Portraits from the first 100 years of photography
This portrait was probably taken in the 1920s (see comment by my dream walden below). The sitters aren't identified. They're dressed identically, but I don't know if their clothing can tell us anything about them. A stamp on the mount below the photo tells us the studio belonged to a photographer named Hanson: The... Continue Reading →
This small snapshot came from England, but with no information about who's in it or where it was taken. Notice the can of Shell gas on the running board below. These gals were prepared. The camper (called a caravan in the UK) is a Car Cruiser model from the 1920s. You can see a... Continue Reading →
These ladies look like they had fun together. They have a cute car, too. The snapshot was for sale in Pennsylvania, but could have been taken anywhere.
These two young men may have been students at a military academy or members of a cadet corps, which was another type of officer-training program. They're both wearing a military-style tunic with no insignia. It's also possible the tunic was part of a uniform at an educational institution not connected to the military. I'll update... Continue Reading →
UPDATE: Albin Lindall is most likely the man standing at right. I found a passport photo of him on Ancestry.com that was taken some years later, when he was 29. Albin Lothard Lindall was born in Parkers Prairie in 1890, and the passport was issued in 1919, when he was a doctor and a lieutenant... Continue Reading →
This small cabinet card came from Arkansas but has no information on it. The three women on the left might be sisters. These ladies look like they should be singing on a stage!
In this photo the coworkers from the previous post have been joined by four more men. The man at far right may be an owner or manager. The four women who stood arm-in-arm in the previous photo are now seated together in front. Here you can see the photo in high resolution:
This photograph shows a group of coworkers at an unidentified location. A man at lower right is conspicuously holding what appears to be a screwdriver. The man at far left is wearing an apron with something dark on it, perhaps oil or ink. The man next to him is holding a pencil. Between them a... Continue Reading →
This cabinet card was made by Benjamin F. Popkins (1822-1905), the first photographer to set up a professional studio in Greenfield. The sitters aren't identified. The photo was accompanied by two additional cabinet cards by Popkins, showing one of the women from different angles. All three portraits may have belonged to her, or the three... Continue Reading →
This cabinet card photo was made at the same sitting at Draper's Studio as the photo in the previous post. This time, Clau is pretending to toss a chocolate to Frank, who is reclined on the studio floor.
These four friends posed for portraits together on August 3, 1895, at Draper's Studio in Bridgton, Maine. An inscription on the back identifies them as Clau [Clan?], Nan, Beth and Frank. Someone decided that a box of Stevens Confectionery chocolates would make a fun prop. Later, someone used a pen to draw a sign at... Continue Reading →
The woman on a cruise in 1934 in the previous two posts is now standing in front of Sloppy Joe's Bar in Havana, Cuba. A date stamp on the back of this snapshot indicates it was printed on Jan. 18, 1939. The man with her looks vaguely familiar to me, but he isn't the man... Continue Reading →
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