Photo Friday – Bakeman, Morse (née Milliken), & Potter

Linwood Dyer Collection – Part 005
By Don Taylor

For Photo Friday, I tried to identify the people in four photos from the Linwood Dyer Collection. This collection includes hundreds of photos, documents, and genealogies of people who lived in Scarborough, South Portland, and Cape Elizabeth, Maine. I desire to analyze the images and reunite the photos with family members who may have never seen the picture. The Scarborough Historical Society holds the originals in this collection

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Daniel Frederick Bakeman (1759-1869)

The information on the photo says:

DANIEL FREDERICK BAKEMAN,
The Last Revolutionary Soldier, One Hundred and Nine old
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the Year 1868 by A. D. Cross in
The Clerks Office of the District Court of Massachusetts.

• Wikipedia has an article about Daniel F. Bakeman (1759-1869) and his being the last survivor receiving a veteran’s pension for service in the Revolutionary War. The article includes this same Wikimedia photo.

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Calista (Milliken) Morse with her children, Dorothy & Donald – 1897.

The photo identifying information indicates the studio was Philbrick, Biddeford, ME. The back indicates:

Taken April 6, 1897
Aunt Kitty Morse
Dorothy Morse
Donald Morse

Why I believe this to be the individual.

• A search of Ancestry Dorothy Morse (age ≈ 5), with a brother of Donald Morse (age ≈ 2) living in Maine, found Dorothy Martha Morse (1893-1974), who was born in Saco, Maine. Her brother, Donald Curtis Morse, was born on April 6, 1896. So, this photo was taken on Donald’s 1^st birthday. Dorothy, born 16 Nov 1893, would be about 3½. The children’s mother, Calista Eunice (Milliken), was the wife of Frank Edward Morse. Calista was born in Scarborough, Maine, on 3 January 1873, so she would be 24 years old in this photo.

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Henry Potter (1799-1876).

Sometimes, the back of a photo gives you everything you might hope to find. Such is this photo of Henry Potter. The back of this photo says:

Henry Potter
May 12, 1799 Concord, Mass.
March 30, 1876 Cambridge, Mass.
Aug 15, 1843
Abigail Livermore Giles
Feb 10, 1810, Beverly, Mass
Jan 25, 1896 Cambridge Mass
——— . ———-
Pres. Cambridge R.R. Co.
  “      “ Gas Light Co.
  “      “ Water Works
  “      “ Mayket[???] Bank
  “      Harvard Mfg. Co.
  “      Potter & Dennuar Co., Boston
——— . ———-
Son of Caff Jacob & Lucy (Brooks) Potter of Concord & Cambridge, Mass.
Father of H Staples Potter who m[arried] Grace Robbins …..

What a treasure trove of information. I don’t know who wrote the information on the back, but it is a tremendous help. I reviewed a photo of Henry Staples Potter previously. This photo is of his grandfather.  

The information on the back of this photo coincides with Ancestry Trees showing Henry Potter (1797-1896).

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[FNU] Bertha [Will/Webb/?]

The photo identifying information includes the photographer on the front, M.F. King, and a name on the back: Palop Berta Will (?)

I learned that M.F. King was a photographer in Portland, Maine. That suggests that the woman in the photo might be from Portland.

The name on the back is tough to read. I have not been successful in determining this young person’s name. I can’t tell what the surname is, “Will,” “Webb,” or something else altogether. Likewise, I really can’t determine her first name. I’d love to hear from you if you can read this handwriting. If I hold it with the light just right, this is the best I can see:

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Conclusion

• I identified five of the six individuals in these photos. 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.