Artist
H.H. Bennett
Farnham, Quebec, Canada 1843 — 1908 Madison
Henry Hamilton (H.H.) Bennett truly gained prominence more than a half-century after his death when his photography was exhibited at New York’s Museum of Modern Art. During his life, however, following his service in the Civil War, he set up a thriving business in Wisconsin taking stunning images of the scenic Dells and then promoting the wilderness area as a tourist destination. He furthered this enterprise by selling his work in bulk to the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railway, which likewise profited from Bennett’s success and the resultant visitor traffic. The H.H. Bennett Studio & Museum remains a historical landmark.
Collection Highlights
Lone Rock with Canoe
Henry Hamilton Bennett took up photography after fighting in the Civil War. He was the first artist to extensively photograph the scenic rock formations of the Dells, which was no small feat since the primitive photographic equipment of the late 1860s required him to cart a portable darkroom, his camera, and chemicals into the field. Bennett’s business acumen was as much a part of his success as his artistic eye.