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seven months, O’Sullivan returned to the United States
and was replaced by the Navy with photographer John
Moran. The change in personnel has caused confusion
in attributing the Panama photographs, resulting in many
Moran photographs being credited to O’Sullivan.
Lieutenant George Montague Wheeler hired
O’Sullivan in September of 1870 to join his survey of
the American Southwest, with permission from King,
who maintained O’Sullivan on his payroll. Wheeler’s
expeditions were different from King’s in several ways:
Wheeler’s survey was the only military expedition
of the four major expeditions to be conducted in the
West, and unlike King, Wheeler appreciated the value
of photographs in the promotion of the survey itself.
The survey’s goals were similar to King’s: to prepare
accurate maps, document the physical features of the
land, fi nd sites for roads and military operations, assess
the population and disposition of the resident Indian
peoples, and evaluate the geology and vegetation as to
their usefulness to settlers.
In May of 1871, O’Sullivan set out from Halleck
Station, Nevada with Wheeler’s crew, but because he
had more seniority in Western surveys than the other
explorers, O’Sullivan was often entrusted to head up side
trips apart from Wheeler. Lieut. Wheeler led even more
arduous expeditions than O’Sullivan had experienced
with King. In their fi rst season the survey team endured
tremendous heat crossing Death Valley, and Wheeler
often forced extended marches that lasted more than
a day. The most challenging part of the trip involved
traveling more than 200 miles up the Colorado River
to the Grand Canyon. The party was divided into three
boats: one headed by Wheeler, another by O’Sullivan
and a third by Grove Karl Gilbert, the geologist on the
expedition. The diffi cult journey took more than 30 days
in all, and in the process Wheeler’s boat was destroyed,
along with many of his survey notes. Despite the physi-
cal challenge of the ascent, O’Sullivan was able to make
photographs of the river canyon and of the crew, includ-
ing the Mohave Indians who accompanied the surveyO’Sullivan, Timothy H., Print
Attributed to Alexander Gardner.
Admiral David Dixon Porter on the
deck of his fl agship the “Malver”
after the victory at Ft. Fisher, North
Carolina.
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
© The J. Paul Getty Museum.