This cabinet card has many of the features of the “typical” little girl portrait of it’s era. A cute little girl poses in a nice dress alongside the customary chair and fur. The subject is wearing a necklace. She appears to be gazing at the camera with a degree of caution. The photograph was taken at Kempf’s Art Studios which was located in Brooklyn, New York. Advertising on the reverse of the photograph indicates that “Artistic Portraits of Children has been our Successful Specialty for 22 Years”. Charles L. Kempf was a photographer that began operating a Brooklyn studio in at least the late 1870’s and the studio was named after himself. He was listed in a Brooklyn business directory as early as 1874. A new business name, “Kempf’s Photographic Art Gallery” was esablished in the 1890’s and was in business until at least 1905. An early advertisement for Kempf’s Photography business appeared in the Brooklyn Eagle in 1876. The Photographic Times (1894) reported that Kempf’s patent for a photographic plate holder had expired. The 1910 United States census reveals that Kemp was 61 years old and born in 1849. He was born in Germany and immigrated to the United States in 1853, at the age of four years old. The census disclosed that he was married to Almira Kempf and lived with his wife and daughter, Florence (age 32). (SOLD)
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Adorable! I was reminded recently that Brooklyn was annexed into New York City in 1898, so, based on the dates you mentioned above, this was probably taken when Brooklyn was still it’s own separate city.
I have old family photographs taken at Kempf Studio (corner of Myrtle and Bedford Ave.) The photographs are of a reunion between a son and his mother and sisters. That son/brother was my Great Grandfather who lived in Australia. I know he visited the USA once only and it was in 1906 – so there you go – Kempf’s was still operating in 1906!
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