Preservation of a Lost Faces Album Part 3

Please see Part 1 and Part 2 for the start of this process of how I rescue, archive, and publish on Lost Faces antique photo albums I save from disappearing.

After I have finished documenting every page in the rescued photo album, I sart the process of gently and carefully removing the photos. This can be a very laborious process are many are "stuck" to the pages with 100 or more years of dust and grime. I use a very thin plastic flexible ruler when necessary to gently assist each photo out of its slot. My goal is to not damage the album pages or the photo of course, so I do not want to just grab the photo and pull it out.

As I remove each photo, I assign a two letter abbreviation designating the name of the album and a number consistent with the order the photo was placed in the album on the verso (back) in pencil. If there is anything written on the album page that is not also written on the photo, I add that information to the photo back.

I also note (in pencil) the album number and name in the front inside page of the album. This allows me to reassemble the photos with the correct album in the future.

The next stage involves scanning, then storing each photo in an acid-free sleeve and storage box. More on that in my next blog post!

Continuing Preserving Another Photo Album for Lost Faces

A fascinating image on the right
identified as the daughter of Oscar Knapp

Going through the newly rescued photo album for Lost Faces was my fun time over the weekend.

It's a challenge for me to go slow, document each page before I start the process of removing the pictures from their pages.

Many of the album pages had identification of the people in the photos. The names were written in a  contemporary hand, and was not period handwriting or ink from the 1860s. My hope was that once I removed the photos I might find period handwriting on the backs.

If you are wondering why I'm being so fussy it is because any identification written at the time the photos were put into the album is bound to be more accurate than identification entered many years later.

One very interesting notation was entered on the album page below. This was  in the same handwriting as the rest of the album and reads "Great Grandfather and Grandmother Ostrander". What a great clue as to when these labels were entered on the album pages!

 

These photos appear to be Civil War era (early to mid 1860s).  I know that one of their great-great grandchildren wrote in this album. I am theorizing that this great-great grandchild was probably born around the turn of the century and may have written in the album as an adult, say around 1930 to 1960. I'll know more when I remove the photos, check the backs, and start my research on everyone who is identified in this album.

Removing the photos is a slow and careful project. You don't want to tear the album pages or bend the photos. Often they are stuck in the slots which is not surprising after being in there over 150 years! I use a very thin, pliable plastic ruler to help ease the photos out if I can't just slide them gently with my hands. 

I can hardly wait to get at that stage of the process! 

Please see Part 1 and Part 2 for the start of this process of how I rescue, archive, and publish on Lost Faces antique photo albums I save from disappearing.

Don't Miss My New Website Lost Faces!

Sarah (Page) Simpson 1840-1920

When I was about 11 years old, my grandmother gave me this photo of her grandmother (my great-great-grandmother), Sarah Simpson. Grandma told me it was taken in Ramsgate England sometime in the 1890s.

I was fascinated - she wore such a beautiful ornate hair piece! The gorgeous blouse or dress thrilled me with its ruffles and high collar. I couldn't stop thinking about the fact that I had part of this fine lady in me, in my blood and my genes.

I learned a lot about Sarah - widowed at the young age of 34, and pregnant with her 5th child, she was forced to work as a charwoman to feed her children. 

Not only did that spur me on to delving deeper into my British side of my family, it also sparked an immediate love of antique photos of ancestors. I thought about their lives - were they happy? Did they enjoy the same things I enjoyed? Did they get angry, or cry at the loss of a family pet. Yes those are the odd things I thought about as a youngster.

This early fascination with ancestors and photographs that captured one brief moment in their lives led to my determination to rescue and preserve as many old photos as possible. Several years ago I began purchasing entire albums of named photographs (Cartes de Visite and tintypes mostly) from the Civil War era, and offering scans of the photos to interested descendants. My dream was to one day publish them all online for genealogists to freely copy for their own personal use.

A few of my rescued Ambrotypes & Daguerreotypes

I am excited to announce my dream has come to fruition. Several years ago I was able to purchase the domain name "Lost Faces" from a woman who no longer wanted it.

This year I completed scanning and uploading approximately half of the precious albums I have rescued over the years. Every album is online with a description, a list of names, and at least a few photos from the album.

 There are 81 albums online at this point, and approximately half are complete, meaning all the photos in the albums are online for visitors to enjoy. Most albums have 50 photographs so you can see that is a lot of photos for visitors to enjoy and hopefully find an ancestor or two!

1916 Ramsgate England

As well as these wonderful album photographic treasures, Lost Faces contains dozens of single photos of groups - sports teams, class photos, and more. I also have vintage postcards for your enjoyment, and explanations of various early photograph types such as Cartes de Visite, Cabinet Cards, Tintypes, Ambrotypes, and Daguerreotypes. To top it all off I've added some brief tutorials on dating photographs through fashion, hairstyles, photographer marks and more.

Enjoy your visit to Lost Faces and feel free to download any photos for your own personal use. The only thing you cannot do is publish the photos anywhere else offline or online. Perhaps you'll find an ancestor in my rescues!

Feel Like Decoding Civil War Telegrams?

The Huntington Library is offering the general populace the opportunity to help de-code and transcribe thousands of Civil War telegrams.

From the website RealClearLife.com: "A California library wants your help in sifting through, transcribing, and decoding thousands of Civil War–era documents. The Huntington Library has launched a crowdsourcing project to attempt to crack 15,971 Civil War–era telegrams—including 100 to and from President Abraham Lincoln himself. The telegrams zigzagged between the president, his Cabinet, and officers of the Union Army. Approximately one-third were written in unbreakable code, one so complex that the Confederate Army was never able to crack it."

Read the full story at Library Wants Your Help Decoding Thousands of Civil War Telegrams