American Optical Co.,
Scovill Mfg. Co., props., New York City, N.Y.
Ne Plus Ultra Bicyclists' Photo-Outfit
3½ x 4½"
Stamp, right side
Flammang's patent piston and tube device for making the bed rigid,
reads: "Pat. Applied For" (upside down).
Manufacturer:
American Optical Co., Scovill Mfg. Co.,
props., New York City, NY factory
Date Introduced: - ; Years Manufactured:
c.1885-1886
Construction: rear
focus, vertical shifting front, folding bed, no swing;
non-reversing
Materials:
"imitation mahogany" wood (probably stained
basswood), brass hardware
Sizes Offered: 3 ½x4 ½
only
Notes:
There are four models of view camera
ever manufactured (other than the Midget Pocket, a combination view and
box camera not included on this list of four) by American Optical,
Scovill or Scovill & Adams. All described as a bicycle camera or
suitable for bicycling, except the Petite, which is for Vassar pupils
(women), they were (in order of increasing price):
--the
Ne Plus Ultra Bicyclist's Camera/Outfit (Outfit: camera,
Waterbury lens, plate holder, bicycle attachment, canvas bag = $10.00),
--the
Scovill's Pocket Bicycle Camera/Outfit (Outfit: camera,
with S.M.C. focusing lens, plate holder, bicycle attachment, = $12.00;
apparently the canvas bag is not included in this outfit)
--the
Petite Camera/Outfit ($12 camera & plate holder w/o lens, $17
same with tripod and canvas bag) and
--the
Mignon Camera/Outfit (Outfit: camera, plate holder, bicycle
attachment, canvas bag = $25.00 w/o lens; $50.00 with; $70.00 with
Morrison lens)
Unfortunately, Scovill never saw fit to picture the Ne Plus Ultra Bicyclist's Camera/Outfit or the Mignon Camera, but did picture the Pocket Bicycle Camera and the Petite Camera. But the camera above cannot be either the Pocket Bicycle Camera or the Petite Camera, as it doesn't match their engravings. The two 3 ½x4 ½ offerings remaining are the lowest price one, the Ne Plus Ultra Bicyclist's Camera and the very highest priced one, the Mignon Camera, and we can use that difference to identify our camera.
The camera seems to be inexpensively made and therefore it is identified as the Ne Plus Ultra Bicyclist's Camera. It has a Flammang patent rod & cylinder device to make the bed rigid, which was patented in 1886, so would have to have been made c.1886.
The wood appears to have little grain, and certainly not the distinct grain of mahogany. The finish appears to be shellac or varnish, probably one coat. The hardware is brass that has been draw-file finished, a technique that produces fine striations in a single direction. The screw slots have been aligned either horizontally or vertically. These last two characteristics are ones I associate with cameras made by the American Optical Co. at their New York City factory. To corroborate this conclusion, the camera is stamped on the rear of the platform: "Amer. Optical Co., Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y." There might be another such stamp on the top of the ground glass frame (a location normally used by other American Optical cameras), but the finish is disturbed in that area to the degree that a stamp could not be seen even if it was originally there. The Ne Plus Ultra Bicyclists' Photo-Outfit is therefore a product of the American Optical Co.
References:
Scovill's Photo. Series No. 1, he Photographic
Amateur, 2nd Edition, J. Traill Taylor,
Scovill Mfg. Co. pub. (New York, NY), 1883,
2nd Ed. about 1885, p. a17
How to Make Photographs and Descriptive Price List,
Scovill Mfg. Co. (New York, NY), distributed by
Andrew J. Smith (Providence, RI),
1886, p. 40
Scovill's Photo. Series No. 12,
Photographic Chemistry, Scovill Mfg. Co.
(New York, NY), 1886, p. a24
Scovill's Photo. Series No. 20, Dry
Plate Making for Amateurs, Scovill Mfg. Co. (New
York, NY), 1886, p. a17
Back to American Optical Co. / Scovill Mfg. Co. (alphabetical)
