West Family
According to my father, his grandmother Alice May West used to say that we were related to the great artist Benjamin West. This could likely be true - Benjamin West was born in Springfield Township (in what is now Swarthmore), Pennsylvania to a Quaker family. Other family members have heard our Wests were originally Quakers. But I haven't yet been able to find this connection. Despite years of deep research by several family members, we haven't been able to trace back any farther than William West (1802-1884).
William West's son, William W. West (1836-1898), was a photographer and also was enlisted in the Civil War. I have MANY photographs, many unidentified. Some were grouped together in an envelope labeled "Old West Family Photos" another group in "West/Maslin" photos. All the daguerreotypes were grouped together, and it's obviously difficult to write on the back of a daguerreotype. They could be all West family, maybe some Rickerts, or maybe just random people photographed by W. W. West.
William West's son, William W. West (1836-1898), was a photographer and also was enlisted in the Civil War. I have MANY photographs, many unidentified. Some were grouped together in an envelope labeled "Old West Family Photos" another group in "West/Maslin" photos. All the daguerreotypes were grouped together, and it's obviously difficult to write on the back of a daguerreotype. They could be all West family, maybe some Rickerts, or maybe just random people photographed by W. W. West.
Daguerreotype/Ambrotype/Tintype Collection
I feel pretty certain that the first few images are William W. West's wife, Sarah Emily Hughes West (1834-1917), and their son Harry West (1858-1925). Presumably then the little girl is their daughter Florence/Flora West (b. 1860), and then sitting with her is William W. West? Or is it William West? After that I am totally confused who might be William W. West, or William West, or William W.'s brother Thomas H. B. West ... or again, random people ?
Piecing together a puzzle...
It's always exciting when a photo IS labeled with some identifying information. This photo indicates
PHOTO TAKEN AT RESIDENCE OF R. L. PEROT
GERMANTOWN
WEST FAMILY
SUMMER 1908
The people in the photograph are (from left to right, standing): my great-grandparents Charles and Alice (West) Maslin, Alice's brother-in-law Harry Slifer and her sister Emily (West) with their daughter (standing on the ledge), Alice's brother Fred, her father Harry West; and sitting in front: Alice's sister Katherine and her mother Minnie. And dog!
But who was R.L. Perot? An initial Google search told me Robeson Lea Perot was an architect. My great-grandfather Charles Maslin was an architect, and it turns out he worked for the firm Perot and Bissell.
So where in Germantown was Perot's residence? For this I consulted Philadelphia City Directories at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. "Perot, Robeson Lea" was listed at "505 Hansberry, Gtn" in the 1905 directory, and the corner of Hansberry and Wissahickon in the 1910 directory. (They have print copies for every 5 years in their open stacks, which I prefer to microfilm. If I wanted to look at 1908 precisely, they have it on microfilm.)
I then looked up the address on Google maps. The Google street viewer showed a Tudor style large house, with stone base at the corner intersection - likely the building I was looking for!
I double checked a 1910 real estate atlas on The Greater Philadelphia GeoHistory Network website (here it is). There was the footprint for the residence of R.L. Perot, right next to the Germantown Cricket Club, on the corner of Hansberry and Wissahickon Ave.
Was the house still there? I decided to drive by the place one day after work. It is now an outpost for the American Legion. I am now sure that this photo was taken around the (now) back of the house, which has since been walled up/enclosed. But you can see the ledge where Minnie West (and dog) are perched, and the brick threshold where the door entrance is now.
PHOTO TAKEN AT RESIDENCE OF R. L. PEROT
GERMANTOWN
WEST FAMILY
SUMMER 1908
The people in the photograph are (from left to right, standing): my great-grandparents Charles and Alice (West) Maslin, Alice's brother-in-law Harry Slifer and her sister Emily (West) with their daughter (standing on the ledge), Alice's brother Fred, her father Harry West; and sitting in front: Alice's sister Katherine and her mother Minnie. And dog!
But who was R.L. Perot? An initial Google search told me Robeson Lea Perot was an architect. My great-grandfather Charles Maslin was an architect, and it turns out he worked for the firm Perot and Bissell.
So where in Germantown was Perot's residence? For this I consulted Philadelphia City Directories at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. "Perot, Robeson Lea" was listed at "505 Hansberry, Gtn" in the 1905 directory, and the corner of Hansberry and Wissahickon in the 1910 directory. (They have print copies for every 5 years in their open stacks, which I prefer to microfilm. If I wanted to look at 1908 precisely, they have it on microfilm.)
I then looked up the address on Google maps. The Google street viewer showed a Tudor style large house, with stone base at the corner intersection - likely the building I was looking for!
I double checked a 1910 real estate atlas on The Greater Philadelphia GeoHistory Network website (here it is). There was the footprint for the residence of R.L. Perot, right next to the Germantown Cricket Club, on the corner of Hansberry and Wissahickon Ave.
Was the house still there? I decided to drive by the place one day after work. It is now an outpost for the American Legion. I am now sure that this photo was taken around the (now) back of the house, which has since been walled up/enclosed. But you can see the ledge where Minnie West (and dog) are perched, and the brick threshold where the door entrance is now.
There are still questions to be asked. I know my great-grandparents were married in 1908. Was this their wedding reception? Did they go for a photo session, or were they attending a party at the house? Perhaps the house was newly constructed, and my great-grandfather had helped with the design?
Here's another photo of Charles and Alice from this same day and place. Is Alice wearing the same white dress as her sister Emily in the other photo? A wedding dress? I am thinking the photo of Emily and Harry is a wedding photo (married in 1905).
Click on each link for more details:
William West (1802-1884) and Sarah (1798-1880)
William W. West (1836-1898) and Sarah Emily Hughes (1834-1917)
Harry West (1858-1925) and Wilhemina (Minnie) Rickert (1863-1939)
Alice May West (1888-1967) and Charles Walter Maslin (1887-1946)
William West (1802-1884) and Sarah (1798-1880)
William W. West (1836-1898) and Sarah Emily Hughes (1834-1917)
Harry West (1858-1925) and Wilhemina (Minnie) Rickert (1863-1939)
Alice May West (1888-1967) and Charles Walter Maslin (1887-1946)