The Eastman Dry Plate & Film Co.

Eureka View

Date Introduced: - ; Years Manufactured: c.1885-1889
Construction: front focus via rack and pinion (one gear tracks on top of side rails); no swing; reversing via positioning of plate in holder (assumed), fixed back
Materials: mahogany body; cherry base; black fabric bellows; brass hardware
Sizes Offered: 5x8 to 18x22
Notes: Although it doesn't look like much, this is one of the rarest view cameras.  It possesses a metal tag stating that it was manufactured by the Eastman Dry Plate & Film Co. but it is unknown from any Eastman catalogs of the era.  In addition to the Interchangeable View (well advertised and featured in catalogs), Eastman produced two cameras apparently only known from production records: the Eureka View and the Genesee View.  It is not known from catalogs what these models looked like, but the production records of EKC show that the Genesee was only made in small sizes, whereas the Eureka was made in sizes up to 18x22.  The above style is suited to large cameras, so is identified here as the Eureka.  See the supposed Genesee model.  Note in the detail photo that the slot for the plateholder was integral to the original design, as shown by the absence of box joints through the slot area.  In other words, the slot has not been cut later.  The presence of a slot is shared by few cameras, namely, an unknown Schultze model and a mode from an unknown maker.  This camera also features a slot for
References:
Eastman Kodak typed production record, 1921 copy

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