John Addison Stryker, Early Rodeo & Equine Photographer

John Addison Stryker followed an unlikely path into Western photography. Born in Rockford, Illinois, on September 1, 1883, he trained in ornamental penmanship and later taught at the Kearney Normal School in Nebraska. Publicity work for the school introduced him to photography, and by the end of the 1910s he had left teaching to pursue the camera full time.

Stryker initially photographed homes, streets, buildings, and civic scenes around Kearney. Some of these images appeared on postcards and in local souvenir booklets. Rodeos soon provided the action he preferred. One of his bucking-horse photographs was reportedly selected for a national Eastman Kodak advertisement in 1920.

In 1921, while photographing a rodeo in Holdrege, Nebraska, Stryker took over for an unsatisfactory announcer. This began a parallel career that would continue for nearly two decades. He traveled widely as a rodeo photographer and announcer, documenting events in Nebraska, Montana, Wyoming, Texas, and other parts of the American West. His announcing work eventually included performances with Ringling Bros. and at Madison Square Garden.

Stryker's most memorable photographs were made remarkably close to the action. Accounts describe him working at ground level and sometimes supporting his camera on or near the toe of his boot while lying beside the arena. The low viewpoint made horses and riders appear to explode upward through the frame, lending his photographs an immediacy uncommon in much early sports photography.

Stryker was more than an observer of rodeo culture. Over the course of his career, he worked as a photographer, announcer, promoter, producer, and occasional rider. This familiarity with rodeo participants and arena activity likely helped him anticipate the moments that produced his strongest images.

Fort Worth and equine portraiture

In 1940, Stryker and his wife, Elsie, settled in Fort Worth, Texas. There he continued photographing rodeos while developing a second specialty in formal equine portraiture for ranch owners.

His subjects included influential Quarter Horses such as Wimpy and Poco Bueno. Rather than merely recording an animal's appearance, Stryker carefully considered stance, lighting, expression, and camera position to emphasize its conformation and character.

His Fort Worth work extended beyond horses and rodeos. He also produced city views, zoo photographs, color postcards, placemats, and large decorative photographs for hotels and motels.

Stryker remained active well into old age. In 1970, when he was 87, he reportedly arranged to be raised approximately 85 feet above Fort Worth in a fire department snorkel truck so he could obtain the angle he wanted for a photograph of the Tarrant County Convention Center.

John A. Stryker died in Fort Worth in March 1974.

Identifying Stryker's postcards

Collectors most often encounter Stryker's numbered Photogloss Rodeo Series postcards. These typically feature an action photograph accompanied by a printed caption, copyright notice, series number, or identification of Stryker as a Western photographer in Fort Worth.

Despite their glossy photographic appearance, these cards should not automatically be classified as real photo postcards. The Amon Carter Museum identifies at least one example from the Photogloss series as a halftone print rather than a continuous-tone photographic print.

Examination under magnification is important:

• A regular pattern of printed dots indicates a halftone reproduction.
• Smooth, continuous photographic tones may indicate a genuine photographic print.
• A glossy surface alone does not make a card an RPPC.
• Seller descriptions frequently use “real photo” and “RPPC” too broadly.

Stryker cards were sold individually and in souvenir groups. Complete sets are known containing 12 standard-size Photogloss cards in their original folder. Cards retaining their original packaging may be more desirable than isolated examples.

Genuine photographic postcards, postcard-format photographs, and other period photographic prints may also exist. However, collectors should not assume that every Stryker image was issued in both halftone and real-photo form.

Notes and market conditions from North West Postcards

Most of the Stryker postcards I encounter are Photogloss halftone reproductions. The printing quality varies considerably. Some examples are reasonably sharp, while others appear muddy, flat, or poorly transferred onto inexpensive card stock.

Common Photogloss cards generally occupy the inexpensive end of the market. Individual examples may sell for only a few dollars, while dealer asking prices commonly fall between approximately $5 and $10.

Factors that may increase desirability include:

• A named rodeo champion, rider, or recognizable horse
• An especially dramatic action scene
• A scarce location or event
• A complete numbered group
• An original souvenir folder
• Strong contrast and unusually good printing
• Clean condition without creases, stains, or surface loss

Asking prices should not be confused with completed-sale values. Sellers occasionally place $10 to $25 prices on individual Stryker cards, but the market is thin and common subjects may remain unsold for extended periods.

Original Stryker photographs

Stryker's original photographic prints belong to a different collecting category.

During rodeo events, photographs were developed and offered for sale to participants, their families, and spectators. These larger-format images are often encountered with cracks, handling wear, fading, silvering, mounting damage, or writing on the reverse. Their survival in clean condition can be uncommon.

Look for vintage gelatin silver prints without standard postcard markings. Stronger examples may include:

• Stryker's signature or copyright within the image
• An ink signature on the print
• A handwritten title or subject identification
• The name of a rider, horse, ranch, or rodeo
• Period provenance
• A compelling action scene
• Strong contrast and limited condition damage

Authenticated vintage prints can carry values in the high hundreds or low thousands of dollars, particularly when signed, titled, well preserved, or connected to a celebrated rider, horse, or event.

Gallery asking prices and appraisal figures should be treated cautiously, however. The market is specialized, and an ambitious retail price does not necessarily indicate what a photograph would bring at auction or in a private sale.

I have yet to personally handle an original print from Stryker's formal equine portraiture period in Fort Worth. These images may be particularly desirable when they depict a named horse, retain a period signature or title, and have clear ranch or ownership provenance.

Additional reading

• "Horse Country Photographers: John A. Stryker", University of North Texas Libraries.
• "John Stryker Photography Collection", University of North Texas Digital Library.
• "John Addison Stryker", Photographs Do Not Bend Gallery.
• "Sam Stewart, Texas Cowboy, Fighting Brahma Bull", Amon Carter Museum of American Art.
• "John Stryker Bull Photographs, ca. 1945", Antiques Roadshow.
• The Rodeo of John Addison Stryker, edited by Ron Tyler, Encino Press, 1977.

Example postcards