Iosco County Historical Museum
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​Who Ard G. Emery was
  • Ard G. Emery was a 19th-century photographer. Everand+2WikiTree+2
  • He was born June 19, 1833 in Orono, Penobscot County, Maine. Everand+1
  • He died April 20, 1923. Everand+1
📸 His Work in Iosco County
  • In 1892, he established a photography studio and gallery in what was then a thriving community in East Tawas, Michigan (in Iosco County), on the Sunrise Side of Lake Huron. Everand+2Arcadia Publishing+2
  • For about 12 years (from 1892 until 1904), Emery operated that studio, documenting people and life in the county. Everand+1
  • He produced a large body of work: collodion glass negatives that captured portraits, everyday life, and the region’s working class and families. Everand+1
🏛 Legacy & Preservation
  • After Emery closed his East Tawas studio in 1904, many of his glass negatives survived. Everand+1
  • These negatives eventually were entrusted to the Iosco County Historical Society / museum (via various hands over time). Everand+1
  • In 2015, a book titled Iosco County: The Photography of Ard G. Emery 1892‑1904 was published (by the Huron Shores Genealogical Society) — collecting many of his photographs and stories from that era. Arcadia Publishing+1
🌄 Why He Matters to Iosco County
  • His photographs offer a visual record of Iosco County’s people and community more than a century ago — everyday life, families, workers, children, townspeople. Everand+1
  • Because much of his work has survived (archived glass negatives, digitized images), he provides a unique window into the cultural and social history of the region. Everand+1
  • For historians, genealogists, and local residents — his work helps preserve the identity and memory of Iosco County’s past.
Are you looking for someone in our vast negative collection?  Family, friends or a general inquiry?  We have over 4,000 of AG Emery's photographs.  Fill out the inquiry below.  If we have someone that you are looking for we would ask a small donation of $10.00 to be made to the Iosco County Society. 

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Updated 05/08/2015