Cabinet Card Photos Posts

Mystery Photo: Nye’s Studio Couple

One thing that gets weird about photos shot with costumes, props and a fake background is that eventually the photo will become old, and then it’s more difficult to tell whether the people in the photo are dressed in their normal clothing, were being photographed to promote a play, or just having a novelty photo taken. So the image above might seem like an 1890s version of what a photo of someone in 2024 wearing disco clothes might convey in the year 2156.

Mystery Photo: Westberg

The identity of the woman in this photo is likely lost to history, but the photographer’s last name is right there in print — Westberg. The Minnesota Historical Society’s Directory of Minnesota Photographers lists two Westbergs who operated in Duluth more than 100 years ago.

Mystery Photo: Thiel’s Art Gallery in Duluth

Who is the handsome gentleman in this cabinet card photo? That information might be lost to history, but we know from the printing on the card that the image was shot at Carl Thiel’s Art Gallery in Duluth. Handwritten on the back of the card is the date: “Jan. 1896.”

Mystery Photo: McDowell Sisters

This old cabinet card photo, for sale on eBay, was shot in Duluth. Several details are provided, but some mysteries persist.

Mystery Photo: Fire Department Captain

This mystery photo is another from the studio of the fiery ol’ Swede Lars Liden. Penned on the photo is something along the lines of “f. d. Capt. Axel Strom.”

It seems somewhat clear that the photo is of the captain of some fire department, and since the photo was shot in Duluth it is likely this captain represents Duluth or some municipality near Duluth. So, Axel Strom? Is that the name?

Mystery Photo: Daughter of Duluth

There are times when Perfect Duluth Day’s Mystery Photo isn’t very mysterious. And this is one of those times. We know who is in the photo and much of her biography, but the photography studio is one we haven’t seen another image from.

Mystery Photo: Carl Thiel Cabinet Card

The identity of the woman in this photo is almost certainly lost to history, but on Perfect Duluth Day it’s always worth trying. What we know about this photo is the photography studio it came from and roughly when it was shot.

Mystery Photo: Ekstrom Wedding

Here they are, Berger and Hilda Ekstrom, in their wedding duds. We know their names thanks to the scribbling on the back of the photo. And we know from the cardboard frame that the photographer is Lars Linden, the fiery Swede who had a studio at 1619 W. Superior St. in Duluth. What’s the mystery? Well, everything else. What became of ol’ Berger and Hilda?

Mystery Photo: Mr. & Mrs. Burchell

From the back of this cabinet card photo we know the subjects are Mr. and Mrs. Herbert Burchell or Burehell, married Aug. 26, 1891. They were also presumably residents of West Duluth. The photo is from the Downtown Duluth studio of John R. Zweifel.

Mystery Photos: Mr. and Mrs. Peter Anderson

Someone was kind enough to write the names of these love birds on their photos and keep them together. But who are Mr. and Mrs. Peter Anderson?

Mystery Photo: Another from Cook Ely

This image from the Ely Studio of Duluth comes to Perfect Duluth Day via Neal Eisenberg, a native Duluthian.

Mystery Photos #118 and #119: Gals at H. Mathieson Studio

Many early studio photographers around Duluth printed their photographs on flowery pre-printed cabinet cards, often with their names prominently displayed. Often the name of the person photographed is lost to history, but we can easily locate the photographer in the records more than 100 years later.

Mystery Photos #106-112: Ely Studio

It’s a nearly impossible challenge to put names on people in century-old cabinet card photos, but we occasionally try nonetheless. At least in most cases we know the photographer’s name, which can lead in all sorts of directions.

Mystery Photo #104: Mustached Dude with Fat Tie

Who is this handsome Duluthian? Was he actually a Duluthian at all or just passing through and feeling photogenic?

Mystery Photo #103: Girl with Curls

What’s the deal with this curly haired lass? Was she a Duluthian?

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