Joseph L. Bates

Joseph L. Bates (1806 or 1807 – March 2, 1886) was an American merchant and manufacturer based in Boston specializing in musical instruments, umbrellas, stereoscopic photographs and viewers, and fancy goods. Despite being a dealer of stereographic photographs, he was likely not a photographer himself.

Garnet Pool near Glen House in New Hampshire

Boston Museum

City Hall

Old City Hall

Quincy Market

Horticultural Hall

Mount Washington (New Hampshire) cog railroad

Career

Bates began his business in 1828 as a manufacturer of musical instruments at 44 Market St., Boston. The following year he moved to 6 Court Street, by which time he had expanded into the manufacture and repair of umbrellas and parasols.

He published and sold stereoscopic photographs of Boston and New England scenery, landscapes, and buildings. Many are included in the extensive Getty Center photography collection, located in Los Angeles, California.

Holmes and Bates stereoscope

In 1861, Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr. invented the first handheld stereoscope. Choosing not to patent it, Bates manufactured and sold his design.

Bibliography

• Getty Museum. "Joseph L. Bates". Getty Museum. J. Paul Getty Trust. Archived from the original on 14 September 2023. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
• Historic New England. "Advertisement for Joseph L. Bates, musical instruments, umbrellas and parasols, No. 6 Court Street, Boston, Mass., 1829". Historic New England. Historic New England. Archived from the original on 11 September 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
• Phillips, Del (2006). "Joseph L. Bates, Boston Merchant". CenturyTel. CenturyTel. Archived from the original on 24 March 2015. Retrieved 14 September 2023.
• Stack's Bowers Galleries (April 2019). "1862 Joseph L. Bates. One Cent. HB-49, EP-6a, S-26, Reed-BA01FG. FANCYGOODS. Choice Extremely Fine". Stack's Bowers Galleries. Historic New England. Archived from the original on 12 September 2023. Retrieved 11 September 2023.
• Treadwell, T. K.; Darrah, William C. (1994). Photographers of the United States of America (PDF). National Stereoscopic Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 September 2023. Retrieved 14 September 2023.