Vigo County Historical Society
Historical Treasure Article
March 7, 1988
By Deborah Curtis Drummy
Vigo County Historical Society
Photos windows on past
The week’s treasure form the museum is a photograph of two healthy-looking young ladies, obviously twins, who probably posed for this portrait in the 1890s. The background is unusually plain, the emphasis more on props: the girls hold twin dolls sporting look-alike hairdos; the pet dog at their feet wears a draped bow around his neck.
The identity of the girls is not known. However, the photographer was Henry T. Biel of Terre Haute.
Biel, who was born in Sheboygan, Wisc., and learned the profession under G.H. Wright, went into business for himself, buying the studio of John Adams at 419 Wabash Ave., in 1886. Biel operated his studio at that location for about 26 years.
Photographs of children often were reproduced to allow distribution to relatives, which explains why so many early examples have survived.
As museum pieces, early portraits of children can be quite educational, revealing much about the history of clothing, hairstyles, toys, furniture, humor, and even some problems. For example, 19th and early 20th century portraits show children wearing very formal dress, often adult in style.
Little boys frequently sported military uniforms and walking sticks. Little girls looked like miniature women with showy necklaces, earrings, muffs and hats. Sometimes the outfits took whimsical turns and became costumes, with children taking on the appearances of Scottish Highlanders, American cowboys, and Arctic Eskimos, to name just a few.
In looking through a collection of late 19th century photographs of children, a higher incidence of certain medical problems is evident, such as crossed eyes and clearly visible signs of malnutrition.
The Wabash Valley Historical Museum, 1411 S. Sixth St., is open from 1 to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.