For decades, students from kindergarten through high school have endured the ritual of the annual school photograph. Children in recent times usually sit for individual portraits – elementary students displaying missing baby teeth, high school students playing poised and nonchalant, middle school students wishing they were anywhere but in front of a camera. Many of the photographs found in our archives from the early 20th century, however, show students photographed as a group, often posing for the photographer outdoors. The 1912 photo above shows children at the Old North School who have been carefully prepared for the photograph, with most of the girls wearing their best dresses and many of the boys sporting one of a variety of tie styles.
This photo was donated to the SHS by Charles A. Ellis, and at least two features make it remarkable. First, it is one of a series of six school photographs donated by Mr. Ellis which begin with the first grade, and progress through his grammar school years. Many of the same children appear year after year, allowing us to watch this group of young people grow and change, in both appearance and demeanor. Second, the children in each of these photographs are identified by name on the reverse – a small but vitally important bit of information that makes it possible for researchers to find them today in our database.
We would love for you to share the photographs of your precious friends and family members with us and let us add them to our database – but please remember always to let us know who they are!
Did you find Charles A. Ellis? He’s in the front row, third from the left. Click here for a link to our database where you can learn the identities of his classmates and here to see the rest of the photos in this series!