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| Reverse of cabinet card is blank. |
Sadly, there is no identification on this cabinet card other than the photographer's imprint, "Barrie. Cumberland Street. Port Arthur, Can." The name of the girl and her dolly may be lost to us forever, but we can still try to date the image and learn a little bit about the photographer. And you never know, in the process we may find a clue that could lead us to the identity of this little girl.
Photographer William John Barrie (1846-1896) operated his studio on Cumberland Street in Port Arthur, Ontario from roughly 1886 to the year he died, 1896. He and his first wife, Martha Jane Green, married in 1869. In 1871 the couple lived in London, Ontario with their one-year-old daughter, Gertrude. W. John is listed on the census that year as a photographer. Martha Jane died in 1877 in Peterborough, and at the time of the 1881 census, William is living in Peterborough with his second wife, Jane Hannah Gardner. He and Jane had a son, Thomas Gardner Barrie, born December 1886, who died 28 days later. W. J. Barrie married a third time, to Annie Jane Harvey in 1889. I could not find a marriage or death record for Jane Hannah, which is unusual, so perhaps there is something I am missing regarding that relationship. I considered that there may have been a second William John Barrie in Port Arthur, but the father's occupation on Thomas Barrie's birth record reads, "Photographer."
I had hoped I could pinpoint the manufacturing date of the young girl's doll, but I am not 19th century doll expert, and I think that research would be better left to those who have an extensive knowledge of such things. At first, I thought I might "luck out" and find the doll in this exact costume, but then I realized that this might be a homemade costume made to match the girl's dress. The fabric in both outfits look similar, if not identical. Unfortunately, I can not tell you if the doll is a Jumeau, a German doll, or some other type. I have done some extremely basic research, and while I did not find an identical doll, I can say that it is not an Eaton's Beauty Doll. Those dolls were first made in the 20th century and the manufacturers varied. Most of the Eaton’s doll heads were made by German doll makers, including Armand Marseille, Kestner, and Cuno & Otto Dressel.
We can look to the cabinet card presentation to further date the image. Usually, gold lettering on a black or dark card stock suggests a date from the late 1880s to the early 1890s.
At this point, I think we can safely date this image somewhere between 1886 to 1895. I do think it's closer to 1886-1890, based on the girl's costume. But I can't clearly see the tops of the girl's sleeves, though, and the large white collar would indicate a late 1880's/early 1890s date. I don't see the voluminous sleeves of the 1890s, but while children's garb often mirrored adult fashions, there may have been a toning down of those leg 'o mutton sleeves for practical reasons.
At my local genealogical society meeting last night, a guest speaker talked about MyHeritage's new AI photo dater. I have resisted using it, because I fear doing so will dull my observation skills. We certainly don't want to rely on this technology too much. Last night I found myself disagreeing with some of the dates the speaker arrived at through this technology, and so, I think there are still some things the human eye can notice that might get by the programming. That said, I did run this through the photo dater, and it estimated that this portrait was taken around 1890. So, computer and I are in agreement on that one.
As for the girl's name, that remains a mystery.
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Sources:
Phillips, Glen C. The Ontario Photographers List, 1851-1900, Volume One., Global Heritage Press. Milton, Ont: 2002. p.64.
"Canada Census, 1871," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M47C-PZ8 : 7 April 2022), W John Barrie, London, Middlesex, Ontario, Canada; citing 1871; citing National Archives of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario.
"Canada, Ontario Marriages, 1869-1927," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FMVW-VDN : 8 March 2021), William John Barrie and Annie Jane Harvey, 22 May 1889; citing registration , Port Arthur, Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada, Archives of Ontario, Toronto; FHL microfilm 1,870,223.
"Canada, Ontario Deaths, 1869-1937 and Overseas Deaths, 1939-1947," database with images, FamilySearch(https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J698-YXC : 2 March 2021), Martha Jane Barrie, 27 Sep 1877; citing Ontario, Canada, , Registrar General. Archives of Ontario, Toronto; FHL microfilm.
"Canada, Ontario Deaths, 1869-1937 and Overseas Deaths, 1939-1947," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JKHG-CQJ : 2 March 2021), Annie Jane Barrie, 21 Sep 1920; citing Port Arthur, Thunder Bay, Ontario, cn 36854, Registrar General. Archives of Ontario, Toronto; FHL microfilm 1,863,410.
"Canada, Ontario Deaths, 1869-1937 and Overseas Deaths, 1939-1947," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JF4C-K6L : 30 August 2023), William J. Barrier [sic, should read “Barrie], 11 Aug 1896; citing Port Arthur, Thunder Bay, Ontario, p 70B cn 001196, Registrar General. Archives of Ontario, Toronto; FHL microfilm 1,853,831.
"Canada Census, 1881", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MVXR-413 : Tue Aug 08 20:26:39 UTC 2023), Entry for William J. Barry [sic, transcription error, actually says “Barrie’], 1881.
"Canada, Ontario Births and Baptisms, 1779-1899", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FMQX-3WR : 13 February 2020), William J. Barrie in entry for Thomas Gardner Barrie, 1886.
"Canada, Ontario Marriages, 1869-1927," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KS8S-5WY : 8 March 2021), William J Barrie in entry for Mitchel Heath Gandier and Lillie Maude Barrie Ivison, 05 Apr 1911; citing registration , Strathroy, Middlesex, Ontario, Canada, Archives of Ontario, Toronto; FHL microfilm 1,888,061.
Eaton's Beauty Dolls. https://www.historymuseum.ca/cmc/exhibitions/cpm/catalog/cat2101e.html
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