STEREOSCOPE WITH 28 CARDS

n 1881, Bert and Elmer Underwood started their photography business in Ottawa, Kansas. They acquired stereoview distribution rights in Kansas and Missouri from three publishers, including J. F. Jarvis in Washington, DC, and The Littleton View Company of Littleton, NH. They developed a network of door-to-door salesmen and soon were granted marketing rights for the entire country, and began to take their own photographs. Underwood opened an eastern supply depot in Baltimore, MD in 1887. Shortly thereafter, they sent agents to establish presence in Toronto, Canada and Liverpool, England (later moved to London). By 1891, they had outgrown the Ottawa office and moved to the New York area in order to be closer to Transatlantic shipping. About this time, the Underwood brothers hit upon a successful marketing scheme for stereoviews—selling boxed sets with a common theme, accompanied by optional guide books. In order to carry out a worldwide undertaking, distribution points were established in Russia, China, India, France, Germany, and other countries. For several years they were the largest stereoview company in the world were largely responsible for making stereoscope travelogues standard fare in Victorian parlors. By 1910, the company had assembled more than 300 sets into the "Underwood Stereographic Library." This number included standard trade sets and small sets produced to order for private organizations.
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