Charles M. Conlon

Who was Charles M. Conlon?

Charles Martin Conlon was an American photographer. He worked for New York City newspapers in the early 1900s, as a proof-reader with a photographic hobby before editor John B. Foster invited him to shoot photographs for The Telegram daily newspaper sporting pages and for the Spalding's Base Ball Guide annual.

Charley Conlon took thousands of portraits of major league baseball players. His most famous photo is a fortunate action shot of Ty Cobb sliding into third base at Hilltop Park in 1910, upending the fielder, Jimmy Austin. Many of his photos of baseball's early stars are instantly recognizable, due to having been frequently reprinted over the years.

Conlon was born in Albany, New York in 1868. He grew up in neighboring Troy and retired there. He died in 1945, predeceased by his wife and having no children or siblings. Charles Conlons' original glass plate negatives are owned by North Little Rock, Arkansas collector John Rogers. The collection of 8,400 different Conlon glass negatives are housed in the John Rogers Archive www.johnrogersarchive.com. Rogers displayed the Conlon collection at The National Sports Collectors Convention in Baltimore, MD in July 2010.