The Waterbury Paper Box Co. Wedding Album 29

Once again, it's time to return to the Waterbury Paper Box Co. Girls Club.....maybe.  At least, it was taken at the same location, and while there are a lot more girls in this photo, there are also a lot of boys.  Perhaps the girls club is having a Halloween party, and dates were invited.  The costumes are all over the place, and some of the attendees are just nicely dressed rather than all dressed up.   And oh those costumes.  Let's see, girls in top hats and neckties and a couple of boys in ladies bonnets.  There are wizards, nurses and sailors, and two really inappropriate outfits at least by the standards of our day.   Look closely at the black face in the front row, bone in the nose, and grass skirt.  And to that person's left, a girl with a black eye.  Click on the image to bring it up in a bigger window, if needed.

I'll be leaving this album for three to four weeks, and when I return to this collection, I'll post the last five pages and finish things up.  In the mean time, click on Waterbury Box Co. Album in labels to see everything posted, to date.  Remember, start with number one, for the proper order.

Hindu Dancer

This one's labeled, "WINTER 1959-60."  It's cut from a larger picture.  But was it taken in India or is it from a  performance in the United States?  Haven't a clue.

eBay Portraits, the Faded and Damaged One

99 cents and a couple of bucks for shipping.  So, did I get my money's worth?  Had I found this one in a store, maybe $2.  Mostly because I like the weird headdress the little girl is wearing.  I suspect it's something ethnic, rather than a fashion statement.  Maybe a dollar for the one with tape and 50 cents for the damaged, mother daughter portrait.  And I would have probably passed on the reproduction.  On the other hand, I was in an antique mall this afternoon and bought ten snapshots for $5, all of which I prefer to the four eBay portraits.  So, you pay your money and takes your chances, as the Carneys say.

The Pforzheim Album 8

Ah the Gypsy craze of the first third of the twentieth century.  It looks like a costume party or theater cast, and while we've got a few fine ladies, some milk maid types, and a plain old regular maid, it's the Gypsy look that predominates.  The few photos in this album that are dated are from the late twenties.  In just a few years, 1933, Adolf Hitler will come to power, and put the Roma, the Gypsies, on the list of people to be exterminated.

 There's a stamp on the back of the group shot.  "Oscar Lang, Hofphotogrph, Lahr I.B., Werderstr. I. 4"  Hof is German for court, so Mr. Lang was the court photographer?  I looked up Lahr.  It's another small city in Baden-Wurttemberg.  As far as I can tell, there are no royal courts in Lahr.

Ethnic Dress, The Travelers Collection

I need some help on this one.  This has to be some sort of national dress.  Too, that's a fairly masculine jaw line, so is it a traditional male costume, or are we dealing with an ethnic cross dresser?  Click on travelers collection to bring up the whole collection.