biography of Isaiah West TABER (1830-1912)

Birth place: New Bedford, MA

Death place: San Francisco, CA

Addresses: San Francisco

Profession: Landscape and portrait painter, photographer, illustrator

Work: Honeyman Collection; Bancroft Library, Univ. of Calif., Berkeley (pen and ink drawings)

Comments: First went to San Fran. during the gold rush; later was one of the first to open a photo gallery in Syracuse, NY. Joined Bradley & Rulofson Gal. in San Francisco, 1864-71. Opened his own photo gallery in San Francisco, 1871; became prominent for both portraits and landscapes. Named Commissioner to Yosemite Valley, 1888. Lost 30 tons of portrait negatives and 20 tons of landscape negatives in the San Francisco Fire, 1906. Later printed C.E. Watkins' negatives and from these made illustrations for Century magazine.

Sources: Hughes, Artists in California, 549; P & H Samuels, 476; Welling, 239