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Primary sourcePhotograph

Portrait of Joseph Howe

A studio photograph of Joseph Howe used as the standard likeness to identify him.

This photograph is the standard identifying portrait of Joseph Howe.

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Black and white studio photograph of an older man with light hair, wearing a long dark coat, dark vest and bow tie, standing beside a draped table with a top hat on it, in front of a painted backdrop of hills and a stepped platform.
Portrait of Joseph Howe.

About this source

What it is

This is a black and white studio photograph of an older man identified as Joseph Howe, shown standing beside a draped table with a top hat, in front of a painted backdrop. It is used as the reference portrait for Howe in historical records.

Why it matters

Photographic portraits like this one were common ways for nineteenth-century public figures to be remembered and recognised by the public. This image lets us put a face to Howe's name and see how he presented himself formally, in the fashion of the time.

Look closer

  • What does Howe's clothing and pose suggest about how he wanted to be seen?
  • Why might a studio photograph differ from how someone looked in everyday life?
  • What can't a formal portrait like this tell you about a person's character or beliefs?

This photograph is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Joseph Howe on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Joseph Howe sources

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Four-story red brick building with arched windows and a ground floor restaurant front bearing the sign 'The Pourhouse' and a green awning reading 'The Old Triangle'. Black umbrellas and outdoor tables stand near the street-level windows.Newspaper article

Primary source

Novascotian

George Renny Young · 1824

Letter

Primary source

Letters to Lord John Russell on Responsible Government

Joseph Howe · 1839

Title page of a printed 1867 letter, headed 'British North American Provinces', with handwritten 'Gr. Brit. Colonial Office' and 'No. 2' marks. It names Joseph Howe, William Annand and Hugh McDonald as authors, addressed to the Earl of Carnarvon, objecting to the proposed union. Printed in London with a coat of arms.Letter

Primary source

Letter to the Earl of Carnarvon Objecting to Confederation

Joseph Howe, William Annand and Hugh McDonald · 1867

Black and white studio photograph of an older man with white hair and a mustache, seated in an ornate carved wooden armchair with upholstered seat, legs crossed, wearing a light suit and vest. Draped curtain and a dark cabinet with papers are behind him.Photograph

Primary source

Joseph Howe, 1869

William James Topley · 1869

Black-and-white engraved political cartoon titled 'Cross Roads'. A signpost reads 'To Ottawa' and 'Washington Wall Street'. A bearded man on the left sneers, a seated figure sits in the middle, and a woman in a bonnet holds a bundle of papers marked 'Cadiz' near a barrel labelled 'Salt' and papers labelled 'Taxes', 'Repudiation', 'Gold Ring', 'Bowie Knives', 'Scalawags', and 'Dangerous'.Painting

Primary source

Cross Roads

John Henry Walker

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