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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024 Issue 1 - Clothes Make The Man.pdfThis special newsletter is a gift to our biggest supporters: Benefactor, Patron, Business, and Life members. Your support makes what we do possible. We hope you enjoy this story from Renton's past. About This Issue... Thanks to social media, we are all now familiar with the idea that photographs are often carefully crafted moments in time that communicate a stage-managed image of what we hope others will believe about us. Even though our Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and TikTok images live forever on the internet, there are so many of them that they are mostly gone and forgotten in an instant. But photographs taken in the 19th and 20th centuries were meant to last forever; especially in the West, they might be the only way that distant family could remember you. The Renton History Museum holds thousands of portraits in our collection: individual portraits and family portraits taken by professional photographers in studios; casual shots taken by friends; and group portraits of school classes, church communities, fraternal organizations, and celebrations. The images that follow are some of the most interesting in our collection. With a little historical imagination, they provide us with invaluable insights about what our ancestors thought was important to share about themselves. Continued on page 2 RENTON HISTORICALSOCIETY & MUSEUM Special Issue January 2024 Volume 55 Number 1QUARTERLY CLOTHES MAKE THE MANCLOTHES MAKE THE MAN Portraits from the Museum’s CollectionPortraits from the Museum’s Collection By Elizabeth P. StewartBy Elizabeth P. Stewart 2 | RENTON HISTORY MUSEUM Photographer Theodore Peiser in his studio, ca. 1894 – 1895. (#2004.035.9385) Tools of the Trade Photographers’ subjects often chose to pose with clothing and props that demonstrated their role in the world of work. Theodore E. Peiser, Seattle photographer, is a prime example. He posed with two huge box cameras in front of one of his backdrops, with albums and frames at his feet. This self- portrait was undoubtedly used to promote his business, and numerous Rentonites used his services.1 Edward “Toots” Bunstine, aspiring professional baseball player, had his photo taken in the Renton team uniform, probably also for Perhaps photographer Charles W. Sanders surprised these carpenters on the job, but they were obviously proud of their profession. (#2014.026.052) self-promotion. He bounced around from baseball teams in Renton, Seattle, and Snohomish from 1906 to 1917 before settling into a career as a landscaper. This photo of carpenters with the tools of their trade—hammer, saws, and square—was also typical in the later 19th and early 20th centuries. Taken by Kennydale photographer Charles W. Sanders, this portrait of unnamed men in their coveralls and carpenters’ aprons connotes the pride that western settlers took in their work. (#1997.073.4584) Edward “Toots” Bunstine played catcher for the Renton baseball team, as well as Seattle and Snohomish at various times, from 1906 to 1914. PATRON NEWSLETTER, 2024 | 3 Dressing Against Stereotypes In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, for immigrants and Native Americans in the photo studio, adopting American- style clothing could be a statement of assimilation or success or both, and the decision to have one’s portrait made in the mainstream fashions of the day was probably deeply considered. Hannah Hall was the daughter of a Skagit mother and a “White man,” and married to a white man.2 She arrived at Charles Sanders’ portrait studio in a Victorian feathered hat and an expensive brocade dress with a huge starched lace collar; in her portrait she holds her purse prominently front-and- center. Similarly, Sanders’ portrait of Lydia Garrison captures her uncompromising gaze. According to records, she was the daughter of a Black man and a so-called “Indian half-breed,” and Lydia’s family featured prominently in Duwamish petitions for federal tribal recognition. Her mother, known as “Jane Puttepash,” the niece of Chief Sealth, was a distinguished guest at the dedication of the Bremerton- Manette Bridge in 1930, when she was reportedly 105 years old.3 Hannah Hall (R) was one of several Native Americans photographed by Charles Sanders. (#2014.026.238) Lydia Garrison’s (L) Duwamish family was well- known in the Seattle area, as relatives of Chief Sealth. (#2014.026.183) 4 | RENTON HISTORY MUSEUM But not everyone that Sanders photographed felt compelled to adopt western dress. A series of portraits of “Geo Lim” and a toddler—his child or a sibling—depict them in recognizable Chinese clothing typical of the late Qing Dynasty, with props either supplied by Sanders or by the sitter. Lim and the child rest their arms on a table set with two bowls of rice and flowering bulbs, and Lim himself holds some sort of book tightly curled in his left hand. Charles Sanders’ diverse set of subjects is a bit of a mystery, one that may never be solved since he left no papers, only scant notes with boxes of glass plate negatives. Although he lived and worked in Kennydale early on, many of these portraits were taken in Port Townsend sometime between 1902 and 1913, and they include sitters from all walks of life: soldiers and seamen, young and old, and people of Native American, Chinese, and African American descent. Did he search out these subjects, or were they all paying customers? We have no way of knowing, but the collection testifies to the very diverse population in Washington state at the turn of the century.4 Geo Lim, probably Sanders’ creative spelling of his correct name, and a child posed for several studio portraits in our collection. (#2014.026.243) PATRON NEWSLETTER, 2024 | 5 Trying On a New Identity Sometimes the subjects in these portraits set out to push the envelope of their ordinary identities. Many of the young men at the turn of the century aimed for a “devil may care” look of insouciance and worldliness. The four unidentified soldiers pictured here sat for their portrait with jackets unbuttoned and askew. A bottle of ale sits on the table and their glasses are raised, in a relaxed gesture of bonhomie not permitted in their days on watch or drilling. In the portrait of M. Stratton and their companion, the two brought several changes of clothing—with hats and coats and without, and with different color shirtwaists—perhaps to see what was most becoming in the final product.5 Portraits of groups of young men toasting the camera were relatively popular in this period. (#2014.026.402) M. Stratton (L) sat for at least four different poses, with costume changes, with companion and without. (#2014.026.214) 6 | RENTON HISTORY MUSEUM In these studio photos of three recently resettled Italian friends—Antonio Pagnutti, Arturo Gregoris, and Ciro “Charles” Zilli—all had a chance to test out what they looked like in the Pacific Northwest forest, even if it was a painted backdrop. The three friends grew up together in Martignacco, Italy; after Zilli settled in Renton, he sponsored Pagnutti and Gregoris, who came over together on the Nord America in 1907. Only Pagnutti ended up making his living as a “forest laborer”; Gregoris worked in the coal mines and Zilli left the mines to operate a service station in Renton. But briefly in 1910 they sealed their friendship with a photo of themselves as well-dressed forest men.6 Rentonite Charles Zilli (R) loved having his portrait taken; the Museum’s collection holds five professional photographs of Zilli, relatively unusual in this period for a non-celebrity. (#1966.053.0298) Italian Antonio Pagnutti (L) was sponsored for immigration by his compatriot, Charles Zilli, who had settled in Renton three years earlier. (#1966.053.0273) PATRON NEWSLETTER, 2024 | 7 Young Merle June Harries was two generations removed from Wales when she put on traditional Welsh clothing to celebrate St. David’s Day with her family in the mid-1920s. Her paternal grandfather, Thomas Harries, had left Glamorganshire in 1888 to come to the U.S., but Merle smiles at the photographer wearing a paisley shawl, plaid apron, and tall Welsh hat. St. David’s Day was a tradition at the Renton Methodist Church, where her grandfather served as Master of Ceremonies.7 Prized Possessions Rentonites brought all sort of props to their photo shoots, to help describe their lives and interests: kids carried their favorite toys, families brought their dogs, some folks even had fishing rods or pistols. Since we are out of room, we’ll just share our favorite here: fifteen-year-old Janet Faull wheeled her bicycle into the studio, the source of female independence in 1899. We admire her pluck, and appreciate all the portrait subjects whose choices help us understand a bit more about Renton’s rich past. Merle Harries’ Welsh family was very involved in preserving their heritage. (#1977.003.1106) Widespread availability of affordable bicycles gave women new freedom from dependance on male drivers. (#1998.036.4746) ENDNOTES 1 These included Jacob T. Snyder, who posed for Peiser in his naval uniform in 1895. (#2013.015.011) 2 Enrollment and Allotment Applications of Washington Indians, 26 February 1917; Schedule of Unenrolled Indians, 1919. 3 Enrollment and Allotment Applications of Washington Indians, 1919; “Chief Seattle’s Niece, 106, Dies,” Seattle Times, 18 January 1931, p.1. 4 To learn more about Charles W. Sanders, see Sarah Samson, “Collection Report,” Renton History Museum Quarterly (June 2019), p.8. 5 In another diptych portrait, #2014.026.177, M. Stratton wears a dark shirtwaist, not pictured here, and several pieces of jewelry. 6 New York, Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists, Nord America, 1907; U.S. Passport Application for Antonio Pagnutti, 1920; U.S. Federal Census for Renton, 1930. 1940. Charles Zilli loved a humorous portrait; our collection includes images of him raising a glass with friends in the woods (#1966.053.0299) and seated behind the wheel of a cardboard car in a studio with three friends (#41.0297). 7 “Tom Harries Dies Suddenly,” Renton Chronicle, 26 July 1945, p.1. RENTON HISTORY MUSEUM 235 Mill Ave. S Renton, WA 98057 We’re wondering what kind of conversations went on to get this mule into the photo studio in 1895. (#2013.015.012)