The Turn-of-the-20th Century snapshots of
the Blake & Clark Families
A question I had at the beginning was about the camera used for these snapshots. That these are not formal photographs only reinforced that Adeline and Lucian were wealthy. What I found was that general access to cameras had increased during the last part of the 19th century, and so the mere existence of the snapshots didn't necessarily rely on excessive disposable income.
What does, in my mind, identify these as photographs documenting wealth is the types of activities portrayed. Having time to play tennis and other sports, to travel, and even to have the types of clothes worn or homes portrayed definitely indicates wealth. The various other information found about these families reinforce the fact that these are photos of leisure-class lives.
New York Tribune June 22, 1889 - p10
The box camera
In 1881, George Eastman created and marketed the first U.S. made cameras for the average person. "The Kodak #1" was a box camera pre-loaded with film for 100 photographs. Once the photographs were taken, people sent the entire camera to have the film developed, with the finished photographs and a reloaded camera later returned. Eastman's marketing slogan was "You press the button, we do the rest."
It's easy to identify Adeline's photo album and photographs as part of the amateur photography craze of the early 20th century. An essay about the history of amateur photography published by The Met describes the use of these early cameras -
"The great majority of early snapshots were made for personal reasons: to commemorate important events (weddings, graduations, parades); to document travels and seaside holidays; to record parties, picnics, or simple family get-togethers; to capture the appearance of children, pets, cars, and houses. The earliest Kodak photographs were printed in a circular format , but later models produced a rectangular image, usually printed small enough to be held in the palm of the hand. Most snapshots produced between the 1890s and the 1950s were destined for placement in the family album, itself an important form of vernacular expression. The compilers of family albums often arranged the photographs in narrative sequences, providing factual captions along with witty commentary; some albums contain artfully elaborate collages of cut-and-pasted photographs and text, often combining personal snapshots with commercial images clipped from magazines."
During the 1890s to early 1900s, Kodak developed a number of cameras with many different qualities, including the inexpensive Brownie, and ranged in cost from $1.00 to around $25. I can't be completely certain what camera created these photographs. Looking at the dates when the different styles were developed and which cameras produced square photographs and which produced round ones, I suspect that these photographs were taken with a Kodak #2 Bulls Eye camera that was marketed between 1899 and 1913.
In the photographs from the Winter Activities, there appear two different cameras. One, a box camera, is with Adeline - either in front of a group or in her hand. The other one is held by another woman, and it appears to be one of the folding pocket cameras.
Adeline in the white hat with white gloves --
In above photograph: left end second row.
Photograph to the right: center looking away from the camera.
