Fashionable Friday - 1860's (Victorian) Woman in Gingham Skirt

I love the interesting side pose by this attractive young Chicago woman who is identified on the back as Millie Loudwick.  She looks quite lovely with a somewhat distant look on her face.  She must be thinking about taking a walk with her beau wearing her flowered, white hat which is on the sofa and carrying her parasol.  I was excited to see her name on the back, but alas was unable to find any trace of her in Ancestry.com.

I've decided that this was most likely taken in the late 1860's due to a number of factors including thickness of the card paper, measurements of the CDV, the two stripes of the border and it most likely had square corners which I believe were cut to put in an album at one time.  

The photographer is listed as Shaw's Mammoth Photograph Rooms located at 186 South Clark St. in Chicago.  A quick search did not turn up any results, but I like the slogan on the bottom of the card, "Pictures Taken In Cloudy Weather at these Photograph Rooms, Superior to those taken elsewhere in town on a fair day."

Wedding Wednesday - 1890's (Edwardian) Chicago Newlyweds

This attractive young Chicago couple posed for their photograph most likely in the early 1890's.  The bride's veil is similar to other's I have posted about here before.  Her finger-less gloves are the first I have seen though.  I can see a wedding ring on the groom's left hand, but am unable to see one on the bride's hand.  The bride is lovely with a tiny waist, wearing a light colored dress unlike the more serviceable dresses seen before in this time frame.  I'm not sure that it is white, perhaps gray?

The back of this dark grey cabinet card is very interesting.  It is actually much darker than seen here and to me it seems to have a Gothic feel. I have lightened it up so it is easier to see.  The front, of course, notes that the photographer is Rudolph's Studio at 957 Milwaukee Ave. in Chicago.  Not much was found for Louis Rudolph but he shows up once in the 1904 Chicago City Directory and again in the 1930 Chicago Census as a Proprietor of a Picture Show.  He was born circa 1878 in Denmark.

Unfortunately, as so often occurs, there is no identification for the couple.  It's truly a shame as I'm sure there are probably descendants who would love to have this photo.

Wedding Wednesday - Ethereal 1920's Chicago Bride

Today's lovely 1920's bride is posing with what I assume is her maid of honor.  This Art Deco photograph is in very poor shape with a number of scratches and flaws (see bottom photo below). The woman on the left has a black mark on her nose, but from their facial features and the shape of their mouths I suspect they were sisters.  This young bride was truly an ethereal and exquisite vision.  She appears so serene and is wearing a lovely white gown with the most beautiful headdress.  She is holding a large bouquet of white roses. One thing I always find interesting and have seen before;  she is wearing white heeled shoes, her maid of honor is wearing very serviceable black shoes.

Unknown 1920's bride and maid of honor (sisters?)

The photographer was the Liberty Studio at, 223 Milwaukee  Ave., Chicago.  I did not find any information on this studio, but perhaps another of the many ethnic photography studios along the Milwaukee Avenue corridor which included a large Polish population.

Wedding Wednesday - Elegant 1920's Chicago Newlyweds

Unknown couple, Avondale Photo Studio,
2987 Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago, Ill.

Today's bride and groom are another example of the elegant photography of the 1920's. This photograph was taken by the Avondale Photography Studios located at 2987 Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago, Ill.  There were a large number of photography studios on Milwaukee Avenue during this era and the area surrounding the route was associated with many ethnicities including a large Polish population.  

While the bride's dress is difficult to see, her headdress is unique, almost cap-like and instead of a train it wraps around her like a lace shawl.  I may not be describing this correctly, but it is quite lovely.  She is holding a large bouquet of white roses and other flowers with trailing ribbons.  The groom is very dashing is his tux and I like his casual pose with his hand in his pocket.  All in all, I would say they look very happy.

Wedding Wednesday - 1920's Chicago Wedding Photo - Stunning Bride

Unidentified 1920's Chicago Couple

This beautiful wedding photo was taken most likely in the 1920's by Chicago photographer Zygmunt Rozanski.  This 5" x 7" photo is actually in a large Art Deco looking folder (see below), but I cropped it so that we can get a more close up view of this elegant couple. While the groom is quite dashing, the bride's entire ensemble is breathtaking.  I love the way the photographer has posed her sitting high on a stool so that we can see her long, flowing train.  Her headdress is absolutely stunning, I have never seen anything like it.  It is made of some kind of sheer lace and and covers her head with arches over the ears and forehead - truly unusual and unique.  Her dress appears to be mid-calf length and allows us to see her white high-heeled shoes with multiple bows.  She is holding a bridal bouquet of mixed flowers with long ribbon streamers and the groom sports a boutonniere which seems to match the sprigs in her headdress.  She  appears to be wearing a pearl necklace and I expect her wedding ring is camouflaged by the bouquet; you can clearly see her groom's ring on his left hand.

The photographer, Zygmunt Rozanski, was born 28 Sep 1889 or 1890 in Warsaw, Poland. He emigrated to the US in 1913 and in June of 1917 he registered for the draft during WWI.  He stated that he was 27 years old, lived at 1069 Milwaukee Ave, Chicago,  was single and had blue eyes and blonde hair.  His occupation was photographer and he was the proprietor of a photography business.  On 19 Jun 1918 he married Stefana Wisniewska in Cook County, IL.  In the 1920 Chicago Ward 17 census they had one child, a daughter Jadwiga,  7 months old.  I was unable to find them in any other censuses, however I did find a WWII draft registration for Zygmunt listing his wife as Stephany Rozanski and his address as 1073 Milwaukee Ave.  I also found a Social Security Death Index listing Zygmunt's death in Cook County, IL in January 1976. Interestingly, I found more than one Zygmunt Rozanski so evidently this was a popular name - I am assuming the English version is Sigmund.

Wedding Wednesday - Stunning 1924 Chicago, ILL Couple

1924 Chicago Wedding Couple

I recently purchased a large lot of wedding photographs from the early 1900's, most were taken in Chicago and all seemed to be studios located on Milwaukee Avenue.  I tried to do a some research as to why this particular location housed so many photography studios, but could find no real answer.  I suspect however that this was a Polish neighborhood.  This photograph of a very attractive unidentified bride and groom was taken in 1924 by Polonia Studios located at 1029 Milwaukee Ave, Chicago.  I did not find any information on the studio, but the word "Polonia" refers to people of Polish origin who live outside Poland (according to Wikipedia) so this supports my theory.  In addition, the white sign at the groom's feet is in a foreign language and I am guessing it is Polish.   I  am not sure what is says, perhaps the name of the bride and groom and it is where I got the 1924 date.  Perhaps one of my readers will be able to translate for me.  

The bride is quite beautiful in her white dress with long train and her headdress is quite spectacular as well.  It looks like a hat with a long veil.  The groom is also very dashing in his dark suit and he is holding a pair of white gloves.  There are two large bouquets of flowers, I am assuming that the one in front of the bride is her wedding bouquet.

I have more Chicago wedding photographs to share in the weeks to come and two more from Polonia Studio in particular.

Those Places Thursday - Unknown Chicago, Ill Church 1864-66

This CDV of an Chicago church was taken by photographer, Brands Art Gallery between 1864 and 1866.  We know this by the revenue stamp on the back on the photograph.  During the Civil War a tax was levied on photographs beginning in August 1864 and continued through August 1866.  The photographer was required to cancel the stamp by initialing and dating the stamp which only actually occurred on about 25% of the stamps.  This particular stamp does have the photographer's initials and a date, unforgettably I cannot read either!  A quick search did not turn up anything on Brands Art Gallery.

Mystery Monday - Mystery Man From Chicago

This cabinet card photograph of a very handsome and distinguished, but unidentified man from Chicago was taken at Gehrig Studios, 337 West Madison St.  He is wearing a suit and a heavy outer coat while holding an umbrella and gloves and he looks quite prosperous.  I am dating this photograph between 1888 and 1894.  I had several clues including the beveled edges with gilt on the card as well as the photographer's attractive, cursive imprint at the bottom of the card.  The biggest clue however is the photographer's mark at the bottom that says "Place's Extra Finish." These imprints were used during this time period.

Gehrig studios was listed in Chicago City Directories at several different addresses between 1847 and 1900.  The main proprietor seems to be Joseph  W. Gehrig who listed 337 Madison as his place of business between 1881 and 1900.  Frank A. Place (note again the photographer's mark) was listed at this address between 1888 and 1895 which would be dead on with the photograph date above.  Joseph Waldon Gehrig was born 7 Mar 1846 in Switzerland to Gregorius and Barbara (Kuhnvonvason) Gehrig.  I don't know when he came to America, but he was married about 1880 to Annie Getchow.  Joseph died 13 Feb 1915 in Chicago and is buried at Forest Home Cemetery in Cook County, IL.

Frank A. Place was born in June of 1851 in Indiana, married about 1858 to Abbie C. Place.  They had at least one child Alberta born about 1870.  His daughter Alberta married Charles A. Raynor also a photographer.  Sometime before 1910 he and his wife moved to Winthrop, Suffolk, Massachusetts where he continued his work as a photographer.

Sentimental Sunday - A Trip to the Library?

One of the most exciting things that happened to me as a young girl was when I got my first library card.  I have loved to read books since about the first grade and have been a voracious reader ever since.  Going to the library in my home town of Mt. Vernon, IL was always such an exciting, awe-inspiring, experience.  There was something about exploring all the rows and rows of books and finding exciting new stories about people and places.  I could hardly wait to rush home and curl up in my favorite place and start reading.  Nowadays, I just go online, pick out new books and download them to my eReader - takes some of the excitement out of it .

This picture I purchased of a beautiful young woman holding several books brought back memories of weekend trips to the library.  Her beautiful dress, or outercoat is something I have not seen in any of the hundreds of pictures I have perused to try and date this picture.   I tried to find an era where hats like this were worn without success, although I intend to keep trying.  The photographer was Copelin of Chicago, N.W. Corner of Madson and State Streets and there are no identifying names for her anywhere on the picture.  However, I have decided this Cabinet photo was most likely taken between 1882 - 1888 by using this Cabinet Card dating timetable.  The front of this is a matte finish and the back a glossy yellow finish.

Chicago Women - Mid 1890's with Great Hats!

What a great photo this is - I would love to know the story behind this picture!  Are they sisters, friends?  This is a group of four women taken in Chicago around the turn of the century.  The photographer is Spencer, 1520 Ellis Avenue, Chicago, Il.  I absolutely love this picture.

Update:  Now that I have a little more knowledge of Victorian fashion I know that these women posed for this picture sometime in the 1890's, probably mid-90's.