Portrait of John Owen, the Earliest-Born Person With a Confirmed Date of Birth to Be Photographed, 1843

John Owen (April 16, 1735 – February 24, 1843) was an American centenarian and veteran from Salisbury, Connecticut. Owen served in both the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War. He may have been the last living veteran of the French and Indian War.

John Owen, one of the last veterans of the French and Indian War, lived to be 107 and posed for this photograph shortly before his death in 1843.

The image above holds a unique place in the history of photography. John Owen was born in 1735, meaning he was roughly 107 or 108 years old when he sat for this portrait in 1843, passing away later that same year.

Because of his extraordinary lifespan, Owen is recognized as one of the earliest-born human beings ever to be captured on film (specifically via an early photographic process, likely a daguerreotype or a calotype copy). To put his life into perspective, he was already a young man when the United States declared independence in 1776, yet lived long enough into the 19th century to witness the birth of practical photography.