biography of Alexander HESLER (1829-1895)

Birth place: Montreal, Canada

Death place: Evanston, IL

Addresses: Racine, WI, 1833; Buffalo, NY, 1847; Madison, WI, 1847; Galena, IL, 1847; Chicago,1853-on

Profession: Photographer

Comments: His 1851 daguerreotype of the fall of Minnehaha was given to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and the image inspired the writing of Hiawatha. Hesler was also well known for his 1860 portrait of Pres. Lincoln. He died "in harness ó during the photographing of a group by flashlight."

Sources: Welling, 82-83; Newhall, The Daguerreotype in America, 146