Sunday, April 22, 2012

Sentimental Sunday - Women with Hats - Civil War Era Reading, PA Woman

This CDV of an attractive, well dressed woman was most likely taken in the 1860's.  She is wearing an unusual hat/bonnet with red, hand-colored flowers and tied under the chin.  She is also wearing a fur collar and hand muff along with a long outer coat, not sure what it was called.  Note the huge bow tied around her neck, looks very uncomfortable to me.  She looks very elegant and most likely came from a well-to-do family. There is no identification on this woman.

The photographer was  Samuel Clark, 539 Penn Street, over Neff's Store, Reading, PA.  By Googling his name, I found several other Civil War era photographs taken by him including those some soldiers, but was unable to find any more information on the photographer himself.  



2 comments:

  1. She looks like she'd be right at home in Tara.

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  2. A fine photo. Last year I did a lot of research on a Reading photography studio from the the same period - Patton and Dietrich. Mr. Clark shows up in the Reading city directories for 1866 & 1868 but not the earlier 1864 edition. Almost all the photographers congregated around the rail station on Penn St. and in 1866 there were nine photographers. I can see this young lady riding in a sleigh, like some winter scene in a Currier & Ives print.

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