Family could be?.....

smiddykilry · Post by **smiddykilry** » Tue Oct 03, 2006 8:52 pm

Hello Again
I have just uploaded a photo 1 of 8 - A4 size that was found in a late uncles house, we do not know who they are but feel they have to be Family. There are no clues on the photos (names dates) but I think I have a good hunch as to who they could be.
What I would like is an estimate of the time period, ages of the folk and if you think its a photo to mark an event.
Have a look and let me have your thoughts.

http://talkingscot.com/gallery/displayi ... p?pos=-789

Many thanks
Smid

url added by Marilyn

Post by **Tracey** » Tue Oct 03, 2006 8:56 pm

Hi Smid

This web site http://www.rogerco.freeserve.co.uk/ is very useful for that sort of thing.

Russell · Post by **Russell** » Wed Oct 04, 2006 12:37 am

Hi Smid

Looks like a family photo taken as the process got cheaper and more popular. My first guess was around the 1880's into the 1890's although there is a range of styles in the girls clothes.
It looks like a farm settingwith the father being quite well to-do. But look at the size and strength of his hands !
The girl in the middle of the back row looks about 14 or 15. The sister to her right about 11 or 12. To her left there is not enough detail to be sure whether it is a boy or a girl although from the white collar I would guess a girl aged about 13. The pretty Miss on the extreme left is about 10 and on the right she is about 7 or 8.
The little boy at his father's knee with the suspicious look on his face is probably about 4. His younger brother is about 3 and the baby 16-18 months old.
The smiles on some faces show they had not had to hold a rigid pose for too long, which was essential with early photography, and it makes for a much more relaxed family group.

I may be way out on this but that's my best shot.

Russell

Post by **joette** » Wed Oct 04, 2006 3:15 pm

I would go with the late 1880's 1890's -the style looks similiar to one of my Granny's family -she born 1895.
Given the rural setting I am hedging my bets with the dates as they tended not to be at the cutting edge of fashion.
Could they also be in half-mourning or is it just because the photo is monochrome?I think the protocol was one year of full-mourning -black then sixmonths off half-mourning where you introduce a bit of grey or navy.
The youngest two could be either sex as they do not appear to have been shortened which usually happened around 2/3?
My Dad was still in petticoats aged 2 1/2.This in the early 1930's

They all look very happy & healthy & with strong likeness between them.

smiddykilry · Post by **smiddykilry** » Wed Oct 04, 2006 9:22 pm

Hello
Many thanks to everybody that replied to my post, some are very close to my own thinking, I’ll tell you what I am led to believe and you can all shoot me down if you like.
Firstly let me say that the photo I have in A4 size is much clearer than the one posted.
Location: Farm Yard, the family I have in mind were all farming folk.
The straw spread on the ground to keep mud of shoes suggests that this event had some planning.
Subjects: I think what we are looking at is three generations of the same family, Granny and Granddad seated, 3 Daughters at the back and Grandchildren along the front and to the side.
Era: Best estimate I can come up with is the late 1880’s – 1890 looking at the hairstyles and dress I think that fits.
I don’t think that the black dresses are significant as many other old photos I have the women are nearly all in black.
Event: My thinking is the photo is of a family group gathered together for a Wedding,
If you look at the girl in the back row in the middle of the photo she has a small horseshoe at her neck the same sort of thing you may find today on a wedding cake. It was fairly common for farm workers to have a wedding in the farmhouse with maybe a dance in the barn or loft this practice went on well into the 1900’s.
Ages: Starting with Granny & Granddad, mid to late 50’s. Girl mid back row, mid to late 20’s. Girl back row left, mid to late teens. Girl on left, 10ish. Boy in front of Granddad, 4 to 5. Baby on knee 1 ish.
The rest of the photos are like a timeline of for the boy at granddads knee right up to what looks like to me the 1920’s in some of them he is still wearing the same neck scarf though not tied in a bow!
If and it’s a big if, this is the family and the event I think it is I can put names to the faces of 3 generations of a line where before I only had data.

Many Thanks Again
Smid

LesleyB · Post by **LesleyB** » Wed Oct 04, 2006 10:25 pm

hi Smid
Just a thought, and I may be wrong, I took it to be a mother & father and their children, eldest being the girl at the centre back who I think is not any older than 20. I think the couple are about in their mid 40s - people looked older then than they do today!

And can I just add... it is a wonderful photograph!

Best wishes
Lesley

Cathy · Post by **Cathy** » Wed Oct 04, 2006 11:30 pm

I think its parents and children. The woman looks early 40's. Still young enough to be dropping sprogs.

Alison Plenderleith · Post by **Alison Plenderleith** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 9:02 am

Hi Smid,

On first viewing I thought it was parents and their children. Having looked again I still feel they are parents with their children.
Re. the 'horseshoe' at the girls neck......Isn't it upside down? If I remeber rightly (often not the case

) a lucky horseshoe is always worn or hung the other way up. Can someone confirm this please?

Kind regards,

Alison

DavidWW · Post by **DavidWW** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 9:14 am

Hi Smid

Just one comment, and this relates to the good standard of dress and the fact that all the feet that I can see are "shod", - which is that I'd see this as being a farmer and his family, rather than an AgLab, but then again, could maybe also be the grieve or the head ploughman on a large farm .........

David

smiddykilry · Post by **smiddykilry** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 7:57 pm

Hi David
Thanks for that reply, I think that you are spot on with the Farm Grieve or Head Ploughman, as for being shod the girls at the back will have been out working from probably age 12 so they would have some income and the younger one at the front could be from 3 or 4 family groups so granddad may not be buying too many shoes.

Alison
Thank you also, when I first saw this photo I though the same as you but could not work out the ages of the younger ones, it took a long time to come to the view that they are not from the same parents (the girl on the right and the one in the middle seated look to be the same age but very different) as for the horseshoe, I think that may depend on where you are from one way to catch good luck the other to deflect bad luck!! I don’t know but I have seen many both ways.

Thanks again
Smid