O. G. Mason's duties included photographing deceased unknowns, a service that was pioneered at Bellevue in 1867. Bodies were received in a new facility constructed in 1866, modelled and named after the much larger Paris Morgue. Photographing took place outside and in his report for 1875 Mason petitioned for accommodations that would protect his equipment and subject from inclement weather. Unidentified bodies were displayed up to seventy-two hours on stone tables behind a curtain wall of iron and glass dividing the 20 by 20 foot space. Both photograph and body were numbered correspondingly and any unclaimed bodies were later buried at the Hart Island City Cemetery. Mason's annual reports emphasized the importance of this work and the relief it provided to the bereft who visited the morgue in search of missing loved ones.