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The HBC biography section is for people or families that have achieved some degree of notariety or fame. HBC readers in many cases have submitted family portraits. HBC has until now not added them to the biography section. We believe now that this is a mistake. Many of the HBC readers contributing family portraits can also provide details about the boy and him family. This background information help us to assess social trends and put the fashions involved in perspective. This is just why the biographical section is an important part of HBC. As a result, HBC has decided to create pages for these relatively unknown people, when some basic family data is available. Incidentally if you find a relative here, please do tell us something about him. Here we are listing these biographies alpahabetically to facilitate looking up individual names. The alphabdetical list is the primary data base in this section. While we have not persued geneolgical research on these individuals, having the names and in many cases the location provide the potential to acquire more background information in the future which may provide additonal insights into the fashion and life style trends.
We note a family snapshot of Ken Adams and Joyce Smith. They are in either Ken's or Joyce's back yard (back garden for our British friends) enjoing a treat, looking like an ice cream cone. They may be neigbors or relatives. Joyce and Ken look to be about 6 and 13 years old. The snapshot is undated, but looks like the 1930s to us, possibly the post-War 1940s. We have no idea where the snapshot was taken, but the dealer is in Lancanshire. Joyce loks to be wearing a sweater over a dress and knee socks. Jen wears a short pants suit. The jacket has large lapels. He also has knee socks with patterned tops. The suit looks more like his dressup clothes than a school unifirm. Ken's hair is parted in the middle which suggests the 1930s rather thn the 40s. In the background is a trelace and an area to work with potted plants.
Here we have a look at a Swedish family in the 1920s. We see two interesting shots of a Swedish brother and sister taken in 1923 and 1924 respectively. The first snapshot shows Ingeborg and Holger Agerdal with their collie dog. Holger is about 11 and his sister Ingeborg about 8. They are obviously dressed for winter. Holger wears a woolen stocking cap, a heavy sweater, short trousers, long black stockings with woolen socks over them with heavy winter boots. Many Swedish children wore both socks and long stockings in winter time. We notice this same style in an early scene from Bergman's film, "Fanny and Alexander".
Here we have an older brother with his baby sister. The children are Carson and Mc Agnew. The boy wears a knee pants suit. He has a big bow with a large white collar. The baby wears a long white lacey dress. The back of the cabinet card reads, "Uncle and Aunty, Mc. and Carson Agnew". The photographer was LeRoy and Terril in Youngstown, Ohio.
These children were taken for an outing to Blaney Beach in Swampscott, Massachusetts, we think in the 1890s. Now conventions at the time was to dress up, even when going to the beach, but we still see the boys wearing their kilt suits away from home as well as the headwear worn with them (a sailor cap and a broad-brimmed straw hat). We thought that here we had two boys wearing kilt suits and a grl wearing a dress. And this is confirmed because we have their names: John Blaney, Norman Albree, and Marion Wardwell. The relationship between the children is unclear. The ages are not indicated, but we would guess about 4 years. The print was taken with a glass plate negative
This cabinet card shows a boy with long curly hair wearing a dress with large lace collar. The boy is sitting in a large wicker chair. The photographer is Smith & Clarke in Belleville Ontario. The name of the boy is handwritten in the back, 'Francis Allan, 2 years 4 months'. The portrait is undated, but the style of mount and the whicker furniture suggests the early 1900s to usm orobably about 1900-05.
This cabinet card portrait shows Clarence Allen. The dealer describes him as Clarence E. Allen. The inscription on the back, however, is just Clarence Allen. He looks to be about 5 years old. Clarence is dressed in a classic Little Lord Fauntleroy suit. He wears a Fauntleroy cut-away jacket suit and as was standard includes knee pants. It is done in a suiting fabric, not velvet. The outfit includes a fancy blouse without elaborate wrist cuffs. This is typical of the declinjng Fauntleroy styles after the turn-of-the 20th century. He does have a very large floppy bow. Most notable is his ringlet curls hair style which includes a huge top roll. The clothes, mount style, and white whicker furniture all date the portrait to about 1900. The studio was McLeod in Standish, Michigan.
This cabinent portraitshows a little American boy with a a faint little grin. He appears to be holding a rider's crop, a common prop to sress that the child was a boy. The writing on the back of the photo identifies the boy as "Harold Allen - Aunt Fanny's boy". He looks to be about 3 years old. He is wearing a very small jacket, an unusual sleeveless jacket with a blouse. The blouse had a fancy lace collar and rather small bow. He is wearing the outfit with a dark skirt, but we can not mke out much detail. The photographer is J.P. Rhodes, 213 W. Washingotn Street, Phoenix, Arizona. The portrait is undated and we are unsure how to date it. The Fauntleroy styling suggests the 1880s, but the bow is rather small forthe 80s. It could have been tken in the late-1870s or early 80s.
This cabinet card was taken in 1890 by which time the Plsais Indians had been removed to the Indian Terrirory or other reservation. It was taken by F.L. Greene of Blancard, Iowa, They are the Allen children. The little boy in the middle sitting with his feet prominently dangling in front of the box is showing off his fine Plains Indian beaded moccasins. Not something you see everyday, particularly of American boys in the 1890s. Tops and sides of moccassins are heavily beaded and look new or nearly so. It was of course not unusual for little boys to wear a dress like outfit at this date. Nate how the hair styles indicate gender. We are not entirely sure what the boy's older sister on the right is earing around her neck. Old inked note on verso of photo reads "A merry chirstmas to Aunt Julia Dec 25, 1890. Jennie Alen Gillespie Newton & Sam Allen "
This studio portrait was done by Rossiter, St. Ansgar, Iowa about 1910. It seems a rather bare-bones studio. The boy is identified as Larry Allen. Larry looks about 13 years old. He wears a knickers suit with a rather slender dark tie. I'm not sure about the colors. He wears his knickers with long black stockings and rather old-fashioned shoe. He is pictured with the family dog.
Edgar Aldermann had his portrait taken in a Philadlphia, Pennsylvania studio. Theportrait is undated, but we would estimate the 1890s. He was 7-years old. The e-Bay seller describes "Long curls, and fancy lace dress". Edgar certainly does hve long ringlet curls. We believe, however that a blouse or tunic suit is more likely than a dress. It is not possible to be sure, however, as the portrait does not ho the entire garment.
It is interesting that we have come across so many images of boys named Anderson. It is of Scandanavian origins and because iof the Vikings, becme a common name in Scotland. It of ciuese originted as 'son of Anders'. We thought the large number of photogrohic potraits might be the result of a successful immigrant group. But Andersin is a very popular American name as well as in the British Dominions. It is something like the 11th or 12th most common family name in America. This is surprising because the Scndanavian countries and Scotland have relatively small populations and thus a small partrb of the overal wwave of Europen immigrants that came to America. So we are unsure just ehy so mny Anderson portrait have come to our attention.
Here we see an unidentifid boy on bicycle. The postcard-backed print is undated, but looks to have been tken in the late-1900s. The boy is not identified, but seems to come from the family of Wilbur L. Anderson. He could be Wilbur or perhaps his son. He was probably from Newton, Iowa. The boy wears a knickers suit with a loud pattern. He has long black sockings and hight-top shoes. He poses with a large bicycle, presumably a studio prop. He looks to be about 10-years old.
We are not sure what to make of this portrait. We think it is a fancy dress costune rather than a suit a boy would have worn at the time. The knee ruffles is a clue here. But the blue tinting and horn suggest the Little Boy Blue nirsery rhyme character. We know is name was Anderson because the name is written lightly in pencil at the bottom of the card. Unfortunately we do not know the boy's first name. The studio is Havens of Savannah, Georgia.
Here we see Arthur Anderson about 1900. He looks to be about 3 years old.He is wearing a classic Little Lord Fauntleroy velvet knee pants suit. He also has a huge lacy Fauntleroy blouse. The wrisdt vcuffs match the collar. The portrait is undated. Fauntleroy suits were most common in the 1880s and 90s. The suits rapidly went out of style asfter the turn-of-the century. The cabinet card mount style, however, suggests that the portrait was taken in the early 1900s. Arthur has a fancy hair stle with curls, but not standard ringlet curl hair style. There was styling on top and at the side.
This portrait shows a boy who ran away from home. The portrait is undated. It was taken by Burns in Portland, Oregon. An enscription on the back reads, "Lily Anderson's Son, Elmer. Mrs. Anderson was Uncle Jund? sister. Elmer ran away from home and was never heard of." Makes you wonder what happened to this boy before and after running away. The style of the cabient card suggests the portrait was taken about 1905.
This Australian Christmas post card is difficult to assess. We think the boy may be Henry Anderson, probably in Melbourne. He looks to be about 6 years old. He wears a sailor cap which lookks like it has ear muffs. This can not be. Not only does it not get that cold in Melbourne, but December is a summer month Down Under. We think I think what we are seeing is a ribbon (streamer) hanging down from his cap and it is about the same color as the collar om his jacket. Also notice the chin strap. Aloing with his sailor cap he wears a Norfolk collar-buttoning jacket with a lace collar. The card is not dated and unfortunately Australian postcard stamp boxes have unknown dates. We think Henry's portrait was probably taken in the 1910s.
We hase a cabinet casrd which looks rather like a CDV. It is a portrait of a boy named Jim Anderson. His proper name was probanly James. He looks to be about 4 years old. Australia like the United States and other dominions had immigrants from Scotland (less commonly Scandanavia). Anderson was a common nasme in Scotland. Jim is wearing a Highland kilt outfit. It is a standard outfit except that the knne socks are banded rather than a argyle pattern.
Jim has a Peter Pan collar. WEron collars were more common with these outfits. His Highland kilt outfit is quite elaborate, sugesting a family in confortable circumstances. All we know about him is that he was from Geelong in Australia. Geelong is a port southwest of Melbourne in Victoria state. It is dfficult to date folk outfits like this because they do not change with contemprary fashion trends. The dealer thought the cabinet card dated to the 1880s. that seems to go along with the banded knee socks which were popular in the 1870s and we continue to see them in the early-80s. We have found several of these kilt outfits from the Dominions, they are usually younger boys. Similar portraits from Scotlsnd and Englnd can include some older boys. The studio was Massingham in Geelong.
Here we have an early CDV portrait of a New Hampshire boy named Sterling G. Anderson. The portrait is undated, but we would guess it was taken in the late 1860s or early 70s. We know nothing about the family, but the fashionable outfit suggess the family was affluent. It was taken in Keene, New Hampshire. Sterling wears a tunic suit with Scottish plaid trim. He wears white long stockings with his outfit. I'm not sure about the ethnicity of the family, but it would not seem Scottish. The plaid trim may be some of an association with kilts as a tunic is a Scottish garment. I have, however, not commonly noted plaid trimmed tunics.
This newphoto shows two Dutch children in Washington D.C. Mary and Herbert Andreae, We are nit sure who is who. They are the sons of the Dutch commercial attache in Washington, D.C. They are outfitted in winter garments. Both wear wide brimmed hats, overcoats, and long stockings. Only their footwear is different. The older child, probably Mary, wears strap shoes. Noth hold on to teddies. They look to be about 4-7 years old. Their father is on the arms delegatiin of the Dutch Legation. That refers to the Washington Naval Arms Talks.
John Anglin served as a Union (Northern) cabin boy and powder monkey. We notice various references to the ships on which he served, including the the 'USS Pawnee' and the 'USs New Hampshire' off Charleston. He may have served on more than one vessel. He is wearing a uniform with sailor elements such as the cap and bell-botom trousers, but not the the 'V' front a stripe derailing. Note the angle of his cap. He aas about 14 years old when this photograph was probly taken in 1864. He went on to win the Congressional Medal of Honor. John was born (October 6, 1850), we believe in Maine. The state has a maritime tradition which is perhaps why he enlisted in the Navy. We know nothing about his family or childhood. He was serving on the Union side-wheel gunboat USS Pontoosuc. He was a cabin bow which was an actual rank, but we believe that during actions, cabin boys served as 'powder monkies' along with the gun crews. Here the small size of boys made them more manuerable in the tight conditions of a gun deck and scrambling back and forth the bring up powder. We know that during the 18th and early-19th century that boys much younger than John served in these roles. We are not sure what age trends were for the U.S. Navy at the time of the Civil War. The heavy and inert cannon balls were stored on the gun deck bside the cannons, but not the gunpowder chargers. John was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Second Battle of Fort Fisher (January 15, 1865).
This portrait was taken at a Montreal studio on July 12, 1898, and shows the
Armstrong children (brother and sister) at about 9 years of age (the brother) and 8 years (the sister). We don't know the Christian names of the children. The white
apparently starched dress of the girl with puffed sleeves and ruffled collar
seems to be very dressy. She wears a matching white hair bow. The black stockings and low cut leather shoes with ties seem quite typical. The boy wears an interesting single-breasted cut-away jacket with black piping on the front opening and around the breast and side pockets. The buttons seem to be cloth-covered.
Tinsley Armstring we believe was from Kentucky. The photograph looks like a snapshot, but was done as a cabinet card. Cabinet cards were done at studios. so we think Mrs. Armstrong took a snap shot into a studio to have it printed as a cabinet card. This was not real common, but we do note this being done in the early-20th century. The card was 6 x 7 incheds. The incription on the back reads, Church - Tinsley Armstrong son of Mrs. AA Armstrong who was Mr EW Taylor's Secy." E.W. Taylor owned the Taylor Distillery in Kentucky. The photograph is not dated, but the card mount suggests the 1900s. Tinsley is sitting in front of a church reading a magazine. He has a kind of sun hat with the brim turned up. It's a little difficult figuring out what he is wearing, The top has a Peter Pan collar with color trim. There are no front buttons. We wonder if he is wearing some kind of one-piece outfit. He is weating knicker pants and going barefoot.
Here we have what looks like a cabinent card, but without any information about the ohotographer. It is a portrait of two brothers--Clyde and Paul Atteberry. (The last few letters are difficult to read. The boys are holding their caps which seem to mass their caps. One boy has a cap which looks a little like an Oliver Twist cap. The older boy has what looks like a flat cap. They have modest neckwear and we can't make oit their collars. They wear very similar double-breasted knee pants suits with black long stockings and high-top shoes. They are accomanied by their faithful pooch Puffy. The portrait is undated, but we would guess was taken in the late-1890s.
This cabinet card of Oscar George Henry Auffurger was probably taken in the 1880s, although it is not dated. Oscar is pictured with a drum. He clearly is not a Civil War drummer boy, despite the kepi cap. The fact that he is wearing kneepants clearly shows that the portrait was taken later. Hanging on his jacket is what looks like a flag decoration, suggesting a political campaign. The writing on his cap reads "COLUMBUS". I'm not sure what that means. Perhaps it was the name of a band. The photo was taken in Erie, Pennsylvania. He is identified in pencil on the back.
Montgomery Boynton Augell had his portrait taken at 5 years of age in 1894. We are not positive that is the spelling of his last name. The script on the back looks like there may have been another letter. The portrait was taken in Rochester, New York. Montgomery wears a fashhionable knee pants sailor suit. He has a soft white cap. There is a dark tally, but I can't make out any lettering. It is a stripped suit, but we are unsure about the color od the stripes. . The "v" collar is done with a white front and colored back. The dark dickey has white stripes. He wears dark long stockings even though the suit is a white stripped suit. He alsi has long curled hair.
This photo shows the two Auwaerter boys, Albrecht and Konrad, at the ages of 8 and 11 years in 1947. They grew up to become important members of an industrial firm that made buses in Germany. Their parents were Rosine and Gottlub Auwaerter. The boys came from an affluent family. Although this photo was taken only 2 years after the war, the boys seem to be well off. They are dressed in well-pressed short single-breasted suits with short trousers. They wear white
shirts with sweaters. One of the sweaters has a zipper opening. It must have been winter because in addition to the sweaters, the boys wear brown cotton long stockings with supporters to minimize bagginess and wrinkles. Their mother has obviously chosen a Strapsleibchen
(bodice and four garters) for their stockings. One boy wears hightop shoes while the other wears low cut oxfords. We are not sure why their shoes are different. They already look like the sort of kids who will make successful business men in post-war Germany. Pictures of various models of buses which they had a hand in developing appear on the Internet.
Navigate the Boys' Historical Clothing Web Site: Auffurger, Oscar George Henry (United States, 1880s?)
Augell, Montgomery Boynton (United States, 1894)
Auwaerter, Albrecht and Konrad (Germany, 1947)
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Created: November 4, 2002
Last updated: 9:55 PM 6/14/2023
