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This cabinent card is undated, but looks to have been taken taken in the 1890s because of the mother's baloon sleeve dress. This is a unique feature of the 1890s and very helful in dating undated images. The portrait is of a mother and her two children. We know the mother's name--Polly. But we do not know the children's names. All we have is the inscription, "Polly and the babies." So we are unsure about the gender of the children, but they certinly look like boys. W are conident that the youngr child is a boy, the older child is more of a guess but certainly looks like a boy. Mother has dressed both in what look like matching or similar white dresses. And their hair is done similarly, near center parts. The image does not provide a lot of detail. This type of dress - for boys - was quite common in the latter part of the 19th century. The older child on the left looks about 9 years old. The white dress he is wearing comes down to just below his knees. Notice his ears and hair, they certainly suggest he is a boy. The boy on the right is seated. He looks about 5 years old, and is also wearing a shin length white dress. He is holding, what appears to be, a toy stuffed animal in his lap. The younger child almost certainly is a boy. The fact that they are dressed alike and their hair done similarly is very strong evidence that both children are boys. Mother looks a little haggard, but we would guess that the family was fairly affluent. This cabinet photograph was taken by Speake of 807 Main Street, Kansas City, Missouri.
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