Portraits from the first 100 years of photography
The young woman above is wearing a skirt that matches the flag behind her. She's also wearing ribbons on her shoulders, bodice and waist. But which flag is it? From 1807 until 1953, the flag of Wales was white with a red dragon at the center. The cabinet card was made by Alfred Betts (1829-1890)... Continue Reading →
I had hoped to share a sporting image here on the blog while the Summer Olympics were going on in Tokyo, but the two weeks went by so fast that I didn't manage it. Since today is the day after the Olympics, it seems appropriate to share a stereoview titled After the Regatta. Published by... Continue Reading →
This cabinet card photograph is the first image I've shared from Australia. It was printed at the Anson Brothers studio in Hobart, Tasmania, which was in operation from 1878 to 1891. Founded by brothers Joshua, Henry Joseph and Richard Edwin Anson, the studio became known for views of Tasmanian scenery, which received medals at the... Continue Reading →
No bicycles appear in this photograph, but the sign at upper right tells us that the occasion for this gathering was a cycling club rally of some kind. Unfortunately, some of the names of the clubs are cut off at the edge of the photo. No one in the group is identified, but a visitor... Continue Reading →
This photograph has an inscription on the back which is written mostly in Finnish: I was able to read enough of the Finnish words to guess that the men were cutting wood to heat a sauna. After I published this post, readers in Finland confirmed that guess. Luisella from Tra Italia e Finlandia helpfully typed... Continue Reading →
When I started this blog four years ago, I decided to post only photos taken before 1940. It was an arbitrary line to draw, but I wanted to draw one somewhere, and a century seemed like a good place to do it (1839-1939). For one thing, sitters in photos taken after 1940 are more likely... Continue Reading →
This publicity photograph was taken at a summer camp in East Machias, Maine, called Camp Cunningham. The camp was organized by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to provide military-style training to students after their sophomore year. The decision to organize the camp was made after the United States entered World War I in April... Continue Reading →
The back of this photograph is signed in ink. Part of the name looks like Arivash, but I can't read the rest. There's also an inscription in pencil which is legible. The inscription: Москва 1925 год. Горькое время студенческое в материальном отношении и счастливое в моральном положении. Это не для всех, а только для... Continue Reading →
On this final day of Women's History Month, I thought it might be fun to turn to the realm of sport. This photograph came to me from Wales. It has nothing written or printed on it. Update, April 4: This morning I came across another copy of this image on a blog post titled Pulling... Continue Reading →
Unlike the mill workers in the previous post, these two seamstresses appear to be posing outdoors, perhaps at a seasonal or mobile studio. The photographer, Håkon Steinsheim (1860-1933), was based in the village of Oppdal, Norway. (Historically, the name of the town was sometimes spelled Opdal.) The photo (cabinet card) came to me from Wisconsin.... Continue Reading →
This photograph has nothing written or printed on it to suggest where it might have been taken. It came to me from Maine, so it may have originated there or in another northeastern state. The setting appears to be a textile mill. My guess for a time period would be 1895-1905. The surface of the... Continue Reading →
This cabinet card portrait was made at a studio in the port city of New Bedford, Massachusetts. The studio belonged to a man named John O'Neil. Google didn't turn up any information about Mr. O'Neil, so I looked at census records on Ancestry. In the 1880 U.S. Census, I found a John E. O'Neil, age... Continue Reading →
Tokens of Companionship 
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