Image Galleries
Mammoth Plate Photographs
Mammoth Plate Photographs
Watkins used a specially constructed camera to expose 18 x 22 inch glass plates. He created over 1200 mammoth plate photographs during his career. Watkins photographs of Yosemite were very influential in creation of the park.
- Becoming a Professional Photographer
Watkins Earliest Photographs
Las Mariposas Mining Estate, Mariposa County
Rancho San Antonio, Alameda County
Specimens
New Almaden Mine, Santa Clara County
- Yosemite Valley and Related Pictures
Mariposa Grove and Mariposa Trail
Yosemite Valley
Vernal Fall, Nevada Fall, and Cap of Liberty
Yosemite Valley from the North and South Rim
Calaveras Big Tree Grove, Calaveras County
- San Francisco and the Pacific Coast
San Francisco
Mendocino County
Oregon
Farallon Islands, San Francisco and Marin
Washington Territory, British Columbia
- South, East, and North of San Franciscos
San Mateo County Estates
Santa Clara, Alameda and Marin Counties
Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties
- The Californa Missions Project
Northern and Central California
Southern California and Arizona
- Picturing the Topographical Landscape
California
Utah and Wyoming
Arizona
- Railroads and Agriculture
Railroads
Central Coast and Kern County
Los Angeles County and Points East
- Mining
Nevada County, California
State of Nevada
Arizona and Montana
Butte County, California
- Other Subjects
Portraits and Works of Art
Stereographs 1859-1874
Stereographs 1859-1874
Watkins was widely recognized for his photographs during this time, receiving a medal from the Paris International Exposition in 1867. This group of photographs are known as Watkins Old Series and are some of the earliest photographs of California and Oregon.
Rancho Las Mariposas
Yosemite - c1861 No's 1-100
New Almaden & San Jose No's 101-199
MendocinoNo's 200-296
San Francisco & Environs - 1860-64No's 297-576
San Francisco & Environs - 1864-66No's 577-800
Yosemite & misc CaliforniaNo's 801-899
Spring Valley Water WorksNo's 900-925
San Francisco - c1868No's 926-1000
YosemiteNo's 1001-1200
Columbia River & vicinityNo's 1201-1337
San Francisco & CPRRNo's 1338-1538
Mt Shasta & Northern CaliforniaNo's 1539-1600
San Francisco - c1872No's 1601-1800
Sierra Nevada MiningNo's 1801-1835
Vallejo & San FranciscoNo's 1839-2000
Farallone IslandsNo's 2001-2078
San Francisco & Environs - c1872No's 2079-2300
Napa and Sonoma GeysersNo's 2301-2359
San Francisco and EnvironsNo's 2360-2500
Modoc WarNo's 2501-2524
Marin County and San MateoNo's 2525-2599
UtahNo's 2700-2771
- Watkins Pacific Railroad
Sierra Nevada FoothilsNo's 1-99
High Sierra & SacramentoNo's 100-199
Sierra Summit & RenoNo's 200-299
Nevada Desert & Last RailNo's 300-364
Stereographs 1875-1890
Stereographs 1875-1890
After the loss of his earlier negatives to a creditor during a financial crisis, Carleton Watkins started photographing anew in the mid-1870s. Watkins' "New Series" stereographs begin with series number 3001.
Yosemite - 1878-1881No's 3001-3175
Oakland and Misc RailroadNo's 3301-3323
Alpine County and Round TopNo's 3382-3393
North Bloomfield Gravel MinesNo's 3394-3400
Mammoth Big Tree GroveNo's 3501-3537
River Mining and MiscNo's 3538-3546
San FranciscoNo's 3547-3661
Southern California - c1878No's 3662-3667
San Francisco and EnvironsNo's 3668-3782
MiscellaneousNo's 3783-3800
Monterey and EnvironsNo's 3801-3899
Lake Tahoe and EnvironsNo's 4001-4065
Nevada and the ComstockNo's 4066-4192
C.P.R.R. and Donner PassNo's 4201-4242
Southern CaliforniaNo's 4301-4600
California MissionsNo's 4601-4667
Utah - winter of 1873-1874No's 4701-4716
Southern California - 1880No's 4751-4836
Arizona - 1880No's 4837-4922
Santa Cruz and EnvironsNo's 5001-5068
Washington Territory - 1882No's 5201-5263
Victoria, B.C. - 1882No's 5264-5303
Oregon, Idaho and YellowstoneNo's E1-E217
- Unnumbered Series
Fourteenth Industrial Exposition
A.B. Clark, Anaheim
- Albums
Sunny Slope, San Gabriel, Cal.
Photographs in other Formats
Photographs in other Formats
Watkins published prints in a variety of formats during his career including Albums, Cabinet Cards, and 8x10 prints.
- Studio Portraits
Photographs made in Watkins San Francisco Studio
- CdV, Cabinet Card, Boudoir Card, Imperial Mount and other Medium Format Prints
Yosemite Valley and Related Pictures
San Francisco and Environs
Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties
Mount Shasta and Northern California
Oregon
Southern California
Arizona and Utah
Documents & Ephemera
Documents & Ephemera
Includes advertising, trade cards, personal correspondence, and other documents.