Benjamin A. Gifford
After his marriage in 1884, he and his wife Myrtle moved to Portland in 1888, and by 1891 had opened a studio across the street from the Hotel Portland. Gifford was the first photographer in Portland to use electric lights for making enlargements.
About 1895 he moved to The Dalles and operated a studio there, though he maintained strong ties to Portland. Gifford returned to Portland in 1910, where his son Ralph took over operation of the studio in about 1920. After his first wife died in 1919, Benjamin married Rachel Morgan, who had worked in his studio, and they moved to Clark County to a home they called "Wa-ne-Ka" after his famous photograph, "Sunset on the Columbia".
Known for his images of Native Americans and scenic views of the Columbia River and the Columbia River Highway, Gifford published Art Work of Oregon (1900) and a view book titled Snap Shots on the Columbia (1902). More recently, his photographs were featured in the book Oregon, Then & Now (2000), by Portland photographer Steve Terrill.
11 Item(s)
List Grid
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A. M. Williams Dry Goods, The Dalles - c. 1895
$25.00 As low as: $12.00Built in 1870, this building still stands at 306 2nd Street, though the facade has been extensively modernized for both it and the building to the right. Learn More -
Building on the Edge - 1890s
$25.00 As low as: $12.00A rather surreal photograph of a building overhanging the edge of a channel at the Dalles. Learn More -
Five Young Ladies Rehearsing Their Parts - c. 1892
$25.00 As low as: $12.00In this early Benjamin Gifford photo, we see five girls in matching dresses apparently rehearsing for a stage performance. Learn More -
Multnomah Falls with Timber Bridge - c. 1895
$25.00 As low as: $12.00Multnomah Falls, showing its original bowstring-truss timber bridge. Learn More -
My Day at Home. Wa-Ku-Kum - 1899
$25.00 As low as: $12.00A young woman stands (not very happily) next to her tepee along the south bank of the Columbia River near the Dalles. Learn More -
Nursing Students, The Dalles General Hospital - c. 1908
$25.00 As low as: $12.00This image of a class of nursing students and their two instructors demonstrates Gifford's skill at using natural light when working outside his own studio. The sheer curtains soften the light and even the stark walls of the hospital. Learn More -
Oneonta Bluff - c. 1895
$25.00 As low as: $12.00Looking east towards Oneonta Bluff, before the Columbia River Highway tunnel was bored through it to the right of the railroad tracks. Learn More -
Oregon's Indian Madonna - c. 1905
$25.00 As low as: $12.00Gifford's affection for soft-focus especially lends itself to "Oregon's Indian Madonna", one of his most famous photos. Learn More -
Pop-Kio-Wina (Short Arm) - 1899
$25.00 As low as: $12.00This studio portrait was taken in The Dalles by Benjamin Gifford in 1899. Learn More -
Prinz & Nitschke Undertaking and Furniture, The Dalles - c. 1895
$25.00 As low as: $12.00In our modern world of specialization, you don't see too many "undertaking and furniture" companies anymore, but you can imagine how the same skills and equipment were needed to make both back in the day. Learn More -
The Home Guard. On the Columbia - c. 1899
$25.00 As low as: $12.00This variation on Gifford's famous "Sunset on the Columbia" features the family's dog, left behind to guard their tepees pitched along the Columbia River. Learn More
11 Item(s)
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