***Need Help Identifying Unknown Photographer 19001920 Glass Plate Negatives (Newport, Maine)

[cmsvfx]

Hey all,


I recently acquired a collection of over 190 glass plate negatives, 5x7 and 8x10 inches in size. The photographs appear to have been taken between 1900 and 1920 and are centered around Newport, Maine, and nearby towns like Smithfield, Skowhegan, and Norridgewock.


The subjects include:

• Rural and farm life
• Portraits (some clearly staged in studios or homes)
• Women’s basketball teams, kids with toys, and casual group photos
• Oxen, tractors, fields, local buildings, campgrounds and more

The kicker: The entire collection belonged to photographer Lida Moser (known for her work from the late 1940s onward). These predate her career by decades, so I believe she acquired them during her early days—maybe for study, archiving, or a planned exhibit. A typed summary included in the box suggests that someone (possibly her) intended to print or present them.


I’m trying to identify the original photographer, and someone once suggested they might be the work of Chansonetta Stanley Emmons, given the timeframe, subject matter, and regional focus. It’s a compelling theory, but nothing confirmed yet.


Would love help from the community here to:

• ID possible photographers working in that area at the time
• Offer thoughts on the style
• Or just enjoy the history in these gems with me
• Discuss more about these works

I’ve attached a few representative images below. Happy to share more if anyone’s interested!


Thanks, look forward to hearing your thoughts!
—Chris

 

[bdial]

You could try contacting Photographic Historical Society of New England. Their website is http://phsne.org/

 

[Harry Callahan]

Hm... are there fingerprints on the picture "family standing on waterfront deck" ?

 

[mshchem]

So is the Wagon with the man sitting on the steps a professional photographer?

Looks like he has sample pictures on display, and maybe a couple print frames exposing POP paper on his shelf???

The window looks like maybe ruby glass for safelight???

 

[mshchem]

Again looking at the man on the steps of the wagon, with a dog not a cat,

Could be the photo prints that I suspect were on display could be in a screened vestibule drying after printing. On the shelf, If those are print frames, in use, could it be that they are accessible by opening the window, inward when working in the wagon????

What would be obvious to a photo person 130 years ago hard to tell today.