ALEXANDER HESLER (1823-1895) and GEORGE B. AYRES (1867-Date Unknown)

The original portrait of Abraham Lincoln was taken by the photographer Alexander Hesler in Springfield, Illinois on June 3, 1860, during Lincoln's presidential campaign. The large size of the negative (8 x 10in.) created a revealing contemporary portrait of Lincoln for voters. On Hesler's retirement, G.B. Ayres took possession of his studio and plates, printing from the glass plate of Lincoln until the end of the century.