Looking Up the River. Views on the Colorado River. Grand Cañon Series

Photograph. Very Good. Albumen stereoview [11 cm x 15.5 cm] on a yellow mount [11.5 cm x 17.5 cm] with a printed paper label on the reverse (No. 202). U.S. Topographical and Geological Survey of the Colorado River of the West. In pencil on the reverse "Thompson standing." Also in pencil, "Marble Cañon Aug 22, '72" and "Sep 5, '72; S & S p. 244." Jack Hillers (1840-1882) was working as a teamster when he made the acquaintance of John Wesley Powell. The following year, 1871, Powell hired him as a boatman for his second expedition down the Colorado River and through the Grand Canyon. Over time, he replaced Clements Powell (John's cousin) as the assistant to the photographer (first succeeding E. O. Beaman then James Fennemore). Hillers was a hard worker, highly regarded by his peers, and a fast learner when it came to the art of photography. After serving as the main photographer on Powell's trips, Hillers would go on to work for the Bureau of American Ethnology for many years.