La Dolce Vita

I don't know what they're doing, but it looks like they're enjoying themselves.  I'm thinking early to mid sixties and somewhere in Europe.  Don't know why, it's just the impression I get.

Life Among the Ruins

I really, really hope that someone out there recognizes the city in the background.  I've been doing Google images and haven't found a match.  Wherever it's from, it's a great picture.  If it were an 8x10, I'd think it a news photo or the work of a fine art photographer.  But it's not.  It's just a bit above wallet size.  A lucky snapshot.  My best guess is eastern Europe after World War 2.

Berries

But what is she eating?  I thought grapes, but grapes come in bunches.  Whatever it is, this lady likes them, and I do think it's the same lady, photographed a decade or so apart.  Stamped on the back of the second photo, "V Sutras-Tartu"  I assume a photographers name, but who knows these things.   And, I'm guessing Europe.

A European Village Wedding

Must of us have had the experience of looking at an old photograph and knowing where it must have been taken.  There's nothing written anywhere on this picture.  I could have been taken almost anywhere, but when I look at it it says Europe to me.  Not the Europe of Paris, Prague or Berlin, but the Europe of a small village somewhere in eastern, or perhaps southern Europe.  I'll bet the photographer was a local shop keeper who had a side line taking photos.  An old piece of canvas was hung up on the wall to provide an even background, and a glass negative, the same size as the finished photo, was exposed.  Maybe the married couple moved to the United States and brought this print with them.. Maybe they mailed it to their emigrant cousin.  Who knows how it got here.  But then again, maybe I'm wrong.  Maybe this image was made in Iowa.

From Europe

Mother and daughter? Sisters, perhaps? A real photo postcard. Nothing written on the back, but the stock reads "CARTE POSTALE" so it's from France, or possibly the French speaking areas of Switzerland or Belgium.

Post War

I'm 54 and I've lived through too many wars. For people my age, though, when the term "post war" is used, it means the ten to fifteen years right after World War 2. It's when our parents rebuilt their lives, and when we were born. Some would say that the period ended with Korea, others with Vietnam. Written on the back of the photo of the single figure standing on the ship deck, "Yours truly on board ship. Avoiding some detail no doubt. Love Ralph." The two guys sitting on ship, "Gen. McCrae, A fellow from Detroit and myself on board ship. Love Ralph." The closer of the two shots of Ralph standing in front of the tent, "Verdun, Yours truly in the doorway of the tent I lived in when I first got to Verdun. Love Ralph." The barracks building, "Home away from home." The store front with the confederate flag and tires, "Save your Confederate money, boys. The south will rise again." Ralph on the swing, smiling, "Cute boy!" With face covered, "You name it." The lake, "Lake Mitchell June 7, 1954." The only other dated photo is of the children, printed on the front, right border, OCT 62. No locations or dates written on the European shots, but it does remind me that my father once told me that both the great depression and the war were good in one way, it forced Americans to get out of their small towns. Ralph may still be alive, and if he is, I hope he leaves a comment.

Wisconsin and Beyond

Old photo collectors love great images and there are a couple of those in this collection. But, collectors also love a great story behind the images and this set of estate photos from a Wisconsin dealer are all over the place. The two pictures in front of the house are very probably from the United States, as is the last image, that looks like it's from the fifties. Two guys near a palm tree. Florida vacation? The long haired guy with the umbrella and bag could be a doctor, or then again, just a guy with a doctor's style bag. The older couple are labeled Adolph and Jennie. The group of young people above the sea. I doubt that's Wisconsin, and with the woman in the clothe coat,newspaper and purse is labeled, something I can't make out and the "de depart, le 22 Octobre 1945." From France or maybe Quebec. Speaking of dates, the lady, prone on the grass with the shadow of the photographer is dated July 20, 1914. The couple in mid 20th century clothes are labeled Grandma and Grandpa. Not all of these images were taken in Wisconsin, as I've already noted. The woman is sitting in front of the for sale sign is stamped on the back, "MADE BY Goodhart-Tompkins Co. KODAK HEADQUARTERS 33 Peachtree, Atlanta, Ga." The kneeling man is labeled Cornwall Mines, 6/2/21. Cornwall is in England. And the strangest of the lot, the adult woman with the four children, written on the back, "Forced merriment is easily detected, and is an admirable quality that always arouses my deepest sympathies; The children betray the fact that something is troubling the family collectively. H.H." I wonder what made her write that. It's almost a short story.