THe Green Family

Recently, I was lucky enough to acquire a box of glass negatives from the early 1900s.  This box of over 100 snapshots has been a fascinating treasure to view.  Although, there’s limited information included about the family, I can piece together a few details from the images themselves and the scant information hand written on the crumbling paper envelopes.  The family name is Green.  They were corn farmers in Illinois.  The family had a clear matriarch.  There is no patriarch to speak of in the photos.  Maybe he already passed, maybe he’s the photographer?  (In my mind, I like to think the photographer was a young woman.  Although not impossible, I think it’s unlikely.)  The family is financially comfortable with a nice house and good farm equipment.  The children went to school.  They grew lovely peonies in a lush yard.  They may have had a pet opossum. 

I make photograms, so I used the glass negatives as I would any photogram subject.  I placed them flat on the silver gelatin paper, along with other components, exposed it to light from my enlarger, then carried the paper through traditional B&W photo chemicals.   Subjects were deliberately chosen in an effort to tell a bit of a story, but still leave some things open to imagination. 

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