HELBLING Family (Click for Family Tree)
Today we showcase some of our wonderful ancestors that we can’t identify. These images have been lovingly passed down in the Helbling-Geier family from a time when having a portrait taken was a big event. No cell phones or small cameras to capture what was for breakfast, crazy antics with friends, or your haul from the craft store- just photos of the family at their very best.
We hope that someone out there can help us date these pictures or identify individuals. If you have a copy similar, please let us know through our Contact Form!
The beautiful photo above looks like it could be three sisters, since they are fairly close in age and fairly young. Although not a photo expert, it seems this image might be from the 1860s by the dresses they were wearing and the hairstyles. What do you think?
The above photo may be from the same studio, same time period, as the borders, etc. were the same. Could this be a portrait of an older sister, on her wedding day, and the portrait of the younger sisters was taken as well as a keepsake? (OK, family historians do have vivid imaginations, but we have seen a lot and could be right.) Or could this be the mother of the girls? Their eyebrows are similar.
Above and below are portraits of one or two children, possibly taken in the 1870s or later. The chair in the photos may be the same- could this be the same child, but older? Two siblings? The design of the physical photo itself is similar, so may be from the same studio.
Here is another cute child, taken at the Dabbs Photo Studio in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The London, England-born Benjamin L. H. Dabbs opened his photography studio in Pittsburgh in 1861 and died in 1899, so we at least have a range of time for when this photo was taken. Dabbs was considered to be the finest photographer in Pennsylvania, and was a close friend of Abraham Lincoln and the steel magnate, Andrew Carnegie. An image Dabbs took of Carnegie has been hung at the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh, and you may have a Carnegie library in your town with a portrait. Back then, most photographers allowed customers to sit again if they did not like a finished portrait, but not Benjamin Dabbs. Because of Dabbs’ reputation, this portrait may have been a bit more costly from the start, and the family would have had to settle for a portrait they didn’t really like, or pay again.
We are moving into more recent times now with our unknown family, with the above possibly a turn-of-the-century photo– that would be 19th going into 20th century, or around 1900. Small cameras were becoming available to the masses, and cute, spur-of-the-moment pictures could be taken by families who would then have the roll of film developed and pictures printed on paper. (What a concept today!)
Here are three lovely ladies, strolling in the park or the yard, with the family dog most likely. People took pictures of their pets back then too! And wonder how long it took to get their hair put up neatly in that ‘do’?
This serious young little guy is resting his arm on a Craftsman-style chair, which would put the portrait sometime between about 1880-1920. His outfit looks like some seen in the 19-teens or so, but again, no photo dating expert here.
Could this possibly be the same little guy a couple of years later? Or maybe not, as the portrait could be from the 1920s or 30s.
This last picture seems to be a much more recent image- maybe even from the 1950s or 60s.
We have about 100 years of photos from the Helbling and/or Geier family in this post! We do hope that maybe someone can help us identify the time or individuals in each one. Please use our ‘Contact Form’ if you can help solve our family photo mystery.
Notes, Sources, and References:
- Benjamin Dabbs bio– https://cabinetcardgallery.com/category/photographer-dabbs/
- Thanks again to our cousin Mary Lou for sharing all these wonderful photos of times past!
Click to enlarge any image. Please contact us if you would like an image in higher resolution.
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