Faces from the Past – Catlin, Hinkley, & Kinney

Linwood Dyer Collection, Part 086
Album #2025.02.42
By Don Taylor

As part of my ongoing work with the Linwood Dyer Collection, I recently encountered an Eastman Negative Album containing 100 envelopes, nearly half of which still held their film negatives. Many of these negatives were larger than standard—measuring approximately 3½ × 4½ inches—and required special handling during digitization.

The photographs in this remarkable album appear to document friends and family of either Margaret Cogswell Kinney or her sister, Louise Kinney. Margaret was born in 1911; Louise in 1914. Both sisters were born in Portland, Maine, and both later died there—Louise in 1993 and Margaret in 1995. As with all of my Photo Identification work, my goal is to reconnect these historical photographs with descendants who may never have seen these images of their ancestors. The Scarborough Historical Society preserves the original negatives within the Linwood Dyer Photo Collection.

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1. Ernest Cogswell Kinney & Eleanor Tinsdale Hinkley
Wedding – June 9, 1909

The first image in the album is labeled “Mother & Father, Wedding, June 9, 1909.” While the generic identification was initially concerning, previous research within the Linwood Dyer Collection quickly confirmed that Ernest Cogswell Kinney and Eleanor Tinsdale Hinkley were married in Portland, Maine, on that exact date. Additionally, earlier identified photographs of Ernest closely match the groom in this image.

Ernest Cogswell Kinney was born in April 1879. His bride, Eleanor Tinsdale Hinkley, was born in Portland on 6 July 1871. Together, they had two daughters, Margaret and Louise. Later envelopes in the album labeled “Louise” strongly suggest that the album originally belonged to Margaret.

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2. Second Wedding View
Envelope 2 – June 9, 1909

A second, somewhat blurred photograph labeled “Mother & Father, Wedding, June 9, 1909” appears in the following envelope. This image shows Ernest in profile, gazing toward Eleanor. Due to its poor clarity, that image is not reproduced here.

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3. Eleanor Tinsdale Hinkley
California – 1909

This photograph is identified as “Mother, California, 1909.” It shows a young woman standing alone against a foggy background. The image has been carefully cropped and included both here and within my Linwood Dyer Collection on Ancestry.

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4. Louise Victoria (Catlin) Kinney
1907

Identified as “Mrs. Kinney – 1907,” this outdoor portrait of an older woman clearly depicts Ernest Cogswell Kinney’s mother, Louise Victoria Catlin Kinney. She would have been approximately 66 years old at the time the photograph was taken—about two years before she died in 1909. Her husband, Ernest Lord Kinney, died in 1890, making the “Mrs. Kinney” designation entirely appropriate.

According to Find A Grave, Louise had at least three siblings: Clara, George, and Elizabeth.

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5. Miss Elizabeth Catlin
Circa 1908

This undated image shows a middle-aged woman and appears to date to the same period as the other photographs in the album. Louise Victoria Catlin is known to have had a sister named Elizabeth, making it highly likely that this photograph represents Miss Elizabeth Catlin around 1908.

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6. Ernest Cogswell Kinney
Before 1908

This portrait is labeled “Ernest C. Kinney, before 1908.” Ernest was born in April 1879 and died on 13 February 1947. Records indicate he moved to Portland around 1909, suggesting this photograph was likely taken while he was still residing in New York.

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Conclusion

Together, these five photographs provide a valuable visual record of the immediate ancestry of Margaret Cogswell Kinney:

• Father: Ernest Cogswell Kinney (1879–1947)
• Mother: Eleanor Tinsdale Hinkley (1871–1943)
• Paternal Grandmother: Louise Victoria Catlin (1841–1909)
• Great-Aunt: Elizabeth Wing Catlin (d. 1923)

All five images have been uploaded to my “Linwood Dyer Collection via Scarborough Historical Society” family tree on Ancestry.

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Connection Invitation

I would be delighted to hear from anyone who recognizes these individuals as their ancestors—especially if these represent previously unseen images of your family members. You are welcome to incorporate these photographs into your own research, with proper credit given:
Photo Courtesy: Scarborough Historical Society.