Figure 1.--A HBC reader has provided us a portrait from a family albumn as they are trying to figure out just who the family depicted are. HBC dates the image to the 1890s, probably the late 1890s--but that is only an estimate. The HBC reader would appreciate any insights as to the date of the image.

A HBC reader has provided us a portrait from a family albumn as they are trying to figure out just who the family depicted are. It is a fascinating portrait of an American family, but virtually nothing is known about it. Without any provinance, HBC can only speculate. HBC dates the image to the 1890s, probably the late 1890s--but that is only an estimate. The boys' clothing suggests that they are an urban family. The father looks somewhat like an immigrant born in Europe, but we have seen a lot of native-born Americans at the time that also look similar. The rest of the family looks to have been in America for some time. One boy wears a sailor suit and the other what looks to be a double-breasted suit. He does not look to be wearing a bow which were very common for boys at the time. The light-colored sailor suit suggests to HBC that this was not a farm family. We have noted sailor suits were much more common in the cities than on the farm. The father looks rather like a worker than a middle class office worker, but the family looks to be fairly prosperous. Perhaps he is a skilled caraftsman. It is a substantial family of four children, but not particularly large for the time. There appaers to be two women in the photograph. I'm not sure who that mighr be, perhaps one of the children's aunts. The HBC reader would appreciate any insights as to the date or other aspects of the image that might occur to our other readers.

Created: May 10, 2002
Last updated: May 10, 2002