The Rose Parade, January 1, 1926 Part 2

This is part two of five. I often date old photos by comparing things like cars, clothing, and hair styles with other pictures that have written dates. This collection was easy to date. Look at the photo with the theater marquee. I needed a magnifying glass to make it out, but the front of the theater advertises "The Live Wire" with Johnny Hines. The live wire was released on September 20, 1925. The theater is the Bard's Egyptian, which opened in 1925. Pasadena's Colorado Blvd., the route of the Rose Parade still has many building from the era. Note the marchers with the Pasadena Humane Society banner.

The Rose Parade, January 1, 1926 Part 1

This is the first part of five, showing images from the January 1, 1926 Rose Parade in Pasadena, California. The Rose Parade was first held in 1890. It's original sponsor was Pasadena's Valley Hunt Club. The membership was heavy on cold whether refugees from the east and mid-west, and they wanted to show off their homes and the mild winters of southern California.

Where Is This?

With the Spanish business signs, it could be from Mexico, Cuba, or the Philippines. The sign on the photographers studio is partly in English, so it was probably a city with a lot of American or British visitation. Does the "THE MARINE STUDIO" indicate U.S. Marines or merchant marines were welcome to come in and have a picture taken. Well, if anyone out there can tell me where it was taken, please leave a comment.

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Added 9/14/10. In her comment, Christine H. speculates that this could be Panama. What caught her eye was the streetcar tracks. She noted that Panama, and I assume she's referring to the city on the Pacific side of the canal, had single trolley tracks that were removed in 1941. Coincidentally I had come to the same thought, but for far different reasons. This photo was purchased in the United States, and what Spanish speaking country had more American visitation than Panama. The Canal Zone was a defacto American colony that bisected the country. There were American military bases to defend the zone, American technicians to keep the canal running, American business interests dominated the local economy, and even the Panamanian government had large numbers of Americans in administrative positions. Also, a good explanation for the English photo studio sign. With all those Americans wanting photos to send home...And what got me thinking along these lines. A screening of the John Huston/Humphrey Bogart film Across the Pacific, a 1942 film about a Japanese plot to destroy the Panama canal. Christine H's thoughts are a far more valid explanation than my thoughts, but between us, we may have solved the mystery of just where this photo was taken.

Clouds in the Window

I have to wonder whether the cloud reflections in the windows was deliberate, with the photographer standing outside waiting for just the right moment , or was it just an accident. Both photos were printed with the decorative border. Normally I crop out all such borders when scanning in the original, but since the second photo was less interesting, I left it in as an example of a once common practice among commercial photo finishers. Written on the back of the image without the border, "This is Frank's family, all except Frankie, notice the reflection of the rain clouds showing in the room, the sun was out pretty strong in the front of the house, but it rained before the day was over, in fact all of these pictures was taken between down pours, showers, then sunshine." On the print with borders, "This is Franks family in the window, of course you do not want to miss the addition to the family she is some baby."

Another Carte de Visite

In my last post, I went into the history of the carte de visite, and if interested, scroll back one. No fancy calligraphy on the back, so I won't scan it in, but there is a photographer's mark, LINGO, UNIONTOWN, PENNA." My guess is that these two young boys are either professional entertainers or that they are wearing some sort of ethnic costume.

Carte de Visite, CDV, C.C. Shadle

In the first half of the nineteenth century, it was considered good manners to arrive with a visiting card, made of a heavy stock, with the visitors name printed out in a decorative script. But, that all changed in 1854 when French photographer, Andre Adolphe Disderi patented the carte de visite, an albumen print pasted on a heavy card stock sized to 4.5x6.5 inches. The size was chosen to be that of the visiting card, and it soon became the accepted thing to do to go with a photographic visiting card rather than one with fancy calligraphy. Soon a craze in Europe, by 1860, the first year of the Civil War, it had spread to the United States. With the war and the mass movement of people across the battle field, carte de visites became a way of sending photos home and to receive photos of family and friends in return. Unlike the daguerreotype or the ambrotype, which were printed on glass, the carte de visite could be sent through the mail without danger of breakage. Soon photo studios were selling carte de visites of celebrities. Both Lincoln and prominent actor John Wilkes Booth were big sellers. Since the carte was a standard size, it also became popular as an album photo. Collectors anywhere in the world could put carte de visites of family, friends, and famous in easily purchased albums designed with slots for the carte's standard size. While the carte de visite would remain in use for over two decades, it's popularity would be eclipsed in the early 1870s by the larger cabinet card. Also an albumen print pasted on heavy card stock. These two images are of the same young man, taken at the C. C. Shadle studio in Kittaning, PA.

Betty Jane Easterly

Written on the back, "Betty Jane Easterly." Stamped, "B29." I know that I've written that children are the photo subjects that interest me the least, but the toy car made this one different. Based on the car's style, maybe the late twenties or early thirties. Those square front radiators started to disappear in the thirties. Anyway, the toy cor looks expensive, the house is nice looking, and the bit of the neighbors home that can be seen in the background indicates that these homes were built on fairly large lots. Does that mean that Betty Jane came from a well to do family, or just an indulgent one?