A Life in Photography
Frank Albert Rinehart was an American photographer born in Maple Park, United States. After moving to Colorado in the 1870s, he worked at the Charles Bohm photography studio in Denver. In 1881, he entered into a partnership with William Henry Jackson. Following his marriage to Anna Ransom Johnson in 1885, Rinehart moved to Nebraska, where he operated a studio in the Brandeis Building in downtown Omaha until his death.
Rinehart's work is noted for its documentation of Native American personalities and scenes. In 1898, he was commissioned to photograph the Indian Congress held during the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition in Omaha. Working alongside his assistant Adolph Muhr, he utilized an 8 x 10 glass-negative camera with a German lens to produce platinum prints. Following the Exposition, the pair spent two years traveling to Indian reservations to portray leaders and aspects of indigenous everyday life and culture.
Legacy and Collections
The photographic works of Rinehart capture a significant era of Native American history. His collection includes images from the 1898 Exposition, the 1899 Greater America Exposition, studio portraits from 1900, and photographs taken at the Crow Agency in Montana in 1900. These works are preserved at several institutions, including:
