LITTLE GIRL PUSHING DOLL IN CARRIAGE POSES IN FRONT OF AMATEURISH BACKDROP

The little girl featured in this cabinet card is absolutely adorable in her pose pushing her doll in a baby carriage. The backdrop in this photograph is absolutely not adorable. The screen is so amateurish that it looks like it was painted by a group of the subject’s classmates. The photographer of this image has the last name of Mead. Unfortunately, the location of his studio is unknown. It is an unusual occurrence that the name of the photographer is listed on the cabinet card without an address of the studio. After all, photographers used cabinet cards as free advertising by listing their location and special talents. The reverse of the cabinet card has an inscription that indicates that the subject of this portrait is named “Mamie Cole (Griffis)”. There were many Mamie Coles, Mamie Griffiths, and photographers named Mead living in the United States during the cabinet card era. It is impossible, with available information, to truly identify both subject and photographer. It is interesting to note that there was a photographer in the Dakota Territories name Josiah J. Mead and a woman named Mamie Cole who was born in South Dakota in 1894.

Published in: on June 28, 2012 at 12:43 am  Comments (3)  
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SWEET LITTLE GIRL AND HER FANCY DOLL IN CHICAGO, ILLINOIS

This cabinet card features a nicely dressed cute little girl posing with her large fancy doll. The curly haired girl is wearing plenty of lace and a necklace. Note how fashionably the doll is dressed. The photographer of this image is Henry Levin of Chicago, Illinois. The child’s last name  is identified as Werner on the reverse of the photograph. Her first name is illegible. The inscription states that the girl was two and half years old at the time of the photograph.

Published in: on June 13, 2012 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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FOUR SIBLINGS AND THEIR TOYS IN STEINHEIM, GERMANY

A sister and three brothers pose for their portrait at the Lammersen studio in Steinheim, Westphalia, Germany. The young girl is holding a doll with bows in its hair; which is the same way that the young girl wears her hair. One of the boys is playing with blocks while another boy is holding a book. The photographer of this image, F. Lammersen,  took the photographs for an article appearing in the Strand Magazine (1898). The article was entitled “The Most Wonderful Hedge in the World” and was about  the work of a railway guard at the Steinheim station. The railroad employee used his spare time to artistically clip hedges into wonderful sculptures and Lammersen’s camera provided many illustrations of the talented gardeners creative work.

Published in: on March 26, 2012 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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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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A GIRL AND HER DOLL IN POUGHKEEPSIE, NEW YORK

This cabinet card features a young girl holding and posing her large doll. The doll is quite beautiful and detailed. The child is posed in a room with what appears to be wicker furniture and a backdrop of curtains. The photographer is Samuel Ardron and his studio was located in Poughkeepsie, New York. He is listed in the Poughkeepsie Business Directory (1896).   (SOLD)

Published in: on September 1, 2011 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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TWO GIRLS AND A DOLL IN CHICAGO HEIGHTS (OR POSSIBLY FRANKFORT STATION) , ILLINOIS

Two bright-eyed young girls sit for their portrait at the studio of Fred Heising in either Chicago Heights, or Frankfort Station, Illinois. The youngest child, sitting in a wicker chair,  has her arm firmly around the shoulders of her toy doll. The older girl stands behind her little sister, with a physical position and a facial expression that can best be described as “big sisterish”. An advertisement in the Bulletin of Photography (1912) lists Heising’s studio for sale at the price of eleven thousand dollars. The ad states that the studio had been in existence for twenty years. A little simple math reveals that this photograph was produced sometime after 1892.

Published in: on July 23, 2011 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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A GIRL AND HER DOLL IN NEW MILFORD, CONNECTICUT

This cabinet card presents a very cute young girl holding one of her dolls. The child is nicely dressed. Note her high button shoes. Her hairstyle seems a bit unusual for the time. Her hair appears to be shorter than one might expect based on other photographs of similar aged girls of that era. However, her hair may be pulled back, and not really short. This photograph also presents a clear view of the child’s doll. The photographer of this image is John J. Walklet of  New Milford, Connecticut. Wilson’s Photographic Magazine (1899) announces the sale of Walklet’s studio to W. M. Miller. Walklet’s studio was located at 27 Bank Street, according to a New Milford  business directory (1891).

Published in: on June 24, 2011 at 9:13 am  Comments (3)  
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AUNT MINERVA’S DAUGHTER: BESSIE BOYER AND HER DOLL

The reverse of this cabinet card identifies the cute long haired little girl in this cabinet card photograph as being “cousin Bessie Boyer”. The inscription also indicates that Bessie is a cousin due to the fact that she is the daughter of a maternal Aunt named Minerva. The little girl is wearing an adorable cap and posing next to a large doll. No further identifying information about the child, the photographer, or the location of the photographic studio is available.

Published in: on November 30, 2010 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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TWO SMALL CHILDREN AND ONE LARGE DOLL IN FAIRBURY, ILLINOIS

This cabinet card photograph features two young children and a large doll. The doll appears to be bisque and is beautifully dressed. The girls seem to be a bit awed by their experience of being in a studio and being photographed . The photographer is E. M. Phillips of Fairbury, Illinois.

Published in: on November 18, 2010 at 9:57 pm  Leave a Comment  
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MINIATURE FAMILY AND PUG OUT FOR A STROLL

A young boy and girl pose as if they are out for a walk with a baby doll in a carriage and a  pug firmly in the girl’s arms.  The young boy is clearly a forward thinker as he has taken on the “woman’s”  role of pushing the carriage.  He is also wearing an interesting cap with a tassel.  The photograph was taken at a studio in Bourbon, Indiana. The photographer’s name is listed on the front (bottom) of the card but the name is illegible.

Published in: on September 19, 2010 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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