Scovill New York Dry Plate Outfit

Scovill Mfg. Co., Waterbury, CT & New Haven, CT

New York Dry Plate (601-603) Outfit

Scovill Dry Plate Making for Amateurs, 1886, p. 9

An Illustrated Cataloge of Cameras, Lenses and Other Apparatus and Materials for Photography, Dated April 1, 1884, W.H.Walmsey (Philadelphia, PA), p.6
Note that the description below specifically mentions sycamore wood - which is why the New York Camera has a strong flecked appearance.
Also note that, lacking a second tripod hole on the camera (like the Waterbury camera), the New York Camera came with a metal piece called a reverser. As many New York Cameras that I have owned, I have never once found a reversier in the carrying case.

5 x 8", serial number 61

Stamp, upper lens board: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."

Stamp, lower lens board: serial number "61"

Stamp, rear end of platform frame: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."

Stamp, lower part of ground glass frame: serial number "61"

Stamp, lower part of rear standard, hidden under the ground glass frame: serial number "61"

another 5 x 8", serial no. 51.
The box not the normal Scovill carrying case, but is marked Samuel Peck & Co., owned by Scovill in the 1870's and 1880's. I put it in there to protect its nearly pristine condtion.

Bottom

Top

Stamp, upper lens board: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."

Stamp, rear end of platform frame: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."

Plate holder, stamped: "American Optical Co., Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."Stamp
The right end is a replacement manufactured from a somewhat larger Rochester Optical Co. holder.

Stamp, inside cover of box: "Manufactured by / Samuel Peck & Co."

6 ½ x 8 ½, Serial No. 52

Stamp near the top of the lens board: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y. This appears to be the same stamp as is on the rear of the camera platform, and on both sides of the plate holder.
Note that while three of the screws holding the brass strip above the lens board appear to be aligned, they have not been filed down to the level of the strip, nor has the strip been draw filed. The strip has horizontal lines arising from the varnish having been applied horizontally.

Stamp, serial number "52" near the bottom of the lens board. This number is repeated in three other spots on the camera.

Stamps, serial number "52" in two spots: 1) above the lever, near the bottom of the ground glass frame, and 2) below the lever, on the moving platform of the rear standard.

A photo of the same area as the photo just above, showing the other "52" normally hidden by the ground glass screen (just above the lever). Also, at the bottom of the photo, the "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y." stamp near the rear of the camera platform.

Manufacturer: Scovill Mfg. Co., New Haven, CT factory
Date Introduced: 1884 ; Years Manufactured: 1884 - c.1889
Construction: back focus via push-pull; single swing; reversing by patent tripod reverser
Materials: quarter-sawn sycamore body, cherry base; white-wood (poplar or equivalent) ground glass frame; black fabric bellows; brass hardware;
Sizes Offered: #601=4 ¼x5 ½; #601A=4 ¼x6 ½; #602=5x8; #603=6 ½x8 ½
Notes:

Engravings of the camera in catalogs are usually accompanied by a banner that states "Introduced in 1884". The camera included has a folding bed, a thumbscrew on top of body for swing; the outfit included tripod, Waterbury lens w/ insertable stops, the wooden case, and what looks like on of Scovill's pamphlet-catalogs: How to Make Photographs and Descriptive Price List. The included tripod featured the Lightning Reverser top, since the camera had no provision for reversing. The camera did have a quick-connect tripod mount rather than a screw-type tripod socket.

The distinctive quarter-sawn sycamore is used for the body and a thick veneer on the front.

Each year from 1886 to 1889, one size less per year was offered until stated to have been discontinued.

Back to American Optical Co. / Scovill Mfg. Co. (alphabetical)

New York Dry Plate (601-603) Outfit

Scovill Dry Plate Making for Amateurs, 1886, p. 9

5 x 8", serial number 61

Stamp, upper lens board: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."

Stamp, lower lens board: serial number "61"

Stamp, rear end of platform frame: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."

Stamp, lower part of ground glass frame: serial number "61"

Stamp, lower part of rear standard, hidden under the ground glass frame: serial number "61"

another 5 x 8", serial no. 51. The box not the normal Scovill carrying case, but is marked Samuel Peck & Co., owned by Scovill in the 1870's and 1880's. I put it in there to protect its nearly pristine condtion.

Bottom

Top

Stamp, upper lens board: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."

Stamp, rear end of platform frame: "Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."

Plate holder, stamped: "American Optical Co., Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."Stamp The right end is a replacement manufactured from a somewhat larger Rochester Optical Co. holder.

Stamp, inside cover of box: "Manufactured by / Samuel Peck & Co."

another 5 x 8", serial no. 51.
The box not the normal Scovill carrying case, but is marked Samuel Peck & Co., owned by Scovill in the 1870's and 1880's. I put it in there to protect its nearly pristine condtion.

Plate holder, stamped: "American Optical Co., Scovill Mfg. Co., N.Y."Stamp
The right end is a replacement manufactured from a somewhat larger Rochester Optical Co. holder.