and throw down your money! And it better be more than last week's allowance!
A stickup in the backyard.
4/29/11
4/28/11
Alfred Kallman, MINER
I have no information about these photos other than that the envelope they're in has "Dad's mine" written on it in George Kallman's handwriting. No idea where this mine was or what they were mining.
A few of the photos are RPPC's, the majority small snapshots taken in 1937.
So step back in time and imagine what life was like at this mine. Were there people working it everyday or was it a weekend mining adventure? Imagine it at night in that little cabin with the birds in the trees settling down for the night and then arising the next morning singing. What a wondrous place it must have been for George and Gladys a children.
In a few of the photos I've put circles around photos of Alfred. In one I've put a circle around George, Alfred's son.
Click on any image to see it larger.
This is my contribution for this weeks Sepia Saturday.
__________
Thinking of self-publishing a book? Does it seem overwhelming? Let me help guide you:4/24/11
In your EASTER BONNET with the gals
It's a day to go parading in your Easter bonnet.
Do they still make Easter bonnets at school out of paper plates? I remember bringing mine home and being very proud of it. It's long since gone.
I also remember my mother buying me Easter bonnets which had very tight headbands that clamped on the side of my head. It was always a relief to take them off. It was probably while wearing those hats that I decided I would not be a fashion victim. If it wasn't comfortable, I wouldn't wear it. I do not want garments inflicting pain. I'm sure my choices have been devastating to the fashion industry, especially shoe designers.
Here are three ladies out and about on a sunny Easter day, 1936.
4/20/11
JOHN ALFRED KALLMAN, father of George and Gladys
This week's Sepia Saturday I present John Alfred Kallman; husband of Lorena Aina Beck; father of George and Gladys Kallman.
From what I've found, and I can't be sure it's accurate, Alfred was possibly born in Montana on August 27, 1892. He died at age 62 on Sept. 16, 1954 in San Mateo, California. What is confusing about what I found are his parents names. Mother is listed as Kaeko and the father is Lassfalk. So Alfred appears to have been adopted somewhere along the line.
Basically this is all I have for biographical information. The rest is just supposition from looking at the photos and other ephemera I have. Very few photos have anything written on the back. However, George did put a lot of photos in special envelopes with names on the front.
Click on any image to see it larger.
George labeled these folks as his Kallman grandparents. These must be the people who "adopted" Alfred. This is where the name Kallman begins.
This is the youngest photo I can find of Alfred.
Alfred, standing in the back, with possibly his mother Kallman. No idea who the other people are.
I have no idea what this is about, but I can tell you Alfred belonged to the Star Glee Club in San Francisco. They were members of the American Union of Swedish Singers. I have photos of him with the singing group, but I haven't a clue as to what's going on here.
Alfred made his living as a painter, decorator, and paperhanger. He also had a mine which I will feature in a future post.
The Kallman home in San Francisco on Edinburgh Street with Gladys on the steps.
The boat Alfred built.
Alfred with Mabel Roy.
John Alfred Kallman (Aug. 17, 1892-Sept. 26, 1954)
If you're new to my site you might enjoy seeing past posts about the Kallman family, all photos and ephemera from the George Kallman estate.
4/19/11
FEED BEARS AT OWN PERIL! I'm just sayin'...
Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear.
Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair.
But Fuzzy Wuzzy did eat the hand that fed him proving that signs that say "DON'T" are usually worth reading.
You might not believe this, but these are the second and third in my category called "woman feeding a bear." I know, who'd have thunk?
4/18/11
Two Sides of WHIGHAM PHOTO in San Francisco
105 years ago today the earth shook and fire raised the city of San Francisco. This is the anniversary of the 1906 earthquake.
Today I have chosen to feature this photo from the George Kallman estate. I have no information about the children in the photo, but the photographer took some memorable photos of the aftermath of the earthquake.
I have not found any biographical information about Whigham. I'm hoping eventually someone steps forward and offers some.
The following three images showing the aftermath of the quake are from the Central Washington University Brooks Library Digital Collection, all taken by Whigham Photo. Click on the links to go to their site and see the images larger along with reference data.
Then there's the following little item from the January 5, 1908 newspaper The San Francisco Call from the Library of Congress archives. Click on the link to see the full page of the paper.
Apparently Whigham Photo was in the "Rooms to Let" business.
As with all old photos, you have to wonder what became of the people. Most assuredly, what became of these two children?
UPDATE: Thanks to an anonymous reader we now have a little bit of information about the Whigham Studio:
UPDATE: Thanks to Kevin Shiley for the following information.
UPDATE: Thanks to an anonymous reader we now have a little bit of information about the Whigham Studio:
Whighams Studio was owned by Minnie Seavy of San Francisco. She had two studios one on Mission and the other on Market. One of the newspapers had a baby photo contest which she won with two photos that were titled A Breath of Heaven Day/Night. I know she also owned a few flats as well.
UPDATE: Thanks to Kevin Shiley for the following information.
Richard P Whigham, the photographer, was the older brother of my great grandmother, Matilda Whigham McCaslin. He was born in Belfast, Ireland (now Northern Ireland) and his family emigrated to Calgary, Alberta in 1872. He made his way to San Francisco sometime in the 1890’s and in the 1900 census is listed as a photographer. Minnie Seavy was his 2nd wife, he married her in 1910. He passed away in 1932, and she survived him. In the census data he was always listed as photographer. Minnie is first shown as a photographer in the 1930 census, before that under occupation it said none.
4/12/11
AIR NEWS PHOTOS, San Francisco
I bought this photo a few years ago at an estate sale. It was at the home of an elderly woman who had passed, her husband had passed years before and was a well decorated officer from World War II. Of course, I didn't bother to get any names so I cannot give leads as to who any of these people might be or why this photo was taken.
I've always thought these folks looked like a group of advertising and PR men with their wives, early to mid-60s. Mad Men. I don't recognize anyone, which means absolutely nothing. These could have been well known people in the San Francisco/Bay Area. I'm guessing there are a lot of interesting life stories to be told about this group.
And please notice how these folks were dressed to take a flight. Imagine anyone dressing like this these days. I mean...white gloves!
Click on images to see them larger.
I'm not finding much about the photographer, Ralph D. Demeree of Air News Photos, other than it was a family owned operation. To see other photos by ANP click here to go to Demeree's grandson's Flickr site. I'll see if I can contact the fellow about supplying some more information.
UPDATE: Well folks, it doesn't get any better than this. I have heard back from Ralph D. Demerre's grandson, Paul Osborne, with some wonderful information. I'm going to post his comment within the post so that it is searchable. In the future when someone wonders about ANP and Ralph D. Demeree they'll have the honest truth from his grandson. Thank you Paul!
Yes, Ralph Demeree is my grandfather, and I can tell you quite a bit from this photograph, but very little about the people in shown. This would have been shot in the late 1950's, based on the address of my grandfather's studio, and also because it was before my father joined the business in 1959. Air News Photos began in the early 50's, specializing, as the name implies, in the fledgling air travel industry, specifically in the San Francisco/Oakland area. This is an example of literally thousands of similar shots made by my grandfather, and in later years, by my dad, of groups traveling through the Bay Area, embarking on an adventure to far-off destinations via (in this case) TWA. Over the years, Air News Photos provided "home-towner" publicity photos for all of the major air carriers operating out of SFO and OAK. Typically, a group would make tour arrangements through a local travel agent, the airline would receive notification and dispatch Air News Photos to photograph the group prior to departure, and to gather personal information (local newspaper, home address, etc.). Then, a press release was written and sent out. The airline benefitted from the publicity, the newspapers had good, human-interest material, and the travelers were treated like celebrities. With slight variations, this was the bread-and-butter of the Air News Photos business model for more than 30 years. So, from the other rubber stamp on the back of the photo, I would guess these travelers were probably from Marin County, and they had their itinerary arranged by the Orrick agency. They were probably regular folks, possibly well-to-do, but not necessarily. Remember, everyone dressed to go out, even to see a movie! An aviation buff might be able to say definitively what type of aircraft they're boarding. My guess would be a Lockheed Constellation. TWA had a lot of them. Ralph Demeree died in 1980, after an adventurous life and career as a boxer, race car driver, musician, newspaper reporter and columnist, and photographer. To me, he was just Gramps. Thank you for your interest, and for giving me the opportunity to brag a little on my family's business. —Paul Osborne
4/10/11
UMBRELLAS on the steps, Part 3-the end
You know, it's a boring photo. Individually the people are interesting, the hats are interesting, the number of umbrellas are...not so interesting. Let's just get it over with.
Click on any image to see it larger.
And remember, there's one person not wearing a hat. Only one.
4/8/11
NURSE LORENA AINA BECK
Before there was Alfred...before there was George...before there was Gladys...there was Lorena Aina Beck...student nurse.
Lorena studied at the Burnett Sanitarium in Fresno, California. She graduated on January 3, 1922.
Lorena Aina Beck
Really not sure about this building, but I believe it is where the student nurses lived.
Of course there was a lot of studying... (I have 7 of Lorena's notebooks.)
and there were field trips...
and there were friendships...
and there were the joys of work...
and there were hijinks! (click on any image to see it larger)
And in the end, there was Nurse Lorena Aina Beck.
Lorena Aina Beck (Dec. 7, 1898-Nov. 19, 1952; born in Colorado; death in San Francisco at age 52; mother/Sjoberg, father/Beck)
All photos and documents from the George Kallman Estate.
This is my contribution to this weeks Sepia Saturday.
To see other posts about the Kallman family:
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