Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Mystery Photos: Bishop family album

Someone asked me where my profile picture is from. Ebay.




I have several family name searches saved on Ebay. I never found the fabled family bible, but I did find a photo album engraved “F. & L.H. Bishop.” I bought it. Great pictures. Some tintypes. Not a single one was labeled with the name of the subject.



I found the listing not by searching for Bishop, but for another family line, Duryea. Bishop is an annoying name to search because it’s a word in English. The Duryea search produces results for the car Duryea, Duryea Pennsylvania, actor Dan Duryea, actor George Duryea, actor Viola Allen- wife of Peter Duryea; but also the photographers Duryea. Two of the cabinet cards were by Duryea and mentioned in the description.




There are ways of dating pictures based on the size, color, and materials; the photographer and the address; as well as the setting and the clothes and hairstyles. I have not delved deeply into this yet.

Based on the locations of the studios- Newark, New York City, Brooklyn, Trenton, Pittsfield, Massachussetts, and Torrington, Connecticut- I think that these photos could be my Bishop line. Or they might not be. I have the album just in case. I have not yet found a Bishop couple with the initials F. and L.H., but I am still looking.


Fredericks, 770 Broadway, N.Y., 1887

Tintype

Meuer, photo artist, 262 Bowery, New York

Bostwick, No. 98 Sixth Ave, Bet. 8th and 9th Sts., New York


1 comment:

  1. I placed the pictures from the album, as well as the cover, into Google Docs:

    https://drive.google.com/?urp=https://www.google.com/&pli=1&ddrp=1#folders/0B8XVnLlXz_UkMFBHa29JQTJidXc

    If anyone has any leads on which Bishop branch is portrayed in this album, please let us know.

    ReplyDelete