Figure 1.--We have a French-Canadian family which we know was photographed about 1896 in Three Rivers / Trois-Rivières near Quebec. The cabinet card portrait shows not only a boy and his sisters, but their great sheep dog. The children look to be about 5-12 years old. The girls wear smock dresses We can tell much about the boy's outfit other than it is a knee pants suit. An embossed seal seal on the mount shows an 1896 award. This means that the portrait could have been taken in 1896 or shortly after. Generally do not dwell on awards after a few years least their clientell ask why they have won more recent awards.

We have found several Canadian family portraits that we believe were taken in the 1890s. We note the Hoyt family from New Brunswick. We think the portrait is from the 1890s, but it could be the early-1900s. We also notice a portrait of the Fleming family which we believe was taken in the 1890s. We note an unidentified family portrait of five children by the Craig sudio in Owen Sound, Ontario. The children look like four girls and a boy, but we are not entirely sure about the youngest child. The cabinet card is undated, but the clothing styles clearly indicated that vthe portrait was taken in the 1890s. And we have a French-Camadian family which we know was photographed about 1895 in Quebec. It shows not only a boy and his sisters, but their great sheep dog. The girls wear smock dresses We can tell much about the boy's outfit other than it is a knee pants suit.

Hoyt Family

We note the Hoyt family from New Brunswick. We think the portrait is from the 1890s, but it could be the early-1900s. This is one of those difficult images, I am not sure if they children are boys or girls, but in this case some of the names are on the back of the portrait. I had trouble, however reading the writing of one of the names. Ada and Charles Hoyt had four children. I think that they are from Fredericton, New Brunswick. A HBC reader notes that he bought the portrait from a local dealer situated between Fredericton and my hometown of Saint John, New Brunswick. The portrait is not dated, but looks to us like the late 1890s or early 1900s. The back of the portrait reads, "Aunt Ada & Uncles Charles Hoyt, Susan, ??? (looks like Fern), Della, ?, Ada ??rod (possibly Lerod) eldest sister of Frank ??erod." We thought one of the older children might be a boy, but it looks like the names are Fern and Della which are both girls' names. We are unsure about the fourth child. The similarity of hairbows and ringlet hair styles, however, suggests that they are probably all girls. The children all wear white pinafores, except presumably the eldest child in a sailor outfit. It is interesting that the children were photographed in their pinafores. The similar hair styles is also interesting.

Fleming Family

We also notice a portrait of the Fleming family which we believe was taken in the 1890s. Here we see Stanford Fleming with his grandchildren. Fleming was the chief engineer for the Canadian Pacific raolroad. Here we see him with his three grandchildren. I'm not sure when the portrait was taken, but would guess the 1890s. The older girl wears a fancy dress. The boy wears a classic sailor suit with kneepants. Note the sailor cap that he is holding. The boy has bangs and his older sister wears long hair and a colored hairbow,.

Unidentified Family

We note an unidentified family portrait of five children by the Craig sudio in Owen Sound, Ontario. Owen Sound is a town in Southwestern Ontario, It is located at the mouths of the Pottawatomi and Sydenham Rivers on an inlet of Georgian Bay named Owen Sound Bay. It is a large bay of Lake Huron, located north of Huron completely within Ontario. At the time the portrait here was taken, lake traffic was transhipped here, but today Owen Sound is a popular tourist area. The children here look like four girls and a boy, but we are not entirely sure about the youngest child. The children look to be about 2-13 years old. The cabinet card is undated, but the clothing styles clearly indicated that the portrait was taken in the 1890s. The baloon sleeves on the girls' dresses are helpful in dating the portrait. The girls all wear elaborate dresses with large white rounded collars. The boy wears a Norfolk suit with knee pants. All the children seem to be wearing long stockings, but it is difficult to tell with the girls because of the long skirts.

French Canadian Family

We have a French-Canadian family which we know was photographed about 1896 in Three Rivers / Trois-Rivières near Quebec. The cabinet card portrait shows not only a boy and his sisters, but their great dog--a lovely ruff coated Collie or Aussie herding dog sitting in the chair with the boy. The children look to be about 5-12 years old. The girls wear smock dresses We can tell much about the boy's outfit other than it is a knee pants suit. An embossed seal seal on the mount shows an 1896 award. This means that the portrait could have been taken in 1896 or shortly after. Generally do not dwell on awards after a few years least their clientell ask why they have won more recent awards. The older girl wears a great hat matching her dress. No smiles here as was the fashion for the time for photography. All eyes ahead. The boy and dog sit an ornate carved wood chair. The studio was F.F. Pinsonneault.

Created: 7:39 AM 11/22/2016
Last updated: 7:39 AM 11/22/2016