Background
Camillus Sidney (Buck) Fly was born in 1849 in Andrew County, Missouri, United States.
Camillus Sidney (Buck) Fly was born in 1849 in Andrew County, Missouri, United States.
The self-taught Fly was raised in California; he and his wife moved to Tombstone, Arizona, in 1879, during the silver strike. First setting up shop in a tent, they built a combination boarding house and photographic studio. Mollie operated the shop during Camillus' frequent field trips, on which he combined photography with prospecting. In 1892 he was commissioned by an English syndicate to take a series of pictures of the Chiricahua Mountains, which were later displayed in London. From 1894 to 1896 he served as sheriff of Cochise County. From 1880 on he was frequently published in the Tombstone Epitaph.
The state of Arizona named one of its highest mountains - Fly Peak in the Chiricahua range - in the photographer's honor.
Accompanying General George Crook, he was able to photograph Geronimo before his capture. The pioneering photographer gained a fair amount of fame in the southeastern territory during his lifetime.
He was a member of the Ancient Order of United Workers.