Photograph album of a family’s travels to Colorado, the Midwest, Florida and Cuba
1908-1940. Photograph album of a family’s travels to Colorado, the Midwest, Florida and Cuba, 1908-1940
7 ¼” x 10 ½” album; leather over flexible card covers. 40 black construction paper leaves with 147 b&w photographs adhesive mounted both sides and the last ten leaves are blank. Most photos around 4” x 3”, several a bit larger. A little over half are captioned (mostly dates and locations, though there are about 15 names), predominantly on the photos themselves with a few on the page. Condition about Very Good overall with some light scattered spotting to album, pages and photos; 13 photographs loose from adhesive, some with a bit of edge wear.
This album reveals a family with a young child, identified as Frank Stinson, traveling and spending time in nature. The first 29 photographs were taken in Colorado in 1908, before young Frank came into the picture. They reveal a young couple climbing Pikes Peak and relaxing outside in Estes Park, with lovely shots of mountain scenery and a rustic inn. There are 37 photos of the family with the toddler in Florida; they visited the “Old Fort” and “City Gates” as well as the Ponce de Leon Hotel in St. Augustine, and spent some time on the beach in Miami. A few show an outing on a friend’s yacht, others reveal grand hotels and palm trees, and a few show beach houses in the Florida Keys. From Florida the family ventured to Havana, Cuba; there are images of Morro Castle, a Spanish cathedral and the Court of the President’s Palace, as well as private residences and a shot of Cuban children at a street market. About 45 photographs were taken throughout the Midwest, from 1920 to 1940; we meet family members in Minnesota and a dog named Friday. There’s an image of the “Stinson Farm House,” several of lake swimmers in Iowa and South Dakota, and the Capitol building and a boat launch in St. Paul.
The album is a blend of family photos and majestic nature; many shots are also a bit overexposed, lending a ghostly aura. There are two photos of a ranch house in Colorado, followed immediately by two of alligators sunning themselves in Florida. Other images show cars and buggies, varieties of trees, and epic rock formations.
Interestingly, a Frank Stinson from Minneapolis, who was born in 1910 and could very well be the tot pictured in this album, was a national horseshoe pitching star. He won his first world tournament at the age of 14, eight Minnesota state tournaments between 1939 and 1971, and was world champ again in 1976. He was inducted into the national horseshoe pitching hall of fame in 1973. Item #435
Price: $120.00