Photo Friday – Alley, Anderson, Bagley, & Blackwell.

Ethel Wight Collection – Part 148
By Don Taylor

This week, for Photo Friday, I identified 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. 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.

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Ruth Alley, circa 1935.

The envelope this negative was in says, “Mrs. Leslie Alley – So. Windham #981.”

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1940 US Census lists 44-year-old Leslie E. Alley living in Windham with his wife, Viola K., and his daughter, 18-year-old Ruth.
• The 1930 US Census also lists the same family living in Windham.

This photo was taken in 1935 when Viola was 36, and Ruth was 14. The person appears closer to 14 than 36, so I feel it is most likely Ruth Ellen Alley, daughter of Leslie Earl and Viola Caroline (Wood) Alley.

Ancestry has 11 public trees that refer to Ruth Ellen Alley (1922-2009). Family Search has profile GW1P-TYB for Ruth Ellen Alley. I uploaded a photo of Ruth to her Family Search Memories.

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Viola Anderson (née Gresley) circa 1934.

This negative envelope says, “Viola Anderson, Edgewater Rd, Falmouth Foreside ℅ C. N. Cutter #376.”

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1935 Portland City Directory lists Charles N and Esther Cutter living in Falmouth. Charles is an assistant superintendent at UMLICo (Union Mutual Life Insurance Co.) at 396 Congress.  
• The 1934 Portland City Directory lists Viola E. Anderson residing at Archibald W. Gresley, Cliff Island.
• The Maine Memory Network (Maine Historical Society) has a photo of the Pettengill property, Church Street, Cliff Island. The property was sold to Archie W. Gresley in 1928.
• The 1930 US Census lists Archie W. Gresley living in Portland with his wife Emma, daughter Viola Anderson, and grandson Eldred V Anderson. Viola is 35 years old and divorced.

I am sure this photo of Viola Anderson (née Gresley) was taken in 1934.

Ancestry has six public trees that refer to Viola Gresley (1895-___). Family Search does not appear to have a profile for Viola, so I uploaded this photo of Viola to Dead Fred.

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Possibly Thomas Bagley & family, circa 1934.

This negative envelope says, “Mrs. Thomas Bagley, So. Windham, ME, #28.”

What I discovered about Thomas Bagley.

• The 1934 Windham Directory has no people with the surname Bagley or Bogley. Actually, there are no people listed with the first name of Thomas in the “B” section of the directory.
• The 1938 Windham Directory has the same negative result.

Alternate Individuals.

Daniel Thomas Bagley lived in South Portland in 1918. He was born on 15 Nov 1898. His wife was Vera Blanche (Woodward) Bagley. The 1940 US Census lists Daniel T. and Vera B. Bagley living in York County with their 12-year-old son, Ernest. These 1934 photos cannot include Ernest. The 1930 US Census lists the same family living in Portland, Maine.

Thomas Edwin Bagley lived in Charleston, Penobscot County, Maine, in 1918. He was born on 26 September 1897. His nearest relative in 1918 was Madeline E. Bagley. He married Madeline R. Stubbs on 14 April 1917. The 1940 lists the family living in Pittsfield,  Somerset County, Maine. They have two sons, ages 17 and 15. Both are too old to be the baby in this photo.

I have not identified the individuals in this photo sufficiently to upload to either Family Search or Dead Fred, so I only include the individual’s photo here.

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Earl and Carolyn (née Crawford) Blackwell with four children in 1934.

This negative envelope says, “Mrs. Earle Blackwell, Yarmouth, #200.”

Why I believe this to be these individuals.

The 1940 US Census lists Earl and Caroline living in Yarmouth with their five children: Kenneth (age 17), Warren (15), George (12), Caroline (7), and Nancy (age four months). The family lived in the same house in 1935.  

I am pretty sure this photo, taken in 1934, shows the Earl and Caroline with four of their children.

• Earl Phillip Blackwell (1899-1964)
• Carolyn Louise (Crawford) Blackwell (1899-1987)
• Kenneth Earl Blackwell (1922-1968)
• Warren L Blackwell (1925-2009)
• George Richard Blackwell (1928-1962)
• Carolyn Grace Blackwell (1932-1978)

Ancestry has 25 public trees that refer to Earl Phillip Blackwell. Family Search has profile L6RV-4BD for Earl Phillips Blackwell. I uploaded a photo of Earl and his family to his Family Search Memories and linked the image to his wife & oldest son.

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Chick’s Apple Orchard, Fall 1951.

This negative envelope says, “Chick Orchard, Monmouth, Me. Sept 30 – 1951.”

This is the first time I’ve reviewed a photo from this collection with no people in it.

What I learned about Chick Orchard.

• A quick Google search revealed there is a Chick’s Apple and Berry Farm in Monmouth, Maine. Their email is pumpkinpaul1@aol.com.

I am sure this is a photo of their orchard from September 1951. Besides this picture, I have uploaded a second photo to my Flickr Photostream.

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Conclusion

• I identified eight of nine individuals. Seven 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 her photo to Dead Fred.
• I could not identify one individual, so I only uploaded the photo here.
• Finally, I included a photo from an apple orchard here and on my Flickr photostream.

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

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[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.