Distinctly Montana Magazine

W W W. D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA NA . C O M 45 "A STORE AS UNIQUE AS MISSOULA." 301 N. Higgins Missoula, MT Mon - Fri: 10am - 6pm Sunday: 12pm - 4pm 406-541-0080 greenlightmt.com profession, dating back to 1845, the famous daguerreotype era, and has had the satisfaction of taking nu- merous medals for superior work over many of the most skillful and artistic competitions in the largest eastern cities. Prior to, during, and for several years after, the war Mr. Ball had one of the largest and best equipped studios in Cincinnati." Ball photographed business leaders, immigrants and pioneers, most disturbingly, the lynching of a black man named William Big- gerstaff. Not much is known about Biggerstaff, except that he was "born a slave in 1854, in Lexington, Ky." He was convicted of killing "Dick" Johnson after an argument that took place on June 9, 1895. Biggerstaff pleaded self-defense. e hanging took place on April 6, 1896; the "weight fell at 10:08 a.m. in Helena courtyard." In a succession of photographs, Biggerstaff is first pictured in a suit, flower pinned to lapel, handkerchief in pocket. e next sequence is Biggerstaff being hanged, the dangling, hooded man attended to by the Reverend Victor Day and by Sheriff Henry Jurgens. Finally, he is displayed in a coffin. J.P. Ball & Son, alone, seem to have recorded the laying of the corner stone of the State Capitol building by grand master Charles W. Pomeroy. Although a simple document, the photographs reveal the vigorous esthetic sensibili- ties of its makers in the plethora of umbrellas. ese make rhythmic, arching patterns — apparently more interesting to the Balls than the audience itself — that bring to mind the similar use of this motif in the 19th century prints from Japan. Some of Ball's most mysterious photos are his undated images of the Ming merchant family, once among Helena's wealthi- est pioneers and land investors. Other than a date of 1891 to 1900, however, the specific details of these photos are lost to history. In other images, Bell employed the inventive use of photographic montage — framing the heads in a scallop shell. In late-1900, James Presley Ball followed his son, J.P. Ball Jr., to Seattle and eventually settled in Honolulu, opening a studio in his home, which was co-operated by his daughter, Estella. His obituary stated that Ball died in 1904 of rheumatism.

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