Ethel Wight Collection – Part 62

Hogan, Holland, Houghton(2), Huston, & (Née Giberson)

Photo Friday
Ethel Wight Collection
By Don Taylor

This week, for Photo Friday, I identify the people in five more envelopes from the Ethel Wight Studio Collection[i]. The envelopes contain the names who paid for the photos, not necessarily of the individual portrayed in the image. As such, it is vital to analyze the pictures and information to identify the individual therein.[ii] Ultimately, my goal is to reunite the photos with family members who may have never seen the image.

Deborah Luella Holland, circa 1936

The envelope this negative was in says, “Miss Deborah Holland, 89 Read St #494.”

Deborah Luella Holland, circa 1936

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1936 Portland City Directory lists Deborah L Holland as a housekeeper at 89 Read, residing at the same address.
• The 1938 Portland City Directory lists Deborah L Holland, a housekeeper having married Nelson F Garland and had moved to Harmon.
• Ancestry Family Trees indicate Deborah Luella Holland, the wife of Nelson Frank Garland, was born 17 August 1912 in Woodland, Aroostook County, Maine.
• This photo is of Deborah Holland, about 1936 before she married Nelson Garland.

Ancestry has 15 public trees that refer to Deborah Luella Holland. Family Search has a profile for Deborah Luella Holland, ID: L5KP-RM1.

I have uploaded two photos of Deborah to her Family Search Memories. 

Ruth Eleanor Hogan, circa 1935

This negative envelope says, “Miss Ruth Hogan, ME Eye & Ear Infirmary #289.”

Ruth Eleanor Hogan, circa 1935

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1935 Portland City Directory lists Ruth Hogan, a student nurse at 79 Bramhall (the location of the Maine Eye and Ear Infirmary) and residing at 804 Congress.
• The 1936 Portland City Directory lists Ruth Hogan living at 439 Congress, apt 216.
• The 1937 & 1938 Portland City Directories list Ruth Hogan as living at 764 Shore Road (Rear), Cape Elizabeth.
• The Maine Marriage Index, 1892-1996 lists Ruth E. Hogan’s marriage to Howard H Milliken on 9 July 1939. Both live in Cape Elizabeth.
• Ancestry Trees suggest Ruth Eleanor Hogan was born 27 September 1913 in Maine and married Howard Herbert Milliken on 9 July 1939 was the daughter of Thomas and Edna (Bracket) Hogan.

I believe this photo is of Ruth Hogan, about 1935, while she was a student at the Maine Eye & Ear Infirmary.

Ancestry has 11 public trees that refer to Ruth Hogan. Family Search has a profile for Ruth E. Hogan, ID: GMPC-CVZ.

I have uploaded two photos of Ruth to her Family Search Memories. 

Charles Bennett Houghton, circa 1935 (Age 2)

This negative envelope says, “Mrs. G.M. Houghton, 94 Concord St #398.”

Charles Bennett Houghton, circa 1935 (Age 2)

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1935 Portland City Directory lists Gerald M Haughton and his wife Marian, living at 94 Concord. Gerald is an Engineer at 45 Forest Ave.
• The 1940 US Census lists Gerrald M. Houghton and his wife Marrion L, living in Bangor, Penobscot, Maine. Living with them are son, Charles B, and daughter Anna L. They are ages 6 and 5 respectively. All are reported as having lived in Portland in 1935. Gerald was born in Pennsylvania, and Marrion was born in Massachusetts. The two children were born in Maine.
• Social Security Applications and Claims indicate that Charles Bennett Houghton was born on 40 May 1933 in Portland, Cumberland County, Maine.

This photo is of Charles when he was about 2, in 1935.

Ancestry has 16 public trees that refer to Charles Bennett Houghton. Family Search does not appear to have a profile for Charles Houghton, son of Gerald and Marion Houghton.

I have uploaded one photo of Charles to Dead Fred. 

Charles B and Anna L. Houghton, circa 1937.

This negative envelope says, “Mrs. Marion Houghton, 94 Concord St #971.”

Why I believe this to be these individuals.

• The 1935 Portland City Directory lists Gerald M Haughton and his wife Marian, living at 94 Concord. Gerald is an Engineer at 45 Forest Ave.
• The 1940 US Census lists Gerrald M. Houghton and his wife Marrion L, living in Bangor, Penobscot, Maine. Living with them are son, Charles B, and daughter Anna L. They are ages 6 and 5 respectively. All are reported as having lived in Portland in 1935. Gerald was born in Pennsylvania, and Marrion was born in Massachusetts. The two children were born in Maine.

Charles and Anna (out of focus) Houghton, circa 1937.

Charles (out of focus) and Anna  Houghton, circa 1937.

These are photos of Charles and Anna about 1937 when he was about four, and Anna was about one.

Charles Bennett Houghton was the subject of the photo identification above. Anna L. Houghton does not appear to be in any Ancestry trees. Also, FamilySearch does not appear to have a profile for Anna. However, her father, Gerald Houghton, appears in 19 public Ancestry trees.

This is an unusual case where two photos are needed. In one image, the boy is in focus, and the younger girl is out of focus. In the other, the girl is in focus, and the older boy is out of focus. I also uploaded both photos to my Flickr photostream and present them here. 

Katie L. Huston (Née Giberson), circa 1934

This negative envelope says, “Mrs. A. J. Houston, 68 Neal St #109.”

Houston

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1935 Portland City Directory does not have an A. J. Houston listed. However, Almer J Huston is listed as living at 68 Neal Street. So it appears that Ethel Wight misspelled the surname.
• The 1930 US Census lists Almer J Huston and his 51-year-old wife, Kate L Huston, Living at 68 Neal. Kate was born in Canada and was married when she was 18 years old (Elma was 27).
• Ancestry Family Trees indicate Kate L. Giberson, who married Almer J Huston in 1898. Kate was born on 28 May 1878 in Canada.

This photo is of Kate L Huston (Née Giberson) about 1934 when she was 55 or 56 years old.

Ancestry has 38 public trees that refer to Kate L (Giberson) Huston. Family Search has a profile for Katie L. Giberson ID: MZ25-M6N.

I have uploaded two photos of Katie to her Family Search Memories. 

Conclusion

• I fully identified all five individuals. Three of them have Family Search profiles, so I uploaded their images there.
• I identified one individual that did not have a Family Search profile but did appear in Ancestry trees, so I posted his image to Dead Fred.
• Finally, I identified a fifth individual that did not have a Family Search profile and did not appear in any Ancestry trees. I uploaded her photos here and to my Flickr Photostream.

For all of the Ethel Wight Collection analysis, please see here.

Final Note

If any of these photos are of your family member, I would love to hear your reaction. Especially if this photo is of a loved one for whom you hadn’t seen this photograph before.

Endnotes

[i] The Wight Studio was in Portland, Maine. Many thanks to Ethel Wight’s family for access to and permission to use the collection of their great aunt.

[ii] These images were converted to positives using a lightbox, a Nikon camera and computer software.