Narrowing the List of Suspects: Identifying 2 Women
For the last month, Photo Detective Maureen A. Taylor has been investigating three photo submitted by a reader. The final step is to narrow down the list of her ancestors to find possible matches.
Read MoreOld Family Photo Mystery: Is This the Father or the Son?
Carole Bemke has a question. Is this photo of a father in her family tree, or his son? Seems simple, right? But not if both men have the same name. You know how it goes. Someone in the family is sure that a photo depicts a certain person, but your...
Read MoreComparing Faces in Old Family Photos
Here they are again. I'm enamored of this photo; it's a layered puzzle with many clues. In my first post about it I examined the clothing details and asked for additional information. In the second post, we considered the other couples in the family that married in the 1880s. William...
Read MoreHow to Identify the Right Couple in an Old Wedding Photo
In the recent post 3 Clues to Identify Family in Old Wedding Photos, I asked a series of questions relating to this image belonging to William Davis: This week, I'm back with more information.The clothing clues in this picture, including the woman's front-pleated skirt and her bodice...
Read More3 Clues to Identify the Ancestors in Old Wedding Photos
Dr. William Davis dated this photo in his collection to sometime between 1860 and 1890. It once hung in his parents' house, but he can't remember which side of the family it represents. The photo documents the wedding of one of Dr. Davis' ancestors...
Read MoreWhat Does It Take to Solve a Mystery?
Bet you're thinking this is a good question. Solving an old photo mystery relies on different things. It all depends on the picture but there are certain family facts that help. Denise Valentine submitted this 20th-century picture. She's unsure who's in the picture but she has some ideas. I...
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Head-to-Toe 1920s Wedding Fashion
June is a popular month for weddings, so Diane Smith's submission of a mystery photo is a perfect way to start off the summer bridal season. Her maternal great-grandmother owned this picture. Could this be a picture of Diane's great-grandfather's parents, who married in Poland in 1876? Diane's in for...
Read MoreMore Mystery Photos in an Old Family Album
The trouble with women in light colored dresses is identifying the occasion. Not all dresses that appear white in a picture are that color. Many pale shades such as light blue look white in nineteenth century photographs. A woman wearing a "white" dress could be dressed for a wedding, a...
Read MoreDaughters and Sons-in-law in an 1850s Photo
Jim TeVogt owns a copy of this gorgeous image, reported to be three of Horace W. Twichell's daughters and their husbands. A cousin told him that his photo was made from a glass negative in the Twichell family. Could this be:Eveline (born 25 May 1824) married in 1840 to Usual...
Read MoreFamily Across the Border
Like so many French-Canadians and Acadians, some of Marie-Josee Binette's family left Quebec in the 1890s to seek jobs in the United States. She owns a lovely photo album that documents this move in pictures, but she has no idea who the people are. Marie-Josee knows that her great-grandmother Elina...
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