The old red velvet photograph album that Mr. Flea's Mom gave us presently holds 58 antique photographs of long lost relatives...
...the only photo that my Mother in-law recognized was a picture of her grandfather...
...that would be Mr. Flea's great-grandfather.
The remainder of the photographs are not labeled but we guess that they were taken around 1860 to 1870.
There are lots of photographs of children...
...dressed in little white Victorian dresses with tiny button shoes.
Included are dapper looking gentlemen...
...and young women dressed in their finest.
I love her necklace, don't you?
Can you imagine getting these children ready for their photo-shoot?
Think of the old curling iron that was used on this little one's stick straight hair and the heavy iron used to smooth out the wrinkles in these puffy sleeves!
And look at the expression on this poor little fellow!
He was dressed in a plaid skirt to match...
...he was toughing it out...couldn't wait till it was over!
...there were all sorts of props used...
...bowler hats and watch chains...
...I loved the buttons on this dress.
The photographer posed them in interesting positions with curious pieces of furniture...
Let's take a closer look.
What the heck is that he has his hand on?
...and nice striped trousers but his shoes are looking a bit scuffed.
Lots of trim, bustles and lace...
...paisley shawls and handlebar mustaches...
These three look rather surprised...
...and it looks as if the baby is propped up on top of a haystack.
...one sweet smile.
Do you think he had his knickers in a twist after standing there so long?
This blond haired, blue eyed beauty looks to me as if she had been a teacher.
I am imagining a tragic love story.
Now this little Miss...
Was she in The Exorcist?
...scary.
This wicker pram is amazing!
The back of the photo of this handsome young soldier has the date 1823 on it.
We think it may have been the year he was born....
...but we don't know anything about him really.
I wonder what happened to him?
What was his story?
Even the backs of the old photographs are fascinating...
...fabulous graphics.
It is too bad that these old photographs were not labeled so that we would know where on the family tree they belong...
At least we know that they are family... our children's ancestors...
Their images have been passed down...
...and we are now the keepers of the old red velvet photo album.
I hope the week ahead brings good things for all!
Good night!
:)
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50 comments:
thank you for sharing family with us. i love it. i like to imagine what their stories were. and how their faces would change if they had smiled. it would change them entirely. too bad that most of their history went with them. Bestest,Denise
What a wonderful piece of family history! Beautiful photos and I love the clasp on that album. Such a treasure!
What a great album your MIL has passed down to you. Hubby and I went to the new Richmond Arts Museum today. One painting really stood out from the rest. The handsome gentleman in the painting had a large smile. I commented to Hubby that this was the only portrait out of hundreds we saw where someone actually smiled. He must have been somewhat of a rebel!
xo, Sherry
How exciting is that?! I collect Victorian albums, and have had my hands on hundreds of old cabinet cards, but to think these people are related to you! That just blows my mind away - what a treasure!!!
Bonjour Laura,
Oh this is such a marvelous treasure. I love how you imagine the story behind the faces - are we related? I find myself doing that too while I'm scouring the antique shops and markets.
Wishing you a good week,
Mimi
Truly a treasure to preserve and pass on. It's great you made scans for your blog. It's always interesting to see old photos where one had to hold an expression for what likely seemed an hour. I don't think I've seen one with a smile of any kind like the one you have.
love anything vintage, it grew on me quickly. love the symphony you uphold. glad i stumbled upon your blog. hope you had a great weekend! verbena cottage
Oh thank you so much for sharing these with us!! They are amazing...
Blessing.......
xoxoGert
Hey girlfriend!
I am so glad you loved some of my new work! And you are so lucky to have all these family pics left in your possession! Don't ya wish they could talk? But, I am sure that as creative as you are, you will come up with a great story for each one of them. Do I see some new art coming??? :) xo...deb
Fabulous posting! I love the old pictures and the album itself is priceless. Unlabeled photographs... a real tragedy.
Can't wait for your next posting.
Karen
Ladybug Creek
Thanks you for sharing the album with us - what a wonderful thing to have.
You are one lucky girl, this is lovely.
Debbie
It IS such a treasure to have old family photos...and such a lovely old album!
Aren't treasures like these just the best! I have one from my mother's family but no one knows who they were. It is a black leather with strawberries embossed on it. It has tin types!! They are not as beautiful as yours but still fun!
Hugs, Lisa
Laura, what an amazing and beautiful piece of history of your family! You are so fortunate to have it intact. Love all the photos and the design on the pages is just so precious. So glad you shared it.
xo,
Debra
I just LOVE old photos. What a wonderful treasure you have found - even better that they are relatives of times past!
Enjoy!
Sue
Oh...what a wonderful family heirloom to have! I always think it's so sad when I see old antique photos that are for sell in the antiques shops, no longer with the family they belong to. Thanks for sharing it with us!
Enjoy your week!
~ Jo :)
My FIL always says; 'Label your photos! YOU may know who someone is, but how will your children and grandchildren?' And isn't he right?
It's sad that you don't know their names and histories, but it's still a wonderful record, and what a thing to pass on to the next generations. Thanks for sharing it!
Wow, what a precious treasure to have. They are all gorgeous pictures.
I love the mystery kept by old photographies..
Val
Hi Laura
It is fascinating looking through old family albums. Funnily enough I did the same with my parents when I visited them recently. It is nice for them to be remembered even though we didn't know some of them. I love finding out more about who they were etc..
Your comments on some of the pictures were so funny!
Have a great start to the week
Take care
Isabelle x
What a beautiful gift! I had never thought of the behind the scenes of those photo shoots before, the ironing of the hair AND clothes really puts some perspective on the differences between then and now. Thanks for sharing, Theresa
This is amazing !!!!...thanks for share......have a happy sunny week !! hugs from Ria.........
What a wonderfull treasure, and what a wonderfull gift, you must be in love with this album.
Dorthe
How fantastic ! :)
What an awesome present! Of course the album is even a lot better when there is a relation to you and your children. Too bad that no one has written who those people are, that is the way things go, but you are right to think them a life.
I always felt sorry for a lot of my ancestors. When my greatgrandmother had her photo taken she probably already had lost some of her teeth and she was in mourning. At a certain age all those people were 'always' in mourning. So after who knows how long she posed there was a photo; of a severe looking woman, mouth thightly closed and dressed in black. You couldn't have your photo taken the other year, because they had just a few francs to spend and a photographer was expensive, something you had done a few times or maybe only once in your life. I love these photos and I tend to think that the Americans dressed themself a little cheerier than people in the old world, or should I say over here. Maybe New York was cheerier than the country. Thanks for another great post!
Beautiful...lovely...wonderfu! I love how you created this post around your antique red velvet album. You captured us all!
jeanne:)
I knew from your post title there would be old souls to hear about. I love these old photos and wonder the same as you about who they are and what they did. The handsome soldiers eyes are becoming. How wonderful that these are all family. Sea Witch
That is such an incredible family treasure, Laura. Something to be cherished and passed on for generations.
What an amazing family album. Simply a treasure to hold onto forever. I'm in awe.
BlessYourWeeksFinds
Laura,
What a good-looking family and such a beautiful album. People from that era always look so spooky but not your husband's family. Very charming. It is to bad it isn't labeled...so we should go right back and label our family pictures right now...yeah, right!
Hugs,
Suz
Don't you just love albums like that. I have one almost identical that my grandmother had. It looks like some of the pictures date back to some war (Civil?). I wish that someone had identified the pictures though. My grandmother didn't and I don't have a clue as to who anyone is. But it's still a wonderful treasure.
I am blessed to be the keeper of my family's old photos so I know how much they mean to you. Luckily as a child I was fascinated with them and spent hours with my great-grandma going over them and finding out who each person was. I hope that you might be able to investigate and find some names so that future generations will know the wonderful family they came from. They are some of the most beautiful pics that I have ever seen, what a lucky gal you are!
What a treasure for your family...thank you for sharing!
What an absolute treasure to have Laura!!! So neat! I adore old black and white photos, and these are extra special because they are your relatives!! Thanks so much for sharing it!
Hugs ~
:) T
Oh, what amazing photos and all in such excellent condition. You have a true treasure here! ~ Sarah
It is a shame when photos are not labeled. My Mom and I were going through an old family album recently and were trying to figure out who was who. Yet, whether the photos are labeled or not, it's still fun looking at those who came before us! Lovely post!!
Love,
Susan and Bentley
xxoo
I am speechless, those Photo's are amazing! That soldier is so very handsome!
Charmaine
How lucky you are to have such a kind and generous MIL. Which picture is your husbands great grand father?
Susanne.
Laura, this is so special for you and your family. My daughter has been doing geneology and finding old photos and what a wonderful feeling to see where we've come from!
Blessings,
Diane
Hello Laura,
how precious! I have a smaller Victorian album filled with cabinet photographs (a gift from a dear friend), and I'm always in awe when I open it. Cannot imagine if the pictures were of my relatives!
Thanks for sharing.
Monica.
Oh Laura,
I just love all the pictures. The wicker pram is my favorite!
Maybe everyone should make up stories again for the pictures they like best.
Just a thought.....the wheels are spinning.........
XOXO,Evi
I just love black and white photos and these are fabulous!
Jeanine
HI Laura
Well what a fabulous album and great vintage photos.. I have quite a few vintage photos that belonged to the family and like you don't always know who the people are... I find the 'school teacher' photo quite interesting.. there is something about her.. something that leaps out and speaks to me... I hope she had a good life!!!
Thanks for your lovely comments... keeping my fingers crossed.. xxx Julie PS i've missed so many posts.. and those at your beloved lake house.. will have to catch up!!
What a lovely treasure Laura !!
Beautiful all that victorian photographs, in this album!
Have a nice sunny day
Yvonne
Wonderful post and a great gift given to you to be keeper of the family photographs. I was given a German family Bible with photographs in it and we have no idea of the names of the people, but do know they are family.
I loved seeing your old family album. We have lots of these albums also as we just cleaned out my husband's family home for resale. I am sad also that we cannot identify these wonderful faces. I blog about my mother-in-law's collectibles at madelinesmemories-ann.blogspot.com.
What stories the people in these pictures could tell.
If only pictures could talk...sigh!
Their finery, furniture, etc., are eye candy for moi.
Makes me want to say..more,more,more.
How wonderful that you have this, even if you don't know the names or the exact connection. I am always a bit sad to see cabinet photos in antique stores, abandoned, orphans that someone had counted as unimportant at some time and cast them aside. My father was the family historian, and so I have photos and tintypes back to very, very early days, all identified. What a gift to me, to see my ancestors and discover the resemblance they have to current family, or myself.
Blessings ~ Eileen @ Star's Fault
Laura you are so blessed to have all these beautiful keepsakes from your ancestors. What I would give to have even a fraction of the family pieces you have in your possession! My family is quite large, and by the time items were divvied up, only a scarce few came my way.
Blessings,
Liz @ the Brambleberry Cottage
http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/
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