In the first years of the 20th century, when the Grand Canyon was still a remote frontier rather than a global symbol, two brothers from Pennsylvania positioned themselves—quite literally—on the edge of history.
Ellsworth and Emery Kolb arrived at the South Rim not as scientists or government officials, but as photographers with an instinct for timing, spectacle, and the emerging power of images. Their work helped define how Americans came to see the canyon. In doing so, they became early pioneers of commercial photography in one of the nation’s most dramatic landscapes.
