Figure 1.-- This 1884 cabinent card shows the family of Solon Lewis family with three children. We thought that the lady was his wife, but it seems to have been an older daughter. The inscription on the back says "Gertude Lewis (my sister)". |
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This 1884 cabinent card shows the family of Solon Lewis family with three children. We thought that the lady was his wife, but it seems to have been an older daughter. The inscription on the back says "Gertude Lewis (my sister)". We though the father wrote this, but it is appears that one of the children wrote the inscription after the portrait was taken. We know the inscription was written several years after the portrait was taken because it tells us that Mary married J. Justin Jordan. So Gertrude was apparently an older daughter and not Solon's wife. Apparently his wife died in child birth as we see a baby in the family and mother is absent. Child birth was still adangerous undertaking in the 19th century. Father does look like a farmer, more than likely a homesteader. The children were Mary, Robert, and Jay. The lady wears a very full dress, we're not sure about the color. Mary in contrast looks to be a white dress which is style rather plainly. The older boy wears a lace-up jacke, kind of a Davey Crocket effect. Notice the ruffled collar. Iis larger than seen in the 1860s and 70s, but not the huge size seen by the end of the decde. Perhaps dad is holding the deed to his homestead. The studio was Haynes in Fargo, Dakota Territory.
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