Arawak Hotel, Jamaica, W.I.

I have a number of hotel, nightclub, restaurant, and even a cruise line souvenir photo folder in the collection. This one is a bit different. Rather than well dressed people sitting around a table, drinks in hand, a group of tourists getting wet. I was able to find lots of reviews of The Arawak Hotel but nothing on it's history. I was able to find a vintage luggage label with a picture of the hotel with the abbreviation B.W.I. which stands for British West Indies. Jamaica gained it's independence from Great Britain in 1962. So we know that the hotel was built before 1962, but this picture was taken after independence, since the abbreviation W.I. was only used after Jamaica's break from Britain. The Arawak Hotel is located in Ocho Rios on Mammee Bay. One of the activities that the hotel offers is tours of Dunn's River where guests can climb the falls. It looks like that's what these folks are doing. Those one piece swim suits have to be from the sixties. Click on souvenir photo folders in the labels section to pull up some of the other photos in the collection.

Iowa Girls at the Beach

It's always somewhat risky trying to determine personality from a photograph. The tall girl seems like the leader of the group, but she might have that look because she's taller than her friends. The girl to her right, with the sad expression, grasping her friend's arm, is the shy, frightened one, I would think. Stamped on the back, "GEPPERT STUDIOS STAMP OF QUALITY DES MOINES ,IOWA" From the twenties I would think.

Atlantic City 1924

It's always nice when things are dated, and all three of these images are dated, "Aug. 16, 1924." In addition, the one with the adult woman and child is labeled, "Mrs. Kravitz and Albert." Little Albert seems to be wearing a dress of some kind. The one with the girls sitting on the sand, "Gus and Jen Atlantic City." And the two girls standing, "Dot and Jen Atlantic City." Dot and Jen have their initials on their swim suits. Click on Atlantic City in the labels section, to bring up another old boardwalk photo.

At The Swimming Hole

In our casual era, it's hard to imagine, but there was a time when ladies dressed to do almost everything. Taking the kids swimming while wearing a dress and heels is not something seen anymore. And of course, it was also common for men to wear ties all of the time, including to factory jobs.

Bonus Photos From Royaltone

When I Googled Royaltone Photo Service bonus photo, I brought up a self portrait by Andy Warhol, shot with a Kodak Instamatic. Makes sense, the original Instamatic, manufactured from 1963 to 1970, used a 126 film cartridge. The 126 format produced a square image, just like these. Of course, the original Instamatic sold in the millions, and 126 cartridges were made for years afterward, and may in fact, still be available. Take a close look at these photos. The woman in the black suit, on the green chaise lounge is sitting next to a chaise with a yellow towel, just like the one that the lady in the skimpy two piece is using. The same chaise used by the lady in black can be seen in the corner of the image of the lady in the yellow suit. All these photos were probably shot on the same day on the same roof, probably in the New York City area. It would be nice if these three pictures had been dated, but the styles, and the Instamatic connection, I'd say mid sixties to mid seventies.

Diving Board

No date or location. An older photo, probably from the twenties or thirties.

A Woman in a Swimsuit

Looks like a two piece, so I'm guessing no earlier than the early fifties.

Cameras on the Beach

Looks like this beach goer has a nice 35mm camera, or maybe an old stereo camera. In any case, it looks like it's time to put in new film.