Photo Friday: Ives, Kimball, Potter, & Small.

Linwood Dyer Collection – Part 004
By Don Taylor

I examined the people in five photos from the Linwood Dyer Collection this week for Photo Friday. This collection includes hundreds of photos, documents, and genealogies of people who lived in Scarborough, South Portland, and Cape Elizabeth, Maine. My goal is to reunite the photos with family members who may have never seen the image. The Scarborough Historical Society holds the originals in this collection.

Alexander Carleton Potter, circa 1900.

The identifying information on the back of the photo indicates:

• Alexander Carleton Potter
• Taken by Purdy
• 146 Tremont St. Boston

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The 1900 Boston City Directory lists Alex Carleton Potter boarding at 82 Commonwealth Av.[i]
• He was living with his father, Henry (Harry) Staples Potter, a principal of Potter & Wrightington. Alexander was a physician.[ii]
• The 1900 Census indicates that 24-year-old Alex C Potter was born in Mass in August 1875 and was a physician.[iii]

Alternate Individuals.

My research failed to identify any other Alexander Carleton Potters in the US during the late 1800s when this photo was taken. I am confident this is the correct Alex Potter, so I uploaded it to Dead Fred.

Henry Staples Potter (1870-1920), circa 1893.

The identifying information on the back of the photo indicates:

• H. Staples Potter 2^nd
• At time he graduated from Harvard 1893

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• The Cambridge Tribune, of 28 August 1920, reported Henry S Potter, Jr., passed at age 50. He was born on 5 Nov 1870, attended Harvard, and graduated cum laude. His wife, his sister, Mrs. R. D. Small, the wife of a Portland, Me., physician, and his brother, Dr. Potter of Cambridge survived him.[iv]

I uploaded this photo of Henry to his Family Search Memories.

Hilda Libby Ives (late 1920s)

The identifying information on the back of the photo indicates:

• “Hilda Ives daughter of Hilda Ives.”

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• A search of Ancestry found only one person named Hilda Ives, whose mother is also Hilda.
• Hilda Libby Ives, the daughter of Howard and Hilda (Libby) Ives, was born on May 29, 1909, in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.
• This photo is of the style of the late 1920s, which fits with the young woman in this photo.

I am sure this photo is of Hilda Ives (1909-2001), Family Search profile L2H9-6HV.

John Kimball.

The back of the photo indicates, “John McK Kimball at Exeter.”

My research failed to find a clear identification for this photo.

• There is a John Porter Kimball, who was born on 10 Aug 1896 in Exeter, New Hampshire. He married, lived, and died in Exeter. Looking at his life story, I do not see anything that would tie him to the “McK” mentioned on the back of the photo.
• There was a John Kimball, born 10 April 1891 in Ontario, Canada, to William and Mary J. (McKay) Kimball. Looking at his life story, I do not see anything that would tie him to the “at Exeter” mention on the back of the photo.

I am not convinced this is either of these young men; consequently, I only posted the photo here and my Flickr Photostream. Further examining the Linwood Dyer Collection may connect this photo to a specific John Kimball.

Mary S Small (1922)

The back of the photo indicates, “April 26, 1922 | Mary S. Small.”

What I learned while researching this photo:

• Assuming Small is a maiden name, that the photo was taken in 1922, the woman in the photo was between 12 and 32 years old, and was likely born in New England, my search at Ancestry found no Mary S Smalls.
• Assuming Small is a married name (search last name blank, spouse last name Small), I found no Mary S Small candidates

I failed to determine a viable candidate for this photo. As such, I only posted the image here. Hopefully, further examination of the Linwood Dyer Collection may provide a candidate.

Conclusion

• I identified Three of the five individuals. They have Family Search profiles, so I uploaded their images to their Family Search Memories.

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.

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Endnotes

[i] Book: The Boston City Directory. [1900] – https://archive.org/details/bd-1900.
[ii] Blog Post – Back Bay Houses – 82 Commonwealth – https://backbayhouses.org/82-commonwealth/.
[iii] 1900 US Census – Massachusetts, Suffolk County, Boston Ward 11, District 1317, Sheet 3, Line 48 via Ancestry.com.
[iv] Cambridge Public Library – The Cambridge Tribune, 28 Aug 1920, Page 3, Column 2 (bottom) “Henry Staples Potter, Jr.”