Who are these three people posing for this Cabinet Card with the little black Chihuahua sitting on a stool in Pittsburg, Kansas? This picture is not of the greatest quality, it is blurred, it has been roughly handled over the years with many scratches, scuff marks and dirt. The back is the same color as the front with something very lightly written in pencil but some one has scratched it out also with pencil. There are water stains on the backside as well. The pose of this trio is quite stiff and it is interesting to me that the men in the picture are so blurred while the little dog is quite clear.
The photographer is E. W. Smith who I found in three Kansas State Censuses, 1895, 1905 and 1915. In the 1895 census he was age 42, born in Indiana, married to Elizabeth age 32, two daughters Roxie age 11 and Viola age 6. None of these censuses listed an occupation. I also found an 1890 Pittsburgh, Kansas City Directory where he is listed near the bottom of the page under "Masonic." I found another cabinet card photograph taken by him on the Pittsburg State University site of the wedding of Anna Matilda Lahmann and Henry Cordes in 1887.
Due to the woman's clothing and the embossed text and artwork this photograph was probably taken around the very late 1890's or early 1900's.
The other odd thing is how far apart they are standing. And on an X-rated note, I'm surprised the woman had such a stiff-looking pointy-looking bra.
ReplyDeleteLike you say, funny that the dog was the only thing in-focus. Great photo, though, and fun.
ReplyDeleteThey are ready to perform some kind of comedy act. WIth the dog as the real hero.
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