ABSTRACT
The majority of work on European daguerreotypes has focused on the timing and circumstances of discovery, with limited attention to work outside. Several cultural studies that have examined the ongoing reception and use of the medium in the United States, such as the substantial analyses of two large urban firms-Mathew Brady and Southworth & Hawes in Boston-offer a framework for understanding the goals of the Collins firm. Philadelphia until 1849 when he began an itinerant daguerreotype business, working intermittently at the firm in. It is worth noting that Thomas's daguerreotypes are described by a northwestern Massachusetts newspaper in 1853 as merely good enough. Philadelphia daguerreotype business; and started taking photographic images in less saturated markets. Although the Collinses operated in an environment in which they had ready access to the materials and knowledge needed for taking daguerreotypes and a significant, largely local and regional, clientele, their business ultimately failed.
