Bearce, (née Bradford), Dennison, (née Hatch), & Lang

Ethel Wight Collection – Part 147
Photo Friday
By Don Taylor

This week, for Photo Friday, I tried to identify the people in five more envelopes from the Ethel Wight Studio Collection[i]. The envelopes typically contain the name of the person who paid for the photos, not necessarily of the individual portrayed in the image. 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.

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David Ricker Lang, c. 1934.

The envelope this negative was in says, “Mr. David Lang, Union Ave, Lakeport, N.H. #429.”

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• Lakeport is a neighborhood in Laconia in Belknap County, New Hampshire.[iii]
• The 1930 US Census lists David R. Lang living at 891 Union Ave, Laconia. He is 55 years old (born c. 1875) and was born in New Hampshire.[iv]

I am sure this is a photo of David R. Lang, born in New Hampshire about 1875. He married Ella W. Packard and lived in Laconia (Lakeport), New Hampshire, in 1934.

Alternate Individuals.

Ancestry Public Trees suggest there are two individuals named David Ricker Lang.

1.    David Ricker Lang, born 9 Feb 1877 in Monroe, Grafton County, New Hampshire, who married Ella W Packard in 1922 and died on 28 June 1972 in Grafton, New Hampshire.

2.    David Ricker Lang, born 6 April 1875 in Orford, Grafton County, New Hampshire, who married Ella W Packard in 1901 and died on 5 October 1947.

Many Ancestry researchers place the same David R. Lang living in Laconia during the 1930 Census. Family Search researchers attached the 1930 Census record to the 55-year-old David, so I believe this is likely the correct David Lang. Unraveling the two David Langs is beyond the scope of this photo identification, so I leave determining which David (1875-1947) or (1877-1972) this is a photo of to researchers of this family.  

Ancestry has eight public trees that refer to David Ricker Lang (1875-1947) and 47 public trees that refer to David Ricker Lang (1877-1972). Because I can’t determine which David Lang this is a photo of, I have uploaded this image to Dead Fred and a second photo of him to my Flickr Photostream.

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Ralph King Bearce, circa 1934.

This negative envelope says, “Mr. Ralph Bearce, Wolfboro, N.H. #442.”

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1930 US Census lists Ralph Bearce, a 54-year-old, Maine-born academy principal, who lives in Wolfeboro, Carroll County, New Hampshire. His household consists of him, his wife, Ellen B., and an aunt, Helen H. Frost.
• Ancestry family trees suggest this is Ralph King Bearce, born in Turner, Maine, on 29 April 1875.

I am sure this 1934 photo is of Ralph King Bearce of Wolfeboro, New Hampshire.

Ancestry has 19 public trees that refer to Ralph King Bearce (1875-1935). Family Search has profile LZJL-GQ7 for Ralph. I have uploaded a photo of Ralph to his Family Search Memories.

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Ellen Bearce (née Bradford), circa 1934.

This negative envelope says, “Mrs. Bearce, Wolfeboro, N.H. #441.”

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• This photo was taken on the same day as the photo of Ralph Bearce.
• The 1930 US Census lists Ralph and Ellen Bearce living in Wolfeboro, Carroll County, New Hampshire.
• Ancestry Family Trees suggest this is Ellen Mary (Bradford) Bearce (1876-1972).

I am sure this 1934 photo is of Ellen Mary (Bradford) Bearce of Wolfeboro, New Hampshire.

Ancestry has 30 public trees that refer to Ellen Mary Bearce (née Bradford). Family Search has profile LKTN-9XD for Ellen Mary Bradford. I have uploaded a photo of Ellen to her Family Search Memories.

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Annie Dennison (née Hatch), circa 1934.

This negative envelope says, “Mrs. Annie Dennison, 23 Bradford Road, Watertown, Mass #88 – DSCN5131.”

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1935 Watertown, Massachusetts City Directory lists Annie Dennison, the wife of Hubert A. Dennison, living at 23 Bradford Road, Watertown, MA.
• The 1940 US Census lists the 75-year-old Anne Dennison still living at 23 Bradford. Anne was born in Nova Scotia.

I am sure this photo is of Annie M. Dennison (née Hatch), born in February 1864 in Nova Scotia and who married Hubart Dennison about 1893. Annie died on 31 October 1959 in Waltham, MA.

Ancestry has 14 public trees that refer to Annie M. Hatch. Family Search has profile LHBR-NWR for Annie. I uploaded this photo of Annie to her Family Search Memories.

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Unnamed girl from Center Conway, New Hampshire, 1935.

This negative envelope says, “Mrs. S. E. Hall, Center Conway, N. H. Box 23 #569.”

What I learned while researching information regarding this photo:

• It isn’t clear to me if the surname is Hall or Hill. Although the first initial appears to me to be an “S,” I have seen where Ethel’s “L” can look like an “S.”
• Center Conway is a community within the town of Conway, Carroll County, New Hampshire.[v]
• An Ancestry search of the 1930 and 1940 censuses for anyone with the surname Hall living in Conway yielded eight results
  • Lizzie E. Hall, 70-year-old aunt of Harold Shedd. Harold had a 3-year-old daughter, Henrietta G. Shedd, in the 1930 Census. Lizzie was the widow of Herman L. Hill.
  • Henry A. (59) and Bessie C. (52) Hall, living with no apparent children in the 1940 household.
  • Mabel “Mabie” Hall is a 50-year-old servant in the 1940 Gertrude Lougee household.
  • Glen and Ethel M Hall, ages 41 and 46, with no apparent children in the 1940 household.
  • Albert H. and Emma F. Hall, ages 73 and 71, with no apparent children in the 1940 household.
• An Ancestry search of the 1930 Census for anyone with the surname Hill living in Conway yielded 22 results
  • A. Evelyn Hill, age 48, single with no children in the household.*
  • Almon H and Elizabeth M Hill are 83 and 75. There are no apparent children in the 1930 household.
  • Charles H. Hill, a 20-year-old hired man in the Bradley Woodward household.
  • Howard E. Hill, with wife Anna and 18-year-old daughter Elizabeth A. They also have a 13-year-old son, Horace.
  • Leroy W. Hill, his wife Alice M. Hill, his mother, Mary C. Hill, and step-granddaughter Caroline Thompson. Caroline is 11 years old.
  • Leslie C and Nettie M Hill, There are no apparent children in the 1930 household.*
  • Nathaniel H. and Blanche Hill, who have a 14-year-old son, George.*
  • Peter Hill, a 69-year-old Canadian wood chopper.
  • Rufas Hill and Edith Hill, with a son, Norman, and a 2-year-old daughter, Ruth L. Hill.
  • Sarah L. Hill, 86-year-old aunt of Fred T. Hale. There are no apparent children in the 1930 household.
• An Ancestry search of the 1940 Census for anyone with the surname Hill living in Conway yielded 34 results.
  • Arnold and Helen Hill with two sons, Albert and James.
  • Bertha Hill, a 56-year-old servant in the household of Leo Danino.
  • Burley and Madeline Hill have two daughters, Bernice (age 18) and Bertha (age 16).
  • Carroll and Dorothy Hill with two young daughters (Miriam & Nancy) and a young son (Arthur).
  • Charles W. Hill, a 32-year-old servant in the hotel of Gertrude Lougee.
  • Francis and Lois Hill with their son, Ronald.
  • Harold G. and Dorothy F. Hill, with their 1-year-old daughter, Carol Ann
  • Henry and Edna Hill have no children in their household.
  • Hilda Hill, 65-year-old mother-in-law of Ossian Sten.
  • Shirley (age 7) and Helen (age 4) were boarders with Walter & Myrtle Davis.
  • Other names marked with an asterisk (*) are repeats of households reported in the 1930 Census.

From the 1930 and 1940 Censuses, there are no likely candidates to be “S. E. Hall” (or Hill).

• The Annual Report of the Town of Conway ending January 31^st, 1936, listed the following Hill and Hall surnamed individuals.
• Aldis S. Hill
• Carroll Hill
• Leslie C. Hill
• Madeline Hill
• Nathaniel. Hill
• Stephen Wesley Hill
• Wentworth Hill

Again, none of these candidates appear to fit the criteria to be Mrs. S.E. Hill.

I have not identified the individual in this photos sufficiently to upload to either Family Search or Dead Fred, so I only include the individual’s image here. Hopefully, the folks at the Conway Historical Society can shed some light on the identity of this girl. Maybe they have old directories or documents identifying who had Box 23 in 1935.

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Conclusion

• I identified four of the five individuals in this week’s photosets. Three have Family Search profiles, so I uploaded their images to their Family Search Memories. One did not have a Family Search profile, so I uploaded his photo to Dead Fred.
• I was unable to identify one individual. She is likely from Center Conway, New Hampshire, and was probably born in the mid-1920s. Her photo is only uploaded here.

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

Due to software limitations, the images uploaded to Family Search, Dead Fred, and Flickr have higher quality than those linked here.

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

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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.

[iii] Wikipedia – Lakeport, New Hampshire – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lakeport,_New_Hampshire

[iv] 1930; Census Place: Laconia, Belknap, New Hampshire; Page: 7B; Enumeration District: 0014; FHL microfilm: 2341033

[v] Wikipedia – Center Conway, New Hampshire – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Center_Conway,_New_Hampshire