Friendship, Love and Truth in the Family Album

Maureen — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 14:03:21 GMT

Pam Rolland is working her way through family albums in the possession of her aunt. She reports that she's been able to date and identify many of the pictures in them, but still has a few mysteries.

This is one of them. It was in an album with members of the Roberts family.

That particular branch of the family moved from North Carolina to Virginia then to Missouri, Arkansas and finally to Oregon.

Look closely at the man's accessory. The clasp holding it on is three interconnecting rings.

That is a symbol of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, a group I've written about in previous columns. You can see these rings in Fraternal Membership Clues and in Fraternal Insignia. They stand for Friendship, Love and Truth.

The Odd Fellows are a fraternal organization that believes in charitable pursuits. You can read more about the history of the group and their mission on Wikipedia.

Photos of men in fraternal symbolism can be difficult to decipher. There is no comprehensive guide to these symbols. Unless the accessories are easy to identify, tracking down what your ancestor is wearing requires extensive research into their lives.

Obituaries often reveal membership in these "secret" groups.
In the 19th century, a majority of men belonged to a fraternal organization. They were professional networks and offered support for members in need.
City directories are a great resource when trying to determine which groups had chapters in the area in which your ancestor lived. There is usually a list of local organizations in directories.
Many of these nineteenth century groups still exist so a quick Google search can provide you with contact information.

Complicating Rolland's search for this man's identity is the number of places the family lived. In order to narrow down the possibilities she'll have to identify where this man might have lived in the 1880s (based on his attire and the card stock) and who in the family tree might be the right age to be him.

Solve your family photo mysteries with these books by Maureen A. Taylor:

Preserving Your Family Photographs

Fashionable Folks: Hairstyles 1840-1900

Finding the Civil War in Your Family Album

Wacky Hair or Fashionable Foible?

Maureen — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 13:34:24 GMT

I can't help it. I love the hairstyles and facial hair in photographs so much I'm actually thinking about a second volume of my Fashionable Folks: Hairstyles 1840-1900 book. The curls and whorls of nineteenth century styles definitely provide insights into your ancestor's fashion sense and their personality. This week I'm sharing three images from my growing collection of purchased images of women's tresses and men in beards.

In this 1860s carte de visite, a middle aged woman wears her hair in the style of her youth. Women wore their hair looped over their ears in the 1840s and early 1850s. Both her attire and her hair are conservative.

Look closely at her hair.

There is a lack of gray hair. One of my colleagues who's also a Civil War reenactor is looking for pictures of Civil War era women with gray hair. Did they color their hair or is our prevalent gray hair a result of modern living? Hair dye was available, but a fashion historian told me that women who ate a lot of seafood didn't go gray. Hmmm.

Here's a very fashionable woman from the 1880s with her oiled curls and large bow. Her hair is neatly coiffed.

Let's not leave the men out of it. <smile>

It's the 1870s look with a bit of the past mixed in. In a beard style chart from the nineteenth century, his is called the "Burnside, short." The full Burnside look featured much longer sideburns. My favorite part of this man's hair is the wave on the top of his head.

Hope you're having a nice summer!

Solve your family photo mysteries with these books by Maureen A. Taylor:

Preserving Your Family Photographs

Fashionable Folks: Hairstyles 1840-1900

Finding the Civil War in Your Family Album

Photo Detective with Maureen A. Taylor - beards

Friendship, Love and Truth in the Family Album

Wacky Hair or Fashionable Foible?