Conrad Heyer

Conrad Heyer
A black-and-white photo of Heyer's face
Conrad Heyer, photographed in 1852, aged 103
Born c. 1749
Waldoboro, Maine, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British America
Died 1856 (aged 106–107)
Waldoboro, Maine, United States
Known for

Conrad Heyer (1749–1856) was an American farmer and veteran of the Revolutionary War who is notable for possibly being the earliest-born American to have been photographed.[1]

Biography

Heyer was born in the village of Waldoboro, Maine, then known as "Broad Bay" and part of the Province of Massachusetts Bay. The settlement had been sacked and depopulated by Wabanaki attacks and resettled with German immigrants recruited from the Rhineland. Among these settlers were the parents of Conrad Heyer, who also may have been the first white child born in the settlement.[2]

During the American Revolution, Heyer fought for the Continental Army under the command of George Washington and participated in Washington's famous crossing of the Delaware before the Battle of Trenton in December 1776.[2] He was discharged in December of 1777.[3] After the war, he returned to Waldoboro, where he made a living as a farmer until his death in 1856. He was buried with full military honors.[3]

Biography

In 1852, at the age of 103, Heyer posed for a daguerreotype portrait. He thereby became the earliest-born person of whom a photograph is known to exist.[4] The claim is not without dispute, as the following men were also photographed: a shoemaker named John Adams, who claimed to be born in 1745; a Revolutionary War veteran named Baltus Stone, with a claim of 1744; and a slave named Caesar, with a claim of 1738.[5]

There is also dispute from Don Haigst in an article from the Journal of the American Revolution of the assertion that Heyer crossed the Delaware with Washington.[6]

References

  1. ↑ Schultz, Colin (2013-11-11). "Conrad Heyer, a Revolutionary War Veteran, Was the Earliest-Born American To Ever Be Photographed". Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  2. 1 2 New Market Press (25 July 2013). "New England man had oldest birth date ever to be photographed". Archived from the original on 17 November 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  3. 1 2 Maine Historical Society. "Conrad Heyer, Waldoboro, ca. 1852". Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  4. ↑ Frank, Priscilla (2014-05-27). "This Is Conrad Hayer, A Man Who Made Photographic History At 103 Years Old". Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  5. ↑ Beck, Benjamin. "First photo". Retrieved 12 April 2018.
  6. ↑ https://allthingsliberty.com/2016/02/conrad-heyer-did-not-cross-the-delaware/
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