Mystery Photo #63: Quite a Hat

Paul Lundgren Mar 05, 2018 4 Comments

Who is this lady and what is her deal? Well, we know this is a postcard photo shot at either the Penny Arcade in Duluth or the Post Card Shop in Minneapolis. We know her hat is awesome, but aren’t really sure if there is a significance to the combination of a big hat, giant bow tie and candlestick telephone.

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4 Comments

Mike Creger

about 6 years ago 

The Artura stamp box puts this card 1911-1921. If that helps.

Paul Lundgren

about 6 years ago 



Could this be our gal? Is the woman in the mystery photo Miss Loretta Whitney, who worked at the Penny Arcade?

Thanks to Mike for tracking this down. It's from March 1912, Duluth News Tribune. The full context of the newspaper feature will need to be examined in a separate post. It's a bit of a doozy.

Maybe the items in the mystery photo -- the big hat, the bow tie, the phone -- are just random props that were sitting around the Penny Arcade.

Paul Lundgren

about 6 years ago 



Side by side for proper comparison.

Gina Temple-Rhodes

about 6 years ago 

Just for perspective, hats of that size (or bigger and more ornate) were the frequent fashion of the time.

Related, working as a milliner (hat maker) was one of the only businesses a woman could run in that area. I am currently researching a woman who had a hat shop in Duluth's West End from 1910 to 1930: Mrs. A.C. Davidson.

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