A GIRL AND HER LARGE DOLL IN PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

A young girl and her doll are the subjects of this cabinet card photograph. The doll is nearly as tall as the little girl. The studio that produced this image was Blaul & Baumgardner. Louis Blaul was a well known Philadelphia photographer who operated two studios in the city by 1890. Adolph J. Baumgardner was his business partner for a time in 1889. By 1890 Baumgardner was working with Louis H. Helbing at a studio on Lancaster Avenue in Philadelphia. Louis Blaul was succeeded by his son in the photography business. The son, Louis Adolph Blaul (1884-1954) was a law student at the University of Pennsylvania when his father died. He left his law studies to take over his fathers business.

Published in: on August 17, 2012 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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LOVING MOM IN POLKA DOT DRESS POSES WITH HER BABY IN NEW YORK CITY

A pretty young mother poses with her baby for a portrait by Charles Hoffman in New York City, New York. Mom certainly has no aversion to attracting attention judging by her polka dot dress and fantastic hat. She has a flair for putting an outfit together; her dress, hat, and dark gloves are a good match. Mother seems to also have no trouble showing affection to her young child. She holds her head very close to the baby head which is likely a reflection of the closeness she feels to her baby. The book, Great Industries Exchange and Commercial Review (1884), mentions photographer Charles Hoffmann. The citation states that he had recently established his 1288 Broadway studio after working 18 years in the “famous house of Sarony” in an important position. To view photographs by Napoleon Sarony, click on the category “Photographer: Sarony”.

Published in: on August 16, 2012 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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CUTE KIDS ON BROADWAY (NEW YORK CITY)

Two adorable kids pose for photographer Rud Bachmann whose studio was located on Broadway in New York City. The older child is holding a walking stick. It is very likely that the children are siblings. The photographer’s full name is Rudolph Bachmann. He was born in 1850 in Switzerland. He came to the United States in about 1880 and by 1884 was operating a photography business at 1437 Broadway in New York City. The gallery remained at that address until 1922 when the studio was relocated to 6 East 14th Street. Cabinet cards published after 1914 indicate that he was joined in business by his son.

Published in: on August 15, 2012 at 12:01 am  Comments (2)  
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WOMAN WEARING FUR STOLE IN BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS (PHOTOGRAPH BY WALTER CHICKERING)

A pretty woman wearing a mink stole over her long winter coat, poses for photographer Walter E. Chickering in his Boston, Massachusetts studio. The woman is wearing a nice winter hat and is holding a fur muff. She is also wearing gloves. Note the pom pom’s on the front of the stole. Advertising on the reverse of the cabinet card reminds the public that “Walter E. Chickering is the original photographer of that name”. To view photographs by both of the Chickerings (Walter and Elmer), click on the category “Photographer: Chickering, W.”.

Published in: on August 14, 2012 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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GENTLEMAN WITH PINCE NEZ EYEGLASSES IN SOUTH BEND, INDIANA

This cabinet card features a very interesting looking and nicely dressed gentleman. He is wearing a straw hat and  pince nez glasses. He has the appearance of someone well educated. The subject of this portrait has a unique looking beard. To view other distinctive beards, click on the category “Beards (Only the Best). The photograph was produced by the McDonald Studio of South Bend, Indiana. The McDonald studio remains in business today. It is the oldest photography studio in the Michiana area. What is Michiana? Michiana is a region in northern Indiana and southwestern Michigan centered on the city of South Bend.. Albert J. McDonald founded the gallery in 1861. He operated the business for 41 years and was succeeded by his son. The Bulletin of Photography (1917) printed  McDonald’s obituary. The article reports that he was born in Rochester, New York in 1841. His family moved to South Bend when he was nine years of age.

Published in: on August 13, 2012 at 12:01 am  Leave a Comment  
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THE “SPRING LAKE GYPSIES” IN WAVERLY, IOWA

This cabinet card features two pretty young woman dressed in multiple layers of clothing and holding baskets of flowers. The pair are wearing large straw hats. The subject’s names, Mattie and Lottie, are written below the photograph. The reverse of the photograph has an inscription which states “These are Spring Lake Gypsies”. Although these women could be gypsies it seems more likely that the writer of the inscription was commenting about these women’s propensity to travel around a lot. A printed advertisement on the back of the cabinet card names the photographer as the A. Garner Art Gallery, located in Waverly, Iowa (“Four Doors East of  Breemer House”). No information could be found about “Breemer House”. Interestingly, the town of Waverly is located in “Bremer” county. Is there a connection between Breemer and Bremer? As a side note, Bremer County received it’s name from Governor Hempstead who admired Swedish feminist writer Fredrika Bremer. The phrase “Spring Lake Gypsies” was researched and no information was uncovered. In addition, investigation yielded no last names for Miss Mattie or Miss Lottie. Little could be learned about photographer A. Garner other than the discovery of an article in the Report of the Iowa State Horticultural Society (1890) which includes the text of his speech to the group. The topic of his lecture was “Photography and Horticulture”.

Published in: on August 12, 2012 at 12:01 am  Comments (2)  
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PRETTY WOMAN WITH “GIBSON GIRL” HAIRSTYLE

A pretty woman is featured in this oval photograph by an unknown photographer. The woman has a “Gibson Girl” hairstyle. It appears that a previous owner trimmed the picture to fit it into a frame.

 

Published in: on August 11, 2012 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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LITTLE GIRL WITH VERY LONG HAIR IN SIDNEY, OHIO

Let me introduce you to Nellie Ewing. She was five years old when she was photographed at Miller’s Art Studio in Sidney, Ohio. The photograph was taken in 1896. Nellie was a cute child and she had very long hair which the  photographer has placed in the forefront of this image. Nellie appears to be a thoughtful little girl. The 1900 US census reveals that Nellie was born in 1881 in Ohio. At the time of the census she was living in Sidney with her grandmother Margaret Brown (age 70) and presumably her mother, Sara Ewing (age 41). All three women were employed. Nellie worked as a saleswomen; her mother was a seamstress and her grandmother was a nurse. A Sidney city directory (1902) shows that Nellie had switched careers and had become a stenographer. Little could be found about Miller’s Art Studio. However, it was discovered that the proprietor was Reinhard Miller who was born in Switzerland around 1865. He was active in Sidney in the late 1880’s and part of the 1890’s. In 1900 he moved to North Baltimore, Ohio; where he continued his profession.

Published in: on August 10, 2012 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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FAMILY PORTRAIT IN CASSVILLE, WISCONSIN

A family of seven, wearing their Sunday best,  pose for their portrait at the Chase studio in Cassville, Wisconsin. This is a serious family. The entire family is missing the smiling gene. In reality, they were likely instructed by the photographer to avoid smiling. Father and mother pose with their five sons; or is it four sons and one daughter? All five of the children have their hair parted on the side and this consistency may indicate that the youngest child is a boy. The subjects of this photograph are unidentified but an inscription on the reverse of the image states “to Mrs. Palmer”. E. W. Chase is listed as a photographer in the LaCrosse, Wisconsin city directory (1894). No other information about him could be located.

Published in: on August 9, 2012 at 12:01 am  Comments (1)  
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ATTRACTIVE AND FASHIONABLE COUPLE IN LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS (FEMALE PHOTOGRAPHER WITH PHOTOGRAPHIC GENES)

An attractive and fashionable couple stand in front of the camera in this portrait by Duclos. The gallery was located in Lowell, Massachusetts. The couple in this photograph are very well dressed and likely affluent. The couple are unidentified. This is a lovely image but there was an error made in setting up the couple’s pose. Take a close look and see if you can find the photographer’s mistake. I will describe the error in the second-to-last sentence of this paragraph. There is only sketchy information about the photographer of this image. However, the information is pretty amazing. An article in the Nashua Telegraph (1909) is entitled “DUCLOS FAMILY OF PHOTOGRAPHERS: THREE GENERATIONS OF PICTURE TAKERS”. The story reveals that the family of Mr and Mrs Alphonse Duclos of Lowell,was a family of photographers. Both father and mother were photographers and each of their six children “have charge” of photography studios. Each of the married children were married to photographers and the one and only grandchild (age 12) was considered a prodigy photographer. The article reports where each of the members of the Duclos family worked as photographers. Sadie Duclos is the family member who operated studios (2) in Lowell. When setting up the pose and while photographing this image, Sadie did not notice one of the woman’s shoes sticking out from under her dress. To view the work of other female photographers, click on the category “Female Photographers”.

Published in: on August 8, 2012 at 12:01 am  Comments (4)  
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