Alan Mays' photos

"Going Some! The Hum-dinger of Seattle." Written on the back of this real photo postcard: "May 6, 1913 in Seattle, Wash. To Bro. John" A studio photo depicting what appears to be alcohol-fueled nautical maneuvering in the vicinity of Seattle, Washington. Judging by a similar Hum-dinger photograph that's part of the Seattle Photograph Collection at the University of Washington Libraries, this photo came from the Joy Parlor Studio, which billed itself as "the home of the cowboy post cards" and was located at 207 2nd South in Seattle. For an uncropped copy of the photo postcard, see Going Some with the Humdinger of Seattle! (Full Version) .

For more information, see the cropped version of this real photo postcard.

See also the back of this advertising trade card: Fishing for Your Business, William Stuart, Canton, Ohio (Back) (below). Excerpt from the text on the back of the card : "We are out fishing for your fall trade, and the bait we are offering is prices lower than any other firm in Canton, and on the easy payment plan."

See also the front of this advertising trade card: Fishing for Your Business, William Stuart, Canton, Ohio (below). -------- $20 worth of furniture, carpets, stoves, or anything in the house furnishing line, for $2.00 cash and $1.00 per week, or $4.00 per month at Stuart's Great Bargain House, No. 57 E. Tuscarawas Street. We are out fishing for your fall trade, and the bait we are offering is prices lower than any other firm in Canton, and on the easy payment plan. Our stock of goods consists of furniture, carpets, stoves, ranges, heaters, baby buggies, lace curtains, window shades, gold and silver watches for ladies and gentlemen. Remember, we do the largest business in Canton, and sell you cheaper than any of our competitors, and give you liberal terms on any amount you wish to purchase. Remember the place. Come try us. Stuart's, 57 E. Tuscarawas St., Canton, O. (American Block.)

"Insure with the Lorillard Fire Insurance Co. of New York. Cash assets, $1,518,646. C. B. Maltbie, agent, Falls Village, Conn."

A teen attitude / teenagers in love photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. A photo from a college get-together sometime around 1910. The two pennants at top center are ones for "F. & M." ( Franklin and Marshall College , located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania) and "1910." The smaller pennant at top right is difficult to read (even in the original photo), but appears to be "Souvenir 1908." Franklin and Marshall College didn't admit women until 1969, so only the men would have been students. Everyone in the photo seems to be looking in a different direction. The guy and gal in the lower right-hand corner, however, seem to be looking intently at each other, and they appear to be young enough to be teenagers in love.

Printed on the back: "The Dittrich Studio, 1107 Boardwalk, Atlantic City." For more like this, see my Mirror Photos album.

Stamped on the back of the photo: "Fairhill Studios, 2918 N. Sixth St., Philadelphia, Radcliff 2317." There are three or more raccoons making their home in the wire mesh enclosure behind the "Home of the American Raccoon" sign. The fellow on top is wearing some sort of ribbon or badge, and another ribbon is dangling among the branches below him. This may be a parade float, though It's hard to tell for sure. In any case, I wonder why these two guys are touting the "Home of the American Raccoon."

"Bacon's Cough Drops. Net 5 pounds. The D. Bacon Co., Harrisburg, Penna. Stecher-Traung, Roch., N.Y." I'd imagine that five pounds would be enough to stop just about any cough!

A tools photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. A real photo postcard showing a group of men working on railroad track maintenance (workers like these were sometimes called " gandy dancers "). The man on the left is using a track jack to adjust the height of a rail. The man next to him is posing with another tool, probably a sledge hammer. The boy in the middle is carrying a bucket. The fellow on the right is sitting on some sort of long bar—maybe a claw bar for pulling spikes—that appears to be wedged under one of the cross ties.

A school days photo for the Vintage Photos Theme Park. A young schoolteacher—not much older than some of the students seated around her—stands at the back of the classroom in a one-room schoolhouse. Although the stove and a couple of school desks dominate the foreground, the faces of the students and the items posted on the wall in the background are the most interesting parts of the photo (mouse over the image above to see enlargements of the left , middle , and right sections). Five calendars are among the twenty-seven items on the wall. The lettering on one of the calendars is large enough that I was able to determine that it displays the month of March 1911 and came from the Limestone Mutual Fire Insurance Company in Limestone , Pennsylvania. This suggests that the schoolhouse may have been located in Clarion County or somewhere else in the surrounding area of northwestern Pennsylvania.

Some of the students on the left-hand side of the room are wearing dresses and suits that suggest that they dressed up especially for the photo. Does the pipe extending from the floor indicate that the wood stove has been converted for use with gas? For more information, see the full version of this photo.

Some of the younger students are seated in front the teacher. The boy on the right was caught with his mouth open, as if he was yawning or laughing. Sitting to the left of the teacher are two older female students. Or could they be mothers of the students or friends of the teacher? The calendar hanging on the wall at right is from the "Limestone Mutual Fire Insurance Co., Limestone, Pennsylvania," and the month on the calendar is March 1911. I haven't been able to identify the man in the large portrait next to the calendar. For more information, see the full version of this photo.

The students in this row seem to be waiting impatiently for the photographer to finish taking the photo. Note the amusing illustration at the top of the wall that shows a parrot reading from a book. For more information, see the full version of this photo.

"First Pick. O. L. Schwencke, lith., N.Y." A cigar box label printed by O. L. Schwencke. Notice how a box featuring this label appears within the design of the label itself. This recursive picture-within-a-picture is called the Droste effect , which is named after the Droste cacao tin that featured an illustration of a nun holding the tin.

"Sun-Ray Cigar. Pleasing to all. Mild and fragrant."

A nineteenth-century advertising trade card for Solar Tip Shoes. For two additional cards, see Solar Tip Shoes Sold by John P. Twaddell and Solar Tip Shoes Manufactured by John Mundell and Company (below). "Solar Tip Shoes. Made only by John Mundell & Co., Philad'a. The Best Sole Leather Tip Made. Pat'd February 19, 1878. None genuine without the trademark. Solar Tip. I wish I had Solar Tips. Sold by ________. Craig, Finley & Co., Lith., Phila. Over."

"Solar Tip Shoes, sold by: John P. Twaddell, 1212 Market Street. Made only by John Mundell & Co., Philad. Solar Tip Brigade. The Daisy Shoe. The Best Sole Leather Tip Made. Solar Tip, trademark, J.M. & Co., patented 1877. Lith. Craig. Finley & Co., 1020 Arch St., Phila."