Seal Rocks
Stereoview 2048 (click here for crosseyed viewing) by Northern California photographer Carleton Watkins, captioned "Sea Lions, West End, Farallone Islands, P.O.", is from a series of Farallon Islands undated Watkins stereoviews (2001-2078). The Getty Museum dates several cards in the series (e.g., Watkins 2058) as "about 1867". I.W. Taber acquired Watkins' negatives in 1874 when Watkins went bankrupt. Taber published Watkins 2048 as an unnumbered Taber stereoview, captioned "At the Cliff House, Seal Rocks, San Francisco", and also as photo Taber B2191, captioned "The Seal Rocks near Cliff House, San Francisco". Elite 102 is the same photo published by Elite Photo. carletonwatkins.org identifies the Taber stereoview as "Mistitled Farallone Islands view number 2048". My opinion is that the Farallon location in the earlier Watkins 2048 caption is correct and Taber's Cliff House location is incorrect, probably changed by Taber for marketing purposes.
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These four postcards and eight other cards below all use the Watkins image. None of them credit Watkins or Taber. If the original image is from the Farallons, the Cliff House/Seal Rocks captions on all these cards are incorrect.
- Mitchell 55, undated b+w private mailing card, ca. 1901.
- Goeggel & Weidner 39, AutoChrom logo, postmarked SF 10/14/1903. Later variants Weidner 39 (AutoChrom logo, ca. 1904) and Weidner 39 (no AutoChrom logo, ca. 1905) credit "Charles Weidner Photographer", though Weidner is the postcard publisher but not the photographer.
- American Souvenir 12, multiview postmarked SF 10/18/1904.
- Galloway 33, postmarked SF 5/01/1906 (13 days after the earthquake!). The postcard artist has widened the view considerably; the entire left third of the image is invented.
Weidner Catalog shows five Weidner 39 variants:
- Goggel & Weidner credit front, AutoChrom logo, undivided back (ca. 1903-1904).
- Weidner credit front, AutoChrom logo, undivided back (postmarked 9/24/1904).
- Weidner credit front, no AutoChrom logo, undivided back (postmarked 12/29/1905).
- Weidner credit front, no AutoChrom logo, "Cal." added, undivided back (postmarked 4/08/1907),
- no Weidner credit front, "Cal." added, divided back (postmarked 3/22/1908).
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These cards from other publishers show the same Watkins image.
- Curteich A-49344.
- Newman V294.
- Scheff 113.
- Souvenir 1730, postmarked SF 8/14/1915.
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These four Mitchell 2 variants also show the same Watkins image.
- Mitchell 2, undivided back, very similar to another early Mitchell 2 variant.
- Mitchell 2, undivided back.
- Mitchell 2, divided back.
- Mitchell 2, divided back. Image details are substantially different, especially the water and the horizon placement.
This animated GIF overlays the cards shown above on the Taber photo for comparison.
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The image on these cards is strikingly similar to the Watkins image used above, but the seals are positioned differently. I have searched without success for a Watkins or Taber original of this image.
- Britton & Rey 522 (postmarked SF 7/22/1905) has undivided back and does not include the out-of-scale steamship at the upper right of the other cards. The caption cites "The world famous Seals", while the caption of variant Britton & Rey 522 (not shown) cites "The World famous Seal Rocks".
- Britton & Rey 1011.
- Britton & Rey 1011, variant of preceding recaptioned "Seals on the Rocks at the Cliff House, showing old Ben Butler, the famous King of the Seals, now deceased." The San Francisco Call reported Ben Butler's death on 7/07/1895.
- Cardinell-Vincent 1011, same image and stock number, PPIE seal.
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These cards show different images of Seal Rocks.
- Unknown publisher 2, private mailing card ca. 1902.
- Weidner 115, postmarked 6/29/1908.
Weidner Catalog shows four Weidner 115 variants:
- AutoChrom logo, credits right, undivided back (postmarked 2/28/1904).
- AutoChrom logo, credits bottom, undivided back.
- No AutoChrom logo, credits bottom, undivided back (postmarked 11/08/1906).
- [above right] Weidner credit back, no stock number, divided back (postmarked 6/29/1908),
Steve's SF postcard pages:
