Costume historian & photo-dating expert Jayne Shrimpton shares advice to help you date your unidentified pictures and so put names to the faces of the past
Your family photos
Karen Clarke writes:
I have just acquired the photo (shown below) from my late aunt’s house. On the back it says “grandpa & grandma Lidderdale”. My problem is I don’t know who wrote the comment and therefore whose grandparents they are. Initially they were thought to be William Galt Lidderdale (1826-1881) and his wife, Elizabeth (Bessie) Lidderdale née Middleton (1830-1866). I wrote those names on the back 40 years ago. But, having done a lot more research since, I now think this may be an incorrect assumption. The photo was taken by J Sunderland of 67, Bull St, Birmingham who I believe was only operating from this address during the 1880s, but I may be wrong. If correct, Elizabeth was dead by then and William had moved to India where he remarried in 1877, dying there in 1881. Therefore, are they William’s parents John (1801-1891) and Janet Lidderdale (1801-1885) pictured with their grandchildren? Can you tell from their clothes whether this photo dates to the first half of the 1880s? John and Janet moved from Scotland to Birmingham with their son William c.1850. Thanking you in anticipation.
Jayne Shrimpton replies:
I can only see the visual image in your scan – no photographer details – but perhaps J Sunderland’s studio details are printed on the back of the card mount (not provided).
Thoughts on photographer details
I assume that you have used the popular website for Victorian photographers in Birmingham and Warwickshire, which does indeed mention that Sunderland operated from 67, Bull Street, Birmingham in the 1880s: http://www.hunimex.com/warwick/photogs.html. However, this is an incomplete database that does not cite its sources and in fact offers only partial studio data – a reminder that we should carefully consider the reliability of all information found online.
What clues does the clothing hold?
The picture clues – in particular, the clothing worn by these ancestors – confirms that the date is earlier than the 1880s. The style of the lady’s formal daytime costume displaying ornate V-necked bodice edged with pleated trimmings and skirt featuring protruding bustle feature behind the waist indicates that the photograph was taken c.1870-75. Male and juvenile dress may not be dated quite so precisely, but the man’s wide coat lapels support the early-mid 1870s time frame, as do the boy’s Zouave suit
