My camera is three and a half pounds of image-capturing magic. Mary Jane Minor's mouth would round in wonder at its 1295 frames. My great-great-grandma and I are alike in this regard--we collect faces, without identifying the occasion or relation or special qualities that make those eyes so admired, so treasured. Nonetheless, the portraits, now and … Continue reading Not Just Another Face: The Minor Family Album
Victorian photography
Standing There: The Equipment Used to Capture Ancestors’ Smiles
In my last post I shared the final images found within the covers of the Minor Family Album. All of the photographs are portraits of children, taken by professional photographers between the years of 1888 and 1894. I am not an advanced student of photography's history, and therefore, cannot pull all of the evidence present … Continue reading Standing There: The Equipment Used to Capture Ancestors’ Smiles
Photograph as Fashion Plate: The Case of ANOTHER Unknown Woman
I have long given up on my original photographic quest. I will measure my Minor Family Album success not on how many faces I identify and claim as family, but by how much I have learned about dating old photographs and--perhaps more importantly--about converting a family heirloom into a historical artifact. So I was not dismayed when I turned … Continue reading Photograph as Fashion Plate: The Case of ANOTHER Unknown Woman
Reassembling the Past
Cousinly Review Prompts a Re-view (updated 27 August 2014)Shortly after posting this piece, I received an email from reader and cousin, Linda Bell. My colleague strongly suspected that the face was familiar, not just family-like, as if she had seen the photograph before. Perhaps, Linda suggested, this face appears in Bates' History of Greene County, Pennsylvania (©1888) … Continue reading Reassembling the Past
For Marion
Page twelve of the Minor Family Album holds a cabinet card addressed to my great-great-grandfather, Marion Minor (1828-1913). The paper photograph is mounted on a basic ivory-colored cardstock, the photographer's information stamped at the bottom. The woman's face holds a gentle expression, her dark hair swept back to enhance her dark eyes. Her dress looks … Continue reading For Marion
Shoots, Roots, and Leaves 