Students, Teachers, and Schools

A reward of merit dating to the early nineteenth century. According to Patricia Fenn and Alfred P. Malpa's book about Rewards of Merit (1994), pp. 205-6, Henry Dodd and James Stevenson, Jr., were in business together as printers in Salem, New York, from 1814 to 1831. The "Betsy Bradley" listed on this Diligence Ticket may be the same "Elizabeth Bradley" who received a Reward of Merit for a Good Scholar, 1826 . Diligence Ticket To Betsy Bradley for diligence in study, is this certificate given. E. Durham, Ins. Dodd & Stevenson, Printers, Salem.

An early nineteenth-century reward of merit . The "Elizabeth Bradley" who received this reward of merit may be the same "Betsy Bradley" listed on a Diligence Ticket from the same time period. Reward of Merit This certifies that Elizabeth Bradl[ey] is a good scholar and merits much praise from her instructor Albert Caswell, Caldwell, March 18, 1826.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of college memories (your own or someone else's) . This is a real photo postcard of a female student sitting at a desk and pretending to read a book as she poses for a photo. On the back of the card is an Azo stamp box design (with squares in the corners) that indicates a time frame ranging from 1924 to 1949. A small "Sargent" pennant on the wall above the desk (see a cropped version of the photo for a better view of the pennant) suggests that the woman was a student at Sargent College, which is known today as the Boston University College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College . An enlargement of the bookshelf on the desk revealed the following titles: Textbook of Anatomy and Physiology , 9th ed., College Zoology , by Heg[ner], and Organic Chemistry . I was able to identify the first book as the ninth edition of Textbook of Anatomy and Physiology , by Diana Clifford Kimber, Carolyn Elizabeth Gray, and Caroline E Stackpole, which was published by Macmillan in 1934. The second book, College Zoology , was authored by Robert W. Hegner and was also published by Macmillan, with a third edition in 1932 and a fourth in 1936. Although I didn't attempt to track down details about Organic Chemistry , the presence of the other two books confirms that this photo dates to 1934 or later.

A college student sitting at her desk. Notice the small "Sargent" pennant on the wall (upper right-hand corner of the photo), which suggests she was a student at Sargent College (now Boston University College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College ). For more information, see the full version of this real photo postcard and an enlargement showing the books visible at the side of the desk.

An enlargement of the bookshelf on the college student's desk revealed the following titles: Textbook of Anatomy and Physiology , 9th ed., College Zoology , by Heg[ner], and Organic Chemistry . I was able to identify the first book as the ninth edition of Textbook of Anatomy and Physiology , by Diana Clifford Kimber, Carolyn Elizabeth Gray, and Caroline E Stackpole, which was published by Macmillan in 1934. The second book, College Zoology , was authored by Robert W. Hegner and was also published by Macmillan, with a third edition in 1932 and a fourth in 1936. Although I didn't attempt to track down details about Organic Chemistry , the presence of the other two books confirms that this photo dates to 1934 or later. See also the original photo and a cropped version .

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of someone's in the kitchen . Seven students and two teachers pose for the camera during a cooking class in a school kitchen. Judging by the recipes visible on the chalkboard, the subject of the day's lesson was "Butter Cake" with "Boiled Frosting" (see a cropped version of the photo for a close-up of the recipes). This is an unused real photo postcard with an Azo stamp box (four corner triangles with two pointing up and two pointing down) on the other side, which suggests a date as early as 1917 to 1930.

Lists of ingredients and descriptions of the procedures for making "Butter Cake" with "Boiled Frosting" appear on the chalkboard behind the teacher and students in this image from an early twentieth-century photo postcard. See also the full version of this photo.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of school days . This is a real photo postcard that's dated 1913 on the other side. The photo shows a teacher and her students at Rhode's School, a one-room schoolhouse -- now a private residence -- located along Old U.S. 22 about two miles east of Krumsville in Greenwich Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania. A local publication reprinted this photo in 1969 with the following caption: "The teacher in this picture was Miss Carrie W. Kline [1857-1931], a native of Richmond Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania. She was a graduate of the Keystone State Normal School [now Kutztown University ], class of 1877. She started teaching at the age of 19 and followed the profession for fifty years in the schools of Penna. She taught at Rhode's School from 1908 to 1915." -- From Da Ausauga (Kempton, Pa.: Fereinicht Pennsylfawnish Deitsch Fulk, Inc.), vol. 9, no. 4 (June-July 1969), p. 1.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of a high school prom photo (yours or someone else's) or any photo of a dressed-up couple , Handwritten note on the other side of the photo: "May 17th, 1969. Prom." A prom photo taken over fifty years ago. Anyone know the meaning of the symbols on the mat-like wall decorations? For another prom photo, see Prom Night .

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of when I grow up (children dressed as adults or dressed for work, e.g. as policeman, nurse, train driver, etc.) . It also fits the monthly theme of group portraits . Caption in the upper right-hand corner: "The Deestrick Skule." A penciled-in dealer's note on the other side identifies the location as "Strasburg, Pa." This is a photo of children dressed in costumes to portray pupils, the schoolmaster, school committee members, and local citizens for a play about the funny goings-on at the old-time "Deestrick Skule" or district school -- the one-room schoolhouse of the early nineteenth century (not the school districts that resulted from the later consolidation of these small schools). Mrs. M. H. Jaquith of Topeka, Kansas, was the author of The Deestrick Skule of Fifty Years Ago (1888) and "Exerbition" of the Deestrick Skule of Fifty Years Ago (1890). Both of these provided scripts and suggestions for producing local theatrical productions that could accommodate fifty or more participants (there are forty kids in this photo). The Cyko stamp box (Cyko 5, variation A2.66) on the other side of this divided-back real photo postcard has an earliest known usage date of May 2, 1910, according to Brogan and Weseloh's Real Photo Postcard Guide (2006).

Katharine Hostetter Kauffman, later known as Katharine “Katie” Kauffman Herr (1886-1986), was the teacher who organized the spelling bee advertised on this handbill. For a similar item from a later event, see Spelling Bee, Terre Hill, Pa., April 3, 1925 . Come One! Come All! To a Grand "Spelling Bee" To Be Held at the Fair View School Near Mechanicsville along Manheim Trolley Road Saturday Eve., March 24, '06 Classes are as follows: Class I. Open to Pupils of 11 years and under. Class II. Open to all Public School Children. Class III. Arithmetical Contest, open to all. Class IV. General Information, open to all. 16 Valuable Prizes to be Distributed The Program will consist of Music, Phonograph and School Recitations and Dialogues General Admission - 10 Cts. Proceeds to be used for the School Library. Doors Open at 7 o'clock. Exercises begin at 7:30 o'clock. Katharine H. Kauffman, Teacher. Should the weather prove too unfavorable the Bee will be held the first fair evening following Monday. L. B. Herr Print, 51-53 N. Queen St., Lancaster, Pa.

This is a bright orange nineteenth-century business card for George Roch (1852-1913). A number of directories list him as a music teacher or musician, usually with an address in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, rather than Lebanon. John H. Long (1850-1925) was a carpenter and organ manufacturer in Lebanon. Prof. Geo. Roch, Music Teacher and Tuner of Organs and Pianos, at J. H. Long's Organ Factory, Lebanon, Pa. 174 Instruments tuned between February 1, 1885, and September 7, 1885.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of Valentine's Day - hearts, cupids, arrows, love, or what have you? This real photo postcard features a snow sculpture of Cupid standing next to a heart with an arrow through it. A building is in the background, and two cars are parked along the street in front of the building. Two women are walking near one of the trees on the left. The card is addressed on the other side to Edith Towey, 1744 Summerfield St., Brooklyn 27, N.Y., and it was postmarked in Poultney, Vermont, on February 13, 1948. The location of the snow sculpture is listed on the verso as "Green Mountain Junior College, Poultney, VT," and a handwritten "Valentine's Greetings" appears above the name of a studio, "H. B. Rood Photo, Poultney, VT." According to a brief biography by the Poultney Historical Society, Harry B. Rood (1871-1960) lived in Poultney his entire life. He began working in his father's photography studio in the 1890s and continued as a photographer after his father's death. At the time Rood took this photo, Green Mountain Junior College was a two-year college for women and then became a four-year college for both men and women in 1974, when its name changed to Green Mountain College. Ames Hall , the campus building that appears in the photo, is still standing, but the college itself closed in 2019 after experiencing financial difficulties.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of wallpaper . "Room mate" is handwritten along the right-hand side of this photo of two young men. They're pretending to study as they sit at their desks, which are covered with twenty or more books. One is writing with a pencil, and the other is reading a book. Someone has added dots to the eyes of the student on the left. Behind the two roommates, we can see wallpaper, a calendar (the year isn't visible, but the month is December), a mirror (with a reflection of another calendar on a different wall), photos displayed on a shelf and on the wall, an alarm clock among the photos on the shelf, curtains, and an overhead light. This is an unmailed real photo postcard with a type of Azo stamp box (four corner triangles with two pointing up and two pointing down) on the other side that suggests a date that may be as early as 1917 to 1930. "Mother" is written on the verso, but otherwise there's no message, address, postmark, or other clues to the location or date. Comparing the December dates with the days of the week on the wall calendar (December 3, for instance, falls on a Sunday) suggests that the year could be 1916 or 1922.

A Vintage Photos Theme Park photo for the theme of funny face . A wide-eyed kid with a gleeful grin poses for a photo with his schoolmates in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. In contrast, another one of his schoolmates -- Smirking Schoolkid -- didn't seem happy about having his photo taken. For the full photo of forty-eight children and a teacher, see Schoolchildren Posing Outside a School, Lebanon, Pa.

A smirking kid with crossed arms doesn't seem too enthusiastic about posing for a picture. One of his schoolmates -- Grinning Schoolkid -- had a different reaction. For the full photo of forty-eight children and a teacher, see Schoolchildren Posing Outside a School, Lebanon, Pa.

Forty-eight schoolchildren and a teacher pose for a photo outside a school. The photographer's name and location -- "Wolfe, Lebanon, Pa." -- is embossed on the border of the photo, but there's nothing else that identifies the school. Grinning Schoolkid is third from left in the first row and Smirking Schoolkid is second from right, also in the first row. See also close-up views of the left-hand side and the right-hand side of the photo.

See also a close-up view of the right-hand side of the photo. For the full photo, see Schoolchildren Posing Outside a School, Lebanon, Pa.