Sixth-plate daguerreotype plate under a scalloped multi-lobed brass mat and rope-twist preserver, housed in a hinged miniature pressed-leather case with a rose silk facing pad. Ca. late 1840s–early 1850s. Plate measures approx. 2 3/4 x 3 1/4 in.; case measures approx. 3 1/4 x 3 3/4 in. Accompanied by a contemporary pen-and-ink calligraphic identification slip inscribed: "Gen. Thomas William Harvey".

A compelling, historically important antebellum portrait of one of the mechanical titans of the American Industrial Revolution. The subject, General Thomas William Harvey (1795 - 1854), is captured in a half-length seated pose attired in a tailored dark wool coat, high white standing collar, and wide black silk stock cravat, his right hand resting calmly over the knob of a dark walking stick. He displays a thoughtful expression befitting a man whose mechanical breakthroughs fundamentally reshaped American manufacturing.

Born in Wardsboro, Vermont, on 22 July 1795, Harvey was an original member of the Vermont colony that settled and established Jamestown, New York. Arriving in 1816 to install mechanical infrastructure for Jamestown's first textile cotton factory, he established a blacksmithing and machine shop with his brother Charles at the invitation of town founder Judge Matthew Prendergast. A prolific mechanical genius holding numerous foundational patents, Harvey revolutionized industrial fasteners and tooling. He is best remembered for patenting the first self-starting screw, an advance that eliminated the necessity of pre-boring holes into timber and remains standard across global construction today.

Relocating to New York City and later Poughkeepsie in the 1830s to oversee commercial applications of his inventions, Harvey also attained prominence in state military circles, rising to the rank of Brigadier General in the New York State Militia. This is an extraordinary portrait of a man who helped shape America's industrial revolution.

[Daguerreotype, Sixth Plate, Thomas W. Harvey, General Thomas William Harvey, Inventors, Industrial Revolution, Gimlet Pointed Screw, Solid Headed Pin, Cam Motion, Toggle Joint, Patents, Jamestown New York, Wardsboro Vermont, New York State Militia, Walking Stick, Cane, Cased Image]

Very good condition. The plate displays strong focal clarity. with soft peripheral halo tarnish along the inner mat edge and minor scattered pinprick dusting.