The Rotograph Company was a major publisher and printer of postcards from 1904-1911. Based in New York City, the Rotograph Company was an American branch of the German company Neue Photographische Gesellschaft, one of the leading European manufacturers of high quality photographic products including postcards. They were also in partnership with another German printer Knackstedt & Nather of Hamburg. Rotograph had merged with the National Art Views Company in 1904 which gave Rotograph access to an extensive collection of American views. The high quality German printing and extensive inventory of images were central to Rotographs success, as emphasized in their advertisements in stationers trade magazines:
The company when it closed was estimated to have “over two million photographic views from every nook and corner of the United States.” As indicated in the advertisement they were able to produce these images in a range of different styles including: Style A: Black and White, view cards; Style D: Delft, blue finish, marine and landscape view, etc.; Style H, Hand Colored, view cards; and Style G: Colored, smooth finish, view cards.
Rotograph prided itself on producing high quality postcards as indicated in the following statement:
While the market is being flooded with all sorts and conditions of cheap and trashy souvenir post cards, the Rotograph Company continues to uphold the high standard of excellence which they have set for themselves, and seem bent on making the “Post Cards of Quality” a household name wherever mail is delivered and art is appreciated.
The majority of the Rotograph cards are collotypes, a printing technique invented by Alphone-Louis Poitevin in 1855. The technical aspects are beyond the scope of this discussion (for this see the Getty study), but the results produced extremely fine detail and subtle transitions in color and light and shadow as shown in this card entitled “Lake Road, Canada Lake, N.Y.” It required highly skilled printers and the process was only capable of relatively short print runs.
Rotograph retained proprietary rights to many of its images, but the company also made postcards from photographs supplied by clients. Rotograph would send to local businesses like drug stores or stationery shops sample cards like this one for a Style H card:
The local business would act as the publisher while Rotograph would be the printer. This business model provides a context for understanding the Canada Lake and Caroga Lake cards.
The Gloversville stationer of Cowles & Casler collaborated with Rotograph to produce cards of the Fulton county region including Sacandaga, Broadalbin, Johnstown, Gloversville, as well as scenes of Canada and Caroga Lakes. In 1870 Daniel Forbes Cowles along with his father-in-law, John J. Hill, founded the firm. In 1889 Seymour A. Casler, who had been employed at the store since its opening, was admitted to partnership and the name was changed to Cowles, Hill, and Co. After the retirement of Mr. Hill in 1894, the business continued under the name Cowles and Casler. The store would later become Cowles, Brown and Co.
Daniel Forbes Cowles was very active in the business community of Gloversville. In 1890 he was one of the managers of the Gloversville board of trade. In 1891 he was elected as a director of the Manufacturers and Merchant’s Bank. He was treasurer of the Gloversville Street Electric Railroad. He was active in the creation of the Gloversville Free Library. A biographical sketch of him presents the following description:
As a merchant Mr. Cowles was eminently successful, possessing to a marked degree all those characteristics that make for true success in mercantile affairs. Honest and upright in all his dealings, he was kindly and courteous in his treatment of all with whom he came in contact. He was a man upon whom one could depend, and his neighbors soon came to recognize him as such. In the store he believed in having stock and fixtures arranged as tastefully as possible as well as insisting that the goods he handled should always be just as he represented them to be. As a result the store at 9 Main street came to be one of the finest of its kind in the State, while the standing of the firm was among the best.
The store at 9 North Main Street in Gloversville specialized in books and a range of paper products, especially wall paper. Cowles made regular business trips to New York City to make sure his merchandise was up to date. Even before his association with Rotograph, Cowles & Casler published postcards to meet the rising demand for view cards. Two early cards with Canada Lake views bear the name Cowles & Casler in the lower right corner of the image:
While Cowles & Casler published a range of Fulton County scenes, particular attention was paid to Canada Lake views. D.F. Cowles was a summer resident of Canada Lake. The September 8, 1894 issue of the Johnstown Daily Republican records that his wife, Sarah H. Cowles, bought a lot in Caroga from Aaron Simmons for $750. This can be identified with property now owned by the Corr family along what is now Kasson Drive. Cowles was active in the East Canada Lake Protective Association. Suggestive of his interest in the beauty of the Canada Lake landscape and the type of views found in the postcards, he gave a talk entitled “Canada Lake and American Scenery” at the annual banquet of the ECLPA in February of 1896.
In 1905 there appeared two series of eight views of Canada Lake scenes [the attached table charts the history of the Rotograph and Cowles & Casler cards]. All the cards of both series state that Rotograph is the copyright holder below the image and on the back Rotograph is identified as the publisher with the Rotograph seal appearing in the bottom left corner. The first series is identifiable as Style A , black and white images. The cards bear the production numbers: 4321-4328.
That same year Style H, handcolored cards of the same views were issued. For a number of these cards a different production number was used from the corresponding Style A card, but the production number continues consecutively from the Style A series: 4329-4334. The postmarks of these cards confirm they were produced in 1905.
At least four of these cards were reissued as Style D cards, with the Delft grayish blue coloration. The production numbers for these cards are consistent with the two other series. Rotograph is identifed as the publisher along with its seal on the back. The copyright notice on the back of the cards dates this series to 1906.
The first indication of Cowles & Casler publishing cards printed by Rotogaph is in a series of probably six Style H, Caroga Lake cards, that were likely published in 1906 based on postmark evidence. These cards bear consecutive production numbers from 11575-11580 (we are missing 11578 in this 1906 series). These have all the characteristics of Rotograph products, but they identify Cowles & Casler as the publisher on the back of the cards. Unlike the Canada Lake cards, they do not identify Rotograph as the copyright holder. So it seems likely that Cowles & Casler submitted photographs for Rotograph to print.
1907 was an important year in the post card industry. In March of that year postal regulations allowed makers to divide the backs with the message on the left and the address on the right. All of the Canada Lake and Caroga Lake cards were reissued in 1907 with Cowles & Casler identified as the publisher. For the Canada Lake cards the original Rotograph production numbers were replaced by a new series probably linked with Cowles & Casler. The original eight Canada Lake cards include on their fronts the following notice: “Photo Only,Copyright by Rotograph Co.” The eight Canada Lake cards were supplemented with five additional cards showing a steamer ride down the lake and six additional Caroga Lake cards. While the production numbers in the earlier cards treated Canada Lake and Caroga Lake separately, the production numbers (56383-56402) include cards for both lakes as a complete series.
Probably in 1908 based on postmark evidence, Cowles & Casler published a new version of cards. These can be identified as Rotograph’s Style E cards. The major difference was that these were halftone prints (see Getty study) as opposed to collotypes. A comparison of details of a Style H and a Style E cards shows the major difference with the gridwork dot pattern characteristic of halftone printing evident in the Style E cards.
| Handcolored collotype (Style H): "Green Lake Bridge and Mettowee Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," Rotograph, 1905. | Halftone (Style E): "Green Lake Bridge and Mettowee Bay, Canada Lake N.Y.," Cowles & Casler publisher, probably 1908. |
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The high quality of the Rotograph cards was dependent on the expertise of German printers so the introduction of a tariff on the import of cards printed in Germany in 1909 was devastating to the Rotograph Company. The following announcement appeared in Geyer’s Stationer in 1911:
The Rotograph Co., well and favorably known to every dealer as makers of “Post Cards of Quality” have recently been absorbed by the Illustrated Postal Card & Novelty Co., 520-524 West Forty-eighth street, New York, whose plant is now said to be the largest one in the United States devoted exclusively to the manufacture of postcards. They employ 500 people. The factory is equipped with special postcard machinery of every description, and operated by German experts in the line. Their product is therefore of the highest order, and can be delivered in quick time, and at a low price. Among the assets obtained from the Rotograph Co. is the largest collection of real photographs in the world, comprising thousands of art subjects, old masters, life models and over two million photographic views from every nook and corner of the United States. The Illustrated Postal Card & Novelty Co. have just finished classifying this immense collection, and are putting the photo views at the free disposal of their customers who place view card orders. This latter inducement, no doubt, ought to bring them large view orders.
The expected success of the Illustrated Postal Card & Novelty Co. did not come to fruition. The only Canada and Caroga Lake Rotograph cards that were reissued is the series of five cards showing a steamer ride on Canada Lake and some select Caroga Lake cards. For all of these cards, it appears that Cowles & Casler had proprietary rights. None of the original eight Rotographs of Canada Lake were reissued. The publisher of these cards is unknown, and the halftone printing is clearly not up to the standards established by the Rotograph cards. The Rotograph is on top and the later card is on the bottom. The postmark evidence suggests a date of 1911 for this later version.
While the 1909 tariffs led to the demise of many of the postcard companies that depended on German printers, American printers began to come to the fore., most notably the Curt Teich company from Chicago. The majority of the cards dedicated to scenes from Canada and Caroga Lakes from 1910 to the 1940s were Teich products.
See table charting the Rotograph and Cowles & Casler cards.
Internet Sources:
For a collection of Rotograph Cards see the Rotograph Project Album.
For the collotype process see: Dusan C. Stulik and Art Kaplan, Collotype, the Getty Conservation Institute.
For the halftone process see: Dusan C. Stulik and Art Kaplan, Halftone, Getty Conservation Institute.
Catalog of Rotograph and Cowles & Casler Postcards
| Black and White-undivided back- Style A | ||
| 4321 "Green Lake Bridge and Mettowee Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," copyright 1905 by Rotograph Co. (4321), undivided back. Postmark: 1906 (Gloversville). | | |
| 4322 "4322 Lake Road, Canada Lake, N.Y.," 1905 Rotograph, undivided back. Postmark: 1905 (Albany) |  |  |
| A4323 "Road to Canada Lake, N.Y. and Canada Lake Stage, 1905 Rotograph card (A4323) |  |  |
| A4324 "Green Lake Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," copyright 1905 by the Rotograph Co. A4324. Undivided back. |  |  |
| A4325 "Canada Lake Hotel, Canada Lake, N.Y.," 1905 Rotograph card (A4325) |  |  |
| 4326 "Green Lake near Canada Lake, N.Y. 4326," copyright 1905 by Rotograph, undivided back. Postmark: 1905 (Auskerada). |  |  |
| 4327 "Canada Lake, N.Y. and Nick Stoner Island 4327," 1905 Rotograph. |  |  |
| 4328 "Auskerada Hotel, Canada Lake N.Y.," 1905 Rotograph card (4328) |  |  |
| Black and white- undivided back, Style D | ||
| D 4321 "Green Lake Bridge, Canada Lake, N.Y." D-4321. Rotograph, copyright 1906?; same image as the 1905 Rotograph. Undivided back. The caption is the same type as "Lake Road, Canada Lake, N.Y". | | |
| D-4322 "Lake Road, Canada Lake, N.Y," Rotograph, undivided back,. Based on 1905 Rotograph. (AF) |  |  |
| D4324 "Green Lake Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," Rotograph (D4324) |  |  |
| D4327 "Canada Lake, NY and Nick Stoner Island, black and white version of the 1905 Rotograph (D4327) |  |  |
| Handcolored- undivided back- Style H | ||
| 11575 "Road between East Garoga Lake and Gloversville, N.Y," undivided back, Cowles and Casler handcolored. probably based on Rotograph. Postmarked: 1906 (Gloversville) (DG) |  |  |
| 11576 "Garoga Lake, near Gloversville, N.Y.," based on Rotograph, published by Cowles & Casler (11576), postmarked 1906 (Pine Lake). The shore road is a dirt road with the tracks of horses and carriages visible. Telephone polls line the road. Judging from the 1905 property map, the dominant building in the distance is probably the Central Hotel. It is notable how much open land is visible on the hillside above Caroga. This reminds us of the importance of the small family farm in the economy of Caroga during this period. (DG) | | |
| 11577 "Fort's Hotel, Garoga Lake, near Gloversville, N.Y.," undivided back, Cowles & Casler (11577), postmarked: 1906 (Pine Lake). |  |  |
| 11579 "View (East) of Garoga [sic] Lake, near Gloversville, N.Y.," Cowles & Casler publisher (11579), undivided back. Postmark: 1906? (Gloversville). Format and font based on Rotograph. |  |  |
| 11580 "View Showing Fort's Hotel and Garoga Lake near Gloversville," undivided back, Cowles & Casler (11580). (DG) |  |  |
| H 4327 "Canada Lake, N. Y. and Nick Stoner Island," handcolored 1905 Rotograph card (H4327). Unidivided back that correspondent divided. Postmark: 1910 (Gloversville). |  |  |
| 4329 "Green Lake Bridge and Mettowee Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," handcolored, 1905 Rotograph card. Postmarked: 1905 (Auskerada) (4329). (AF) | | |
| 4330 "4330 Lake Road, Canada Lake, N.Y.," 1905, handcolored Rotograph. Postmarked: 1905 (Grant) (AF) | |  |
| 4331 "Road to Canada Lake, N.Y. and Canada Lake Stage 4331," copyright 1905 Rotograph, handcolored. Postmarked: 1905 (Gloversville). |  |  |
| 4332 "Green Lake Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," Handcolored 1905, Rotograph card (4332) Postmarked: 1905 (Gloversville). (AF) |  |  |
| 4333 "Canada Lake Hotel, Canada Lake, N.Y. 4333" handcolored, 1905 Rotograph. (AF) |  |  |
| 4334 "Green Lake near Canada Lake, N.Y.," 4334, copyright 1905 by the Rotograph Co. |  |  |
| Handcolored- divided back Cowles & Casler | ||
| 11575 "Road between Garoga Lake and Gloversville, N.Y" divided back, Cowles and Casler. Postmarked: 1907 (Gloversville). Note identifies spot as Peck's Park. (DG) |  |  |
| 11576 "Garoga Lake, near Gloversville, N.Y." divided back, Cowles and Casler (11576). Postmark: 1907 (Fort Plain). |  |  |
| 11577 "Forts Hotel, Garoga Lake near Gloversville, N.Y.," divided back, Cowles and Casler (11577). Rotograph font used in the caption (DG) |  |  |
| 11578 "View of Garoga Lake near Gloversville, N.Y." Cowles & Casler card (11578) likely based on Rotograph original. Postmarked 1907 (Rockwood), divided back. |  |  |
| 11579 "View (East) of Garoga [sic] Lake, near Gloversville," Cowles & Casler publisher (11579), divided back. Postmark: 1908 (Green? Lake). |  |  |
| 56383 "Canada Lake & Nick Stoner Island, Canada Lake, N.Y.," Cowles & Casler publisher (56383). Judging from the font of the caption probably based on a Rotograph original. Postmarked: 1907 (Canada Lake). |  |  |
| 56384 "View from Nick Stoner Island, Canada Lake, N.Y.," Cowles and Casler (56384). Divided back. Postmark: 1907 (Pine Lake) |  |  |
| 56385 "Canada Lake, N.Y.," Cowles and Casler (56385). Note on card dates card to 1908. J.H. Decker's Silver Springs Cottage and boat house visible in the background (McMartin, p. 62). |  |  |
| 56386 "Canada Lake, N.Y," Cowles & Casler publisher (56386); based on handcolored Rotograph. Postmarked 1907 (Gloversville), with a divided back. (AF) |  |  |
| 56387 "Steam Launch on Canada Lake, N.Y.," based on handcolored Rotograph, Cowles & Casler publisher (56387), divided back, Postmarked: 1907 (Green Lake). (AF) |  |  |
| 56388 "Canada Lake Hotel, Canada Lake, N.Y.," photo only. Copyright 1905 by the Rotograph Co., Cowles and Casler publisher, 56388, divided back. |  |  |
| 56390 "Green Lake Bridge and Mettowee Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," Photo only, copyright 1905 by the Rotograph Co.. Cowles and Casler (56390). Postmark: 1907 (Canada Lake). | | |
| 56391 "Lake Road, Canada Lake, N.Y.," 56391, Cowles and Casler. Postmark: 1907 |  |  |
| 56392 "Canada Lake, N.Y. and Nick Stoner Island," photo only copyright 1905 by the Rotograph Co.; Cowles & Casler publisher (56392). Postmark: 1907 (Canada Lake). |  |  |
| 56393 "Green Lake Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y. " Photo only, copyright 1905 by the Rotograph Co, published by Cowles & Casler, Gloversville, printed in Germany, 56393, divided back. |  |  |
| 56394 "Green Lake near Canada Lake, N.Y.," Photo only copyright by the Rotograph Co. Cowles and Casler (56394). Postmark: 1907 (Green Lake). |  |  |
| 56395? "Road to Canada Lake, N.Y. and Canada Lake Stage," handcolored Rotograph with divided back. Postmarked: 1907 (Canada Lake). Card addressed to Marge Kasson. In the Adirondack Experience Collection. |  | |
| 56396 "East Caroga Lake, N.Y.," Cowles and Casler (56396) publisher likely based on Rotograph as suggested by the font. |  |  |
| 56397 "East Caroga Lake," Cowles & Casler (56397), divided back. Postmark: 1907 (Green Lake). The font used in the caption suggests card is based on a Rotograph. |  |  |
| 56398 "Caroga Lake," card likely based on a Rotograph but published by Cowles & Casler. Divided back. Postmarked: 1907 (Green Lake) |  |  |
| 56399 "Caroga Lake, N.Y.," Cowles and Casler (56399). Divided back. Postmark: 1907 (Gloversville) |  |  |
| 56401 "Caroga Lake, N.Y.," Cowles & Casler card (56401) based on a Rotograph. Divided back. |  |  |
| 56402 "Caroga Lake, N.Y.," Cowles and Casler(56402). Divided back. Postmark: 1907 (Gloversville). |  |  |
| G1285a "Steamer Sagamore, Lake George, N.Y," Rotograph Co. |  |  |
| Handcolored, Style E- divided back | ||
| 11577 "Hotel, Caroga Lake, Near Gloversville, N.Y.," Cowles & Casler (11577), divided back, postmarked 1910 (Pine Lake). McMartin p. 135 illustrates a Rotograph version of the card. Frank Sherman ran a store and Post Office at his house from 1894 to 1900. It then became a boarding house and then a hotel. After Frank Sherman moved first to Canada Lake and then to Pine Lake, George Fort ran the hotel (McMartin, p. 134). Fort's Hotel appears prominently on the 1905 property map. |  |  |
| 11580 "View Showing Fort's Hotel & Caroga Lake near Gloversville, N.Y.," published by Cowles & Casler (11580), based on Rotograph original. divided back. Postmarked: 1910 (Gloversville). |  |  |
| 56383 "Canada Lake and Nick Stoner Island, Canada Lake, N.Y." published by Cowles & Casler (56383). Postmark: 1908 (Pine Lake). |  |  |
| 56387 "Steam Launch on Canada Lake, N.Y.," divided back, Cowles & Casler, 56387 |  |  |
| 56388 "Canada Lake Hotel, Canada Lake, N.Y." Cowles & Casler (56388) , Gloversville. Postmarked 1909 (Gloversville). A different card is postmarked 1908 (Pine Lake) |  |  |
| 56389 "Auskerada Hotel, Canada Lake, N.Y." Postmarked: 1908 (Pine Lake). Published by Cowles & Casler (56389), Gloversville, printed in Germany. This is likely based on the same image as the 1905 Rotograph of the Auskerada. It is also likely in the same series as the Cowles & Casler cards of Green Lake Bridge and the erroneously entitled card "Green Lake Bay". |  |  |
| 56390 "Green Lake Bridge and Mettowee Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," Published by Cowles & Casler, Gloversville, printed in Germany. Divided back. Postmark: 1908 (Green Lake) (AF) | |  |
| 56391 "Lake Road, Canada Lake, N.Y.", published by Cowles & Casler. Divided back. Postmarked: 1908 (Green Lake) (AF) |  |  |
| 56392 "Canada Lake, N.Y. and Nick Stoner Island, 56392, published by Cowles and Casler. Postmark: 1909 (Gloversville). |  |  |
| 56393 "Green Lake Bay, Canada Lake, N.Y.," 56393, Cowles and Casler, postmark: 1909 (Pine Lake). |  |  |
| 56394 "Green Lake near Canada Lake, N.Y., " Cowles and Casler (56394). Postmark: 1908 (Gloversville). |  |  |
| 56395 "Road to Canada Lake, N.Y. and Canada Lake Stage," 56395, published by Cowles & Casler, divided back. |  |  |
| 56397 "East Caroga Lake, N.Y." Cowles & Casler Card (56397), postmarked 1909 (Gloversville). |  |  |
| 56399 "Caroga Lake, N.Y." Cowles and Casler (56399), divided back. |  |  |
| 56400 "East Caroga Lake, N.Y.," Cowles and Casler (56400). The same font used by Cowles and Casler in reissue of Canada Lake Rotograph. |  |  |
| 56401 "Caroga Lake, N.Y.," Cowles & Casler card (56401). Postmarked 1909 (Pine Lake). |  |  |
| 61825 "View from Knob Point, Lake George, N.Y.," published by the Rotograph Co. (61825). Compare to Cowles and Casler cards. The design of the back, the font of the caption, and even the golden coloration of the image is identifiable with a group of the Cowles and Casler cards associated with the Lake. For example, see the second version of 56390 above. |  |  |