Last Sunday I purchased a small bin of photographs at the flea market. You can read about it here. For this weeks Sepia Saturday I'm going to feature a woman who probably once owned many of these photos.
Gertrude Helen Rich was born on December 21, 1885. At some point she married and her last name became Bowen. She was a schoolteacher in Nebraska, which is also where I believe she was born. She had a son named Arthur who was stationed in Germany after the war. They both eventually ended up in Phoenix, Arizona. That is all the biographical information I know about Gertrude.
This first photo was a "Souvenir of Our School Days" taken by W. P. Fritz in Fremont, Nebraska. On the back of a copy of this photo it says:
Mrs. Gertrude H. Bowen Graduation Picture Fremont College, Nebraska About 1905
On the back of this shot it says:
Gertrude Helen Rich (Bowen) second from the right, her friend Elizabeth Davidson third from the right, on a picture taking expedition with three high school boys on March 18, 1910. Near Springfield, Nebraska.
Click on image to see it larger.
On October 21, 1930 she received the following teaching certificate.
Click on image to see it larger.
On October 4, 1932 she received the following certificate in Arizona.
Click on image to see it larger.
On the back of this shot it says:
Phoenix, ArizonaJuly 1954Left to Right:Mrs. Gertrude H. BowenHomer Graves (her nephew)Arthur D. Bowen (Mrs. Bowen's son)Donald Graves (Homer's son)
Click on image to see it larger.
And finally this shot was processed in June 1961.
It fascinates me as to how many collections I have that once belonged to schoolteachers.
All this week I have been featuring photos from this bin which I call the Ten Buck Box. I will continue to feature even more images over the coming weeks.
UPDATE: I've added an additional photo of Gertrude here which is the oldest I have of her. It was taken in 1973. She died in 1974.
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