Dolph family carte-de-visite album, 1860s-1870s

Summary

Creator:

Dolph family.

Abstract:

The Dolph family carte-de-visite album contains formal studio portraits, many taken by the Dolph Brothers of Erie, Pennsylvania, around the 1860s-1870s. The photographs show both men and women, and two are artistically posed scenes.

Extent:

1 volume

Language:

English

Sponsor:

Frederick P. Currier Collection

Authors:

Collection processed and finding aid created by Meg Hixon, June 2013

Background

Scope and Content:

The Dolph family carte-de-visite album (16cm x 13cm) contains formal studio portraits, many taken by the Dolph Brothers of Erie, Pennsylvania, around the 1860s-1870s. This album may have been compiled from loose photos acquired at an estate sale by collector and donor Frederick P. Currier. The photographs, comprised of 42 albumen print cartes-de-visite and 5 tintypes, mostly depict men and women, though a few include children. Some items are hand-colored. Many of the subjects are identified by name, and several are labeled on the back "Dolph home," possibly by the collector and donor. Dolph family members include Albert W. Dolph in a military officer's uniform, Mr. and Mrs. J.H. Dolph, and James or Joseph Dolph. A photograph of two men in close conversation, one with a straw hat, pipe and large book in his lap, the other in a top hat and cane, may be of the Dolph brothers themselves; a man beside a mirror that shows his reflection may be a portrait of Jas. Dolph. Also of note is a double portrait of unidentified albino twins. The album's brown leather cover has a geometric design in relief and is closed with two metal clasps.

Biographical / Historical:

Osman A. Dolph was born in New York around 1832; his siblings included the painter John Henry Dolph (1835-1903). Osman had several children, including Orra, Orlin, Osman, Harriet, John, James, Lucretia, Albert, Francis, and Dennis.

During the Civil War, Osman served as an artificer in the 1st Ohio Light Artillery Regiment, and in 1870 he lived in Erie, Pennsylvania, where he was a photographer working out of Farrar Hall. He later moved to Rock Creek, Ohio, where he and his wife Mary lived with their children John, Mary, and an infant son in 1880. Osman A. Dolph died on August 20, 1899.

Acquisition Information:

Donated by Frederick P. Currier, 2007. F-443.a.20 .

Processing information:

Cataloging funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC). This collection has been processed according to minimal processing procedures and may be revised, expanded, or updated in the future.

Rules or Conventions:

Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Related

Additional Descriptive Data:

Bibliography

Arters, John M. Directory of Erie City and County, Pa., for 1870-71, Comprising a List of All Residents Together with Historical Sketches of the County, and Embracing Statistical and General Information and the Advertisements of the Principal Business Hosues . Erie, Pa.: John M. Arters, 1870.

Haverstock, Mary Sayre, Jeanette Mahoney Vance, and Brian L. Meggitt. Artists in Ohio, 1787-1900: A Biographical Dictionary . Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press, 2000.

"Records of Headstones of Deceased Union Veterans, 1879-1903." FamilySearch . Online.

"Soldiers and Sailors Database." National Park Service . Online.

United States Census, 1850 .

United States Census, 1870 .

United States Census, 1880 .

United States Census, 1890. Special Schedule­Surviving Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines, and Widows, etc.

Subjects

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Subjects:

Photographs shelf.
Frederick P. Currier Collection.
Albinos and albinism.
Children--United States.
Men--United States.
Photographers.
Women--United States.

Formats:

Card photograph albums--1860-1880.
Cartes de visite--1860-1880.
Portrait photographs--1860-1880.
Tintypes--1860-1880.

Names:

United States. Army--Officers.
Dolph Bros.
Dolph, Osman A., approximately 1832-1899.
Fredricks, Charles DeForest. 1823-1894.

Places:

Erie (Pa.)