Elsa Spear Byron (Big Horn, Wyoming – 1992) was an American photographer.
As a young child, she learned to help her mother make photographic prints from a plate camera purchased in 1900. She sold her photographs all across the United States and railroads used them to promote Wyoming train travels. She lived in Sheridan, Wyoming, in the same house for nearly 70 years until her death in 1992.
Byron was a first-generation Wyomingite, born in 1896, her ancestors all New Englanders and Mayflower descendants. Her mother’s parents left Boston in 1849 and headed west to Illinois, Kansas and Nebraska, arriving in Laramie, Wyoming, in 1881. Elsa’s maternal grandfather, G. W. Benton, was a medical missionary who was “trained as a Baptist minister, doctor and dentist”.[This quote needs a citation]
Willis Spear was her father and arrived from Connecticut in 1874 with his family. They settled in Wyoming next to Elsa’s grandfather. Willis was married to Virginia Bell Benton and settled in Sheridan, Wyoming on 260 acres (1km2). Elsa, her siblings and brothers grew up in a ranch with millions of acres. Most of the land was leased by government agencies. Elsa’s father, and their family, formed Spear Brothers Cattle Company when Elsa was just two years old. This company leased more than a million acres (4000 km2) of Crow Indian Reservation land, Montana, and a variety of ranches on the Clearmont and Powder rivers. “They ran 57,000 head of cattle although the company only owned 36,000 head,” she said. Rest were leased.
Elsa and her siblings grew up in the saddle. Sidesaddle was used by the Spear sisters to transport cattle on roundups. Her father constructed a “dude camp” after the drought in the 1920s almost destroyed northern Wyoming’s cattle industry. The Spear-O-Wigwam is still operating in the Big Horn National Forest.
Willis Spear was able to renew his land leases by the Spear family making frequent trips to Washington, D.C. They would stay in the capitol for six months, where they attended matinees after school and met famous actors, including John Drew and his niece, Mary Bordon. Elsa, who graduated from high school in 1914 with a degree, returned to Washington, and attended the National School for Domestic Arts and Sciences along her mother. There she studied the theory and practice of cooking “and all kinds of fancy work in sewing and millinery.” Photography was her primary interest.
Two years later she married Harold Edwards of Colorado, an office manager for the Sheridan County Electric Company. Elsa and Harold built a Sheridan house, where Elsa captured their children growing up. She had been interested in photography since her mother bought a plate camera in 1900. Elsa remembered helping her mother develop the photographs in wooden frames which were placed in the sun. “You would lay back half of it to see if it was dark enough and close it up again”, she said. We used blueprint paper, so you only had to wash it with water. “[This quote needs a citation]
For the tiny photographer, endless photo opportunities were provided by her pack trips to Spear-O’Wigwam. She made sixteen annual pack trips of two weeks’ duration while her daughters were growing up, “and that’s how I got my pictures from all over the mountains,” she said. One of her pack trips was a success. “Some dudes” named one Big Horn Mountain lake for her. It is still listed on Wyoming maps.
She returned to her home and enlarged the pictures she took in her kitchen. There she had made a trapdoor through the ceiling in order to lift the head of her enlarger up high enough so that she could make large prints. Some of her photos include the Cheyenne Indian survivors of the Custer Battlefield, whom she photographed in 1926 on the battle’s 50th anniversary. Red Cloud, the grandson of the famed warrior and Plenty Coups (a Crow chief), were two examples of Indians that she photographed at the battlefield. From 1911 until the 1950s, she also took photos of Crow Fairs. One of her pictures was enlarged to eight feet in length in Denver and used as background for an Indian camp display in the Cheyenne museum.
Before color photography was invented, Byron colored black and white photographs with oils. Many of these pictures were sold to a variety of outlets including Northern Pacific Railroads and Burlington Railroads. She said that her greatest thrill was seeing four of my large pictures displayed in the Northern Pacific’s Jackson Boulevard office window in Chicago during the 1930s. They used lots of my 20×30 inch photos to attract the men to their offices.
The Big Horn Mountains’ Lake Elsa got its name from Elsa Spear Byron.
Elsa Spear Byron (1896 in Big Horn, Wyoming – 1992) was an American photographer.
As a young child, she learned to help her mother make photographic prints from a plate camera purchased in 1900. She sold her photographs all across the United States and railroads used them to promote Wyoming train travels. She lived in Sheridan, Wyoming, in the same house for nearly 70 years until her death in 1992.
Table of Contents
- 1 Biography
- 2 Recognition
- 3 References
- 3.1 Bozeman Trail scrapbook: The books and photos of Elsa Spear
- 3.2 The books and photographs of Elsa Spear
- 3.3 Crayola Color Wonder Blippi, Mess Free Coloring Pages & Markers, Gift for Kids, Age 3, 4, 5, 6
- 3.4 Disney Rapunzel Bow and Arrow Set - Tangled The Series
- 3.5 LEGO Friends Vet Clinic Rescue Buggy 41442 Building Kit; Vet Clinic Collectible Toys for Kids Aged 6+; Includes First-Aid Toy Accessories and Children’s Vet Kit, New 2021 (100 Pieces)
- 3.6 Disney Elsa Classic Doll with Pendant – Frozen –11 ½ Inches
- 3.7 Disney Frozen - Townley Girl Non-Toxic Peel-Off Water-Based Natural Safe Quick Dry Nail Polish Gift Kit Set for Kids Toddler Girls Set With Bonus Nail Files,for Parties, Sleepovers & Makeovers, 12 Pcs
- 3.8 LEGO Disney Anna and Elsa’s Storybook Adventures 43175 Creative Building Kit for Fans of Disney’s Frozen 2 (133 Pieces)
- 3.9 Disney Elsa Wedges for Girls Size 7/8 TODLR Multi
- 3.10 LEGO Disney Raya and Sisu Dragon 43184; A Unique Toy and Building Kit; Best for Kids Who Like Stories with Dragons and Adventuring with Strong Disney Characters, New 2021 (216 Pieces)
Biography
Byron was a first-generation Wyomingite, born in 1896, her ancestors all New Englanders and Mayflower descendants. In 1849, her mother left Boston and traveled westward to Illinois, Kansas, and Nebraska. She arrived in Laramie in Wyoming in 1881. Elsa’s maternal grandfather, G. W. Benton, was a medical missionary who was “trained as a Baptist minister, doctor and dentist”.[This quote needs a citation]
Her father, Willis Spear, arrived in Wyoming with his family in 1874 from Connecticut and eventually settled next to Elsa’s grandfather. Willis married his neighbor Virginia Bell Benton, and they settled on 260 acres (1 km2) near Sheridan in northern Wyoming. Elsa and her two brothers and sister grew up on a ranch that eventually expanded to include millions of acres of land, most of it leased from the government. Elsa’s father, and their family, formed Spear Brothers Cattle Company when Elsa was just two years old. This company leased more than a million acres (4000 km2) of Crow Indian Reservation land, Montana, and a variety of ranches on the Clearmont and Powder rivers. “They ran 57,000 head of cattle although the company only owned 36,000 head,” she said. Rest were leased.
Elsa and her siblings grew up in the saddle. The Spear sisters rode sidesaddle and went along on cattle roundups. When the severe drought of the early 1920s nearly destroyed the northern Wyoming cattle business, her father built a “dude camp”, she said. The Spear-O-Wigwam is still operating in the Big Horn National Forest.
Willis Spear was able to renew his land leases by the Spear family making frequent trips to Washington, D.C. The family stayed in Washington for six months. They attended matinees every day after school, and they met many famous actors like John Drew and Mary Bordon. Elsa, who graduated from high school in 1914 with a degree, returned to Washington, and attended the National School for Domestic Arts and Sciences along her mother. She studied theory and practice in cooking, as well as fancy sewing and millinery. Photography was her primary interest.
Two years later she married Harold Edwards of Colorado, an office manager for the Sheridan County Electric Company. They built a house in Sheridan and Elsa took pictures of her children as they were growing up. Since her mother purchased a 1900 plate camera, Elsa had always been fascinated by photography. Elsa remembered helping her mother develop the photographs in wooden frames which were placed in the sun. “You would lay back half of it to see if it was dark enough and close it up again”, she said. “And we used blueprint paper so all you had to do was wash it with water. “[This quote needs a citation]
The pack trips to her father’s Spear-O-Wigwam provided the petite photographer with endless picture taking opportunities. She was a two-week long annual participant in 16 pack trips while she had her girls. “That’s how my photos from all over the mountain mountains came about,” she explained. During one of the pack trips, “some dudes” named one of the Big Horn Mountain lakes for her, which is still recorded on Wyoming maps.
She returned to her home and enlarged the pictures she took in her kitchen. There she had made a trapdoor through the ceiling in order to lift the head of her enlarger up high enough so that she could make large prints. One of her photographs includes the Cheyenne Indians who survived the Custer Battlefield in the 50th anniversary year. Red Cloud, the grandson of the famed warrior and Plenty Coups (a Crow chief), were two examples of Indians that she photographed at the battlefield. She also photographed many Crow Fairs from 1911 to the 1950s. One of her pictures was enlarged to eight feet in length in Denver and used as background for an Indian camp display in the Cheyenne museum.
Before the advent of color photographs, Byron tinted black and white pictures with oils and sold many of them to a number of outlets, including the Northern Pacific and Burlington Railroads. “My biggest thrill”, she said, “was walking up the street in Chicago and seeing four of my big pictures framed in the window of the Northern Pacific office on Jackson Boulevard during the 1930s. They used lots of my 20×30 inch photos to attract the men to their offices.
Recognition
The Big Horn Mountains’ Lake Elsa got its name from Elsa Spear Byron.
References
Last update 2021-08-06