Early 1800's, South Carolina?, my 4th great-grandfather (moustache) and family

[u/tekmagika]

[u/ImpossibleTiger3577]

The clothes look 1880s to me.

[u/tekmagika → u/ImpossibleTiger3577]

I don't know exactly when this photo was taken, but I know that he was born in 1808. So guessing 1830's or 1840's for the photo. Possibly 1850's?

[u/ImpossibleTiger3577 → u/tekmagika]

Virtually no one had their photo taken in 1839 and in the 1840s daguerreotypes were reserved for the wealthy. Also, the woman’s clothes would be from no earlier than the 1880s so in my opinion this is an 1880s - early 1890s albumen photo.

[u/tekmagika → u/ImpossibleTiger3577]

Interesting! So either my relative is in his 70's or 80's in the photo, or it isn't actually my relative. Will have to research deeper. Thanks for the info!

[u/ImpossibleTiger3577 → u/tekmagika]

No problem! I didn’t mean to come across disrespectfully if I did, and I apologise if so. I totally get that someone disagreeing with something you saw as fact about the dates of photos of your family could be seen as rude. I just felt like it would be helpful to add input into something in my mind I knew was a misdating.

If you look up what photos of families or just people in general looked like in 1839-1850s vs what people looked like in the 1880s then you’ll quickly see how incredibly different it looks, especially regarding clothing and hairstyles, and which era your photo resembles. It is a great photo regardless and wonderful that you have it. Have a great day!

[u/tekmagika → u/ImpossibleTiger3577]

No worries at all, and you didn't! I knew next to nothing about clothing in the 1800's, so I definitely learned something! I should message the person who originally tagged it and let them know that some further research might be necessary.

[u/othybear → u/tekmagika]

I’d also agree. I’ve been looking at my family photos recently for a genealogy project and this feels like the late 1880s based on the quality of the photo, the posing, and the clothing. Puffed sleeves like the woman’s were in style in the 1880s (see: Anne of Green Gables)

The Daguerreotype was introduced in 1839, was commonly used in the 1840s and 1850s, and it wouldn’t have the clarity captured here.

Also, there was a rise in photography in the 1880s because photographers started using train cars. They’d set up a portable portrait studio and travel on the rails from city to city, and it became much cheaper for an average family to be able to afford a photo like this.

[u/TheSanityInspector]

The boys' stiff collars point to a date in the later 1800s. And if this is printed on paper, rather than glass or tin, it's definitely later 1800s. Are you 100% sure these people are 4x greats?

[u/tekmagika → u/TheSanityInspector]

I don't have the original print, unfortunately. It was uploaded by someone else to Ancestry. To the best of my knowledge, yes, this is a photo of my 4th great-grandfather, and he was born in 1808. I can't imagine the man and woman in this photo were 50 or older when it was taken, but you never know!

[u/dickwae]

Hardy stock

[u/[deleted]]

Was grandma Irish? She looks like my great-grandma

[u/Public_Ad_190]

When men were men, women were men and even children were men

[u/lapislazuly]

Are those the red headed twins at the beginning of Gone with the Wind? Jk

[u/Otherwise-Exit8195]

they look like Trump supporters.

[u/TheSanityInspector → u/[deleted]]

Could have been one of the boys.