Huestis P. Cook

He was a son of George S. Cook, known for taking the first photograph of active combat in 1863 during the American Civil War.

The senior Cook developed expertise in daguerrotypes and had been active in Charleston, South Carolina and Richmond, Virginia.

Heustis attended local schools and also learned photography from his father, including techniques with glass-plate negatives, developing and printing.

The eldest son, George LaGrange Cook, had also become a photographer and had stayed in Charleston, taking over their father's studio there.

[3] Together he and his father had amassed a large collection of photos of people and places in the city of Richmond, images produced from glass-plate negatives.