John Wiggins Leary, Helena, Texas 1880s

John Wiggins Leary, the young boy in this cabinet card, was born in Texas on February 19th, 1880, to parents Fanny Manning and Edgar Leary. He had four siblings: Stephen, Edward, Vivian, and Mary.

John’s father, Edgar Leary, was a salesman in Galveston before moving to Helena and becoming the sheriff of Karnes County, Texas. The previous sheriff had resigned after being threatened by a group of men known as the “Butler Boys,” whom he had openly accused of murdering a prominent Mexican stockman. On December 26th, 1884, Emmett Butler and his gang rode into Helena  “flourishing their pistols and causing women and children to take fright and hurry into their houses,” according to the Galveston Daily News. Sheriff Leary attempted to arrest them for disorderly conduct, and the men opened fire. The Sheriff was struck in the chest, but not before shooting Emmett Butler in the leg as he tried to escape. A group of onlookers from a nearby saloon was ultimately able to take Butler down. Sheriff Leary died, leaving behind a widow and five children, including four-year-old John.

Article on the death of Sheriff Edgar Leary.
The Dallas Daily Herald, Dec. 30th, 1884

In the aftermath of the tragedy, the Learys received financial support from the community, including from the Sheriff’s Association. In 1891, John’s 11-year-old brother Stephen wrote a letter to the children’s section of the Houston Daily Post, which gives insight into their childhood:
“My name is Stephen Mullen Leary…My father, Edgar Leary, was killed while holding the sheriff’s office in Helena six years ago the 26th of last December. We miss him all the time. He was so kind to us and loved us more than he did himself. I hope we will meet him in heaven some day. I have a mamma, two sisters and two brothers. My mamma teaches school. When my papa was living I had a horse and a pair of Angora goats, but they have been sold. I hope I will hurry and get grown so I can support the family.”

Their mother remarried in 1898 to James Milton McGinty. In May of that same year, John enlisted in
the army to serve in the Spanish-American War. He joined the 2nd Texas Volunteer Infantry, Company B, about which there is little surviving information. Some of the Texas Volunteers remained in Texas, while others were stationed in Miami and Jacksonville, Florida. Newspapers like the Houston Post described the relentless rain, illness, overcrowded hospitals, and lack of supplies in Miami during the summer of 1898. He was discharged in November of that year. I should also note that John’s grave marker says “Texas / SGT BTRY C 5 Field ART / Spanish American War,” though I have no further information on this.

John married Tillie Elizabeth Walters at her parents’ home in 1915. They had 10 children: Walter, Fannie, Alice, Arline, Edmund, Thelma, Jaunita, Clifford, Timothy, and Marcella. The family lived in Galveston, where John was a dairy farmer, and later in Alvin.

John Leary died of lung cancer on December 18th, 1952, at the age of 72.

The next post will focus on John’s daughter, Fannie, and her husband, Howard, who I also have photos of.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Lucinda and Joseph Ritenour, Xenia, Ohio 1880s

These photographs are of Joseph Ritenour and his wife, Lucinda, the in-laws of Robert Wainwright from my last post. 

Joseph R. Ritenour was born in Virginia in 1834. He was a farmer and veteran of the Civil War, having served in the Union army in the 73rd Regiment, Ohio Infantry, Company D. He married his wife, Lucinda Little, on October 25th, 1860. Lucinda was born in Ohio in 1839 and grew up there with her 5 siblings. Before her marriage, she worked as a teacher in Ross, Ohio.

Joseph and Lucinda had 5 children, the third of which was Anna (wife of Robert Wainwright), born in 1863.

Lucinda passed away in 1898 at age 59. Joseph followed her 16 years in 1914 at age 80 after suffering from paralysis. 

If you know who these folks may be, let us know in the comments!

Dr. Robert Leever Wainwright, Xenia, Ohio 1880s

The photograph has some water damage, so I cleaned up the image in Photoshop.

Robert Leever Wainwright was born in Ohio in 1855 to Redding Wainwright, a farmer, and his wife, Elizabeth Leever. Robert was the youngest of the Wainwrights' 6 children. 

Though initially he worked as a farm laborer with his father and brothers, he eventually became a physician. After his father passed away in 1878, Robert lived with his mother in Jefferson, Ohio.

Robert married Anna Elizabeth Ritenour in Greene County, Ohio, on October 28th, 1883 when he was 27 years old. Tragically, they were married only a few months when Robert passed away on May 25th, 1884. This photograph, which I would date to the 1880s, may have been one of the last taken of him. In his will, he left to his widow Anna his surgical instruments, medical books, and a horse and buggy among other things.

Anna would eventually remarry in 1890 to Daniel Erastus Little, with whom she had 3 daughters.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Mrs. William H Fitch III, Detroit, Michigan, 1880's Part 1

Eleanora Underwood was born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1841. She was the second daughter of Albert G. Underwood, a plasterer, and his wife Joannah. She had one older sister, Eliza, and three younger sisters, Martha, Alice, and Ida. Albert died in 1855 when Eleanora was 14. Probate records tell us that upon his death, Albert owned 7 people: Henry, a 35-year-old plasterer and his wife Agnes, 16-year-old Jo, 11-year-old Henry, 35-year-old Scippio, 40-year-old Charlotte (described as "sickly") and Robert, "aged about 52 years." Though their mother was still alive, Eleanora and her sisters were placed in the care of another couple, Paul and Eleanora Kay. 

According to law, Eliza and Eleanora should have had a say in the matter as they were both 14 years of age and older at the time of their father's death. The Kays appointed themselves as the children's guardians without consulting either of the two eldest daughters. Paul Kay, like their father, was a plasterer and it is likely the two men worked together. In order to pay off debts after Albert's death, all of the enslaved people he owned were sold. The remaining money was to go to the girls. As the Underwood girls were minors, their inheritance was given to their guardians- in this case, the Kays. Eliza and Eleanora stated in their petition that Paul Kay "does not profess to take any duties in the said guardianship to which he had been appointed" and that his wife Eleanora's treatment of the girls "had not been of that kind, bland, and maternal character which they had been prepared to expect or taught to believe formed the duty of a guardian." Instead, they suggested that Sylvester Bailey, Esq., would make a more suitable guardian. Bailey was a lawyer from New York who, in 1846, had been elected mayor of South Memphis and later became a judge. How the girls knew Bailey, I'm not sure. Was he a family friend? Simply a trusted figure in the community? Maybe they were friends with his daughters, Laura, Rosella, and Eveline. Their request was granted and Sylvester Bailey became their guardian.

Not long after they petitioned to be removed from the care of the Kays, both girls found husbands. In July 1856, Eliza married druggist Richardson Brewster. Her mother Joannah, as well as her three youngest sisters, all moved in with them. Eleanora, at 16, was married the following year to William H. Fitch. The decision to marry made sense, as it would have provided both of the eldest Underwood daughters with the stability their lives lacked. Eleanora's life, however, was about to change drastically.

She grew up in a largely slave-holding state. Her father owned enslaved people. Sylvester Bailey, the man who was briefly her guardian, also owned enslaved people. Yet William H. Fitch, the man she married, was an abolitionist, a Radical Republican, and staunchly pro-Union. There's no way of knowing what Eleanora's personal views were. If she had political opinions of her own, she had little opportunity to voice them. William Fitch, on the other hand, was extremely vocal on these matters.

Fitch became the president of the Memphis Gas company and was a respected member of the community. Though he had no political experience, he was outspoken on the issues that mattered to him. In November 1867, at the encouragement of his friends, William announced that he would be running for mayor. Though he was generally considered a "man of integrity," his radical views made him an unpopular candidate from the start. Memphis newspapers were littered with brutal attacks on his character, primarily his support of equal rights for African Americans. The Memphis Daily Post described him as "one of that contemptible crew who not only asserts their belief openly in the doctrine of social equality with the negro, but practices it." While her husband pursued a political career, Eleanora was left at home to care for their three young children, William Hayes Jr. (born 1859), Mollie (born 1860), and Alice (born 1863). Ultimately, William did not win the election.


The family moved to Detroit, Michigan around 1871, where William became president of the Mutual Gas Company. The Fitches lived on Jefferson Avenue, where they were eventually joined by Eleanora's mother and her youngest sister, Ida, who was now 24. The family also employed 3 servants: Thomas Bruce, Mariah Robertson, and Georgia Morton. On January 11th, 1880, the oldest Fitch daughter, Mollie, passed away from tuberculosis. She was only 20 years old. Fours years later, Eleanora would face yet another loss. On October 7th, 1884, William H Fitch died at the age of 55. Michigan death records list his cause of death as "unknown," though his obituary in the Detroit Free Press speculated it was caused by "progressive paralysis" due to overwork. The obituary described William as "a good fighter, a hard hitter, and...had many and bitter enemies."
 Eleanora is photographed here in mourning. She did not remain a widow for long, however.

I will cover the rest of Eleanora's story in my next post. If you know who this may be, let us know!

Ethel Webb, Brunswick, Maine 1880s-90s

Ethel Moulton Webb was born in Brunswick, Maine, on October 6th, 1877. Her father, Franklin, worked as a grocer, while her mother Elizabeth stayed home to care for Ethel and her little brothers, Harold and Frank. Also living with the Webbs was Ethel’s paternal grandmother, Cynthia.

An 1893 article from the Portland Daily Press noted Ethel’s “pleasing” piano performance at a teacher's convention held at her high school.

Ethel in the 1899 Smith College yearbook

She was also an exceptional student and the valedictorian of Brunswick High School’s class of 1895. It must have been no surprise when Ethel was accepted to Smith College, a women’s college in Northampton, Massachusetts.
After graduating from Smith in 1899, Ethel returned home to Brunswick to live with her family. It was during this time that she met Ralph Bushnell Stone, a student at Bowdoin College in Brunswick. Like Ethel, Ralph was intelligent and studious, especially excelling in math and science. After graduating from Bowdoin in 1902, he went on to receive his Master's degree from Harvard. He then returned to Brunswick to teach.
It was also during this time that Ethel tragically lost her youngest brother, Frank, to heart disease. He died in 1909 at only 26 years old.

Better times came in 1913 when Ethel and Ralph were married. Their first and only child, Franklin, was born in 1915. When Ralph was offered a job as a mathematics professor at Purdue University, the family packed up and headed to West Lafayette, Indiana. Just three years later, Ralph was appointed registrar of the university. Ethel stayed busy in West Lafayette, becoming a member of the Current Topics Club and the Purdue Women's Club, and hosting the other wives of Purdue faculty members at her home on Russell Street, close to campus. After Ethel's mother passed away in 1932, her father joined them in Indiana. He died there two years later after a period of illness.

Ralph served as Purdue's registrar until 1947 when he went back to teaching mathematics. He retired in 1952. In February 1959, Ralph fell ill. He passed away at the age of 76. Ethel passed two years later in 1961. She was 84.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Julia Eberly, Delaware, Ohio 1889-1890

                       
Julia Eberly was born in Perrysburg, Ohio
in 1868 to parents Rosina Schauker and John Eberly, a shoemaker. The Eberly's were German immigrants, though they had been settled in Ohio for several years by the time Julia arrived. She was their 10th child, with older siblings Amelia, Frederic, Elizabeth, John Jr., Frank, Charles, Mary, Frances, and Emma all having been born before her (though Mary and Emma passed away before Julia was born). She had one younger sibling, a sister named Clara.

In 1871, Julia's oldest sister, Amelia, married furniture store owner Joseph Matzinger. Tragically, Joseph died a year later, leaving Amelia a widow at 21. Their son, Frederick, was born months later. In 1880, Amelia and Fred were living down the street from her parents and with them were Julia and Clara, her two youngest sisters. Julia was 14 and already working as a milliner, while Amelia was a dressmaker. Perhaps Clara, at 12, was too young to work (though I have a feeling she helped.)

As a young woman, Julia was already showing signs of accomplishment. She was a member of the Second Rhetorical Section at Perrysburg Highschool and often recited essays at special presentations. When she graduated in 1886, she was granted something remarkable- a scholarship. She was only the second girl at her school to receive one. As the daughter of an immigrant shoemaker and one of the youngest girls in a large family, Julia had likely never considered the possibility of going to college. She chose to attend Ohio Wesleyan University in Delaware, Ohio. There she studied Literature, which according to the 1889-1890 OWU catalog required "two years of Latin, one of German, and one of Mathematics" for admission into the Freshman class. Julia lived in Monnett Hall, the women's dormitory. An account of Monnet Hall by Professor E.T. Nelson in 1895 describes a building complete with a spacious dining room, finely-furnished parlors, and a well-stocked library. Best of all, Julia would have gotten her own room! When Julia returned home to Perrysburg during winter break that first year, she reported that she was "well pleased with her studies and general surroundings." These two photographs were taken during her senior year of college, one at the beginning and one at the end. On the back of the 1890 photo is written "Etta Hagenbuch." Though I don't know why her name was written here, I do know that Etta Florence Hagenbuch was a fellow Literature student at OWU and lived in Monnett Hall. She graduated in 1888 and may have been a friend of Julia's. In 1890, the Perrysburg Journal proudly announced that Julia had graduated with honors and with the high praise of her professors. 1890 was also the year Julia left Ohio.

In October, Julia went to Lake City, Florida, to become a teacher. Unfortunately, I don't know much about Julia's time in Florida or about her teaching career. Four years later she returned to her hometown in Ohio, this time with a fiance. On December 18th, 1894, Julia Eberly married Robert S. Pyles, a sheriff from Brunswick, Georgia, in a "modest yet pretty home wedding." After an "elaborate wedding banquet," Julia left with her new husband on a midnight train back to Georgia, where they planned to make their home. The Perrysburg Journal described Robert as "a gentleman of refinement and culture, and of high-standing in the community where he is known..." The couple had one child together, a daughter named Clara, who I have to imagine was named after Julia's younger sister. In 1900, their home was also occupied by Robert's 62-year-old widowed mother, Elizabeth, and their housekeeper, Rebecca Night. By 1910, Robert's twin nephews Thomas and Richard Matthews had joined the household. In the 1920s, the Pyles took in several lodgers, three of whom were teachers, just as Julia had briefly been. Finally, in 1930, it was only Julia, Robert, and a 20-year-old Clara in the house. Clara was married in 1931 to Chapman K. Curry. After Robert passed away in 1935, Julia moved in with her daughter, son-in-law, and their daughter, named Julia.

Julia Eberly Pyles passed away in 1953 at the age of 80.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Ella Gibe Ruark, Atlanta, Illinois, 1880's

Luella Gibe was born in Bonpas, Illinois in 1869 to Adam and Elizabeth Gibe. Adam was a German farmer who had immigrated to the United States as a young man. Ella was the third of Adam and Elizabeth's seven children. At the time of the 1880 census, Ella was living with her parents and her siblings, Sarah, Jacob, Ida, Willie, and John, as well as their 80-year-old grandfather, Henry Gibe. 11-year-old Ella is also marked as being "maimed, crippled, bed-ridden, or otherwise disabled." I wonder what had happened to her?

Ella married George B. Ruark, a druggist, on October 16th, 1889. George was the co-owner of the Stokes & Ruark drugstore in Sumner, Illinois, until he established Ruark & Co. early in 1900.  Ella and George had 8 children, though tragically none of them survived past childhood. I could only find record of one of the children, a 6-year-old boy named after his father, in the 1900 census. In 1910 George was no longer working as a druggist and was taking odd jobs to support his wife and himself. Then, in 1915, he was admitted to Anna State Hospital, a psychiatric hospital in Anna, Illinois. He died there six years later at the age of 63.

By this point, Ella had disappeared. I'm not sure where she went after her husband was institutionalized, as she doesn't seem to appear in any records after 1910. She may have moved to a different state, or remarried and changed her name. George's death records state that he was a widower, though no one is exactly sure when Ella died.

I would love to be able to complete Ella's story, so if you know anything else about her, let us know in the comments!

Part One: Louis E. Decker, Youngstown, Ohio 1880's

Writing on the back reads:
"Louis is nicer

looking now

than in this

picture"

Louis E. Decker's rather interesting life began in Youngstown, Ohio in 1864. He was the youngest of Bartholomew Decker and Sophia Billings's seven children. His father was the owner of a feed store, B.S. Decker & Co., where Louis's older brother Charles would work as a store clerk during his teenage years. Charles would follow in his father's footsteps and go on to own a shop of his own, a grocery and confectionary. It's possible Louis may have worked in his father's store at some point as a young man, but he was certainly not destined to become a grocer or clerk.

In February 1882, Bartholomew and Sophia took a trip to Cleveland, Ohio. They were visiting Sophia's cousin, William F. Cody, who is perhaps better known by his nickname: Buffalo Bill. Cody would not form his famous Wild West show until the following year, but he had already gained a reputation as a skilled hunter, rider, and scout during the Indian Wars. Louis's parents must have seen an opportunity to get their youngest son a job with the famous showman.

Louis began working as a ticket seller for Buffalo Bill's Wild West about 1885 when he was 20 years old. That same year, sharpshooters Annie Oakley and Frank Butler joined the show. Louis continued to sell tickets for several years and possibly sold tickets during the show's European tours between 1887 and 1892. Then in 1893, the Wild West came to Chicago and set up in a lot right next door to the fairgrounds of the World's Columbian Exposition (after a committee declined to include the show as part of the fair itself). While researching Louis, I was surprised and very excited to discover a brief mention of him in one of my favorite books, The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson. In order to illustrate the success of the fair, Larson describes how Louis "sold 17,843 tickets during his shift, the most by any one man" and as a result won a box of cigars. Though Larson mistakenly refers to Louis as Buffalo Bill's nephew, there's no doubt to me it's the right man. Why exactly he was selling tickets at the fair instead of at the Wild West show is unclear to me. Maybe he was looking to earn a little extra money while in Chicago, or perhaps he just really wanted to win that box of cigars.

According to an 1896 souvenir book titled "Buffalo Bill's Wild West Route Diary," the traveling show made a stop in Grand Rapids, Michigan on August 9th. Louis, or "Lew" as he is called here, took the opportunity to visit his sister in Elk Rapids. Though she isn't named in the diary, I believe he visited his oldest sister, Carrie, who was living in Michigan around this time. The diary also says that Louis made the visit with his wife, and a "Mrs. Lou Decker" is listed as the Matron of the Camp. This is interesting considering the fact that, as far as I know, Louis wasn't married until 1906. If she's a different woman, I haven't been able to find a record of her.

In the 1899 "Route Book," Louis has moved up to being a secretary for Cody and for Nate Salsbury, Cody's manager, though it appears that he continued to help sell tickets and work as a mail carrier. During his time working for the Wild West show, Louis must have been introduced to William F. Cody's sisters, Julia, Eliza, Nellie, and Mary, who also went by "May." Cody was close with his sisters and wrote to them frequently. Photographs show that the Cody sisters were rather stern, serious looking women. The youngest, Mary, had been married to Edgar Bradford, a locomotive engineer, until his death in 1896. She was left a widow at 44, with two adult children. She and Louis had likely known each other for a while, as Louis was an employee of her brother (not to mention the fact that they were technically cousins.) Though she was 10 years his senior, a relationship formed. Mary and Louis were married in Big Horn, Wyoming on December 30th, 1906.

Before the marriage, Louis experienced big changes in his career as William F. Cody embarked on an ambitious new project- a tourist destination that would serve as the gateway to Yellowstone National Park.

Find out more next week in Part Two! And if you know anything about Louis, let us know in the comments!


A few of the sources I used for this post:

1. 1882 letter from William F. Cody to Al Goodman in which Bartholomew and Sophia's visit to Cleveland is mentioned
2. Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, page 319
3. Buffalo Bill's Wild West Route Diary, 1896
4. Route Book Buffalo Bill's Wild West, 1899

Mattie Holmes, New Lisbon, Wisconsin 1889

"To my dear friend Edna
with loving remembrance
from Mattie Holmes.
April 17- 1889"

This young woman, Martha "Mattie" Holmes, was born in Biment, Iowa in October 1869. She was the daughter of Henry P. Holmes, a farmer, and Rebecca Carrier, who passed away not long after Mattie was born. When Mattie was still only a few months old, the family moved to New Lisbon, Juneau County, Wisconsin. Her father soon remarried, this time to Emma Van Hiesen, a woman 27 years younger than he was. Mattie already had 7 older siblings by her mother- Lucy, Andrew, George, Phoebe, Freeman, Volney, and Frank- when she gained 3 younger half-brothers, Winfield, Henry, and Elmer. Mattie's father died in 1883 of "consumption," or what we would now call tuberculosis.

This photograph was taken in 1889 when Mattie was 19 years old. Two years later, in 1891, she married Peter M. George. Peter worked as a drayman, someone who delivers beer for a brewery, and later as a teamster. Mattie and Peter had three children, Otis, Rena, and Chester, as well as two other children who did not live past infancy.  The eldest, Otis, was granted a registered pharmacist certificate in 1916 and became a druggist in Sparta, Wisconsin.

Mattie passed away the next year, 1917, at age 48.

Otis went on to become President of the Sparta community commission and in 1928 was elected mayor. Rena married Carl Reinhardt, a carpenter from Norway. Chester became a chauffeur and married Elizabeth Manzeck, with whom he had one son, Chester Jr.

If you know who this woman may be, let us know in the comments!

Annie Clark and Thomas Glenn Newell, Minnesota, 1883

This photo of Annie and Thomas Newell is a copy of an earlier tintype from the 1880's.

Thomas Glenn Newell was born in St. Clair, Michigan in 1858. His parents, Samuel and Marion, were Scottish immigrants. Samuel was a weaver and a farmer but became a doctor later in life. From Michigan, the family moved to Canada, and then to Minnesota. While he was in his early 20's, Thomas lived with his sister Marion and worked as a telegraph operator until 1883, when he married Annie Clark.

"Rosanna" or Annie Rose Clark was born in Lake City, Minnesota in 1861. Her parents, William and Margaret, were Irish immigrants. Annie was the second eldest of ten children. She married Thomas Newell when she was about 22 years old. This photograph is likely their wedding portrait. Together, Thomas and Annie had 8 children: Thomas, Raymond, Anna, Lillian, Octavia, Yetieve, George, and Theodore. While in Minnesota, Thomas worked as a dentist.

According to a newspaper article I found, in 1902 the eldest Newell son, Thomas, accidentally set fire to the family home while lighting a stove. Mrs. Newell was badly burned on the face and neck while trying to smother the flames and the younger children were forced to jump out of an upstairs window. Luckily, all survived.

If you know who this couple may be, let us know in the comments!

Lydia Strobridge, Merrill, Wisconsin 1887

The inscription on the back reads:

"April 15th, 1887
Lake View
for
Susan Gilbert"
In different, probably more recent handwriting, it says:
"Nancy's great, great
Grandmother
Strobridge"

Lydia Jane Kline was born in Pennsylvania on May 31st, 1834 Pennsylvania to John and Lovina Kline. She had many brothers- James, Johnson, Joshua, Daniel, and Edward- and one sister, Mariah. In Wisconsin, Lydia married Cyrus Strobridge, a man who worked several different jobs throughout his life: He was a postmaster, a tavern keeper, and a lumber dealer. Lydia and Cyrus had three daughters: Sarah, Lyberty, and Franc. Lydia died in 1897 at the age of 62.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

George E. Douglass, Columbus, Ohio 1880's

George Douglas was born on July 27th, 1859 to Mary Elliot and William Douglas. He grew up in the county of Northumberland, England with his siblings Mary, Robert, Elizabeth, and Hannah. Though I can't find an exact date, George's father died sometime before 1870. As the eldest son, George worked as a coal miner to help support his family while his siblings went to school.

In 1882, the Douglas family moved to the United States. George's mother and siblings settled in North Lawrence, Ohio, while he went on to live in Columbus. I wonder if the photographer of the photo, J.M. Elliott, was related in some way to Mary? It might explain why they chose to go to Ohio. George probably had this portrait done not long after he arrived in Columbus when he would have been 23 or 24.  He married Myness Edgar in 1891 and their only daughter, Alma Ruth, was born in 1896. For much of his life in Ohio, George worked in the telephone industry, first as a clerk and then as a "repairer". He died in 1922 at the age of 62.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Daisy B. Smith and Family, Shelbyville, Illinois, 1880's

I have multiple cabinet cards of this young woman, Daisy Belle Rowell, showing her at different ages.

As I mentioned in my last post, Daisy was born in 1876 to Alma and Orange Rowell. Though she was born in Vermont, she moved with her mother to Illinois after her parents separated and spent most of her childhood there. While living in Shelbyville, Illinois, Daisy married Llewellyn "Liew" Smith, a carpenter. Daisy was 18 when she had her first son, Kimber, in 1894. She had her second son, Carl, in 1896. If you'll remember, I briefly mentioned Kimber and Carl in my post on Rev. Crews and his wife. Daisy and Liew went on to have two more children, daughters Mabel and Lois.

Kimber and Carl Smith

In June of 1898, Daisy, her two sons, and her mother, Alma, went back to Vermont to stay with family. They lived with Alma's step-mother, Julia A. Hastings, her widowed half-sister Rhoda Woodcock, and Rhoda's son Van for a year before moving permanently to Oklahoma.  Alma passed away in 1901.

As an adult, Carl Smith became a safe salesman and later worked in a cash register factory. His brother Kimber took a rather different route. He became a musician and toured the country in a C.A. Wortham show, a traveling carnival. In 1920, Kimber married Zylpha "Zip" Ardis Johnson, another musician, though I don't think the marriage lasted long. In 1930, Kimber is single and living with his parents. He also served in both WWI and WWII.

Daisy Smith died in 1938 at the age of 62.

If you know who this family may be, let us know in the comments!

Alma Rowell and Family, Shelbyville, Illinois 1880's

The back reads:
"William Howe
Alma Rowell
and Daisy Smith
when age 4 yrs. old"

Researching this group of family photos has proven to be more challenging than I expected considering all the information written on the backs! Here is what I know so far:

Alma Almira Hastings was born in 1848 in Vermont to parents Daniel M. Hastings and Mary T. Munn. In  July of 1865, she married Orange N. Rowell, a farmer (This is the first time I've ever seen "orange" used as a first name! In 1870 they are living in Orange County, Vermont and he was born in Vermont, so perhaps he was named after the county?). Alma and Orange had their first child, Fred, in 1869 and their second, Daisy, in 1876. Not long after Daisy was born, Alma and Orange separated. I can't find a record of a formal divorce, but Alma moved with Daisy to New Trier, Illinois sometime between 1876 and 1880, leaving her husband and son in Vermont. In Illinois, Alma and Daisy (listed, for some reason, as "Anna") lived for some time with distant relations: Benjamin and Mary Munn, their daughter Persis and her husband Henry Moore, Persis and Henry's children, and Almira Munn. I imagine it was a crowded house!
                                 

I believe this is the Munn/Moore family, from left to right:
Emma Moore, Benjamin Munn, Persis Moore, Almira Munn, and Edward Moore

I'm still unsure about who "William Howe" is and if he's even the man in this photo. It's more likely that the man is Orange Rowell, except that I don't believe he was ever in Shelbyville, Illinois, where the photo was taken.

I will continue Alma's story in next week's post, where I will focus a little more on Daisy.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Herbert Brandon, Bradford, Pennsylvania 1880's

"Little Herbert Brandon"

Herbert L. Brandon was born in 1882 to Herbert R. Brandon and Etta Ellison. Though born in New York, Herbert was raised in Ohio with his aunt and uncle, Charles and Anna McKinney. In 1912, Herbert married Gladys C. Dennis. The couple lived in Texas, then moved back to Ohio, where Herbert worked as a manager for the National Supply Co., which sold oil well supplies. He died in Bradford, Pennsylvania in 1938.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Nellie Frances Pease, Worcester, Massachusetts 1880's

The back reads:
"Nellie Frances Pease
(Ellen)
Father's sister.
He had two sisters-
Ida Elizabeth Pease
and Nellie"

Nellie Frances Pease was born in 1861 to parents Edward and Theda Pease. Just as it says on the back of the photo, Nellie had two siblings: Ida Elizabeth, born 1867, and Edward Emory, born 1869. This picture looks like it was taken in the 1880's, so Nellie would have been in her early 20's here. She died in 1891 at the age of 30.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Alma Lampman 1880's, Leonidas, Michigan

"Alma Lampman
Leonidas
St Joseph Co
Mich"

Alma Lampman was born in 1869 and was the only child of  George and Rachel Lampman. In 1893 Alma married Luman Ackerman, a farmer. They had one son, Keith, in 1897.  In this cabinet card from the late 1880's, not long before she was married, Alma is wearing a lovely dress with beadwork on the front and on the cuffs of the sleeves.

If you know who this may be, let us know in the comments!

Benjamin Pitman 1870's-1880's, Cincinnati, Ohio

The back reads:
"Benn Pitman
Courtroom reporter
in Lincoln Conspiracy
Trial
Introduced shorthand
system invented by
his brother."

This is my 100th post and almost the 6th anniversary of this blog! To celebrate the occasion I wanted to post a special photograph I've had for a while but never got around to putting on here.

Born in England in 1822, Benjamin "Benn" Pitman assisted his brother Issac in developing a system of shorthand, which he went onto popularize in America by publishing numerous textbooks and founding the Phonographic Institute. During the Civil War he served as a Union soldier before becoming a reporter and acting as the stenographer on the Lincoln assassination trials, during which he used the Pitman system of shorthand. In 1873 Pitman became involved in the arts and crafts movement in Cincinnati, Ohio and introduced the "Pitman School of Wood Carving" He promoted wood carving and other decorative arts as a new profession for women.

He also lived in an incredible house that served as a showcase for his students work as well as his own (here are some great pictures of it!). The house is still lived in today.

It's been an amazing 6 years running this blog. Here's to another 100 photographs!

Unknown Wedding Party 1880's, Mapleton, Iowa

The back reads:
"Grandma and Grandpa's wedding picture
Aunt Til- Grandma's sister
Uncle John- Grandpa's brother"

This wedding photo looks to be from the 1880's. The bride is wearing a dark, possibly brown dress, which was cheaper and more practical than a white dress. In her hair she is wearing a crown of flowers with long, trailing vines, which were very popular at this time and into the early 1900's. Unfortunately, no last names are given so I can't find out who they are!

If you know who these folks may be, let us know in the comments!

Charles and Alice Tackels 1882, Amboy, Minnesota

Charles Tackels and Alice Crook were married on October 20th, 1882 in Amboy, Minnesota. I believe this is a wedding photo, so it was probably taken that same year. They had one daughter, Verna, born 1895. Charles died in 1906 and in 1930, Alice is living in St. Paul, Minnesota with Verna, who is a public school teacher.

If you know who this lovely couple may be, let us know in the comments!