Eight (8) rare glass plate photographs depicting lightning bolts in and around East Providence, Rhode Island, and Seekonk, Massachusetts, two with annotations and dates. 3 1/4" x 4" (approximately each).

While the photographer William N. Jennings' 1882 photograph of lightning is often said to be the first, the 19th Century Bridgham collection of lightning photographs is significant in its own right (the types of lightning and the details of the landscape such as the windmill he captured).  While his process is unknown, it would appear that Bridgham innovated and pushed the bounds of what cameras could do at the time.

Bridgham's pursuit of lightning was documented, not just in photography circles, but in science publications, such as Popular Astronomy, Vol. 2, Issue 9, 1895.  Other historical references to his photography in general appear in the New York Times April 21, 1890 and New York Herald January 18, 1891. Nevertheless, we could not locate another example of his lightning photographs, and possibly these are the only examples in existence.

Bridgham, who was the son of the first mayor of Providence, served in the New York Militia during the Civil War and spent his time between his New York City home and summers on his estate in East Providence, in and around where these photographs were taken (Seekonk and East Providence, Rhode Island).

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