Hillers, John K., 1843-1925

Important early photographer for the Powell Survey, the Bureau of Ethnology, and the Geological Survey.

From the description of Papers, 1870-1889. (Duke University Library). WorldCat record id: 43738678

The Cline Endowment Collection consists of photographs purchased through an endowment established by Platt and Barbara Cline, for whom the Cline Library is named. The images were selected on the basis of their relevance to the Department's collecting focus: the Colorado Plateau.

From the guide to the Cline Cline Endowment Collection, 1872-1940, (Cline Library. Special Collections and Archives Department)

Jack Hillers (1843-1925) was a boatman, explorer, and photographer with the Powell Expedition in the 1870s down the Colorado River. He was also the chief photographer of the United States Geological Survey.

From the description of John K. Hillers glass transparencies, circa 1870s-1910s. (Brigham Young University). WorldCat record id: 159957380

From the description of John K. Hillers photographs of Utah landscapes, circa 1870-1890s. (Brigham Young University). WorldCat record id: 159957379

Hillers was photographer for the Bureau of American Ethnology and Geological Survey expeditions to the Southwest under John Wesley Powell.

From the description of Cave dwellings and pueblos of the American Southwest [graphic] / photographed by John K. Hillers. 187-? (University of California, Berkeley). WorldCat record id: 227544570

John K. Hillers was a photographer for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in the 19th century.

From the description of Hillers, John K., 1843-1925 (U.S. National Archives and Records Administration). naId: 10570707

Western expedition photographer.

Born in Germany in 1843, John K. Hillers in 1872 became Maj. John Wesley Powell's chief photographer on his western surveys. Hillers continued to work for Powell until 1900 as photographer for the Bureau of Ethnology (1879-1881) and chief photographer of the U.S. Geological Survey (1881-1900). Beginning in 1879 under the auspices of the Bureau of Ethnology, Hillers traveled to the Southwest with Frank Hamilton Cushing and James Stevens, and compiled an extensive photographic record of the pueblos and archeological ruins of Arizona and New Mexico.

From the description of John K. Hillers photographs of the Zuni, Hopi and Rio Grande River pueblos in New Mexico and Arizona [graphic], [1879-1882] (Newberry Library). WorldCat record id: 44072075

Biographical Sketch

Hillers, initially under John Wesley Powell, was photographer on several survey expeditions of the American West from 1872 into the 1880s. He was chief photographer of the United States Geological Survey until 1900.

From the guide to the Photographs Made by John K. Hillers of Zuni, Hopi and Navaho Country [graphic], 1879, (The Bancroft Library)

John Karl Hillers was born in 1843. He came to the United States from Germany in 1852. He fought as a soldier in the American Civil War. Starting in 1871, he photographed with John Welsey Powell on his second expedition down the Colorado River. He went on to photograph for the Bureau of Ethnology, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the Bureau of American Ethnology until his formal retirement in 1900. He continued shooting for the USGS until 1919. He died in 1925.

The original negatives of images taken by Hillers in an official government capacity can be found at the National Archives. Countless duplicates exist in other locales across the country.

From the guide to the Hillers Collection, 1871-1872, (Cline Library. Special Collections and Archives Department)

John K. Hillers (1843-1925) was a German American photographer in the West.

John Karl Hillers was born in Hanover, Germany, in 1843. He came to the United States in 1852. He worked as a teamster in Salt Lake City where he met John Wesley Powell. Originally hired as a boatman for the second Powell expedition down the Colorado River in 1871, he started to assist the expedition's photographers (E.O. Beamanand then James Fennemore) after a while. Hillers was Powell's chief expedition photographer on the trip down the Grand Canyon the next year. He officially retired in 1900, but continued to take photographs for the United States Geological Survey until 1919. He died in 1925.

From the guide to the John K. Hillers stereograph, circa 1874, (L. Tom Perry Special Collections)