06/11/2026
Photographer George Houghton and brother Don Houghtonās photography shack
- The faded looking image entitled āāCamp Griffin 1861ā shows Union soldiers and men, probably photographers including G.H. or Don Houghton, in front of shed labeled āPicture Galleryā and tent at Camp Griffin, Langley, Virginia.ā
Salted paper print
Source is the LOC (link in comments)
The second, clearer image of the camp is from the H H Bennett Studio website when an exhibit of Houghtonās was on display (link in comments).
The 3rd image, a scene of men in front of a tent, is from the Brattleboro Historical Society FB post. Entitled āCivil War 1861 Virginia Camp, Houghton's Photograph Tent.ā George Houghton, photographer and Larkin Mead, illustrator were traveling with the Vermont 4th Regiment as they embarked on the Peninsula Campaign early in the war. Mead drew images of the war for "Harper's Weekly" while Houghton took photos of soldiers so they could send them back homeā¦This is a photo, left to right, with Larkin Mead on the far left, George Houghton next to him, Houghton's brother next and then a soldier on the far right.ā
(Link in comments).
The 4th picture is of photographer George H. Houghton and his son, Fred.
āGeorge H. Houghton was born in Putney, Vermont in 1824. He began working as a carpenter and, in 1846, married Emma Ward.
By the time of the 1850 census they had one child, three year old Fred, and lived in Rockingham.
Around 1854 Houghton began working for John L. Lovell in the Cutler Block on Brattleboro's Main Street. Lovell had operated a daguerreotype studio in town since 1852.
Dageurreotypes are images that are created on silver-plated copper and are developed with a mercury solution. Lovell owned this local business from 1852 to 1856, when he sold the studio to Caleb Howe.
Houghton used these skills to become a photographer during the Civil War. He travelled with Vt. troops as they served in Virginia and also photographed soldiers as they mustered in and out of the military here in town...ā
(Source was a post from a FB post by the Brattleboro Historical Society- link is in the comments).
Brief Bio of photographer George Houghton:
āWhen George H. Houghton was born on 11 May 1826, in Putney, Windham, Vermont, United States, his father, Henry Hamilton Houghton, was 44 and his mother, Sally Perry, was 37 (together they had a total of 17 children)
George married Emma Rockwood Ward on 20 July 1846, in Guilford, Windham, Vermont, United States. They were the parents of at least 1 son and 1 daughter. In 1866, his occupation is listed as owner, photography studio in Brattleboro, Windham, Vermont, United States. He died on 7 July 1870, in Wisconsin, United States, at the age of 44.ā
His older brother in the pictures was named Don Alonzo Houghton (1809-1884)
Source: Family Source
Link in comments.
And finally, for further reading thereās a very cool book about the photographer George H. Houghton with many of his photos entitled āA Very Fine Appearanceā 2010 by Donald Harvey Wickman and the Vermont Historical Society (Link in comments)
