Two adorable little girls and their sweet little brother pose for their portrait at an unknown German photographic studio. They are beautifully dressed and each child is holding a basket of flowers. This image likely dates back to the 1920’s.
PORTRAIT OF GRACE BOWMAN, PERFORMER AT THEATRE DU CHATELET IN PARIS, FRANCE (BY PAUL BOYER)
This vintage real photo postcard features a costumed stage actress named Violet Bowman. Her clownish costume’s pattern includes men in tuxedos and blackface. Preliminary research yielded little information about Miss Bowman but it appears from the postcard that she performed at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris France. The theatre was designed by Gabriel Davioud after it was requested by Baron Haussmann between 1860 and 1862. Although it has been remodeled, the theatre is still in operation and currently seats 2,500 people. Violet Bowman is quite pretty in this portrait by celebrated Paris photographer, Paul Boyer (1861-1908). He photographed many famous people during his career. This postcard is published by Societe Industrielle de Photograpie (SIP) of Rueil, France and was part of a series (no. 1264). The postmark of this French stamped postcard is from Castelnaudary, France and is dated 1905. It is addressed to Mazamet, France.
CABINET CARD PORTRAIT OF A LITTLE GIRL BY “STIFF THE PHOTOGRAPHER” IN BROCKTON, MASSACHUSETTS
This cabinet card portrait features a nicely dressed little girl (possibly the subject is a boy) by the studio of “Stiff The Photographer”. The back stamp of this cabinet card indicates that the studio’s address was 414 Main Street, Brockton, Massachusetts. The back stamp also confirms that the photographer did indeed call himself “Stiff The Photographer”. What do we know about Mr Stiff? We know that Thomas P. Stiff once operated a studio known as Munroe and Stiff which was located at 64 Warren Street in Boston. We also know that in the 1880’s he had studios in Taunton and Fall River, Massachusetts. His studio in Brockton was there at least between 1882 and 1892. He was born in 1836 and died in 1908. He is buried in Melrose Cemetery in Brockton. He also must have had a sense of humor. I imagine his friends and customers must have a good time over his advertising motto “Stiff The Photographer”. The immediate humorous thought is that customers were being encouraged to not pay for the photographs they receive. I’ll leave additional interpretations to the reader.
A SOLDIER AND HIS RIFLE AND HIS PREY: A LARGE RABBIT
This vintage real photo postcard features a young soldier in uniform posing with his rifle and his lunch. The prize of the young man’s hunt is a large rabbit. Hopefully the soldier was able to avoid being “the hunted one” during his military service. This photograph appears to be from the early 1900’s and of European or Russian origin.
THE MULTI TALENTED ACTRESS ULLIE AKERSTOM PHOTOGRAPHED BY MULTI TALENTED PHOTOGRAPHER CHARLES EISENMANN
Ullie Akerstrom had a professional career as a dancer, pantomimist, actress, playwright, and poet. Among her accomplishments was writing the play “Miss Roarer”. The production was written for Miss Annie Oakley and the famous wild west star appeared in the play on a London stage in 1894. The Swedish-American Miss Akerstrom was at one point known as “The Winsome Little Actress” and this photograph confirms her attractiveness. The cabinet card comes from the studio of Charles Eisenmann (1855-1927). He was German born and a well known celebrity photographer during the 1880’s and 1890’s in New York City’s Bowery District. Not only did he photograph celebrities (ie Mark Twain and Annie Oakley) but he also was known for his portraits of “human oddities” (ie. side show acts and people with birth defects). His son in-law, Frank Wendt, took over his studio in 1898. He later became the director of photography for Dupont. His work is very collectible. To view more of his images, click on the category “Photographer: Eisenmann”.
ADORABLE LITTLE GIRL WEARING PIERROT COSTUME: SHE IS CUTE AS A BUTTON
This vintage real photo postcard features an adorable little girl dressed in a Pierrot costume. Perhaps she is dressed for a party associated with the Carnival. Pierrot is a character introduced to Paris in the late seventeenth century. The character is still popular today in contemporary culture. Pierrot is often presented as a sad and naive clown. This postcard is from around the 1920’s.
A STYLISH AND ATTRACTIVE FAMILY POSE FOR THEIR PORTRAIT IN GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
This cabinet card features a well dressed and attractive couple flanking their young daughter in a family portrait produced by the Photo Express gallery in Geneva, Switzerland. Dad seems to be a pro at posing for a photographer judging by the air of confidence that he exudes in this photograph. The gentleman’s daughter seems a bit apprehensive about her day at the photography studio. It is interesting to note the name of the studio that produced this image. “Photo Express” is a name we might expect to see in today’s time rather than around the time of the cabinet card era. We live in a time which has an “instant gratification” mentality. I suppose that the “Photo Express” name tells us that people have had an “on demand” type of impatience long before present times. This cabinet card joins a number of other Swiss images in the Cabinet Card Gallery. To view these photographs, click on the category “Switzerland”.
PORTRAIT OF A WORLD WAR I ERA SOLDIER IN NANTES, FRANCE
This vintage real photo postcard features a portrait of a smartly dressed young World War I era soldier. He looks quite handsome in his uniform and clearly has his “game face” on. The photographer of this image is Gustave Cade. He operated a studio at 8 Rue de la Barillerie in Nantes, France. Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River.
PORTRAIT OF A PRETTY WOMAN IN LEICESTER, ENGLAND (CARTES DE VISITE)
This cartes de visite (CDV) portrait features a fashionable pretty woman with a serious expression. Note her pretty hat and lace collar. The woman’s photograph was taken by photographer William Edward Drinkwater who operated a studio in Leicester, England.
PORTRAIT OF MARGUERITE: FOUR YEAR-OLD POSES IN ALEDO, ILLINOIS
The reverse of this cabinet card informs us that the subject of this photographic portrait is a four year-old girl named Marguerite. She is certainly adorable. The photographer of this image is William H. Root. The Mercer County (Illinois) Historical Society Newsletter (2012) reports that the Aledo Democrat (1881) announced that Root opened a photography studio in Aledo. By 1895 there was an advertisement advising readers that the studio was under the new ownership of Leonard Hollenbaek. Research yielded little information about William H Root. There was a photographer in a close by town (Monmouth) named Emerson Root. One source states that Emerson Root was a brother of William and that there was also a third brother (Melville Root) who worked as a photographer. There was also a photographer in Chicago, Illinois who shared the Root name. His name was W. J. Root and two of his images can be seen in the Cabinet Card Gallery collection.
THE CABINET CARD GALLERY 