Who Were These Guys?

I purchased this interesting image about a week ago at an antique show down in Portsmouth, NH. It is an old beat up tintype, made probably the decade immediately following the Civil War (1865-1875). The man on the left is a fairly handsome chap, with a nice felt halt, jacket and striped vest as well. It makes me think he had a little bit of money to spend, and he clearly did not do manual labor to earn his living. The younger man on the right is not dressed quite as nice, with what looks like a white linen or cotten jacket and the big poofy hat doesn't seem to fit him quite right. Yet there is something that drew my eye to this picture and captured my imagination. The two men are too close in age to be father and son, but they clearly had some sort of friendly relationship, enough to pose for a picture together that has survived over a century!

Bridge over the Salmon Falls River

The railroad first came to the town where I live, Rollinsford, NH, in 1841 when it was the last stop in New Hampshire on the Boston & Maine Railroad. By 1849, the first wooden bridge over the churning Salmon Falls River into Maine was built only a few hundred yeards from my house. In 1860, that bridge suddenly collapsed but luckily no one was killed! The steel bridge seen in this photo was built during the late 19th century and is still used today by the Downeaster train which goes from Portland to Boston, and gigantic freight trains. Sadly, none of the trains stop here anymore, they just fly by! This postcard is dated in ink on the front "September 27, 1906", but this view from the pedestrian bridge nearby has changed very little over the decades. Sometimes I wonder when they are going to have to build a new bridge, it will be quite an engineering project!

Young Lady from the Turn of the Century

Usually I only collect images from the mid to late nineteenth century, but when I saw this one I while ago I couldn't resist adding it to my collection! This young woman had quite the poofy hairdo, but I really like the look of optism and fun she has. There are a couple of interesting details in this photo. She is wearing a metallic bracelet on her right forearm, and she seems to be looking at some sort of women's fashion magazine. One can even see a drawing or photo of a woman in a fancy dress on the paper she is holding. The fact this young woman wanted to photographed with this item suggests she may have been from a wealthy family, or at least she like to go shopping! The other interesting detail which I did not see until I got this home, is that there is a notation in pencil at the bottom of the photo which reads "Hetten (?), 1909." This gives the year of the image, which is fantastic. Where this photo was taken remains a mystery, but whoever this lady was, she lived during the Edwardian era before all that peace and prosperity would be shattered by the pointless carnage of World War I.

On Saturday, February 21, I had the pleasure of attending a party hosted by the 3rd Vermont Volunteers,a Civil War reenactment unit to which many good friends of mine belong. Ironically, the winter celebration was held in the town Randolph near Interstate 89, where coincidentally this image of an older couple was taken way back during the 1860s. Although I have to say, it doesn't look like these folks had been to a party in a long time when the visited the studio of J.W Hale in West Randolph. They look so deadly serious! Please click on the image to get a closer look. Well, at any rate I hope they don't mind being preserved here forever on my blog, wherever they are buried and rest for eternity. Please forgive me!

Brother & Sister?

Since my mom recently retired after a long and distinguished teaching career and my wife is now on school vacation, I thought I would post this nice cabinet card photo of what appears to be a brother and sister, or classmates at the very least, in front of their schoolhouse during the late nineteenth century. Unfortunately, there is no notation on the back, but I did purchase this one in Northwood, NH, so it could be from New England originally. They seem to be dressed up, so one wonders if this was a special occasion, perhaps a graduation day. Anyway, I very much like this image of two kids and wonder where life took them after their school days...

Couple from the Land of Lincoln

In honor of Valentine's Day, I have posted this interesting image of a married couple during the Civil War era who may have resided in Quincy, Illinois, where the photo was taken. This city is situated on the eastern banks of the mighty Mississippi River, not far upstream from the hometown of Mark Twain, Hannibal, Missouri. In 1858, coincidentally, Quincy was the site of the sixth and last legendary debates between Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas. Ironically, at the time the city was a known stop on the Underground Railroad to help fugitive slaves from Missouri escape northward to Chicago.

The tallbearded gentleman in this image is wearing a fine quality frock coat with a velvet collar, and his wife looks beautiful, so I am guessing that they were well-to-do. The way she has clasped her hands is intriguing to me as well, and there are dark patches of cloth on her dress, which suggests to me the possibility she was in mourning, but that of course is pure conjecture. They look somehow sad and serious to me, despite the fact he has placed his hand on her shoulder to symbolize their special and loving relationship. On the reverse of the image is an orange 2 cent government revenue stamp, which tells us this image was taken between the summer of 1864, and August 1866, when the tax was repealed by Congress.

However, what makes this photo even more interesting is what is printed on the back:

"Mrs. W.A. Reed, Artist, No. 81 Hampshire Street, Quincy, Ills." This poignant image was produced by a female photographer, which were few and far between during the mid-nineteenth century! Reed's true identity was Candace McCormick, and she was born in Tennessee in the year 1818. In 1842, Candace married Warren Reed, and a few years later they opened a dauguerreotype gallery together in Quincy, Illinois, utlizing the first popular form of photography. Tragically her husband died about ten years later, and to help support her family, Candace opened her own studio, but keeping with the customs of the day as a widow, advertised herself under her husband's recognizable name. During the war, Mrs. Reed also served as a nurse in Union Army hospitals in Nashville and Vicksburg, certainly not an easy task. After the war, Reed continued her photography business with great success until the end of the ninteenth century, and died at the age of 82 in 1900. To see more examples of her work, please visit this website:

http://www.alliancelibrarysystem.com/IllinoisWomen/files/qh/htm1/qhreed.html

In Honor of Abe

On this date 200 years ago, a mementous event in our history transpired. A child named Abraham Lincoln was born in a simple log cabin on his father's farm in Hardin County, Kentucky. Although they lived a hardscrabble existence, Thomas and Nancy Lincoln raised their son as best they could. Obviously, they did something right! It was in these rural surroundings that Lincoln grew up and as a boy witnessed slaves being transported from Louisville to be sold in Nashville, which would have a tremendous impact on him later in life. Lincoln lived in Kentucky until his family moved to Indiana in 1816. It is amazing to ponder that someone from such humble origins would one day be memorialized in magnificent marble in our nation's capital with the likes of Washington and Jefferson.

Today, one of the most recognizable symbols of President Lincoln is his black felt top hat, which he was photographed wearing a few times, including in 1862 (http://cache.eb.com/eb/image?id=2141&rendTypeId=4). Lincoln helped to popularize this men's fashion, and the photo in today's post of an unknown bearded man in his overcoat and holding his shiny new hat is one of the only vintage images of men I own with a top hat in their "likeness." Interestingly, you will notice some sort of medal stand behind the right foot of the gentleman. This is in all probability an iron rod that was used to give the individual proper posture and aid the photographer in posing the image. One of these can be seen in many nineteenthy century photos, most famously in one of Ulysses S. Grant during the Civil War. To see for yourself, visit

http://www.generalsandbrevets.com/ngg/grantus19.htm

Long Lost Couple

Since we are approaching Valentine's Day rather quickly, I gave in and decided to post a picture of a young couple from the Civil War era that has survived more than a century and somehowended up in my collection. Sadly, there is not even a photographer's backmark on the reverse of the image, so we will never know even where it was taken, possibly somewhere in the North. The chances that this man fought in the Civil War are high, since he must be in his mid to late twenties and his young wife clearly loved him, there is a tenderness in her hand on his shoulder which you do not see in many images from this violent period of American history. The hand-woven blanket which covers the table on which he has leaned his arm is quite beautiful. Alas, this poignant photo is but a shadow of a love that was once strong, and now has passed as all things must.

A Beautiful Backdrop (and a New York Lady)

Early photographs from American history can teach us a great deal about the society that produced these portals to our past. While the eye may be first drawn to the massive and maginificent hoop skirt worn by this unknown young woman perhaps from Watertown, NY (where the photo was taken indicated by the photographer's backmark), my own eye is attracted to the incredible detail that surrounds her. There is, for example, the carpet on the floor, which seems to have a very intricate floral pattern. Then there is the remarkable backdrop, painted by a very talented landscape artist, to resemble the parlor of a very fashionable home of the mid-nineteenth century. The artist's realistic rendition is complete with nice view out the window, a comfortable loveseat, a cast iron fireplace, and even a fancy clock on the exquisitely carved wooden mantle! The first photographs in the 1840s had no backgrounds or "status symbols", but by 1860 or so when this lady posed for her stylish photo taken by Charles Hart, "carte de visites" (visiting cards) had become as symbolic and personalized as a profile photo on Facebook or MySpace can be today. This lady wanted everyone to know that she was "top-shelf" as we might say. 140 or so years later, her haunting image still is.

Teacher's Pet?

What an adorable photo for my 40th post since I started this blog back in August 2008! I actually picked up this image today at an antique shop in Ipswich, Massachusetts, where I spent my formative years as a young student. It is fairly obvious that this cute little kid's mother must have made sure he had his best suit of wool clothes on, and the ruffled collar/handkerchief is hilarious. One wonders if he hated it or was teased by his friends. The cap in his right hand and book in his left only adds to the pure charm of this photo from the late 19th century, which was taken at "Reed's Studio, 72 Market Street, Lynn." This would of course be Lynn, Mass. where both of my parents grew up and ironically my late aunt Diane was a teacher for more than thirty years! I apologize for the lack of posts lately but I will try my best to do better in the coming weeks. Thanks for stopping by!

A Cat's Tale

Those of you who know me well understand that I am a serious feline addict. Spending eighteen years of my life with the same cat will do that to you (ages 4-22). Since my aunt Diane died very unexpectedly in December, she left behind a son and also three other "boys", her beloved cats, Sammy, Harry, and Paddy. Amazingly, they (and me) survived the journey to my house in New Hampshire without a scratch! They are doing well, and a few weeks ago I picked up this great old photo of a cat at an antique shop in Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts. Interestingly, there is an inscription on the back which reads:

"Kadal, the Delta Chi Cat."

This makes me think this cat once upon a time lived at a frat house at some New England college. I'm sure he had a very good time!

Life's a Long Song, But the Tune Ends Too Soon For Us All

Matt Herrick, my very good friend, bass player, and old roomate from my freshman year at Wheaton College, passed away very unexpectedly a week ago today. He was one of the most talented, generous, and funny human beings I have ever known, and I will miss him dearly. The picture I have posted is recent history, from one of our final performances as members of the Wheaton Jazz Band in May 2001 before we graduated. Yesterday, a bunch of musicians who had played with Matt from high school through college and beyond got together and played a musical tribute to Matt at the beautiful and historic Chapel at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, where Matt worked. I had the opportunity to sing/play the song "Wildflowers" by Tom Petty, which was requested by his wife and family. Here is a sample of the lyrics:
"You belong among the wildflowers
You belong somewhere close to me
Far away from your trouble and worries
You belong somewhere you feel free
You belong somewhere you feel free"

Matt, we will meet again.

Happy New Year!

Welcome to 2009 everyone. That has a very strange ring to it! Weren't we just complaining about Y2K? Anyway, I picked up this very interesting image a few months ago, and this young lady really seems to have an academic look to her. Maybe it's just the glasses, I'm not sure, but this young lady from the late 19th century/early 20th might be a very young teacher or high school student. Embossed on the front of the image is the following: "Yarmouth Portrait Co. 267 Main Street, Yarmouth, N.S." The "Gateway to Nova Scotia" as it is known, was named after Yarmouth, Massachusetts, the hometown of the first European settlers in that area in 1759, shortly after the end of the Seven Years War and the forced relocation of many French colonists in that region. This unknown lady could be a descendant of those intrepid pioneers, or of one of the many Loyalist families who escaped the American Revolution and found safe haven there. We'll never know!