Victorian Photography Studio in Gettysburg Ravaged by Fire
A 19th-century photography studio based in Gettysburg, PA, that produces Civil War-era wet plate collodion pictures for clients has been devastated by a fire.
Owner Dave was sleeping in the downstairs office at the Victorian Photography Studio when he was awoken by smoke alarms going off and quickly realized the studio upstairs was on fire.
A passerby on the street had noticed flames and rang the authorities. Fortunately Dave was able to get out okay just as the fire department was arriving.
In an update to the business’s Instagram page, Dave says that insurers are now investigating the cause of the fire and he is still none the wiser as to how it started. But the damage is severe and the studio’s future is now uncertain.
“It’s tough to say what is next for the studio,” says Dave “I don’t know if there’s enough salvageable to keep it going. I don’t know what’s next.”
A GoFundMe page has been set up for the Victorian Photography Studio, where people who want to help financially are able to make a donation.
Dave also revealed that he had been looking to sell the business and buyers had been identified. “The fire was the worst timing,” he says.
Dave still has a traveling photo business, Union Tintype, which was unaffected by the Gettysburg fire.
“Equipment, props, many years of period pieces of clothing, all some degree of destroyed or smoke-damaged,” reads the GoFundMe page.
“Victorian Photography Studio, because of Dave’s passion for history and attention to detail, has become a staple of the Gettysburg community and a destination for those who want to travel back in time and walk away with a piece of history. It is a devastating loss.”
The Victorian Photography Studio offered wet plate collodion pictures, using “period correct chemistry recipes and cameras from the Victorian era.” Customers would receive a metal or glass plate photo, while posed in period fashion from the 1860s. Exposure times average 10 seconds.
Being located in historic Gettysburg — scene of the most famous Civil War battle between the Union and Confederate armies — the studio would have attracted history hunters and enthusiasts.
