Weekly 19th Vintage Photograph Case Study

	Monthly Case Study		Analysis of Old Photographs An examination and explanation of clues to establish the date of 19th century photographs.

Case Study: September 9, 2013

About the Case Studies

Photo Facts
Photo Type	Tintype
Tintype Size	2.5" x 4"
Plate Class	CDV Size
Border Style	NA
Sleeve	None
Back Imprint	None

Each month a new photo case study typical of old family photographs is published.

These examples can help genealogists learn the skills that will help date their own photos.

An estimated date (if one is not available) is assigned a +/- number of years it could be. Dating old photos is a science that provides answers usually within 2 - 6 years of when the photo was taken.

Front Side

Clues

Explanation

Click for Larger Image

Cute little girl in a grown up pose The classic fringe chair helps verify the documented date.

The tintype is the size of then-current CDV paper photographs and probably displayed in an album when new.

Fringe Chair
Girls Dress

A Lucky Break

Very seldom are we presented with a documented date and name of the person on a tintype. Paper photographs could be written on, but tintypes were not as easily documented.

Even though we know the date of the tintype (or alleged date to the suspicious), it is worthwhile to examine the tintype for clues that would support the written date.

This type of exercise is advisable for all vintage photographs that are identified. It is possible the written words were added much later, and could be a wrong recollection or estimate by whoever wrote it.

This tintype was not accompanied by a sleeve or other piece to date. So, any date analysis is strictly from the tintype image.

Dated: 1873

See similar tintypes here.

The Popular Fringe Chair

We love a picture with a fringe chair in the scene. It has been referenced many times here. The fringe chair, one of the first studio-specific photographer's chair, was introduced in 1864 and was popular through the mid-1870s. It became 'old fashion' in the late 1870s and is seldom seen after that.

Little Girl's Style

Her hair and dress are stylish to the mid 1870s. No longer was the hair just pulled straight back, but curls and loose hair in the back was allowed.

Her dress and accessories are very interesting, much in the style of an adult. The 1870s saw women's fashion become very 'busy' with ruffles, jewelry (sometimes to excess), and additional treatment to the dress.

Some More Images

Even without the date, the girl's dress hints at the 1870s with a grown up style. In this decade, women's style included an abundance of jewelry, ruffles, and busy adornment to the dress. The charming little girl is probably wearing her mother's necklace. This photo reveals some restraint compared to many images of the period.

A fine job of tinting the cheeks was performed by the photographer. This was a dying art by this time.

The inscription includes "Edith Stanley, [2 1/2 or 3 1/2] yrs 1873". The first name is not absolutely clear, and the date is smudged. Unfortunately, an Ancestry.com search of this name and age returned many possibilities. With no geographic information available from the photo, it would be very difficult to tell which one it could be.

Note the trimmed corners. This was so the tintype could be insterted into an album window with ease.

You can become an expert at analyzing photographs.

Much of the information used to analyze this photograph is covered in the Identification section of this web site. In addition, comparison to similar yet dated photographs in the Gallery section will help confirm the estimates. Even greater detail, organized for this type of research is available in PhotoTree.com's books. Learn More.

Past Cases

Monthly Case Study

Analysis of Old Photographs