I posted recently that my husband is becoming interested in his own family history. We are working together with a genealogist to knock down some bricks in the brick wall–and they are flying out at an amazing rate. In order to document the process and share what we are learning I’ve started another blog for hubby’s family. It’s called Entering the Pale. If you have any interest in following another part of our family, please head over there and follow. I don’t expect the posts to be regular, but I will post periodically. Also, you might want to follow if you have interest in history in general or history of the Pale of Settlement (Ukraine, Moldova, Belarus, etc.) or Jewish history.
Today I’m sharing another mystery photo from the family. I do not know who this is, when it was taken, or anything other than that it is from Kalamazoo. The photographer, Ford and Humphrey, is not on the list of Kalamazoo photographers compiled by Bushwacking Genealogy–unless this is Frank Ford. He was in business from approximately 1887-1900, although not listed in the city directory in 1899.
I looked up Humphrey in the city directories that are online. There are quite a few people with that surname in Kalamazoo at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th, but nobody is listed as a photographer.
Notice that it says this studio makes “bromide portraits” their specialty. I googled this phrase, but found that silver bromide and potassium bromide have both been used for photography. It looks as if this could narrow the time for the photo down to 1880-1900, so not much help there.
Was the photography studio on the ground floor of the post office? Is that what that means? What is OPP.?
Have you ever seen a hairstyle like this? Was it a thing, a fashion? Her hair looks very straight and smooth up front.
And what about the jewelry at the neck? How would you describe it? Is it a crescent moon with a pearl and a chain?
About all I can figure out is that I’m looking at a natural blonde.
The Family Kalamazoo 