The oldest photos
Old photographs are so interesting, dontcha think? Especially when the subject is relevant to you, personally.
The thing is, photos have been around for less than 2 centuries. Widely available portrait photography has been around for less than 180 years, and actual film and push-button cameras have been around for less than 140 years. That’s actually not very long in terms of recorded human history, ya know?
Anyway, I was curious about how far back our family photo collections went. So, without further ado, here are the oldest photographs that we currently possess, for each of our main family lines!
Ruby Melda Haupt, circa 1940
Relevant to the Kidder and Taschwer families
Ruby was one of Gary’s great-grandmothers on his dad’s side. She was born in September of 1917 and died in March of 1992. She lived her whole life in/around Alliance, Stark County, Ohio.
This is possibly the most recent of our “oldest” photos. I’m not real sure when exactly this photo was taken, but based on the super-cute clothing and super-cute hairstyle I think it was in the early-to-mid 1940’s.
Aaron McMahan, circa 1855
Relevant to the Eckert and McMahan families
Aaron was one of Gary’s great-great-great-grandfathers on his mother’s side. He was born in October of 1831 and died in August of 1901. He spent most of his life in Ohio, with a few years spent just across the border in Pennsylvania.
He sat for this portrait in the mid-1800’s — my guess, based on his hair and outfit in particular, is in the mid-1850’s, around the time he was married. I just love the way this photo captured the textures of his clothing, like the shiny satin of his cravat and the corduroy of his jacket.
Robert Bryant Thompson, circa 1850
Relevant to the Mitchell and Thompson families
Robert was one of Thekla’s great-great-great-grandfathers on her dad’s side. He was born in Tennessee in October of 1850 — not long before this photo was taken, obviously — and died in Texas in May of 1931. He spent most of his life farming or working in cotton gins around Arkansas, Oklahoma, and, of course, Texas.
Given the more certain date of this photo, it is probably a daguerreotype, though it could possibly be an ambrotype. I’m impressed that baby Robert stayed mostly still long enough that his face is only slightly blurry. And look at the detail on that lace trim!
Ortego family, circa 1895
Relevant to the Chapman and Ortego families
This Ortego family photo includes Narcisse (born 1868) and Delaide (born 1873) with their son Armelian (born 1891). Narcisse and Delaide were Thekla’s 3rd great-grandparents and Armelian her 2nd great-grandfather on her mother’s side. They all spent their lives in St. Landry/Evangeline Parish, Louisiana.
I’m not quite sure of the date of this photo, but it had to have been between the time when Armelian started walking — hence the little boots — and the time when he’d have started either working or going to school, when little boys began wearing pants instead of skirts, as he’s wearing here. It’s also worth noting that bright colors often appeared very dark in these old photos, so despite the somber look of the family it’s probable that they were actually wearing their most cheerfully-colored nice clothes for the portrait.
Of course, I hope that we’ll be able to continue expanding our historical family phsoto collections. Most of what we have has been provided by relatives who either posses the original photo or found a copy and digitized it to share. If you think you have an older photo than any of these, please don’t hesitate to share it with us!
I’m working on a recap of our family history investigations across the pond right now, so keep an eye on your inbox for more info about that.