Sepia Saturday #166 - The Markey Bronze Bushing Company - Delta, Ohio

The Sepia Saturday theme photo this week features a woman factory worker making paper boxes, a great photo showing the industrious spirit of those hard workers of the past.  Just this past week I had the great fortune of scoring a great buy on eBay of 175 photos for a steal.  A large box arrived just a few days ago and what a treasure trove it has turned out to be!  I'm still sorting through all these wonderful, old photographs, and shockingly the subjects are actually identified on a large number of them.  There was one photo though that I knew I had to use this week for my Sepia Saturday entry.

It features a group of thirty-six individuals (if I counted correctly) in front of a concrete block building with the name "The Markey Bronze B" showing.  The photographer was Elton Studio, Delta, O.  Note the two well dressed gentlemen flanking both sides, obviously executives, and the woman who I am guessing was a secretary for the company.   Unfortunately, there is no identification of any of these subjects.  I am not sure of a time frame for this photo but I am guessing in the 1930's.  See the full photo below which has Art Deco frame.

Markey Bronze Bushing Co, Delta, Ohio ca 1930's

My research tells me this was The Markey Bronze Bushing Company of Delta, Ohio.   Obviously they made bushings, which while not very exciting, were a necessary commodity.  I could not find much information on this company such as when it was started or if it even still existing although I do not think it is.  I found quite a number of obituaries on Google of men who worked at Markey Bronze, many before WWII.  Delta, Ohio is a village in Fulton County with a population of about 3,103 people according to Wikipedia.  It is near Toledo and Bowling Green.

I found a great genealogy site for Fulton County with lots of great photos and an active historical society.  I think I will contact them to see if there is an interest in this photograph.  Perhaps someone will be able to identify of these people.

Wait, there's more!  Please check out Sepia Saturday for more great stories and photos this week!

Fashionable Friday - Civil War Era Couple - Early 1860's CDV

Unidentified 1862-63 Couple

This Cartes de Visite (CDV) of an unidentified couple is an excellent example of early 1860's clothing.  Her military-style dress with hoop skirt and pagoda sleeves was so typical of the times and is quite lovely.  I particularly like the trim on the sleeves and at the waist as well as the buttons on the bodice. According to Wikipedia, after about 1862 morning dresses featured wide pagoda sleeves worn over undersleeves  or engageantes.  High necklines with lace or tatted collars or chemisettes completed the demure daytime look.  See illustration below show similar pagoda style sleeves.

In America, the early years of the Civil War also saw increased popularity of military-influenced styles in women's clothing.  Note her hair which is parted in the middle and drawn back at her nape into a bun.  Such styling was usually maintained by the use of hair oils and pomades.  Styled hair was often confined in decorated hairnets called snoods.  These hairnets were often edged with ruchings of ribbon that adorned the crown of the head such as the one this subject appears to be wearing.

Her husband, who appears to be a bit older than is wife, is wearing a ditto suit which came into fashion in the mid-nineteenth century and would become the dominant form of Western men's dress clothing for the next century.  The suit, consisting of jacket, vest and trousers was made of the same fabric and was characterized by the loose fitting jacket which hung straight from the shoulders. The ready-to-wear suit was a fairly informal type of clothing and became very popular after the "Beau Brummell" period of men's clothing in the early 1800's sometimes called the era of dandies.

I believe this photo to have been taken approximately 1862 - 1863.

Godey's April 1861

Sources:  

Wikipedia

Fashion Enclyclopedia:  

Sepia Saturday #151 - Invention of the Telephone: Life, Work & Communication

The theme for this week's Sepia Saturday centers around a photograph  entitled "Photograph of Women Working at a Bell System Telephone Switchboard."  I knew I didn't have anything switchboard related, but it got me thinking about communication and how things have changed drastically from when our ancestors had to send letters by messengers on horse or foot to the very early invention of the telephone.  Alexander Graham Bell was credited with inventing the first practical telephone in addition to other groundbreaking inventions. He has been described as one of the most influential figures in human history.  His invention would drastically change the way that people would live, communicate and work.  I'm sure as with most new inventions not everyone could afford to have a telephone at first but eventually they became more commonplace.  

This is a photo of Alexander Graham Bell, 1892, in New York calling Chicago.  (Gilbert H. Grosvenor Collection, Prints and Photographs Division, Library of Congress.)

Alexander Graham Bell 1892

Today with the onslaught of cellphones many people are actually moving away from having the traditional land-lines in their homes.  My husband and I have considered it, but can't quite seem to cut the cord, so to speak.  Please scroll further down to see various ads, ephemera and photos I have pertaining to this great invention.  This is a long post with a number of photos but if you stick it out until the end you'll get to see a scrapbook page I made with a picture of me when I had a job working from home a few years ago!   What a treat!!

These two photos are from the 1897 Sears Roebuck Catalog and show that the telephone was available and affordable for many.

Sears Roebuck 1897

Sears Roebuck 1897

This Valentine's postcard which was postmarked in 1910 shows a cute little boy calling his sweetheart on a desk phone.

1910 

Next are ads from various years touting the wonders and convenience of telephones.

 Ads from 1935 and 1962:

And finally a scrapbook layout I did a few years ago when I was working from home, quite frazzled, on the phone all day.   Dang -  I wish I still looked that good!

Sepia Saturday is calling you to come on over to see more great stories and photos!

Sources:  Wikipedia, Better Homes & Gardens, Sears Roebuck

Sepia Saturday - 1880's Dashing Young Men with Bowler Hats

The theme for this weeks Sepia Saturday is "Men" and the picture prompt used shows a group of men most  wearing hats. Every Sunday (or almost every Sunday) I publish a post called "Women with Hats" so I had to laugh to myself when I decided to use this tintype of eight stylish young men posing with their bowler hats. Maybe I should start a new category called "Men with Hats?"  Nah.  

This group of fine looking young men most likely posed for this picture with an unknown photographer in the latter half of the 1880's.  The four in the front row and one in the back left are holding their hats, I am assuming that the other three are holding their hats behind their backs. I could not date the photo using just the bowler hats as a clue as they came into fashion when the hat was created in 1849 in England for Edward Coke, a soldier and politician who was the younger brother of the 2nd Earl of Leicester.  The hat was popular with the working class during the Victorian era and became the most popular hat in the American West even over the cowboy hat.   What really helped me to narrow down the date of this photo are the tie pins that several of the gentlemen are wearing. In the 1880's bow ties lost favor to the modern tie and a small tie pin stuck in the middle of the knot was the norm.

Hold on to your hat and hop over to Sepia Saturday for more great photos and stories!

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.

Sepia Saturday #141 - Time Stands Still for No Man...or Woman

Pocket watch 1897 Sears Catalog

Well actually it does...sort of....in the case of the art of taking a photograph.  It hasn't waited for me either.  I have been missing from Sepia Saturday for the last few weeks for a couple of reasons, the main one being that most of my "time" has been spent resting in a chair after a tumble through space.  To try and make a long story short, I got up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and in trying to be quiet so I didn't wake my husband, left the lights off as I usually do.  On the way back I tripped over the dog's bed, fell forward and landed on my stomach on the corner of the the bedpost, rolled and landed on my ribs, hit my chin, my head, my elbows, my butt, well, I think you are getting the idea.  I was bruised and banged up from head to toe and ended up waking all three dogs and my husband. I dragged myself to work everyday, but didn't feel like doing much else afterwards.

Pocket watches 1897 Sears Catalog

Now I'm back and ready to tackle the issue of time.  I wasn't sure where I was going to go with this week's Sepia Saturday theme, but when I was looking through all my vintage photographs I kept noticing that in many of the photos of men you can see the chains connected to the pocket watches.  It was a little frustrating because I really wanted to see a pocket watch but not in one single photo out of dozens did I see one.  According to Wikipedia "a pocket watch is a watch that is made to be carried in a pocket."  Wow, I would have never figured that out on my own!  They were the most common type of watch from their development in the 16th century until wristwatches became popular after WWI. Pocket watches generally have an attached chain to allow them to be secured to a waistcoat, lapel or belt loop and to prevent them from being dropped (Wikipedia).

Please take a look at the photographs below and you will see what I mean about just seeing the chain - you will have to use your imagination to visualize the watch.  Hopefully, the photos from the Sears Catalog will give you an idea.

CDV of Late 1860 couple (unidentified)

Cabinet Card 1870's Couple (unidentified)

Cabinet Card Late 1880's Medina,
NY Man (unidentified)

Summer 1866 Philadelphia Man - CDV
(Blue Playing Card Rev Stamp on back)
(unidentified)

Please take the "time" to click here to visit Sepia Saturday too see more intriguing  photos and stories posted this week.

Those Places Thursday - Crossdoney Cottage, Whitby, Ontario 1909

I came across this photograph of a house and on the back is written, "Crossdoney Cottage, Whitby, Ontario, Taken Sept. 15th, 09."   Whitby is located in Southern Ontario on the north shore of Lake Ontario and named after the seaport town of Whitby, Yorkshire, England.  Whitby's chief asset was it's fine harbour on Lake Ontario. 

Crossdoney is a village in County Cavan in Ireland - it is also the name of a railway station in County Cavan. I do not know where Crossdoney Cottage is located in Whitby, Ontario but I assume it was named after Crossdoney, Ireland. From the picture it seems a typical home with red brick, lace curtains in the windows, nice front porch and there even appears to be a grandmother sitting there waiting to welcome you!  I wish I knew the story behind this picture.

Source:  Wikipedia

Sepia Saturday #132 - Love, Set, Match - Two Little German Boys

This week's Sepia Saturday theme centers around tennis, in fact the photograph on their blog site is from 1971 taken in Fort Lauderdale, FL of Dinah Shore and Burt Bacharach most likely at a celebrity tournament.  This is most interesting to me because I was a teenager growing up in Fort Lauderdale at that very time.  I spent many hours hanging out with my friends at Holiday Park where the famous Chris Evert practiced tennis on a daily basis with her father before she became a world class champion.  I myself could never hit a tennis ball worth a darn - I spent more time chasing the ball all over the court than actually hitting it!  Holiday Park is a large, very popular park with tennis courts, ball diamonds, basketball courts, playgrounds, a theater, etc.  My father coached Little League baseball for my brothers' teams and our family spent many nights at that park.  Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of this time, but it brought back a lot of fond memories. 

However, I do have this CDV photograph of two very cute Hamburg, Germany boys in "matching" suits that I thought I would share.    It comes with an interesting story about the photographer.  In this photo the boys are holding toy tennis rackets and standing next to a toy rocking horse. They are wearing the most adorable outfits; I'm not sure how to describe them, they almost resemble sailor suits.  The photographer is Waarenhaus Hermann Tietz (department store).  On the back of the card it says, "Waarenhaus" which means "a site where mass products are sold" or "department store". According to Wikipedia, Herman Tietz was a German merchant of Jewish origin who was born on 29 Apr 1837 in Birnbaum an der Warthe  near Posen (today Miedzychód, Poland) and died in Berlin 3 May 1907.

He was the first to create the idea of a department store in Germany and founded the chain store which would become known as "Hertie".  His first store was opened in 1882 in Gera (Thuringia, Germany) by his nephew Oskar Tietz.  After successful stores were established in smaller towns like Bamberg, Erfurt, Rostock, Stralsund and Wismar, Tietz opened his department store in Berlin.  In 1900 he opened a store in Leipziger StraBe, in 1904 Alexanderplatz, Hamburg in 1912.  By 1927 the Tietz chain had ten stores and 13,000 employees.

In the Third Reich, all businesses of the Tietz family were "Aryanized" (seized and given to new owners) and the family members emigrated.  In 1933, Georg Karg, the new owner, changed the company's name to the less Jewish-sounding "Hertie Department Stores" as an abbreviation of Hermann Tietz.

I'm not entirely sure how to date this Cartes de Visite.  The card is slightly larger than most CDVs and is quite thick which would usually lead one to think it dated between 1880 and 1890.  CDV's were rarely seen after 1890.  Since it has been reported that Tietz did not open his Hamburg store until 1912 I am at a loss to explain or give a good date for this photo.  Perhaps one of my readers can offer some insight.

Sources:   

1.  Wikipedia

2.  Shoah Resource Center, 

http://www1.yadvashem.org/odot_pdf/Microsoft%20Word%20-%205622.pdf

Please drop by Sepia Saturday to check out the other "love"ly entries for this week's tennis theme.

Sentimental Sunday - Women with Hats - Big Hat & Grapes too!

Why can't I just for once post a picture without all the drama?  This week's "Women with Hats" photo is of English actress Edna Loftus (? -1916), this particular picture postcard taken before 1907.  I had never heard of Edna, but  thought to myself I'll just check her out on Wikipedia, write a short bio and be done with it.  Of course it could not be that simple!  Look at this beautiful Edwardian photo of her with the large hat, she is holding grapes in her hands and even appears to have white grapes on her hat.  She is truly a vision of loveliness.

From what little I have been able to learn about her she was an English musical comedy actress, birthday unknown.  Little is know about her early life; from this postcard which is postmarked 1907 I am going to guess her birth date somewhere between 1875 and 1885.  Her career was somewhat modest, however, her personal life was full of drama. As a young woman she went to London and joined a vaudeville-pantomime known there as the "Rein Deers" and evolved from that into a  London music hall star.  During this time her she announced her engagement to Lord Dunbarton of Manchester.  When this was called off she soon became engaged and then married to Winnie O'Connor, the famous English jockey, also famous on American tracks.  She divorced O'Connor and was said to have gone to New York City to appeared on Broadway after 1906.

Edna Loftus 1906

It was reported that while in New York in a Broadway restaurant she met Harry Rheinstrom, a younger man, and a son of a millionaire Cincinnati distiller and he was reported to have spent several thousand dollars on her in a short period of time.  When they announced their intention to marry, his family who strongly objected had her arrested, and had him admitted to a private sanitarium in Ohio.  Miss Loftus procured a writ of habeas corpus and secured Rheinstrom's release on 4 January 1910.  They crossed state lines and were married in Covington, KY on 7 Jan 1910.  He still had to face a lunacy trial through proceedings filed by his mother and have a guardian appointed.  Edna and Harry left for Los Angeles where they took up residency at a chicken farm in Boyle Heights.  After six months they returned to Cincinnati to effect a reconciliation with his mother and to try to procure his inheritance.

There were more drama to come.  She was arrested and accused of bigamy for not legally divorcing her first husband.  Her husband's parents had him readmitted to the sanitarium for his nerves.  After release from jail she went to work as as a cafe singer to pay for his expenses. His parents wanted him back, but without her.  In Dec 1910, now separated from her husband and penniless she jumped into Spreckels Lake in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco to commit suicide.  She was rescued by an passing motorist.  In 1913 Rheinstrom was sent to the insane asylum at Stockton, released a year later, divorced his wife and returned to the East.

In October 1915 suffering from severe illness she tried to sue her former parents-in-law. Edna, whose career was virtually over at this time was also was facing deportation.  According to the Oakland Tribune, she was managing the Art Hotel at 883 Kearny Street, her fame long gone.  She died penniless 16 June 1916 of tuberculosis in San Francisco and was to be buried in the local potter's field until friends intervened and had her buried in Cypress Lawn Cemetery.

Sources:

1. Wikipedia

2.  New York Times

3.  http://footlightnotes.tripod.com/ArchiveTextL/EdnaLoftus.html

Sentimental Sunday - Women with Hats - Edna Wallace Hopper

I just love these two cabinet cards taken in 1898 of Edna Wallace Hopper (17 Jan 1872 or 74 - 14 Dec 1959) who was a famous American stage and silent film actress and her dog.   She was born to Walker and Josephine Wallace in either 1872 or 74, but refused to give her exact birth date and no one could find out for certain because her birth records were destroyed in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.  In these photographs she is wearing very typical 1890's garb while posing with her beloved dog. Her hat is quite impressive and you will notice she is wearing a long chain around her neck that appears to be a dog whistle.  Also on her hip is an object that I was quite curious about, but I found something similar today and believe it to be a vintage scent bottle (see picture). The photographer is Benjamin J. Falk (1853 - 1925), who was one of the leading celebrity photographers in New York City at that time. He opened his studio at 13 and 15 West 24th St. N.Y. Madison Square in 1892.  He also had studios at twenty-third street and Broadway (on the present site of the Flatiron Building) and the Waldorf Astoria at West 33rd Street.

vintage scent bottle

Edna was no stranger to drama in her personal life. Her father was the head night usher at the California Theatre.  According to Wikipedia, while she was still young her parents took in a wealthy boarder, Alexander Dunsmuir (1853 - 1900) co-heir to the Dunsmuir coal and shipping fortune.  Unfortunately her mother fell in love with their boarder and ran off with him and left Edna, her father and her sibling. Wally sued for divorce and Alex's parents disapproved so their marriage was on hold.  Alex apparently was an alcoholic and began to drink heavily.  In the spring of 1886 he disappeared in San Francisco on a drinking binge for ten days. After his father died in 1889 Alex bought the estate of Souther Farm now known as Dunsmuir House, near San Francisco at a cost $350,000 and deeded it to Josephine. Alex and Josephine were married on 21 Dec 1899 in California and honeymooned in New York City.  

Edna Wallace Hopper 1898 NYC

Edna had gone to New York to train for the stage. While there she had married DeWolf Hopper (1858-1935) on 28 June 1895. They appeared together in comic operas including John Philip Sousa's El Capitan, but divorced in 1898, the same year these photos were taken.  They were a somewhat mismatched couple on stage and in life; DeWolf was tall for the times at 6 foot 3 inches and Edna was less than five feet and weighed 85 pounds. By the time her mother married Alex Dunsmuir, Edna was already a star on Broadway. She met with them while they were in New York.  Unfortunately, Alex was very sick with alcohol withdrawal, worsening each day and died on New Year's Day in a New York City Hospital.  Josephine, now a widow, returned to her new San Leandro estate where she died of cancer on 22 Jun 1901.

By this time Edna had achieved great fame starring in her most famous role, Lady Holyrood in the popular London inportation Florodora.  Although she did not play one of the renowned Florodora Sextettes, she shared in the wide adulation of the many male admirers who mobbed the backstage door after each performance.  She remained very active on stage over the next decade including starring in George M. Cohen's Fifty Miles from Boston in 1907.  In 1908 she married Wall Street broker Albert O. Brown.

1910

During the 1910's and early 1920's her career slowed down but took a different direction.  She was one of the earlier stage actors to have a facelift and had the operation filmed.  Over the next eight years she made personal appearances and tours showing the film and giving beauty tips.  Over the years she would put her name on a line of products noted for keeping her youthful looks - Edna Wallace Hopper Cosmetics.  

She separated from her second husband Brown and he died in the 1930's.  She went on to become the only woman of the thirty-six member board of L. F. Rothschld & Co..  She traveled daily by subway to her office to handle investments until shortly before her death in New York City from complications of pneumonia on 14 Dec 1959 at the reported age of 94 leaving no immediate survivors.  She is buried at Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland, Alameda County, California.

Sources:

1.  Wikipedia
2.  Shades of the Departed:  http://www.shadesofthedeparted.com/2011/08/todays-shades-old-photograph.html#links
3.  Find-A-Grave:  http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=19073997

Sepia Saturday #128 - You Belong To Me - Jo Stafford

This week's Sepia Saturday prompt relates to music, song, etc and as usually happens I never know where I'm going with the theme and where I'll end up.  I remembered that I had a pile of old sheet music I bought on one of my "antiquing" junkets that I had no idea what I was going to do with them, I just liked the way they looked.  This particular piece of sheet music is a song I have heard and liked my whole life except I have always heard it sung by one of my all time favorites, Patsy Cline.  The words and music are by Pee Wee King, Redd Stewart and Chilton Price, and was recorded previously by Jo Stafford in 1952 for Columbia Records.  I have to admit I had never heard of Jo Stafford before today (she was a little before my time) but evidently she was quite famous and had a beautiful voice.

This piece of sheet music was evidently a popular piece with the former owner as you can see by all the pencil marks on the second page.  I have no idea what all these notations mean as I know nothing about playing music, I just enjoy the outcome.

According to Wikipedia Jo Elizabeth Stafford (November 12, 1917 - July 16, 2008) was an American singer of traditional American pop music and jazz standards and occasional actress whose career ran from the late 1930's to the early 1960's.  Stafford was greatly admired for the purity of her voice and was considered one of the most versatile vocalists of the era.   She came from a musical family and was also related to Sgt. Alvin York a famous WWI hero.  The article is quite interesting and lengthy - I encourage you to read it if you are interested in the music of this time period. 

Here is a great YouTube video of her recording of You Belong To Me with different photo clips of her throughout her career by mr40sfan - she does have a beautiful voice:

For more great musical themes as well as other song-worthy posts, check out this week's Sepia Saturday.

Mystery Monday - Gypsy Woman's Identity Solved!

Mary F. Scott-Siddons as Rosalind

Last week in my Women with Hats post,  I posted a photograph/CDV taken by Napoleon Sarony of New York of an unidentified woman wearing a gypsy-like costume.  Sarony was famous for photographing the many actors and actresses of the theater.  I was looking at vintage photos on e-Bay and typed in “actress” and as I was scrolling through them came across several photographs of my subject – Mary Frances Scott-Siddons.  She was indeed an actress; in fact she was descended from the  famous theatrical family that produced Sarah Siddons, John Philip Kemble, Charles Kemble and Fanny Kemble.  Sarah Kemble Siddons (1775-1831), called the "Tragic Muse" was her great-grandmother and had a prestigious acting award named for her by the Chicago group, the Sarah Siddons Society.    Each year since 1952 the society awards the coveted Sarah Siddons Award for Distinguished Achievement to a theater actor for an outstanding performance.  Some of these great actors have included Helen Hayes, Bette Davis, Lauren Bacall, Claudette Colbert, and too many more to mention.  The award was actually created after a reference to a fictitious award of the same name in the 1950 movie “All About Eve.”

Mary F. Scott-Siddons

As I delved into research about my subject and her famous family I unearthed almost more information than I could process.  As the story goes, her grandfather George Siddons was sent to India in 1803 at the direction of King George III as a favor to Mrs. Siddons.  According to Edwin A. Lee in “Mary Frances Scott- Siddons -A Remembrance,” King George said, “Send him to India—India—fine place—make a fortune there.”  Mary F. Scott-Siddons was born in Bengal, India in 1844 to George Siddons’ son William Young Siddons and his wife the daughter of Col. Earl. Early in life Mary demonstrated a talent for theatrical recitation.  She also strongly resembled her famous great-grandmother who died thirteen years before her birth.  At the age of sixteen she returned to England to further her education with her mother and sister after her father’s death.    At the age of eighteen as she was preparing to go on the stage she married a young naval officer named Thomas Chanter whose parents objected to his marriage into a theatrical family.  The story passed down in theater lore is that they created a last name using his mother’s name Scott and her name Siddons.

She made her acting debut using this new name in Nottingham, England in the role of Lady Macbeth, however, the role it was reported,  was not suited for her.  On April 8, 1867 at the Haymarket Theatre in London she appeared as Rosalind in “As You Like It.”  The Bell’s Life of London said of her performance, “The lady bears a striking likeness to her great ancestress, though her form and figure may be pronounced neat and graceful rather than majestic.  Her conception of a character, confessedly one of the most beautiful in the catalogue of Shakespeare’s heroines, was marked by great intelligence…..and the applause bestowed of the most enthusiastic nature.”

Mary F. Scott-Siddon,
Photographers Elliott & Fry, London

Mrs. Scott-Siddon’s first American appearance as a reader of Shakespeare and other poets in 1867-68 attracted much attention largely because of her rare beauty; her features were aquiline, her eyes large and lustrous, her figure slender.  She appeared at the Boston Museum and  made her metropolitan debut on the dramatic stage as Rosalind at the New York Theater on November 30, 1868. The picture I posted last week has been reported to be from her role as Rosalind, a role she performed in repeated engagements. The criticism from this performance as reported in the New York Tribune was for the most part complimentary, “She is not a great actress, but she is largely gifted with talents, and more that all, with that spark of vital earnestness which makes talent magnetic.  While in New York she also appeared in “Romeo and Juliet,” “Taming of the Shrew,” and “King Rene’s Daughter.”  Upon her next engagement in New York in October of 1869 she appeared as Viola in “Twelfth Night.”  The Daily Times gave a pleasant review in part saying, “She infused into the part a sprightliness, a fascination, an arch humor and at times, a subtlety and delicacy of appreciation that were truly delightful and proved her to be a genuine daughter of Kemble.”

According to the New York Times (obituary) “her theatrical experiences in this country lasted a number of years and were presumably profitable.  As an actress, however, her style was amateurish and her manner cold……For a number of years the sales of her photographs were very large.  She was a remarkably good subject for the camera.”

Thomas & Mary Scott-Siddons 

According to Edwin A. Lee who personally knew the Scott-Siddons, she worshiped at the shrine of Thespis" and her husband Captain “Scott" was a votary of “Bacchus” which caused them to separate and which also most likely caused his death probably sometime in the late 1870’s.  After a long absence from America Mrs. Scott-Siddons returned to this country in the early 1890’s and resided for a while in New York.  After one failed attempt at acting at Palmer’s Theatre in a version of Augier’s “L’Aventuriere”   she was no longer seen in the public eye.  She died in Paris on 19 Nov, 1896 at the age of fifty-two.

Sources:

1.  New York Times, Obituary, Mrs. Scott-Siddons, Published: November 20, 1896.

2.  Wikipedia

3.  Mary Frances Scott-Siddons - A Remembrance by Edwin A. Lee, The Muse Volume Edited by Charles Elston Nixon, The Philharmonic Co, 1903, Pub. Monthly by Arthur B. McCoid, New York (Google e-book).

4.   www.kemblefamily.com
5.  Folger Shakespeare Library
6.  The Broadway League, 
7.  Meserve-Kundhart Foundation

Those Places Thursday - Deadwood Dakota Territory Couple

Although torn at the bottom and with a small stain this cabinet card of an 1880's couple taken in Deadwood, Dakota Territory was a great find and it opened up a real research adventure for me. The photo shows an attractive well dressed man and woman, husband and wife, he is sitting and she is standing behind him.  She is wearing the typical 1880's style bustled dress.  She also has a beautiful,  but common for the times, locket around her neck and her hair is styled with curly fringes about the forehead.    The photographer was Pollock, Main and Gold Sts. Deadwood Dakota.  On the reverside side the man is identified as "one of the Duggan sons of Henry Duggan, Sr. (Wm. Von Pier?)."

I am convinced that this is William V. Duggan who I found quite easily on Ancestry.com born  in Barclay, PA most likely in December of 1855.  His parents were Henry and Ann (unknown) Duggan both from Wales.  Henry Duggan of Barclay, PA had seven sons, the oldest William being born in 1855.  The next son was Henry Pierre born in 1868.  In the 1880 Barclay, Bradford County, PA census 25 year old William is living with his parents and numerous brothers and sisters and occupation listed as student.  Sometime around 1883 he married Mary (unknown) also from Pennsylvania, and before 1884 they moved to the South Dakota Territory where they are found in the 1885 South Dakota Territorial Census. Their son William Jennings Duggan was born 13 May 1884 (1900 Pipestone, Minnesota census).  William age 30 listed his occupation as "lawyer, wife Mary age 23, with one son William age 1/12 (one month) and one servant, Lizzie Janes aged 14.  His brother, Henry Pierre who was thirteen years younger did not marry until 1896 so they style of dress worn by the woman in this photo does not fit, therefore I am certain this is William V. and Mary Duggan.

Wiliiam and Mary would go on to have two more children, Ruth born in 1889 and Mary J. born in 1891.  Mary must have died before 1893, perhaps in childbirth with Mary because on 11 Apr 1893 in Pipestone, Minnesota (just across the state line from South Dakota) William was married again to Georgia Hatch (1871-).  William and Georgia lived in Minnesota until 1910 where they are listed in the 1910 Elkton, Brookings, South Dakota census.  His occupation changed a little with each census, 1900 - insurance, 1905 - life insurance agent, 1910 - hotel ?, 1920 - life insurance.  I wonder what led him to leave his law practice?  William died 27 May 1932 in Brookings, South Dakota .

To further help date this photograph I found this helpful information on the photographer:   In December 1884 Albert Pollock Studio was advertising their "elegantly tinted cabinet photo and walnut frame."  Albert Pollock was partners with E. L. Boyden who bought him out in 1886 and Pollock retired to ranching.  This information comes from the site, http://identifythisdeadwoodimage.blogspot.com which has many wonderful old images from Deadwood.  Since I know that William and Mary were married sometime around 1883 this photograph can be dated between 1883 - 1886. 

Deadwood, the county seat of Lawrence County has such a rich history.  According to Wikipedia it was named for the dead trees found in its gulch.  The settlement of Deadwood was founded in the 1870's and has been described as illegal, since it lay within the territory granted to Native Americans in the 1868 Treaty of Laramie.  In 1874 Col. George Armstrong Custer led an expedition into the Black Hills belonging to the Lakota and announced the discovery of gold on French Creek triggering a gold rush.  This gave rise to the lawless town of Deadwood  which quickly reached a population of about 5,000.  Many prosperous businesses sprang up including saloons and brothels.  The town attained notoriety for the murder of Wild Bill Hickok and he is buried there at Mount Moriah Cemetery as is Calamity Jane.

A fire on September 26, 1879 devastated the town, destroying over 300 buildings and consuming most everything belonging to the townspeople.  Many left to try their luck elsewhere. The Deadwood Central Railroad was founded in 1888 to serve the mining purposes of J.K.P. Miller and associates.  Although electrified in 1902 for operation as an interuban passenger system, the railroad was abandoned in 1930.

Another fire in 1959 came close to destroying the town; about 4,500 square miles were burned.  In 1961 the entire town was designated a National Historic Landmark.  Today the population of Deadwood is around 1,270.

Sentimental Sunday - Women with Hats - Who is She?

This unidentified, well-dressed woman was photographed by Fred Hartsook of California probably between 1915 and the early 1920's. Hartsook, a well-known California photographer of silent era actors was born in 26 Oct 1896 in Marion Indiana.  According to Wikipedia he was born into a family of successful photographers and as a young man moved to Salt Lake City and began his own photography business.  In 1901 he married Florence Newcomb, a photographer as well.  They traveled around Utah taking photos with a team of mules pulling a homemade darkroom.  If you look closely in the lower right hand corned you can see the Hartsook embossment which matches the Hartsook name in the copyright image below.

Eventually they settled in California where he opened studios in a number of cities including Los Angeles and San Francisco.  His clients included Mary Pickford, Charles Lindbergh, Lillian Gish and President Woodrow Wilson.  I've looked at hundreds of Google images and have half convinced myself that this could be Mary Pickford.  

In 1919 Hartsook remarried Bess Hesby and they honeymooned in the redwood forest of Humboldt County, CA.  They eventually purchased their honeymoon cabin and 37 surrounding acres turning the cabin into the Hartsook Inn where many Hollywood celebrities stayed including Mary Pickford and Bing Crosby.  A forest fire burned down the inn in 1927 and in 1928 the photographic business went into receivership and was sold at auction.  Fred died on 30 Sep 1930 at age 53 of a heart attack.  His wife would live for another 46 years.

Sepia Saturday #115 - Games - Shuffleboard, Dog Racing & Baseball

For this week's theme at Sepia Saturday, "Games," I really had to dig deep. I couldn't find any old pictures featuring games, but I do have these old postcards and one special baseball card.  Being a transplant in south Florida I really enjoy the old  scenic views.  This first one is from my adopted home town, Fort Lauderdale postmarked 1936.  These people, winter tourists most likely, were playing shuffleboard at the Lauderdale Arms Apartment.  I couldn't find any information on the Lauderdale Arms, I'm sure it is long gone.  However, one interesting and sad note is the postmark.  For nearly 100 years a Fort Lauderdale postmark has been on all mail posted in Broward County, FL.  However, the US Postal Service has recently announced that in an effort to reduce costs they will most likely close the processing center in Fort Lauderdale and all mail will be processed and postmarked out of Miami.  It seems like a minor thing, but it is a blow to the identity and historical presence of Fort Lauderdale and Broward County.  

This second postcard, which is probably technically more a sport than a game, is Greyhound Racing at the West Flagler Kennel Club in Miami, FL and postmarked Valentines Day 1942. The back of the card says, "Nightly thousands of fans gather at Miami's most beautiful dog track, the West Flagler Kennel Club, where the Greyhound is King.  Steam Heated Grandstand." Not sure what that means and why they would need that in Miami!

Now, where the baseball card comes in - baseball is of course, the all American past-time, the game of games.  This card which was put out in 1992 is a republication of a 1925 card for Jack Warner of the Detroit Tigers.  It's relevance to me and my family is that Jack Warner was married to my maternal grandmother's aunt which would make him I guess my great grand uncle.  His full name was John Ralph Warner, he was born on 29 Aug 1903 in Evansville, IN and died 13 Mar 1986 in Mt. Vernon, IL, my hometown, where he is also buried. After his career as a baseball player was over, Jack became a baseball scout for the Chicago Cubs and later a coach for the Los Angeles Angels. If you would like to read more about him you can check out this post on my other blog Teresa's Tangled Roots or see Wikipedia.

Great Grand Uncle John Ralph Warner

Jack Warner Stats

There are more games to be played at Sepia Saturday so check them out.