Otho C. Courtright

ANDERSON, BELL, BUTLER, CARPENTER, COURTRIGHT, GARDNER, LANCASHIRE, MARSH

Posted By: John Stuekerjuergen (email)
Date: 7/7/2024 at 15:15:31

Three Photographers Who May Have Taken Some of Your Oldest Family Photos

COURTRIGHT, GARDNER & BELL WERE RELATIVES, CHILDHOOD NEIGHBORS, AND INVENTORS

If you look through a collection of your old family photos, you may find one or more taken by “Courtright” or “Bell & Courtright” or “Courtright & Gardner.” The common denominator was Otho C. Courtright (1868-1929), who was active in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Bell and Gardner were relatives with whom Courtright had short-term partnerships.

Otho Courtright's Early Years

Members of the Courtright family were pioneers in the Clay Grove area of Marion Township. Otho Courtright was the oldest child of John C. Courtright (1846-1900) and Candace Virginia Jarrett Courtright (1847-1929), who farmed 100 acres in Sections 4 and 5 of Franklin Township. Their home was five miles directly west of West Point. Courtright was educated at Whittier College in Salem and at Howe’s Academy in Mt. Pleasant. He helped his parents with farm work until age 21. He then opened photography studios, first at Salem and later at Farmington.

Seeing more opportunity in Ft. Madison, Otho moved there. His studio at 809 Front Street was described as “modern and unusually well appointed.”

Isaac Bell, an Inventive Cousin, Partners with Courtright

In the early 1890s, Otho entered into a partnership with Isaac A. Bell (1862-1932), his first cousin. Bell was the son of William E. Bell (1838-1908) and Minerva Courtright Bell (1844-1924), who farmed near the Courtrights. Bell had previously had studios in Farmington and Donnellson. The Bell & Courtright partnership was dissolved in 1895, with Courtright moving his business to West Point and Bell staying in Ft. Madison. The 1900 census showed Courtright had returned to Ft. Madison, so photos taken at his West Point studio are more uncommon.

Isaac Bell proved to be very creative. He left Ft. Madison and established a studio in Ottumwa. He went on to invent the Bell panoramic camera, which revolutionized the taking of panoramic photographs. These cameras, manufactured in Grinnell by the Bell Camera Company, competed with those made by much larger companies. They were offered in the Sears Roebuck catalog.

Bell also invented a device for taking photographs from the air, which eliminated deaths from using manned dirigible balloons to photograph enemy fortifications and troop movements. During WWI, he perfected a device known as the depth bomb, which proved to be the first successful weapon used against submarines.

Robert Gardner Replaces Bell, Settles in West Point

With the departure of Isaac Bell, Otho Courtright brought in a new photographer and partner, Robert A. Gardner (1874-1930), his brother-in-law. Gardner grew up in Section 8 of Franklin Township, near the Courtright and Bell families. Courtright & Gardner had studios at both West Point and Ft. Madison. Gardner lived and worked in both towns over the next five years, while serving as Vice President of the Photographic Association of Iowa from 1896-97.

The partnership did not last, however, and Gardner sold out to Courtright in 1900. He used those funds to buy a half-interest in a West Point drug store operated by W.S. Carpenter. After only six months, he was elected Superintendent of the West Point public schools. Still later, he took the position of Postmaster. During his tenure, he started three new rural routes. Gardner was the first President of the Commercial League of West Point.

Courtright Receives Two Patents for Photo Equipment

Otho met with continued success in photography. In 1909, he was awarded a patent for a photographic printing cabinet. This invention received a second place prize at the annual convention of the Photographers Association of America. In 1913, Courtright received a patent for a photo printing machine. There is some indication he moved his Ft. Madison studio from the riverfront to 614 Avenue E.

In October 1912, Courtright moved to Des Moines, where he established a storefront downtown. The announcement of his Des Moines business said he had been the “leading photographer in (the Burlington area) for 17 years.” By this time, Otho was devoting most of his time to the manufacturing of his Courtright Automatic Photo Printing Machine.

Family lives

Otho married Birdie Marsh on February 15, 1899. They had one son, Lazarre. Isaac Bell married Blanche Butler in 1887, but they appear to have divorced. Bell spent his last years helping his brothers with their mining operation in Texas. Robert Gardner married Viola Bell Courtright (1875-1963), a sister of Otho Courtright. The couple had two daughters, Gertrude (Anderson) and Violet (Lancashire).