Samuel J. Reader arrived in Indianola, Shawnee County, Kansas 
in 1855. As an adult, his occupation was farming but he was a man of many talents and interesting hobbies. He was an avid diarist, drawer and painter until his death at the age of 78. Among his collection available at the Kansas Historical Society are his lantern slides.
Each slide is made from hand-painted glass cased in a handmade wooden frame. The slides depict a variety of subjects including ghastly creatures, like Satan and the Grim Reaper, flowers, people and animals.
Reader used a type of image projector commonly known as the magic lantern to showcase his works of art for members of the community. Lantern slides were first introduced in 1849. By the time Reader began creating his own slides in 1866, they would have been a popular form of entertainment.