Tuesday, February 8, 2011

I Heart Vintage Photos

I'm always amazed when I go to estate sales or flea markets to see old family photographs being sold off for next to nothing.  It always makes me wonder, "Why didn't anyone (in the family) want these?"  And while I guess I could ask the same question about all the "treasures" I buy at an estate sale, photos seem so much more personal than all the other things.  Well, I recently received a lot of vintage photos of my own family, and so I thought I'd share my favorites.

My Grandma Dorothy Marie (Taylor) Webb (mom's mom), in her high school graduation photo, circa 1947.  It says in the corner, "To the family with love, Dorothy Marie."

My Grandma Dorothy with her sister Mary Jean and a frisky-looking dog.  I love the edging on the photo- I think it's about 1940 or so.  The picture appears to have once been glued into an album and then later ripped out, which is why the edge is torn.

This is one of my favorite old photos- I'm not sure who everyone in the picture is, but I definitely recognize Dorothy about to fall out of the boat in the back of the photo!

This photo looks like an old Dr. Pepper advertisement to me, with that canoe paddle looking like it was placed there by a propmaster.  I think that's my Grandma and Grandpa on the right.

My grandmother on my dad's side, Grace Irene (Zeller) Goff, almost made it to 100 when she died in 2008.  After the funeral in Riley, KS, we all went back to my Aunt Martha's house to reminisce and look at some old pictures.  I liked the next two so much that I had my aunt scan them.  The first one is my grandmother leaning on an old truck with a corn field behind her:


This picture was probably taken in the mid 1920's (she was born in 1909).  I really like it because I am struck by how much I resemble her, especially in the nose/mouth/chin area (ok, yes, this is an old photo, but it's the most illustrative):


The other photo I was really taken with was my grandmother's wedding photo:


It's sort of a bad scan, but what a picture!  Where do you start?  Those beautiful hats at fashionista angles?  That mermaid-flair dress my Great Aunt Elda is wearing as a bridesmaid?  The adorable flower girls?  The dashing tuxes?  Or how about those WHITE SHOES my Great Uncle George is wearing?  Yep, I agree- those shoes are off the charts!

4 comments:

  1. Lovely family photos. I hadn't even thought of sharing my old family photos on my blog, just favorite vintage photos of random strangers. I think you might enjoy them, actually. Here's a link to the "Collections" page of my blog, where I am featuring some of my favorite thrifted collections I own. This feature is on found photos: http://letsgothrifting.blogspot.com/p/collections.html

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  2. I recently shared a photo on my blog of my Mawma (grandmother) behind bars with her "possy"....so funny. I love it when you can see a glimpse of our elders in their free spirited younger years.

    I always feel sad when I see a photo on sale at an estate sale or thrift store. Nowadays, we have so many copies of our photos (well I do...always order too many just in case) but back then, a copy was a precious thing. Why does no one want this and it has ended up for sale? So disposable? I saw a wedding photo, you know the MAIN wedding photo with hubbie and wife in front of the alter?...in a beautiful frame up for sale at a thrift and understand needing to get rid of the frame, they can be big and bulky, but could someone not put the once cherished photo in an album? Maybe the marriage did not end well....who knows? I just think it is very sad.

    Tiffany

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  3. Two years ago I helped my Grandma make scrapbooks for her four kids. It was one of the best things I've ever done! My favorite part was seeing how much we all look alike, but especially my daughter. She could be my great Grandmother's twin....and now I have the pictures to prove it!

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  4. i can't help but wanting to leave a comment here :).

    those photos are amazing! i will never ever sell any of my family photos. well, apart from our memories. all that's left to remind us those wonderful moments are photos, no? :)

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