This man reminds me of Frank Morgan, the actor who played the Wizard of Oz. But he’s an unidentified gentleman, very dapper in his dark double-breasted coat, light-colored hat with upturned brim and dark hatband, carrying a cane. I would estimate him to be in his late 60s or early 70s. The AZO stamp box with all triangles pointing upward, and the fact that it’s a divided back postcard, suggest an approximate date of 1907 – 1918.
Divided back, Real Photo Postcard. Circa 1907 – 1918.
Price: $7.00
Divided back, artist-signed, used postcard, embossed border. Artist and publisher unknown. Postmarked December 16th, year unknown. Sent from Dover, Massachusetts? Circa 1910 – 1920.
Price: $15.00
“A Merry Christmas and a
Happy New Year, Your Pockets
full of Money and your Hearts full of Cheer.”
Here’s a stunning card; the colors are gorgeous! (I love the pale pink and orange variation of the upper background.) It shows a mother, father and daughter, all very fashionably dressed; time-frame about mid-19th century; on their way, with wrapped presents in hand, to bring the above good wishes and cheer for Christmas. This appears to be an artist-signed card that would have been produced from a painting or drawing (how to determine the artist’s media?) however the signature, at the bottom right, is not readable. The family has that look of being “caught on camera,” as if this were a photo. As for the date of the card, the postmarked year is missing. Hopefully the addressee’s information will be able to reveal a likely time-frame. The card is addressed to: “Mrs. L. Estelle SinClair, Pleasantdon, California.”
According to the 1920 Federal Census, Louise E. Sin Clair, born about 1883 in Massachusetts, was married to Rutherford F. Sin Clair, born about 1882 in Canada, occupation carpenter. They were living in Pleasanton on Pleasantree Avenue at this time. The 1930 census shows the couple have an adopted 8-year-old son, Gordan Sinclair, born in California. On the 1930 Rutherford R. is now listed as Frederick R. Sinclair, (a very common occurrence for the middle and first names to show up as switched around at various times) and his occupation is building contractor. The message from the sender reveals, heart-breakingly, that Estelle had lost a child, and that Cora was offering her support and caring wishes, would write a letter and was also sending a little present. Per the 1910 Federal Census the couple was residing in Pleasanton, so this postcard is probably from about 1910 – 1920.
The couple’s record of marriage shows that Frederick Rutherford Sinclair and Louise Estelle Jewett were married September 1, 1909 in Ipswich, Massachusetts. The groom was born in Scotch Ridge, New Brunswick and his parents were Dougald B. Sinclair and Margaret Babb. The bride was born in Ipswich, and her parents were Stephen Jewett and Mary E. Hall.
Sources: Year: 1910; Census Place: Pleasanton, Alameda, California; Roll: T624_72; Page: 7A; Enumeration District: 0153; FHL microfilm: 1374085. (Ancestry.com)
Year: 1920; Census Place: Pleasanton, Alameda, California; Roll: T625_92; Page: 10B; Enumeration District: 207; Image: 369. (Ancestry.com)
Year: 1930; Census Place: Pleasanton, Alameda, California; Roll: 112; Page: 7A; Enumeration District: 0340; Image: 131.0; FHL microfilm: 2339847. (Ancestry.com)
“Massachusetts, Marriages, 1841-1915,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/N4FH-FCL : accessed 16 December 2014), Frederick Rutherford Sinclair and Louise Estelle Jewett, 01 Sep 1909; citing p 464 no 63, Ipswich, , Massachusetts, State Archives, Boston; FHL microfilm 2,315,509.
The style of Cyko stamp box on this Real Photo Postcard dates this one, since it is a divided back, around 1907 – 1920s, but I would estimate it to be older than the 1920s. It shows a young woman either in a long fitted coat, or long skirt and jacket. It’s hard to say, since the skirt appears to be a little bit paler in color than the jacket, or is that just an effect of the light? The outfit is very striking due to it’s enormous white fur collar, and matching muff, along with matching hat placed atop her Gibson-girl hairstyle. She is smiling and posing for the camera, standing outside in a snow-covered countryside setting, with some bare-branched trees in the background.
Divided back, unused, Real Photo Postcard. Cyko stamp box. Circa 1907 – 1910s.
Price: $5.00
Divided back, unused, Real Photo Postcard. AZO stamp box circa 1907 – 1918.
Price: $6.00
A young woman posing in winter or late fall attire: She wears a long checkered skirt that shows her side-buttoned boots just a little. The coat is of a large ribbed material and the hemline comes down past the knee, but it is longer in the back than the front. The front tapers up in the center, as in what we might think of as a reverse-v. Three large just-for-style buttons line up from the center of the hemline to a correspondingly angled change in the way the fabric lies; it’s ribbed vertically until the lower band of fabric that runs horizontally. The coat has wide lapels and perhaps either a velvet collar at the back or one of short-haired fur. She holds a very large dark fur muff. A white lacy blouse with loose-fitting stand-up collar shows above the lapels. Now the hat: There must be a name for this style, but I’m not seeing a listing for it. It’s cloth, sort of a cross between a beret and mob cap; a wide band at the forehead instead of a ruffle. Tam o’ Shanter is perhaps another possible description, except we can’t see the top of the hat, so we don’t know if it has a pom-pom.
Behind the young woman is a photographer prop: a beautiful wicker chair or short bench. But describing the woman’s the expression and stance: maybe she was just upset about something on this particular day, maybe impatient (the lean) but for me she has a look of having had more than one disappointment to deal with in life, having not yet quite gotten beyond them.
Antique photo, circa 1890s – 1910. Size: 3 and 3/4 x 6 and 3/4″
Price: $7.00
An old photo, perhaps from the 1890s or early 1900s showing a young girl wearing a warm-looking winter coat, gloves, and hat. Our subject looks to be maybe eight to ten or eleven years old, is posed standing at an angle to the camera, with her head turned a little toward the photographer but without a direct gaze. She has a bit of a thoughtful look, a little off to one side. In general, for photographing people the angled pose is considered to be flattering, so this photo may have been taken by a professional photographer, or at least someone who knew a little about photography. And it appears to have been taken outside if what we are seeing in the background are leaves, but it’s dark and hard to discern. We can’t make out her legs as whatever she is wearing there blends in. The coat is a light color, of a plush material, falling maybe at or just above the knee, and has a somewhat wide, flat-laid collar. The coat must be fastened from the inside as the front shows three braided rope decorations where the buttons or fasteners would normally be. Her hat is another story altogether, and looks like something normally worn in spring or summer. Maybe this photo was taken at Eastertime or for an occasion like a confirmation or first communion. But anyway, the hat is a pillbox type with a large decorative flower off to the side. The girl’s blond hair is pulled back by a large white or light-colored bow.
This photo has the look of another on this website under the title of “Mystery Building” just in the feel of the photographic paper and the condition, and this is the main reason why I think this photo may be from around the turn of the century. Searching online for similar coats and hats is not yielding any definite clues at this time.
Incidentally, the origin of the word “plush” is from the French peluche. From Wikipedia, the description for plush is “a textile having a cut nap or pile, the same as fustian or velvet” and was originally made from mohair or worsted yarn.
Source: Plush. n.d. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plush. (accessed November 6, 2014).
Here’s a Real Photo Postcard of a beautiful young woman posing in a countryside setting on a sunny day. I know, the word beautiful is used a lot here at Laurel Cottage, but after all aren’t all women beautiful? But this girl really has a lovely expression, and though this photo is not traceable since there is no name, it was too great to pass up. (Wish we could buy them all.) Was she on her way out to breakfast or brunch with family, or to church, or out with her friends or for an outing with her fiancee or husband? It’s always fun and interesting to see what impressions we get. But anyway, in the background we see a fence made of wood and probably chicken wire, a building of some type and what looks to be a willow tree. We get the feeling that the time of year is autumn or early spring. Our subject’s skirt and matching jacket appear to be made of wool, and the skirt’s hemline appears at mid-calf. A white lace collar is layered over the jacket lapels, and we see that the young woman wears a heart-shaped pendant on a short choker-type chain. Her darker gloves appear to be made of leather; she wears high-button leather boots, and a wide-brimmed white or pale-colored hat with a dark border on the brim. A white or pastel draw-string purse with small pom-poms at the end of the draw-strings, dangles at her side.
The back of this divided back Real Photo Postcard shows “Correspondence Here” and “For Address Only” and has no stamp box. My best guess at this time is that this postcard is from the mid-1910s.
Divided back, Real Photo Postcard, unused. Circa mid-1910s.
Price: $10.00
Studio photo of unidentified girl, circa 1920s. Size: 4 x 6.
Price: $5.00
Here’s a charming studio photo of a beautiful little girl, perhaps around eight to twelve years old. How to describe her hat? Well…cloth, perhaps satin or silk, with a turned up brim, much larger in the front, with pleats or folds. The crown’s material is folded over to the side….The perhaps square neckline on her dress or blouse shows under a vest of a lighter color that has two decorative cloth buttons at the shoulders. She wears a short pearl-type necklace and probably matching earrings. Her hair is either short or pulled up under her hat, she has a direct gaze and wears a slight smile. We can clearly see that this photo was at one time in an oval frame. Back to this hat…this particular style wasn’t showing up while browsing online through all manner of hats for girls and women. One thing is clear on the subject of hats – the styles are limited only by the imagination. What one could dream up, one could make or have made. This photo is estimated to be from the 1920s.
Update, April 10, 2024: We have a potential i.d. for this young girl, from another portrait photo found later. See what you think: Katheryn Earhart, Elizabeth’s Best Friend.
Hmmm, well maybe this title is a bit awkward, but here is beautiful photo of a nice-looking, middle-aged gentleman. He has a mustache, and is dressed in a suit, hat and gloves. His shirt shows a band type collar; this type could also be worn with the many varieties of the detachable collar. The hat is banded, and perhaps the style is best described as a bowler a.k.a derby, though if someone can come up with something more exact, do please let me know.
This Real Photo Postcard is unusual because of the border. This is the first I’ve seen like this, and it’s really lovely, although faded at the top. It shows a leaf pattern with a rope design lacing back and forth over the leaves, giving the appearance of the man’s photo being on a canvas, and the rope holding the canvas unfurled for us to view.
Last but not least, it looks like this photo was taken in front of a house that had just recently been built, due to the uneven ground and the scraps of boards in the background.
Divided back, unused Real Photo Postcard. AZO stamp box, circa 1907 – 1918.
Price: $7.00
This gallery contains 12 photos.
Set of six Real Photo Postcards, unused with writing. 1904 – 1910. Availability status: SOLD Here’s a wonderful set of six Real Photo Postcards, taken from 1904 to 1910, showing William S. Cox, his son Frank E. Cox, Frank’s daughter … Continue reading
This Cabinet Card and the next three were found together, at a small antique and vintage store in Soquel, California. It’s possible but unknown for sure whether the people in these four photos are related. This one is a sepia-toned rendition of a handsome mustachioed gentleman who appears to be in his twenties or early thirties. He is formally posed with one hand behind his back, holding his derby hat (a.k.a. bowler in the U.K.) in the other, and gazing off to his right. He wears a suit with vest and a knee-length coat with wide lapels, over a white shirt and a white or off-white probably silk tie. The backdrop is a country setting showing the dreamy outline of trees and bushes and a suggestion of a stone pathway abutting a low stone or concrete railing. Also, just to mention a couple of the other details in the photo – we see, of course, the subject’s watch chain on display as part of his attire, but what takes closer inspection is the shirt cuff appearing under the coat sleeve. The cuff appears to be of the stiff and possibly detachable variety. (For a shirt cuff-related trade card see an earlier post on this website entitled: B. J. Stone Trade Card, New Haven, CT
Underneath the photo in gold-tone script appears, “Brown, Photographer,” and off to the right, in smaller lettering, “Modesto, Cal.”
The photographic artist for this photo is believed to be William Brown (1838 – 1893) who was a prominent Modesto photographer. No other possibilities jump out at us in our searches in this area for a photographer under this last name and for the time period of roughly 1870 – 1900, when the Cabinet Card was popular. According to author Wayne A. Mathes and the McHenry Museum, William Brown had a photographic gallery as early as 1871, which is the date given for a shop that he established on Front Street, a.k.a. Ninth Street, in Modesto.
Cabinet Card, circa 1871 – 1880s. Photographer: William Brown.
Price: $15.00
Sources: Year: 1880; Census Place: Modesto, Stanislaus, California; Roll: 84; Family History Film: 1254084; Page: 333C; Enumeration District: 094; Image: 0669. (Ancestry.com)
Mathes, Wayne A., and the McHenry Museum. Modesto. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2011. (Google.com partial book view)