Mathew Brady, born in Warren County, New York in 1822, was a famous American photographer. He is widely regarded as the father of photojournalism and the Civil War documenter of the century. Brady was one of the most prominent photographers of his time who developed a unique way of thinking that resulted in some of the best daguerreotypes in history. Daguerreotype was the process of creating a mirror image on a silver-surfaced copper plate, and Brady was a master of this art.

Interestingly, Morse, who invented the Morse code, taught Brady the art of daguerreotype, and he became highly successful with it. Later, he opened a studio called "Daguerreian Miniature Gallery" in Washington D.C and took portraits for a collection he called "The Gallery of Illustrious Americans." One of Brady's earliest accomplished works was the opening of "The Dauguerrean Miniature Gallery" on Broadway in 1844.

Brady's most notable work was his documentation of the Civil War, where he captured images of the battlefields, soldiers, and civilians caught up in the conflict. He was a witness to many of the war's most significant moments, and his work is considered critical for historians to understand the war's brutality and impact on the nation.

While doing his work and providing documentation of the war, Brady was nearly killed on the field. However, he survived and later ended up in Washington, D.C., where he died of starvation. Brady was not the most recognizable photographer during his time, and he went bankrupt. The bank left him penniless, with not much to live off of. He ended up selling all his photographs just to add up to what he owed. Brady died in 1896, sick, lonely, and broke.

Even though he died in obscurity, his contributions to photography and documenting history were eventually recognized. His entire collection was sold and bought by Congress for $25,000 (around $782,515.31 today), and today, many of his photographs are considered national treasures. In his final years, Brady spoke of how much he cared and what he went through to secure the negatives. He believed that the world would never appreciate it. However, Brady's work inspired many, and his legacy still lives on today as a reminder of the power of photography to capture history and tell stories.