 1915 Millie died. By 1930 Crockwell was living with a daughter in Alameda, California. He died on September 16, 1940.
Arrangement: Topical.
The James H. Crockwell Collection consists of twenty one studio portraits of the Crockwell and Bassett families (most taken either by C.W. Carter or Crockwell himself), and "The Comstock Illustrated," a printed 1890 souvenir album with Albertypes of the Comstock mining region. The 1890 album includes views of Virginia City, Gold Hill, Silver City, Sutro, mills, hoisting works, miners, trains, and Paiutes (includes four negatives). Two additional photographs mounted on cards of unidentified Nevada mining towns were added later.
Jas. H. Crockwell (Virginia City, NV).
Crockwell & Ottinger (SLC).
Jas. H. Crockwell (SLC).
Crockwell.
J.H. Crockwell (SLC).
Hower (Baker City).
Souvenir photo posed on a studio prop, of an early airplane.
Crockwell and Ottinger (SLC).
Jas. H. Crockwell, Traveling Photographer.
J.H. Crockwell (Virginia City).
Crockwell used a mirror to photograph his wife during the Chicago World's Fair, 1893, J. H. Crockwell (Virginia City).
J.H. Crockwell.
J. H. Crockwell (Virginia City).
Jas. H. Crockwell, Traveling Photographer.
C. W. Carter (SLC).
Portland Studio (Portland, Oregon).
C. W. Carter (SLC).
C. W. Carter (SLC).
Includes views of Virginia City, Gold Hill, Silver City, Sutro, mills, hoisting works, miners, trains, and Piutes