Skip to main content

Kuhns family photographs

 Collection
Collection number: ahc.VIS319

Scope and Content

This collection contains images from the Kuhn's Photography Studio, including photographs of both the Kuhns family and clients. Many of the images are identified, however most of the tintypes remain unidentified.

Dates

  • approximately 1860-1929

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use

This material is protected by copyright law. (Title 17, U.S. Code) Permission for use must be cleared through the Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center. Licensing agreement may be required.

Administrative/Biographical History

William A. (born August Wilhelm) Kuhns (1824-1905) was born in Hohenau, Prussia. William immigrated to the United States from Germany, arriving in Mobile, Alabama, on September 16, 1849, and married Sophia Wilhelmina Steinbeck (1827-1908) in 1851. The couple had eight children including: Julius (1852-1928); William Theodore (1854-1938); Henry A. (1856-1928); Albert F. (1858-1928); Isabella (1865-1944); and Charles (1870-1846). Kuhns established his first photography studio in Tallahassee, Florida, W.M. Kuhns Photographic Artist, and while there worked in the Tallahassee railroad shop during the Civil War. In October 1870, the Kuhns family moved their home to Luckie Street in Atlanta, where William established his new studio on Whitehall Street, becoming one of only four photographers in the city at that time and one of Atlanta's premier studios of the era. Julius, William Theodore, and Charles all joined as photographers, and Isabella worked as both a gallery clerk and a photo retoucher. In 1881, William A. retired and Julius and William T. assumed the business as partners. In the early 1890s, however, W.T. moved to Albany, Georgia, to open a studio there and Julius operated the Whitehall gallery on his own until his brother's return in 1896. By 1899, Julius started a second studio on Marietta Street. The second studio eventually closed around 1914, but the Whitehall business remained open until the mid-1920s. Starting in 1925, the studio moved six times over the next seven years. After the deaths of Henry A., Albert F., and Julius in 1928, the three remaining children, William T., Isabella, and Charles moved to College Park.

Extent

151 image(s) (114 cabinet cards, 26 tintypes, seven cartes-de-visite, and four black and white photographic prints)

Language

English

System of Arrangement

This collection is arranged alphabetically according to titles supplied by staff.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift, 1978

General

VIS 319 was previously catalogued as KHN.

Description Control

This collection was reprocessed in 2018.

Title
Kuhns family photographs
Author
Timothy Cole Hale
Date
September 2018
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Finding aid is written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the Kenan Research Center at Atlanta History Center Repository

Contact:
130 West Paces Ferry Road
Atlanta GA 30305
404-814-4040