Sepia Saturday #177 - Children on Fences, Columns, Rocks & Other Photographer's Props

I have a lot of wonderful old children's photographs and for some reason rarely post child photos so when I saw the theme prompt for this week's Sepia Saturday I decided to share some of my favorites.  Here are just a few:

This first photo (CDV) is a very young, unidentified Trenton, NJ girl taken between 1864 and 1866 as evidenced by the revenue stamp on the back.  Such a little sweetheart and look at her darling dress.  The photographer was Aller & Brown of Trenton.  This little miss is posing on the photographer's fake balustrade railing.

This next photo (cabinet card) features five young Michigan siblings and their dog posed next to a faux fence and pile of hay.  The photographer was Dave Bradbeer of Charlevoix, Michigan.  This photograph was most likely taken in the late 1880's.

 

Next up is a cabinet card featuring an 1890's boy wearing Little Lord Fauntleroy attire holding the obligatory whip.  This was a very popular costume for boys to wear for their photographs in the 1890's.  This particular young boy was posed by photographer Strunk of Reading, PA seated on a large "rock."

 

This young girl from Trenton, NJ is quite a picture in plaid posed next to a "stone column" and behind an "iron gate."  I've posted  this cabinet card before, but I think she deserves another mention - just love her entire outfit.  The photographer was J. E. North of 31 Centre St.  This photo is also from the 1880's.

 

This young lad leaning on the "stone column" is quite dapper in matching jacket and knickers with  hat and cane and take a look at those plaid leggings!  What a good looking young man.  No photographer is listed, but the boy is identified on the back as Howard Prue Price, I believe.  My guess is this cabinet card is from the late 1870's.

 

And finally we have this sweet young girl leaning on the photographer's "stone fence".  Such a sweetie in her simple dress and lace collar and notice the necklace with long chain around her neck.  The photographer was H. S. Stephens of Rushville, Indiana.  This photo was probably taken in the late 1880's.

If you have enjoyed these photos I hope you will hop, skip or jump over to Sepia Saturday to see even more wonderful photos.

Mystery Monday - Unknown Trio Poses with Chihuahua in Pittsburg, KS

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.

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 #111 - It's A Dog's Life!

This is a very busy week for me, my parents are coming for a visit and between my job and getting my house ready I don't have a lot of free time, but when I heard what this week's theme was at Sepia Saturday how could I resist?  I have had a lifelong love affair with dogs.  I was the child that was always dragging home stray dogs and asking, "Can I keep him, please MOM?" I'm still doing that today with shelter dogs only now I just bring them home and wait for the fallout from hubby later.  He eventually caves and falls in love as well.

This is a picture I picked up on eBay of a sweet little girl with her precious pug.  She seems to be around ten years old and she looks fiercely protective of her baby.  The little dog looks extremely alert and the pose was perfect.  I just love this picture and was so happy to get it.  It kind of reminds me that children have always loved their pets no matter what the era.  It was cut down on the sides and there is no photographer's mark. There is no identification of the subject, just another sad mystery of the past.  Due to the type of the frame I am estimating this was taken between 1895 - 1905.

I posted the next picture in a previous post but thought it deserved a re-post.  The picture shows William Stump in his hunting clothes and rifle with his adoring hunting dog.  The dog was obviously very well trained.  On the back it said, "Harry and his dog."  This photograph also had no photographer's mark so I could not identify the location.  Due to the beveled edges with gold gilting I dated it between 1892 - 1900.  There were too many William and/or Harry Stumps in Ancestry.com for me to be able to narrow it down.

Greyfriars Bobby, Edinburgh, Scotland

There is no animal more loyal than a dog and nowhere is this more evident than the story of Greyfriar's Bobby of Edinburgh, the Skye terrier who slept by his master's grave every night for fourteen years until his own death in 1872.  This story has always brought tears to my eyes and I was fortunate enough to finally go to Scotland two years ago and see his resting place for myself.


Greyfriars Bobby:
Died 14th Jan 1872
Aged 16 years
Let his loyalty & devotion
Be a lesson to us all.

Teresa & Bebe ca 1959

Dogs of my Past:   Bebe, Ripley, Kimmie and Roxie:    As I mentioned before I have had a lifelong love of dogs and have had many four-legged friends over the years.  Here are pictures of just a few.

Ripley ca 1998

Roxy ca  1979

Kimmie ca 1965

Bailey was the most recent of my dogs to leave me and he went much too soon dying of cancer at the age of six.   Rest in peace little buddy - I still miss you so much!

Bailey 2004

Here is my crew today:  Riley and Salsa (both shelter dogs)

Riley & Salsa - Good Buds!  2007

and Chloe our Queen Bee who rules the roost!

Chloe 2011 age 9

I guess you don't really own a dog, you rent them, and you have to be thankful that you had a long lease.  

Joe Garagiola

Sports Center Saturday - Man & Dog on the Hunt

Here's a great cabinet card photo of a man with his hunting rifle and his faithful dog looking adoringly up at him.  According to the handwriting at the bottom his name was William Stump. On the back it says "Harry and his dog,"  The card is on very plain sepia cardstock (front) and off-white color on the back.  There is no photographer's mark.  The only thing about this card which gives me any clues about the date are the edges.  If you look closely you may notice that they are slightly beveled with gold gilting. According to PhotoTree.com beveled edges were found during the years of 1892- 1900.  I tried to search for him on Ancestry.com but there were too many William Stumps in too many states.