1865, Enrique emigrated to the United States (same Census).
Around 1875: Enrique married Mary (again, 1900 Census, information taken on Twelth [sic] June 1900, showing they had been married 25 years) and soon started his family.
Mid-1894: He received payments for "Photographs in the matter of the Speedway and Fort Washington Park," according to the City of New York Law Department Report of 1895. The city was planning the development of the Harlem River Speedway at the time. This is the first mention I can find of Enrique's photographic work.
1898: Whether because copyright laws were changing or because he recognized the growing opportunity of stock photography, Enrique started registering some of his photos. This is the oldest I can find:
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| From the Catalogue of Copyright Entries for 1898. Remember the Maine! |
Many
photos of warships in The Story of the Spanish-American War and the Revolt in the
Philippines (by W. Nephew King, (c)1898) were attributed to E. Muller.
They may have all been taken in 1898, after the conflict was over. Another book using Muller photos of this time was The History of Our Navy From Its Origin to the End of the War with Spain 1775-1898. Presumably the war with Spain created an interest in the Navy and its warships.
1899: Muller took photos of the racing yacht Columbia, the current entry in the America's Cup race. The race took place in the New York harbor, not far from Muller's Brooklyn home. Some of these were published in Scientific American (October 14, 1899). Muller provided photo prints of the racing yachts to Kaiser Wilhelm, who thanked him with a pair of gold cuff buttons (mentioned in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (February 6, 1902). Enrique is quoted mentioning his father, who had been employed 25 years in the post office in Kiel, Germany.)
1900: Muller had his wife and six children, aged from 17 to 25, listed in the Census as living with him. Son Theodore was 24, and second son Robert was 18. Both young men showed their occupation as "Photographer."
1901: Muller publishes an article entitled, Placing a Battleship in Commission in Camera Craft (May issue). The byline identifies him as "Official Photographer, U. S. Navy." I believe this was written by Enrique, as the wording is a bit stiff, perhaps because English was a second language. Check out this closing paragraph:
"Now the tugs are leaving the ship, and the big vessel moves under her own steam. As she gains headway a sharp report thunders, closely followed by another, until the full salute of thirteen guns is fired, in honor of the admiral's flag in the navy yard. On the Cob Dock the shore battery answers the salute. One navy tugboat follows the battleship down the bay to bring back the pilot, and as the open sea is reached the government photographer is busy making the final official photographs for the Navy Department. The pilot signals for the tugboat to come alongside, he jumps on board, the tug gives three short whistles for bon voyage, the battleship gives three long blasts in response, and she is off."
Around this time, sons Theodore and Robert were working with or for their father. "Enrique Muller" was a family business. So much so that there is a lot of confusion about which Muller took which photos.
Robert apparently immersed himself completely in naval imagery, while Theodore had a small handful of photos printed under his own name in an article about the theater. (There was another Theodore Muller, who took photos of warships in San Francisco. No known relation.)
Over a hundred years later, without the glass plates and film negatives, we probably can't figure it all out. It doesn't help that many of the published photos attributed to Muller don't show in the Catalog of Copyright Entries, and that those entries present are a couple words or a short phrase, often only identifying a ship by name.
1903: The New American Navy Vol. 1, by John Davis Long is published. Over two dozen photos of ships and sailors are credited to E. Muller. These photos all appear to be posed, with the ships at anchor, except for one nice high angle picture of the Cruiser Brooklyn, taken as it approached the Brooklyn Bridge.
1899: Muller took photos of the racing yacht Columbia, the current entry in the America's Cup race. The race took place in the New York harbor, not far from Muller's Brooklyn home. Some of these were published in Scientific American (October 14, 1899). Muller provided photo prints of the racing yachts to Kaiser Wilhelm, who thanked him with a pair of gold cuff buttons (mentioned in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (February 6, 1902). Enrique is quoted mentioning his father, who had been employed 25 years in the post office in Kiel, Germany.)
1900: Muller had his wife and six children, aged from 17 to 25, listed in the Census as living with him. Son Theodore was 24, and second son Robert was 18. Both young men showed their occupation as "Photographer."
1901: Muller publishes an article entitled, Placing a Battleship in Commission in Camera Craft (May issue). The byline identifies him as "Official Photographer, U. S. Navy." I believe this was written by Enrique, as the wording is a bit stiff, perhaps because English was a second language. Check out this closing paragraph:
"Now the tugs are leaving the ship, and the big vessel moves under her own steam. As she gains headway a sharp report thunders, closely followed by another, until the full salute of thirteen guns is fired, in honor of the admiral's flag in the navy yard. On the Cob Dock the shore battery answers the salute. One navy tugboat follows the battleship down the bay to bring back the pilot, and as the open sea is reached the government photographer is busy making the final official photographs for the Navy Department. The pilot signals for the tugboat to come alongside, he jumps on board, the tug gives three short whistles for bon voyage, the battleship gives three long blasts in response, and she is off."
Around this time, sons Theodore and Robert were working with or for their father. "Enrique Muller" was a family business. So much so that there is a lot of confusion about which Muller took which photos.
Robert apparently immersed himself completely in naval imagery, while Theodore had a small handful of photos printed under his own name in an article about the theater. (There was another Theodore Muller, who took photos of warships in San Francisco. No known relation.)
Over a hundred years later, without the glass plates and film negatives, we probably can't figure it all out. It doesn't help that many of the published photos attributed to Muller don't show in the Catalog of Copyright Entries, and that those entries present are a couple words or a short phrase, often only identifying a ship by name.
1903: The New American Navy Vol. 1, by John Davis Long is published. Over two dozen photos of ships and sailors are credited to E. Muller. These photos all appear to be posed, with the ships at anchor, except for one nice high angle picture of the Cruiser Brooklyn, taken as it approached the Brooklyn Bridge.
 |
| Publishers Weekly, May 7, 1904 |
Waldron
Fawcett was a publisher. He probably wanted to beef up his naval
product line by including Muller photos. It's also possible that Fawcett
was the reason so many different types of Muller postcards exist. He
may have been aggressive about marketing. It's likely most of these
images were taken by father Enrique, based on his "many years" as photographer for the Navy. (There's some argument about whether "Official Photographer" was a real title at the time. The Navy hired (or otherwise made use of) several professional photographers in the New York area at the same time.)
Muller's work appeared on color postcards published by
- The American News Company, Mason Bros. & Co.
- The Jamestown Amusement & Vending Co. (as souvenirs of the Jamestown Exposition in 1907)
- The Valentine-Souvenir Co.
- Valentine & Sons' Publishing Co.
Black and white real photo postcards were published by U.S. Souvenir Post Card Co., and there were several attempts at self-publishing.
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| Muller advertised himself as an artist as well as a photographer. Source: Blue Book of American Shipping, 1906. |
- The American News Company, Mason Bros. & Co.
- The Jamestown Amusement & Vending Co. (as souvenirs of the Jamestown Exposition in 1907)
- The Valentine-Souvenir Co.
- Valentine & Sons' Publishing Co.
Black and white real photo postcards were published by U.S. Souvenir Post Card Co., and there were several attempts at self-publishing.
Rotograph, a postcard publisher known for buying photo lots (and smaller publishing firms), put out a series of Muller's ship photos. The cards show photo copyright dates from 1898 to 1904, and postmarks tend to be from 1905 to 1907. Some of these cards had the copyright information awkwardly blacked out (and often still readable).
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| A Rotograph card of the U.S.S. Pennsylvania |
Muller's work was published in magazines including Leslie's Weekly, Marine
Engineering, and Army & Navy Illustrated. For some of these
publications, he was listed as a "staff" or "special" photographer,
probably supplementing the income from his own store.
The Catalogue of Copyright and these magazines are useful to identify and date Muller's postcards -- when they were issued in sets or packs, most postcards went straight into collections, rather than getting mailed and postmarked.
The Catalogue of Copyright and these magazines are useful to identify and date Muller's postcards -- when they were issued in sets or packs, most postcards went straight into collections, rather than getting mailed and postmarked.
1907: A busy year for "Enrique Muller," and I feel confident that son
Robert was the reason. Robert E. Muller was 26 years old, with nearly a
decade of experience as a photographer. One of the Muller family's most
famous photos, of the U.S.S. Connecticut bearing down, was taken that
year. The negative says the copyright belongs to Enrique Muller, but "E.
Muller, Jr." claimed the photo in later years. The younger Muller was a
more aggressive photographer, willing to sit in tiny boats as
battleships approached, and climb masts to get overhead views,
and this photo fit his style.
 |
| The U.S.S. Connecticut, with her nose badge and Great White Fleet paint scheme. |
1908: Enrique Muller either sold negatives or licensed rights to Edward
Mitchell, a West Coast postcard publisher. The Mitchells I've identified
so far were "life in the navy"-type shipboard photos, and may have been
exclusive to him. They show 1907 copyright dates.
Sometime in 1910, a partnership was apparently formed. Published photos and cards show "Clarke & Muller" as the copyright holder. This arrangement lasted only into 1911. I haven't found any information on whether Clarke was a photographer or an investor. One series of photo postcards with this copyright shows the destruction of the San Marcos as gunnery practice. I suspect these were purchased from a ship's photographer or a sailor that was assigned there.
 |
| Clarke & Muller used a different address than was used on other Muller prints or postcards. |
Also in 1910, the New York Times Sunday Magazine for August 14 ran an article entitled Unusual Snapshots taken at Thrilling Moments.
It discusses several such photos and photographers, then mentions Muller:
"Characteristic of the pluck and presence of mind required in such
[photographic] work is the story of Enrique Muller, the young
photographer of Hoboken, who took a picture of the battleship
Connecticut during her trial trip off the coast of Maine on Aug. 7,
1907." (And goes on to tell the tale of how the engine on his small
launch failed as the battleship approached.)
Robert, not only a daredevil but a self-promoting one, had similar tales of near-disaster published in other newspapers and magazines. The stories are sufficiently alike that you wonder if he had really bad luck or just changed some of the details for each interview.
Though primarily based in New York City, Muller (probably both Enrique and Robert) travelled to San Francisco more than once. A note in an SF-based photography magazine is apparently talking about Enrique:
Robert, not only a daredevil but a self-promoting one, had similar tales of near-disaster published in other newspapers and magazines. The stories are sufficiently alike that you wonder if he had really bad luck or just changed some of the details for each interview.
Though primarily based in New York City, Muller (probably both Enrique and Robert) travelled to San Francisco more than once. A note in an SF-based photography magazine is apparently talking about Enrique:
 | |
| From Camera Craft, May 1913 |
The
"great cruise" was the sailing of the Great White Fleet, which visited
San Francisco in 1908. Muller got a lot of photos of ships in their
white paint. I'm not sure about the "three years ago" thing with the
Kaiser, ten or twelve years would be closer. (Unless this is a second
"honor" that I can't find any other reference to.)
Many more photos were taken and published over the next seven years, but these aren't as confusing -- the published works show "E. Muller, Jr." or "Muller." By 1913, Enrique would have been about 67 years old, and probably retired.
The Muller name is on at least three small books: The Book of the United States Navy (The A. B. Benesch Company, Publishers, New York, 1905. "Over 200 Plates in this Book are reproduced from photographs taken by Enrique Müller, Official Photographer of the U. S. Navy."); Battleships of the U. S. Navy, from photographs by E. Muller, Jr., Photographer United States Navy (New York, E. Muller, Jr. (c)1912); The U. S. Navy, Pictured by E. Muller, Jr. (For Sale by Popular Mechanics Book Dept.(1917)).
Norbert Moser, another well-known marine photographer in the New York area, published a number of Robert's photos. These real photo postcards show "(c) E. Muller, Jr. for N. Moser, N.Y." Again, I can't find postmarks on them, but Moser didn't begin publishing from New York until about 1914.
In early 1915, Robert E. Muller declared bankruptcy.
1918: The first World War was over. Many of the ships that filled the Muller portfolio were destined to be scrapped as part of a peace agreement. The navy was downsizing, and probably didn't need as many photographs. Postcard collecting was losing its popularity. It was a tough time, financially, to rely on being a marine photographer.
The Catalog of Copyright Entries continued to show registrations from both Enrique Muller and E. Muller, Jr. (or E. Muller, Jr., Inc.) of New York, into 1919. Many of these are of the troop transports bringing home soldiers from Europe.
I haven't managed to find a date of death (or place) for Enrique Muller. Without that, it's hard to say if he was still working into his seventies. Or perhaps son Theodore was running the family business?
A very brief note appeared in Bulletin of Photography:
Many more photos were taken and published over the next seven years, but these aren't as confusing -- the published works show "E. Muller, Jr." or "Muller." By 1913, Enrique would have been about 67 years old, and probably retired.
The Muller name is on at least three small books: The Book of the United States Navy (The A. B. Benesch Company, Publishers, New York, 1905. "Over 200 Plates in this Book are reproduced from photographs taken by Enrique Müller, Official Photographer of the U. S. Navy."); Battleships of the U. S. Navy, from photographs by E. Muller, Jr., Photographer United States Navy (New York, E. Muller, Jr. (c)1912); The U. S. Navy, Pictured by E. Muller, Jr. (For Sale by Popular Mechanics Book Dept.(1917)).
Norbert Moser, another well-known marine photographer in the New York area, published a number of Robert's photos. These real photo postcards show "(c) E. Muller, Jr. for N. Moser, N.Y." Again, I can't find postmarks on them, but Moser didn't begin publishing from New York until about 1914.
In early 1915, Robert E. Muller declared bankruptcy.
1918: The first World War was over. Many of the ships that filled the Muller portfolio were destined to be scrapped as part of a peace agreement. The navy was downsizing, and probably didn't need as many photographs. Postcard collecting was losing its popularity. It was a tough time, financially, to rely on being a marine photographer.
The Catalog of Copyright Entries continued to show registrations from both Enrique Muller and E. Muller, Jr. (or E. Muller, Jr., Inc.) of New York, into 1919. Many of these are of the troop transports bringing home soldiers from Europe.
I haven't managed to find a date of death (or place) for Enrique Muller. Without that, it's hard to say if he was still working into his seventies. Or perhaps son Theodore was running the family business?
A very brief note appeared in Bulletin of Photography:
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| In an issue of the Bulletin of Photography, 1919 |
Though a crucial verb is missing, it appears Robert sold his photography business to his brother Theodore and some partners.
Robert, his wife and their child moved to California, where he died in 1921.
Robert, his wife and their child moved to California, where he died in 1921.
All images, magazine and newspaper articles whose images are used in this text are over 100 years old and out of copyright protection.
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