Joseph Jenkins Roberts 1851, copy by Rufus P Anson c1853
This daguerreotype portrait of Joseph Jenkins Roberts is probably a copy of an image taken in 1851 by African-American daguerreian Augustus Washington, when Roberts and his wife were visiting the United States from Liberia. Roberts was born in Virginia, but moved to Liberia in 1829, where he was a colonial governor and later the first president when the country became independent.
This image bears the imprint of Anson, 589 Broadway. That was Rufus P Anson, who had a studio at that New York address from 1853 until about 1860. The plain matte and decorative preserver are typical of the early to mid-1850s, so this copy was probably produced between 1853 and 1856.
This is a good reminder that photographs can have more than one date associated with them — the date the image was taken may be earlier than the date it was printed. In this case, a few years makes little difference in the clothing styles of a gentleman, but it allows us to reconcile the fact that Roberts was in Africa while Anson was operating his studio at 589 Broadway in New York.
