PRETTY LITTLE GIRL DRESSED FOR WINTER IN DOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE

A young girl wearing a winter coat and winter hat poses for her photograph at Miller’s Photo Company in Dover, New Hampshire. She is wearing a striped coat with big buttons and has a large fur muff to warm her hands. Judging by my observation of many cabinet cards, the striped coat is not typical winter wear for the era. The large stripes on the coat makes it look like prison garb. Note the fake snow in the background of this image.  The reverse of the photograph has a printed advertisement that indicates that photographer Miller’s main gallery was located in Birmingham, Connecticut. The likely photographer of this cabinet card was William E. Miller. Miller had a number of studios located in Connecticut. His gallery locations included the towns of Ansonia, Birmingham, Derby and Shelton. Miller is credited with taking some of the photographs for a book entitled The History of the Old Town of Derby, Connecticut 1642-1880 (1880).

THE ADORABLE DUPONT CHILDREN POSE WITH THEIR SLED IN STUDIO WINTER SCENE

These kids are adorable and beautifully dressed. They are wearing their scarves around their waist instead of around their neck. The two kids are sporting great coats and winter hats. The oldest child hold the sled’s rope while the youngest child sits on the sled. The youngest child has many ribbons on the front of his/her coat and the bottom of his/her coat is styled as a skirt. The older child is wearing a shorts suit. Note the wintry snow covered scenery in the backdrop. The reverse of the cabinet card has an inscription stating that the kids in this photograph are the “DuPont Children”. Could they be part of the famous DuPont family? The photographer’s name and the location of the photographer’ studio are unidentified.

ADORABLE CHILD IN FUR TRIMMED WINTER COAT IN PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

P. E. Lehillman of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania produced this photographic portrait of a young child dressed in a winter coat. The child is wearing a fur trimmed long coat. To view other photographs by Lehillman, click on the category “Photographer: Lehillman”.

TWO FASHIONABLE KIDS FACE WINTER IN PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

Two very well dressed children pose in their winter coats and hats at the studio of H. C. Gabriel in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The children are posed in a faux outdoor scene complete with snow on the ground and snow covered fences. Herman C. Gabriel is noted in the 1900 U. S. census. The census reveals that he was born in Austria in 1833. He was married in 1873 to Johanna Gabriel. He was living with his wife and 22 year-old, American born daughter, Emma. His occupation is listed as “Photographer”. Herman Gabriel is cited in the American Photographer (1916) for winning second place in a photography competition.

 

A YOUNG GIRL GOES SLEDDING IN TORONTO, CANADA (IMAGE CAPTURED BY NIAGARA FALLS TIGHT ROPE PERFORMER)

A young girl, buttoned up in her fur trimmed winter jacket, poses with her sled in front of a painted winter scene. She is wearing a cute cap with a tassel and is pulling her sled by a rope. The photographer of this image is S. J. Dixon. Dixon’s Electric Light Photo Gallery  was located in Toronto, Canada. The studio was established in 1872. Dixon was very involved in the Photographic Association of Canada, holding a number of offices on the executive committee. He became the organization’s President in 1889. Dixon was a noted athlete and acrobat. The Photographic Times (1891) reported that he walked a three quarter-inch wire stretched across the Whirlpool Rapids at Niagara. “The cable was from 300 to 400 feet above the torrent, and stretched about 400 feet in length”. He completed the “perilous journey” in about 17 minutes. During his tight rope walk, he performed various antics, including lying at full length across the wire. Not surprisingly, Mr. Dixon insured that his feat would be recorded for posterity. J. C. Hemment, a well known instantaneous photographer, photographed Dixon during his mid-air walk.

KATE CLAXTON: STAGE ACTRESS ASSOCIATED WITH DEADLY THEATRE FIRE

Kate Claxton (1848-1924) is the subject of this cabinet card portrait. Claxton was an American stage actress who made her first appearance in Chicago with Lotta Crabtree in 1870. That same year she joined Augustin Daly’s Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York. In 1872, she became a member of A. M. Palmer’s Union Square Theatre in New York. She played mostly in comedic roles. She began starring in theatrical tours in 1876. In 1876 she was performing the play “The Two Orphans” at the Brooklyn Theatre (in New York City) when a fire broke out killing 278 people. Soon after the tragic fire, she was in a St. Louis hotel when it caught fire and she made a narrow escape. After the two fires, Claxton was viewed by some audiences and theater professionals, as bad luck and a performer to be avoided.  There are some interesting asides about Claxton. First, the town of Claxton, Georgia was named after her in 1911, Second, her father was Colonel Spencer W. Cone, who was the commander of the 61st New York Regiment in the American Civil War. This cabinet card was photographed by Schloss, a famous New York celebrity photographer. To view other photographs by Schloss, click on this site’s category “Photographer: Schloss”. The reverse of this card has a hand written notation stating “Empire Theatre”. Perhaps this photograph captures Kate Claxton in costume for a role she played at the Empire. The second cabinet card captures Claxton sitting on the ground during a snow storm. The staged scene in this image is likely from one of Claxton’s performances. This photograph is by Sarony, famed New York City photographer. To view other images by Sarony, click on Cabinet Card Gallery’s category “Photographer: Sarony”.

FAMOUS CIVIL WAR PHOTOGRAPHER CAPTURES TWO WOMEN MAKING A FASHION STATEMENT IN SNOWY PAINESVILLE, OHIO

This cabinet card features two woman dressed in their winter cloaks and hats. They are in the studio of G. N. Barnard in Painesville, Ohio. The photograph has some special effects in the form of fake falling snow. The factor that makes this photograph most special, is the photographer’s life story. George N. Barnard (1819-1902), was a pioneer of nineteenth century photography. At age 23 he was producing daguerrotypes and four years later he opened his first studio in Oswego, New York. An 1853 grain elevator fire occurred in Oswego, and Barnard captured the fire with his camera. Some historians consider these photographs the first news photography in history. In 1854 he opened a short lived studio in Syracuse, New York. He then moved to New York City where he worked on stereoscopes for Edward Anthony’s Studio in 1859 .Soon, he was hired by Matthew Brady as a portrait photographer and Brady sent him to Washington D.C. to photograph Abraham Lincoln’s 1861 inauguration as President of the United States. He later became part of “Brady’s Photographic Corps” to photograph the Civil War. Barnard is best known  for his work in the civil war (1861-1865). He was the official army photographer for the Military Division of the Mississippi, commanded by Union General William T Sherman. Barnard’s book “Photographic Views of Sherman’s Campaign” is a photographic record of Sherman’s destructive Atlanta Campaign and subsequent March to the Sea. After the war, Barnard opened a studio in Chicago in 1869. The studio was destroyed in the “Great Fire” of 1871. He proceeded to take photographs of the rebuilding of Chicago over the next few years; providing a terrific record of that process. In 1884, Barnard opened his Painesville, Ohio studio; which brings us back to the cabinet card image of the two ladies in the snow.

HUNTER/TRAPPER DRESSED IN WINTER GEAR (NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA)

This photograph features a hunter/trapper who is well armed for his expedition. He has a rifle and is wearing a knife on his belt. He is wearing winter gear which includes a jacket, cap, and snow shoes. This image was found in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is likely that the pictured outdoorsman is French, and that the studio was located in Nova Scotia.