Ericson, A. W.
Scene at Hoopa Valley, Humboldt Co. California. [Captain John, Hupa leader of Madilding Rancheria]
Arcata, California: A. W. Ericson, (1890s, printed circa 1920s?).
A 9 by 7 inch photograph on an 11 by 14 inch mount titled at the bottom in a san-serif typeface (Palmquist logo style I). Ericson was the leading (and best) commercial photographer in Humboldt County from about 1880 to the 1930s. He traveled to the Hoopa reservation to take photographs on many occasions. In this scene, "Captain John," one of the best-known Hupa leaders, stands before a traditional cedar plank and stone dwelling in the Med'dilding (or Madilding) village, on the Trinity River. He is wearing the regalia for the brush dance—a fur loincloth, several strands of shell necklaces, and a hat with dangling feathers. He holds a short, obsidian-tipped spear and a bundle of furs.
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This is one of the iconic and widely reprinted images of Humboldt County. A mountain overlooking the present-day town of Hoopa is named for Captain John. Humboldt State University holds all of the surviving negatives for Ericson's photographs. This image corresponds to glass-plate negative 1999.02.0351.
Out of his shop in Arcata, California, Ericson sold prints from his negatives for decades with varying styles of captions on the mounts. As yet no definitive dating of the captions has been undertaken.
However, this probably dates from the 1920s, when the woman from whose estate we acquired this image lived in Humboldt County.
The image itself is fine. The mount has browned and there are some spots on the edges, along with a few pin holes. Generally very good. Quite scarce.
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