Studio Portrait of Eagan, with a Special Note

This well-dressed young man, known only to us as Eagan, sits for a technically perfect portrait. On the reverse side of the mounted print he has scribbled:

Yours very truly,— Eagan.    If you don't want to be troubled with rats and mice, just place this (photograph) in the room and you won't be bothered.

You May Now Shake the Bride's Hand

They're probably not even married. She has a ring on her  finger, but that doesn't mean she's married to him.  This portrait of an unknown couple was made by Schneider, a photographer in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Both subjects of this lost portrait are fancily dressed and stiffly posed against a painted backdrop. To the man's right there is an ornate frame that contains a display of other portrait photographs. Could Schneider have been working at a social event, making obligatory souvenir pictures, like they do at every tourist attraction here in Chicago? That might explain the icy handshake, the disparate gazes in opposite directions, and their apparent mutual disinterest in even being there at all.

Two Photographs for Olive

These portraits are likely from the Spring or early Summer of 1945, after World War II had ended in Europe but was still raging in the Pacific. Without any dates except Mary's instruction to "Remember June 1945,"  these matching folios contain  brief sentiments of two young women who both have a friend named Olive.

I can only assume that these wonderful portraits were given as a gift or exchanged upon graduation, and I am left with a feeling of disappointment that I'll never see a portrait of Olive herself.

Portrait of a Man and Woman, Both Appear to be Angry

This is an example of a truly lost portrait. This image was not a part of an album, a scrapbook, or even a pile. It has no markings that suggest a photographer, a location, or any context at all.
In the early days of photography, plates and films were less sensitive to light, and required subjects to sit perfectly still (to avoid blurriness) during long exposures.  Perhaps a faked smile was too hard to hold.  Even still, could this possibly be the best of the bunch?

Portrait of Unknown Man, Kentucky

We know nothing about the man in this photograph, but the photographer was well-published in the late 1800s, when this portrait was most likely made. On the reverse side of this wallet-sized print: 

D.H. Anderson, Photographer,
Corner Main and Third Streets, Danville, Kentucky and Opposite Capitol Hotel, Frankfort, Kentucky.
Duplicates can be had from this Negative at any time.

Studio Portrait of Leane

Signed in ink on face of photograph: "Lovingly, Leane."  No other markings or information about this woman, except for "Johnson," the photographer's name. After this many years I suspect he's no longer in business, but it's likely he made a living for much longer than this woman's hairdresser.