Child portrait with doll   Save
Albert J. Ewing Collection
Description: A little girl is seated with a doll in her arm as her picture is taken. An adult arm can be seen on the right. Photography was a long process and often mothers needed to be nearby to help keep the child composed for the long session. Handwriting on the negative appears to list the name "Mr. Will Smith," and the town of Finch, West Virginia. This photograph was taken by traveling photographer Albert J. Ewing, ca. 1896-1912. Born in 1870 in Washington County, Ohio, near Marietta, Ewing most likely began his photography career in the 1890s. The 1910 US Census and a 1912-1913 directory list him as a photographer. A negative signed "Ewing Brothers" and a picture with his younger brother, Frank, indicate that Frank may have joined the business. After 1916, directories list Albert as a salesman. He died in 1934. The Ewing Collection consists of 5,055 glass plate negatives, each individually housed and numbered. Additionally, the collection includes approximately 450 modern contact prints made from the glass plate negatives. Subjects include infants and young children, elderly people, families, school and religious groups, animals and rural scenes. In 1982, the Ohio Historical Society received the collection, still housed in the original dry plate negative boxes purchased by Albert J. Ewing. A selection of the original glass plate negatives were exhibited for the first time in 2013 at the Ohio Historical Center. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV71_b09_f516
Subjects: Ewing, Albert J. (1870-1934); Portrait photography--United States--History; Children
Places: Finch (West Virginia)