PORTRAIT OF AN ADORABLE BABY IN DETROIT, MICHIGAN

This cabinet card features a portrait of a cute, but skeptical baby, sitting on a fur covered chair. The child is wearing a sweater over a gown, and is propped on a chair. The baby is clenching a toy in his/her right hand. The photograph was produced at the Detroit Art Gallery. The proprietors were listed as Dubbs, Lee & Company. Preliminary research yielded no additional information about the studio.

A cute baby

Published in: on November 25, 2011 at 12:01 am  Comments (2)  
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PRETTY IN PINK: LITTLE GIRL AND A STATUESQUE PUG

According to an ad on the reverse of this cabinet card, De Young’s studio will make a life size crayon or oil portrait from this photograph, and include a gilt or bronze frame, for the bargain price of twelve dollars. De Young’s studio was located in New York City, New York. There is an ad in the “Photographic Times” (1884) placed by De Young. The studio published a famous photograph of Harry Longabaugh and his girlfriend, Etta Place. Who is Harry Longabaugh? The celebrated outlaw is better known by the name of “The Sundance Kid”. The portrait above, is a  photograph of a young child, wearing a bonnet, and holding a basket of flowers. The child is posed next to a statue of a pug. The child’s clothing, and hair,  has been hand colored.  SOLD

Published in: on November 17, 2011 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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AN ADORABLE LITTLE GIRL SITTING IN A WICKER CHAIR

An adorable little girl sits for her portrait inside an unknown studio, in an unknown location. Identifying information about the photographer was lost when a previous owner of the image, trimmed the photograph to fit into a frame. The child posing in this photograph is seated in a wicker chair. She is wearing a cute dress and terrific hat. The child is smiling for the photographer and appears quite relaxed and radiant in front of the camera. There appears to be a toy lying next to her on the chair. It looks to be a stuffed animal, perhaps, a teddy bear.

Published in: on November 13, 2011 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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MASTER WILLIE WAINRIGHT: TWO YEAR-OLD POSES FOR PHOTOGRAPHER IN FRESNO, CALIFORNIA

This cabinet card features a portrait of “Master Willie Wainwright” at two years-old. A dedication on the reverse of the card states “to his friend Mable Ayers”. Master Willie is wearing a straw hat which is covering his long blond locks of hair. The photographer is Edgerton Reyerson Higgins  (1845-1911) of Fresno, California. Higgins was born in Canada. His mother was Canadian and his father was from Connecticut. He attended high school and Business College in San Francisco, California. He helped out at the photographic gallery of his brother, Thomas J. Higgins while attending school. Higgins worked as a photographer in a number of California towns, including Sacromento, Snelling, Stockton, Merced, Hanford, and Fresno. He worked for at least two well known photographic studios, one of which is represented in the Cabinet Card Gallery collection; Bradley and Rulofson. The second famous  photography studio was Thomas Houseworth & Company. Click on the category Photographer: Bradley & Rulofson” to view their photographs. While working in Snelling, Higgins was quoted as saying he took “pretty pictures, even of ugly people”. This cabinet card is from Fresno and it appears that he worked there at two different times. He was there temporarily in 1879. This cabinet card was published during his second stint, which began in 1887. Higgins did much to help his community. In 1889 he was one of the principal founders of the Fresno Volunteer Fire Department, and from about 1889 until the early 1890’s, he served as chief of the department. In 1898 he renamed his gallery the “Rembrandt Studio” and a year later, entered a partnership with a photographer named Howland. The California Historical Society has a small collection of Higgins’s photographs.  (SOLD)

PRETTY GIRL IN LUDINGTON, MICHIGAN

A pretty girl poses for her portrait at  a photographic studio in Ludington, Michigan. The photographer was Fred C. Silver (1848-?). Silver was born in Ohio, and came to Ludington in 1871 from Elkhart, Indiana. Upon his arrival, he opened a photographic gallery, becoming the first photographer in Ludington. The town was originally named Pere Marquette, but was later named after industiralist Jmes Ludington. Ludington’s logging operations were the reason the town developed. Ludington became an incorporated city in 1873. The late 19th century brought a boom to the area as a result of the lumber business and the discovery of salt deposits. The young lady in this photograph is wearing a nice dress, and jewelry at her collar. She is displaying a very serious expression in this image.

Published in: on November 11, 2011 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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CHILD WEARING A SAILOR’S CAP IN COBURG, GERMANY

A very cute, but unsmiling child, poses for a portrait by the Haussler Brothers. Note the sailing ship pin attatched to the nautical cap. Although the child’s clothing looks feminine, it is not clear whether this young sailor is a boy or a girl. The studio that published this cabinet card was in Coburg, Germany. Coburg is a town located on the Itz River in Bavaria, Germany.

Published in: on November 8, 2011 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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DREAMY EYED LITTLE GIRL WITH LOTS OF HAIR IN BANGOR, MICHIGAN

“Gimme head with hair. Long beautiful hair. Shining, gleaming streaming flaxen, waxen. Give me down to there hair. Shoulder length or longer.” The photograph reminds one of the lyrics of the song “Hair” which was performed in the play of the same name.  It seems likely that the adorable little girl in this cabinet card photograph, heard many comments about her beautiful hair. She is wearing a pretty dress and is holding a copy of Wilson’s Photographic Magazine. Posing the girl with this magazine, probably because it was conveniently available in the studio, doesn’t seem quite appropriate. The photographer could have had her bring something personal (ie a doll) from home, or provided her with a prop more relevant for a child.  The dreamy eyed little girl in this photograph is sitting on a very interesting and unique bench. She is wearing flowers near her collar and a necklace with a locket. Northrup, the photographer of this cabinet card, was located in Bangor, Michigan.

Published in: on November 5, 2011 at 12:01 am  Comments (2)  
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TWO YOUNG GIRLS, A DOLL, AND A BUILDERS CATALOG IN ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI

This cabinet card features two young girls posing in front of a nicely landscaped house. The house may actually be just part of a house, and  serve as a prop inside the photographic studio of  Mr. Denison, in St. Louis, Missouri. One girl, with long braids,  is holding a doll. The second girl is holding something very unusual for a child to be displaying, That is, unless she is an aspiring home builder. This girl is proudly brandishing a 1902 catalog from the William G. Frye Company. This business was located in St. Louis, and sold door, sash, blinds and many types of millwork. In regard to Mr. Denison, no information was found about him except that his Chouteau Avenue address (about 1900) was followed by a move to 1452 Cass Avenue (about 1906), also in St. Louis.

Published in: on October 29, 2011 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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WORK DETAIL IN IMPERIAL RUSSIA (KIDS IN A GARDEN)

Three children are photographed in a garden, in this cabinet portrait by an unknown photographer somewhere in Imperial Russia. The nicely dressed kids are adorable. One boy is holding a rake while the other is holding a shovel. The boy with the shovel is wearing a military hat while the girl is more practical, wearing a sun hat.

Published in: on October 23, 2011 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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YOUNG CHILD AND LITERARY DOG POSE FOR THEIR PORTRAIT IN MOUNT VERNON, OHIO

Photographer, Fred S. Crowell published this cabinet card portrait of a child and his/her pet dog. The dog appears to be an English Springer Spaniel. Writing on the reverse of the card indicates that the child’s name was Caroll Clucas and the dogs name was Peredeo. The canine’s name was not completely legible and Peredeo is a “best guess”. Peredeo is actually a name that comes from the story of Rosamund. Rosamund, the wife of King  Alboin plotted to have her cruel husband killed. It was suggested to her that she employ Peredeo, “a very strong man”, to accomplish the murder. Peredeo refused to kill his King, but that night, he mistakenly slept with a disguised Rosamund. As a result of this adultery, Peredeo agreed to kill Alboin, in order to avoid retribution for sleeping with Rosamund. Now lets jump many centuries forward to the mid to late 1800’s. The photographer did an excellent job of photographing the dog; no easy task. Crowell’s studio was located in Mount Vernon, Ohio. Fred Crowell (1844-?) was born in Huron County, Ohio. He began his career as a salesman in a bookseller and stationers shop. He next worked for a jeweler. His first photography job was in Mt. Vernon but he also worked in Norwalk, Sandusky, and Cleveland, Ohio. His photography jobs included a stint in Erie, Pennsylvania. Crowell rose in his career to own photography galleries. He operated in Frederickstown, Ohio (1866-1869) and Mt. Vernon (1869-1889). To view other photographs by Crowell, click on the category “Photographer: Crowell”.  Little information could be found about the identity of Caroll Clucas. It appears that his parents names were William G. Clucas and Ida Cassel Clucas. He had a sister, Fenella Viola Clucas (1887-?).