Henry Goode Blasdel, the first governor of Nevada, served from December 5, 1864 through January 2, 1871, and is depicted here in a bust-length oval portrait on a cabinet card produced by Bradley and Rulofson, the celebrated San Francisco studio at 429 Montgomery Street. Blasdel secured the Republican gubernatorial nomination, was elected by popular vote in 1864, and was reelected to a second term in 1866. The mount's Vienna 1873 Gold Medals imprint provides a terminus post quem for the exposure, placing it in the mid-1870s.

Blasdel is shown wearing a double-breasted wool overcoat with wide notched lapels and visible button pairs at the chest. A loosely knotted cravat is visible at the collar beneath a white shirt. His full beard is well-developed and slightly tapered, his dark hair parted and swept back, and his gaze is directed slightly off-camera to his left with a composed, forward expression.

During his tenure, Nevada's state government was organized, construction plans were initiated for the first state capitol building, and additional land was ceded to the state. Bradley and Rulofson's Montgomery Street gallery was known for its luxurious studio facilities and was frequented by numerous luminaries who visited San Francisco, making it a natural destination for a sitting governor.

Inscribed in pencil on the reverse: "Governor Blaisdell / of Nevada." Photographer's imprint on reverse: Bradley and Rulofson, 429 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, Cal., with Gold Medals, Vienna 1873 notation and elevator photography advertisement.