No. 4 Eureka (1899)

The No. 4 Eureka is a low quality boxcamera for 4 x 5 inch (10 x 13 cm) pictures on glass plates in double plate holders. It can also be used with a roll holder to take photos on film.

Because the camera takes bigger sized pictures it was not possible to use a fixed focus lens. So it has a key on the side to set the proper distance with.

The door in the front can be opened to change the apertures (3 stops on a rotating sector) or set the shutter for time exposures. For normal use the shutter has one single speed.

When the camera was used with glass plates you could focus and frame the picture on a ground glass in the back. To view the ground glass you had to open the door in the back.
The door in the side panel provides access to the plate holders and roll holder.

The camera did cost $ 6.
The first batch of 1000 cameras was ordered at the camera factory on June 6, 1897, but the first cameras were shipped and a half year later, on December 12, 1898. In 1899 three batches of 1000, 1000 and 1500 were ordered. In total 4500 were manufactured.
As the first batch was shipped in December 1898, the No. 4 Eureka was available in the shops very late in 1898 and in 1899. 

This camera was renamed No. 4 Zenith for the UK market, as the Eureka name was already in use there by another manufacturer.
 

Page from the 1899 Kodak catalog.