Picture Perfect: Family in Photos

The Hagenbuch photo archives are massive. I have drawers of photos. I have boxes of photos, and I have folders filled with photos. Some are filed by family, but many are stored as a hodgepodge. The majority are marked with where they were taken and who is in them. Others are unmarked, but I can recognize the subjects present in the images. Still others will never be identified.

Regardless, it is a wonderful collection, and I often go through them looking for a specific photo to use in an article. The photo archives still hold surprises. The oldest photo that I can identify and date is the one of my great great grandparents: Hiram Hagenbuch (b. 1847) and Mary Ann (Lindner) Hagenbuch (b.1853). They were married in 1872, and the only photograph we have of them together is most likely their wedding photo from that year.

Hiram and Mary Ann (Lindner) Hagenbuch, 1872

An older photo in the archives is a tintype of Henry W. Hagenbuch (b. 1834. d. 1893), a professional photographer who had a studio in Watsontown, Pennsylvania. Several articles have been written about Henry. While Henry can be identified as the subject of the tintype, the exact date of it is not known. Tintypes began to lose favor to photographs printed on paper by 1870. In the tintype, Henry looks to be no more than 30 years old so a possible date of this early likeness is the 1860s.

Tintype of Henry W. Hagenbuch, c. 1864

Henry never married and is buried at St. John’s Church Cemetery, Delaware Run, near Dewart, PA. (This church was the site of 75th Hagenbuch Reunion and has been written about since as a “Hagenbuch church”.) Occasionally, we will be contacted by someone who found one of the photos he took, as his name and studio location are marked on the back. Many years ago, I was fortunate enough to receive several of Henry’s photographic creations from his great niece, Roberta (Hagenbuch) Buck (b. 1915, d. 1988).

Clara Reichley, c. 1888

While looking through photos there are often surprises. Such is the case with a photo of Clara (Sechler) Reichley circa 1888. As I sifted through old photos and decided which ones to use for this article, I came across this photo of a stern looking lady. Luckily on the back was written “Aunt Clara Reichley.” A quick search in Ancestry brought up her information. Clara was the sister of my great grandfather, Samuel Sechler (b. 1855, d. 1928). Clara (b. 1848, d. 1909) married Benjamin Reichley and they lived in Lebanon, PA. And, there was another surprise as I checked in our very own Beechroots. I had already listed her information, but had never coordinated the photo of my great great Aunt Clara with her personal information.

Family of Frank and Sarah Jane (Lindner) Coleman, c. 1895

As with the previous photo, many of the images we place in the archives aren’t Hagenbuchs. In about 1895, Frank Coleman (b. 1855) and his wife, Sarah Jane (Lindner) Coleman (b. 1857), had their family photograph taken by J. Rippel photography in Milton, PA. Sarah Jane was a sister to my great grandmother, Mary Ann (Lindner) Hagenbuch. Their children in the photo are Bessie (standing), Bertha, and Merrill. As a boy, I remember my elderly relatives talking about this family, especially Bessie who never married. This is a beautiful family portrait. The clothes, the expressions, the body language, and the facial features all add to its uniqueness.

Martha “Mattie” (Hagenbuch) White, 1905

Looking at old photos gives us a chance to research and enjoy the fashions of the day. Charles “Charlie” White (b. 1868, d. 1943) and his wife, Martha “Mattie” Jane (Hagenbuch) White (b. 1878, d. 1972), were married in 1905. Although these are not your typical wedding pictures, I believe these photos of the couple to be taken at the time of their marriage or soon after.

Charlie White, 1905

Mattie is the daughter of my great grandfather Hiram’s brother, Joseph (b. 1852, d. 1935) and his first wife Sarah Robbins (b. 1853, d. 1881). Charlie is sporting a mustache of ostentatious means and a slicked down comb over. A well-fitted frock coat and tasteful tie completes his outfit. Mattie is beautiful in her coifed hair and ribbon. Her white blouse has puffed capped sleeves and tiny pleats outline her blouse, which would have been meticulously ironed in. The perfectly knotted tie finishes her clean and pure look.

Unidentified ladies in hats

While it’s unfortunate that there are photos in the archives where the folks cannot be identified, they still entertain us with the styles of days long ago. The four ladies in this picture are not known, and I believe the photo is from the Sechler family. Those hats are just the cat’s meow, sporting feathers and ribbons. Use a magnifying glass and take a good look at the work that the milliner did to create these artistic pieces. At one time, milliner shops were very common and ladies could pick out a hat from the inventory or design one of their own.

James Davis in Australia, c. 1920

I cannot identify this man leaning on the bar from my own recognition. However, the back of the photo provides all the details. This is James Davis, nephew to my great grandmother, Mary (Davis) Sechler. James (b. 1888, d. 1969) was born in Iowa but was quite the traveler. He lived in Illinois, Kansas, and Florida and visited New York City; Buenos Aires, Argentina; and Sydney, Australia where this photo was taken. Not only is James dapper in his frock coat, vest, and brimmed hat, but it also seems he was adventurous. With a few bottles of some liquid nearby, one wonders if he is interested in participating in what the sign denotes: “Notis, Next Week, Broncko Bustin, Fer Prizes”!

Mark O. Hagenbuch looking through the photo archives, 2024

Along with these few old photos, the archives has hundreds of more recent images of our Hagenbuch relatives and allied family members. The older photos have an atmosphere of art and creativity which was common when photography was still young. Some of this was lost once everyone had their own cameras, beginning in the mid-1900s and up to the present where we snap pictures using our phones.

Although modern snapshots possess lovely colors and capture every movement or detail of the subject, they frequently do not display the same craft and technique that the vintage photos do. Compare the photos in this article to those you recently took with a phone and you’ll certainly agree.