AN IDENTIFIED OLD MAN : WATERLOO, IOWA : CABINET CARD

An older man, looking quite intense, poses for his portrait at the studio of La Tier, in Waterloo, Iowa. The gentleman is named Albert G. Porter and he was born in 1816. His place of birth was Seneca, New York. His identification information is derived from an inscription on the reverse of the card. The date 1892 is written on the front of the card (center bottom) and this is likely the date that the photograph was taken. The photographer, James D. La Tier, was the first president of the Photographic Association of Iowa. During his career he operated studios alone, as well as part of Simmons & La Tier, as well as Simmons, La Tier, and King. La Tier is mentioned in a number of photographic publications (1890 & 1898).

6173

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6173

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Published in: on July 2, 2024 at 12:00 pm  Leave a Comment  
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MISTER EQUESTRIAN IN DECORAH, IOWA

EQUESTRIAN_0005This cabinet card features a dandy gentleman holding what appears to be a riding crop in his gloved hands. Is he dressed for riding? Is that a horse shoe pin that he is wearing    near the bottom of his vest? Note his pocketwatch and chain. The reverse of the photograph is inscribed by the subject. He wrote “Ever your friend, George L. Stringer”. The reverse of the cabinet card also reveals the name of the photographer. A stamp identifies the portraitist as being A. W. Adams whose studio was located on Water Street in Decorah, Iowa. Research revealed some information about George Lincoln Stringer (1862-1932). The 1880 US census indicates that he was born in Iowa but that his parents were Canadian born. In 1880, he was living in Decorah with his parents. His occupation was hard to decipher but it looked a lot like blacksmith. The 1900 census found him still living in Decorah and married (1884) to Mary Alice Kennedy. The couple had a 15 year-old son named Vernon. Once again his occupation was nearly illegible but it seemed to read “traveling salesman”. George Stringer died in 1932 and is buried in Phelps Cemetery in Decorah.  The town of Decorah was settled in 1849 and in its early history had a large number of Norwegian settlers. The Norwegian influence remains there today. The Decorah Posten was the largest Norwegian newspaper in the United States until it shut down in 1972. The town was named after Waukon Decorah, a Winnebago tribal leader, who was a US ally in the Black Hawk War of 1832. The photographer of this cabinet card, Asa W. Adams (1842-1915) operated a photo studio in Decorah between 1863 and 1884. Before moving to Decorah, Adams ran a a studio in McGregor, Iowa (1863). Early during his operations in Decorah he had a partnership with S. R. Shear in the Adams & Shear Gallery. In 1866 he married Emma J. Fuller and the couple had four children. Adams sold his studio to O. E. Borlaug. He next conducted his photography business in Waterloo, Iowa (1884-after 1900). Adams died in 1915 and is buried in Decorah.

Published in: on June 30, 2014 at 12:12 pm  Comments (2)  
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