History & Mystery: The Case of the Unknown Denver Album
Can a life story be pieced together from pictures alone?
Unidentified historic photographs are commonplace in archives everywhere. They are curious misfits—intriguing images neglected to have been given a name, place, or date by their previous owners.
Unidentified photographs challenge staff in libraries and archives to employ their finest detective skills, but sometimes that isn't enough.
Can YOU help solve the mystery of an unidentified Denver photo album?
[between 1890 and 1900]
Denver house interior
Denver house interior
Here's what we know about the album:
- It contains images of the exterior and interior of a house as well as several views of Denver hospitals, churches, schools, parks, streets, and landmark buildings like the Brown Palace Hotel and the Colorado State Capitol. It also contains more puzzling photographs like that of two women posing with a dog in front of a "Park Siding" sign and another showing a small train depot presumably located in a town called "Buffalo" (note that there are 17 towns of "Buffalo"in the United States).
- Many of the images probably date from around 1905. Indicators that we typically check out when dating photographs are clothing styles, transportation modes, architecture and building history, and photographic processes/formats. In the case of this album, we had a bit of help from Robert Burns. You see, several images of the Robert Burns statue in City Park appear in this album. We know from consulting the Western History Subject Index that the Robert Burns statue was unveiled on July 4, 1904.
- Its photographs measure 8cm x 8cm.
[between 1890 and 1900]
Man poses near buggy
Man poses near buggy
Questions that still remain:
- Who are the people in the photographs? Did they live in Denver or were they tourists, as perhaps indicated by the number of the hotel and train photos?
- If they lived in Denver, where? There are several images of a brick home. Does this house still stand? If so, where is it? If we can pin down an address, we can pin down names through the Denver directories and the federal census.
- Why did the photographer take images of the exterior of a meat market and the Denver Engineering Works Company? Were they employed there?
Share your insights in the comment box below to help solve a real Denver mystery!
Photo Gallery:
Family on their porch
[between 1890 and 1900]
Man and woman on their porch
[between 1890 and 1900]
Denver home
[between 1890 and 1900]
Comments
"Park Siding" is a town in BC Canada. The lady with the puppy appears to be standing at a road sign showing distance to the town.
Thanks for info, Anthony!
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