Can anyone help me identify this photo?

[kemdawg]

Hello all,

I have another item that I can't identify - any help would be greatly appreciated. The photo is from the late 1800's and was found in an attic in Vermont. I don't have a picture of the back right now, but I'll work on posting it here if I can get it. I believe the back is blank. Thanks everyone!

[Dto7]

Must be a family team, most of them look alike.

[bgar3]

The image looks earlier than 1880's to me, no gloves, no mask, fatter, longer bats than you would expect in 1880. You may have specific information that says otherwise, but I think it is possible it is an earlier team. Worth checking in my opinion.

[kemdawg]

Sorry, typo on 1880. I meant to say it's from the late 1800's. My best guess is it's from the 1870's based on the other items (non-sports) it was with. I just corrected my original post.

[ramram]

Late 1860's albumen, if it's the real deal. Very cool image.

Rob M

[kemdawg]

Bumping this as I'm still looking for any information anyone has on this. Would love to know if any players or the team could be identified.

[ramram]

Barring any provenance or writing on the image it would be extremely difficult to identify. There were hundreds of teams formed all around the country just after the Civil War.

Rob M

[ramram]

...also, the photo should typically consist of two parts - 1) the image should be on a thin piece of photographic paper and 2) it should be glued onto the thicker mount. The "albumen" image, under magnification, should have a crackled fiberous appearance and NO dot pattern should be present. Also, the paper should not fluoresce (glow) when placed under a black light.

Rob M

[GaryPassamonte]

The player on the lower right looks curiously similar to "Alline" of the Lowells team of 1866 who is also in the lower right of this 1866 Lowells cdv. The player in the upper left with the long hair looks familiar, but I can't place him.

[kemdawg]

I definitely see the resemblance you mentioned. The plot thickens....

[Dto7]

W. H. Alline 1866 Lowell baseball team...bigger pic.

[GaryPassamonte]

I believe I misidentified the player in the 1866 Lowell's cdv. It is Jewell, not Alline.

[JollyElm]

Might be a dead end, but on the left side of the picture, there seems to be some words/letters on the lower portion of the curtain (or whatever the heck that semi-see-through thing is). If you have a pretty hi-def version of this photograph, you can try messing around with the contrast and what-not in photoshop to see if you can identify some of what it says there.

[ramram]

My advice is to be careful with this piece. I'm a little skeptical about its origins.

Rob M

[kemdawg]

I have a few updates on the photo as I was able to see the photo myself and speak to the owner in more depth about its origins.

The photo itself measures 10.5" wide by 6.125" tall. The picture itself is in the oval shape you see but is pasted onto rectangular shaped cardboard. I took pictures of the front and back, which I will post later tonight. The back is plain and has some paper loss.

I mentioned in my original post that this photo was pulled from an attic in Vermont, but apparently, the owner's family's roots are from Hartford Connecticut, which is where the owner's family would have been living in the late 1800's. When the owner came across this photo, it was among other paperwork and documents that related to Hartford.

I have no doubt the photo is genuine as the owner happens to be my boss, and she was going through her parent's estate and came across a ton of items from the 1800's and 1900's including coins, books, and old letters. Unfortunately, this photo was the only sports related item.

Hope that helps give more information in an effort to find out more about this! Thanks again for everyone's feedback so far!

[ramram]

That is great news about the provenance and the fact that it is actually two pieces. I know when we corresponded the first time you thought it was all one piece which would be a big red flag. Great image.

Rob M

[kemdawg]

Okay, just uploaded three more pictures:
1. The back of the photo
2. Left to right measurements
3. Top to Bottom measurements

[ramram]

Any idea if it spent a lot of time in a frame? Perimeter gives that appearance.

[kemdawg]

Originally Posted by ramram

Any idea if it spent a lot of time in a frame? Perimeter gives that appearance.

I honestly don't know. It's also a little strange that it was cut at the bottom as well.