C. S. Fly
| Camillus "Buck" Sydney Fly | |
|---|---|
C. S. Fly photography studio
|
|
| Born |
May 2, 1849 Andrew County, Missouri, United States |
| Died | October 12, 1901 (aged 52) Bisbee, Arizona, United States |
| Occupation | Photographer, marshal |
| Years active | 1879 – 1897 |
| Spouse(s) | Mary "Mollie" E. Goodrich |
| Children | Kitty (adopted) |
Camillus "Buck" Sydney Fly (May 2, 1849 – October 12, 1901) was an Old West photographer who is regarded by some as an early photojournalist and who captured the only known images of Native Americans while still at war with the United States. He took many other pictures of life in mining boom town of Tombstone, Arizona and the surrounding region. He recognized the value of his photographs to illustrate periodicals of the day and took his camera to the scenes of important events where he deliberately recorded them and resold pictures to editors nationwide.
He was an eyewitness on October 26, 1881 to the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, which took place outside his photography studio. He took pictures of a number of Tombstone residents including Tombstone founder Ed Schieffelin, pioneer surgeon Dr. George E. Goodfellow, Wyatt Earp's wife Josephine, and others.
He served as Cochise County Sheriff from 1895 to 1897. Most of his negatives were destroyed by two fires that burned his studio to the ground. His widow, photographer Mary E. "Mollie" Fly, donated his remaining images to the Smithsonian Museum before she died in 1912. His photographs are legendary and highly prized.
His parents were originally from Andrew County, Missouri. Shortly after Camillus' birth, his family migrated to California, eventually settling in Napa County. He became a farmer and on September 29, 1879, he married Mary ("Mollie") (née McKie) Goodrich on September 29, 1879 in San Francisco. Both were skillful photographers. She had previously been married to Samuel D. Goodrich but divorced him after two years of marriage. They left California and arrived in the booming mining town of Tombstone, Arizona Territory in December 1879.
In Tombstone they immediately opened a photography studio in a tent. In July, 1880, they completed construction on a 12-room boarding house at 312 Fremont Street in Tombstone that housed their photography studio and gallery in the back, called the “Fly Gallery”. Mollie Fly actively managed Fly's Gallery when her husband was away. She was one of the few female photographers of the era, taking pictures of anyone who could pay the studio price of 35 cents. It's unknown how they divided photographic duties between them, although all known photographs are attributed to him.
...
Wikipedia