Figure 1.-- This tintype is a class portrait of an all boy's class, presumably a private school. Most of the boys look to be about the same age, except for one younger boy. This suggests to us that it is a class in an all-boys school rather than a lady taking in the neighborhood children. The way they are dressed also suggests a private school. All the boys wear long pants suits, exceot for the little boy in front. They look about 10-years old. Interestung that they had a lady teacher. Exclusive boys schools often hired male teachers. The portrait is undated, but the clothing suggests the 1870s to us.

We see some school portraits from the 1870s, but not very many. It does not yet seem common to have class porteaits made. The system of public schools had begun to take shape in the United Sttes by the 1870s. Here the Homstead Act (1863) plyed an important role as it provided for a school allotment in the sakle of homsteads. Even the the Southern states begn to found public schools. The images we have found show the boys wearing suits with long pabts except for the very youngest boys who wore knee pants. Several of the 1870s images are private schools, presumably because the families of boys at private schools could more easily afford to ay for the portraits.

Unknown School (1870s)

We notice a drawing at a very large school in the 1870s illustrating a fire drill. It seems to have been a particularly large school, even for the 1870s. While it is a drawing, it does seem to illustrate an actual school. We do not yet know, however, the name of the school.

Unidentified Private School Class (1870s)

This tintype is a class portrait of an all boy's class, presumably a private school (figure 1). The small class size is a strong indication that it was a private school. Most of the boys look to be about the same age, except for one younger boy. This suggests to us that it is a class in an all-boys school rather than a lady taking in the neighborhood children. The way they are dressed also suggests a private school. Note hoe popular those cross-ties were. None of the boys wears floppy bows, which is one reason we think that this is an 1870s image. All the boys wear long pants suits, exceot for the little boy in front. He wears knee pants, although rather long-cut knee pants. They look about 10-years old. Interestung that they had a lady teacher. Exclusive boys schools often hired male teachers. The portrait is undated, but the clothing suggests the 1870s to us. As it is a tintype, we do not know where the portrait was taken, but it could have been New Hampshire.

Chester Springs Soldiers' Orphan School (1870s-80s)

Many fathers were killed in the Civil War. The Pennylvania General Assembly created a series of orphan schools to care for them. The Pennsylvania orphan school system eventually numbered 23 primary and 15 advanced schools as the Pennsylvania state legislature --General Assembly) expanded eligibility. The schools were run by Soldiers' Orphan School Department (1870-1889). The General Assembly approved the creation of the Commission of Soldiers' Orphan Schools (May 25, 1889). One of the schools was the Chester Springs School. Here orphaned means losing their father. Presumably they still had their mother and other family members. At the time, the father was normally the bread winner, so losing their father put the boys at a real disadvantage. The school took in both boys and girls. The boys wore military uniforms, but it was not a military school as such. This was because there were girls at the school. The girls wore white dresses.

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Created: 8:27 PM 1/9/2009
Last updated: 8:27 PM 1/9/2009