Portraits from the first 100 years of photography
This photograph came to me from Missouri but could have originated elsewhere. The photographer isn't identified. Since everyone looks about the same age--except for the couple at the far end of the table--my guess would be that this is a college group on a field trip or celebratory outing.
On December 15, 1917, an armistice was signed between the Central Powers and the new revolutionary communist government of Soviet Russia. It went into effect two days later, on December 17. The Soviets wouldn't officially leave the war until the following March, after the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, but the December armistice clearly felt like the... Continue Reading →
This impromptu group portrait was likely taken at a medical facility not far from the front lines during the First World War. The man seated next to the colonel is wearing a tailored suit with a Red Cross pin on the lapel, suggesting he may be a visitor rather than a patient.
To continue the cooking theme of the previous post, this postcard from Germany is an unusual portrait of a young cook in her kitchen uniform. Taken in a studio against a rustic painted backdrop, her spotless white clothes glow under careful studio lighting. Like CDVs in the nineteenth century, individual postcard portraits were often exchanged... Continue Reading →
This photo postcard likely originated in northern Europe. The presence of a nun at the back of the room and a crucifix on the wall suggest the class may have been offered by a convent or other Catholic organization. The back provides no information.
This 1909 school portrait came from the same small Maine album that "Two Good Friends" did in the previous post. Both titles are written in the album. Click on the images below to enlarge them.
This snapshot is in a small album I bought in Cornish, Maine. The cover of the album has a dedication: "To Dad from Burt and Alice, Christmas 1909." Each page in the album has a photo glued to it and a title written in a neat hand under the photo. This page is titled "Two... Continue Reading →
An oar appears for the second time on this blog in this group tableau from New Bedford, Massachusetts. The cabinet card was made at John O'Neil's studio in the Hastings' Building. The girls are all wearing the same classical costume, with one resting her hand on the oar, suggesting it was a symbolic part of... Continue Reading →
This CDV (carte-de-visite) came from an antique shop in Massachusetts. CDVs began to decline in popularity in the 1870s with the advent of larger cabinet cards, but the format remained in use until about 1900. The albumen print process was used initially for both formats.
Why is it that sibling portraits often make us smile?
I wish I could share some information about this group of young people holding oars and wearing paper hats. They seem to be very close in age. Coincidentally, their hats look similar to the cloth one worn by Walter Kleckner in his 1898 portrait at the end of the post 'Kangarooing' at Camp Chickamauga.
This snapshot came with no information, but the sheet music on the left side of the piano is "The Kansas Spirit" by George L. Wright. Behind the title on the cover are the letters KU, for the University of Kansas.
Tokens of Companionship 
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