This antique photograph captures a moment in history from the Victorian era, featuring a portrait of a woman, taken by IW Taber, a listed pioneer photographer. The woman appears to be his wife, Annie. The image is in sepia tone. Isaiah West Taber was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Taber ran this successfully until the earthquake of 1906, when he lost all his glass plates – 20 tons of view negatives and 80 tons of portrait work. He was an American daguerreotypist, ambrotypist, and photographer who took many pictures of noted Californians, which he donated to the California State Library that the state may preserve the names and faces, and keep alive the memory of those who made it what it is. He was also a sketch artist and dentist. His studio also produced a series of stereoscopic views of west coast scenery. Taber was born in New Bedford, Massachusetts and between 1845 and 1849 he worked at sea on a whaler. In 1871, Taber opened his own studio, where he gained fame for reproducing the photos of Carleton Watkins after Watkins went bankrupt. Taber married Annie Slocomb (Taber) (1849 – January 9, 1922) in San Francisco on September 29, 1871. Daughters Daisy Taber (Cronise) (Mack) (April 16, 1876 – March 19, 1906) and Louise Eddy Taber (April 18, 1884 – July 22, 1946) were both born in Oakland. In 1880, Taber made a six-week photographic trip to the Hawaiian Islands where, among other subjects, he photographed the Hawaiian King Kalakaua, completing a commission for three full-length portraits. The following year Kalakaua visited Taber’s studio in San Francisco. By the 1890s, Taber had expanded his operations to include studios in London, England and in elsewhere Europe. However, the 1906 San Francisco earthquake destroyed his San Francisco studio, gallery, and negative collection, ending his photographic career.