Historic Photos of Enslaved People Return to SC

More than 175 years after they were created in South Carolina, the 1850 daguerreotypes, believed to be the earliest known photographs of enslaved people in the United States, have returned to the state. Harvard transferred ownership of these images to the International African American Museum in Charleston, South Carolina, following a settlement reached in May 2025. The images were commissioned by Harvard scientist Louis Agassiz and photographed by Joseph Zealy in Columbia, South Carolina. They were part of a scientific project intended to support theories of Black inferiority and polygenism. The museum stated the images are being reframed from instruments of pseudoscience into portraits honoring the lives and humanity of the individuals captured. The settlement resolved a lawsuit filed by Tamara Lanier, a descendant of the enslaved individuals depicted. Lanier had pursued a six-year legal battle for what she argued was a wrongful claim of ownership over photos taken without her ancestors' consent. Harvard expressed eagerness to place the photos with another public institution to provide appropriate context and increase public access.