Alan Mays' photos

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of studio portrait . Name handwritten on the other side of this photo: "P. Spencer." Added in different handwriting: "Pierre Alexandre Gilles Spencer, 5th son of Benjamin Rush Spencer and Angelique Marie Martin Spencer." As indicated in the handwritten note, Pier Alexander Spencer (1866-1947) was one of the thirteen children of Lilly Martin Spencer (1822-1902), a popular nineteenth-century artist who "primarily painted domestic scenes, paintings of women and children in a warm happy atmosphere." This type of trick photo, which is sometimes called a multigraph or photo-multigraph , used mirrors to make it look like a set of quintuplets was seated around a table. The distinctive table covering visible here -- with a fringe of tassels dangling over the side -- identifies the photo as one that came from the White Way Photo Studio in New York City. Compare this photo with other multigraphs from the studio, such as Mirror Photo of Woman Playing Cards, White Way Photo Studio, New York, N.Y. , and Moustachioed Mirror Man, White Way Photo Studio, New York, N.Y. For additional examples of multigraphs, see my Mirror Photos album.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of Labor Day (laborers and/or the day) . This man is a bill poster or bill sticker , a worker who posts (or sticks up) advertising bills and posters on walls and other public places. The long-handled tool he's holding (see a close-up ) is a bill poster's hammer. A tool collector's site explained the hammer's function: "These specialized hammers were used to 'post' handbills and advertising cards well above the normal reach of the user, or potential remover or defacer, making them both easier to see and less subject to vandalism or being posted over. . . . These hammers are cleverly designed with two clips. The upper clip holds the initial tack while the lower clip holds the bill, card, or poster to be tacked on to a pole, wall, or tree." This man is also holding an advertising sign that says, " Magic Yeast Makes Perfect Bread." At his feet is a satchel containing more copies of the sign (see a close-up ). This is a real photo postcard with a divided back, and the type of Azo stamp box (with four corner triangles pointing up) printed on the other side suggests a date between 1907 and 1918. The name "William Mere" is handwritten on the other side.

A bill poster's hammer and an advertising sign for Magic Yeast. For more information, see the full photo .

A bill poster's satchel with additional copies of the "Magic Yeast Makes Perfect Bread" sign. For more information, see the full photo .

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of people seemingly unhappy being photographed . I found this photo yesterday at an antiques barn in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. As I was paying for it, the person at the counter commented on the woman in the photo, saying that "it doesn't look like she wants her picture taken." I knew that I had my photo for this week's theme!

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of beach party . Sign: “Novelty Stand. Buckets. Shovels.” Five young women and six young men in beach garb pose for a photo near a “Novelty Stand” that sells bucket and shovels. One of the guys is holding a basket, so perhaps they're on their way to a picnic or party. The other side of the photo is blank, and there's no indication where or when the photo was taken.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of flowers or trees . Vina is posing next to six containers of flowering plants arranged on the railing of her porch. The message she wrote along the left-hand side says, "Will write soon. Love to all. Vina." This is a real photo postcard addressed on the other side to Miss Libbie Betallach, Walkerville, Montana. The card has an undivided back, which suggests a date before 1907. It bears a stamp, but there's no postmark. See also a cropped version of the photo for a better view of Vina and her flowers.

Vina stands next to the flowering plants on the railing of her porch. For more information, see the full version of this real photo postcard.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of outdated technology - typewriters, record players, etc . Six women pose for a photo as they sit awkwardly on office shelves. An L. C. Smith typewriter is visible on the desk in front of them. This is an undated snapshot with no other information about the women or the location of their office.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of very happy people . This is an undated real photo postcard of a group of Americans and Germans happily enjoying themselves at a beer hall table during the May Fair in Kaiserslautern , Germany. Handwritten note on the other side: "This was taken in a Beer Hall at the May Fair in Kaiserslautern. The people across the table are unknown Germans. Col. Faw is between me & some unknown German woman. I'm wearing my green Bavarian hat ." Added in another hand: "3rd from right, Arthur Brown."

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of proud of their car . The dealer's tag on this photograph identified it as a "Hot Rod Racing Photo, c. 1968." The driver poses jauntily next to his car with his helmet underneath his arm. It's likely that this is a modified race car at one of the dirt tracks in south central Pennsylvania. The numbers on some cars are associated with specific drivers or owners, but I haven't been able to uncover any information about car no. 56.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of birthday cakes – or any other kind of cake . A young girl pauses for a photo before blowing out the candles on the large birthday cake on the TV tray table in front of her. There are a dozen or more lit candles on the cake, but surely she's not twelve years old! See a copped version of this photo for a closer look at the girl and her cake.

Twelve or more candles on her birthday cake! Could she be that old? See also the full version of this photo.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of patriotic . This is an undated picture of kids riding their bicycles down a street. It's an divided-back real photo postcard with a blank stamp box, and there's no message, address, postmark, or anything else to indicate a date or location. The bikes are patriotically decorated with flags, ribbons, and streamers, and the buildings in the background are similarly festooned with flags and bunting. It's likely that this bike parade took place as part of a Fourth of July celebration. See a copped version of this photo for a closer look at the children and their bikes. For another bike decorated for the Fourth of July, see Boy Wins Tom Swift Book in Fourth of July Bike Parade in the 1950s .

A close-up view of children riding bicycles decorated with ribbons, streamers, and flags for a Fourth of July bike parade. For more information, see the original photo .

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of folded arms and/or crossed legs . Three men are posing for a picture on a porch. The two in front are sitting impatiently on the edge of the porch with their arms folded and legs crossed. This is one of four pictures combined together on a real photo postcard that dates to the early twentieth century. See Pictures on the Porch .

This is a divided-back real photo postcard with a Solio stamp box, which indicates that the card may date to between 1907 and the 1920s. Someone wrote "Uncle Caleb" on the other side of this card but there's no other identifying information. The photographer combined four separate pictures on this photo postcard. Each of the four individual photos shows people -- a woman holding a young child, three men, a woman sitting on a man's lap, four young children -- posing on the same porch. For an enlargement of the photo of the three men, see Folded Arms and Crossed Legs .

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of on vacation . Sign: "Intercourse. Formerly 'Cross Keys.' From a Noted Old Tavern Stand. Founded 1754." Taking a photo of the town sign for Intercourse is a popular activity for visitors on vacation in the Amish Country area of eastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Intercourse and other seemingly suggestive local place names in the county, such as Blue Ball, Bird-in-Hand, Bareville, Fertility, and Paradise, also appear in photos and on postcards and other tourist souvenirs. This Intercourse sign is an example of the " Keystone markers " that are still familiar sights along the roads throughout Pennsylvania and helped to reinforce its "Keystone State" nickname.