ID/KEY: P48679

"Isaac Caldwell," a photograph by Rufus W. Holsinger taken on October 6, 1917.

Note that this portrait shows the two young men dressed in worker's clothing. It was not uncommon in this time period to choose to depict oneself in one's work clothing and with accessories/tools of the trade when sitting for a photo, known as "occupational portraits" (Finefield) (for an example, see James Lightfoot). This portrait, however, gives no indication of the work of the individuals below, and so technically is not an occupational portrait, per se: they are dressed in generic laborer's clothing that do not specifically indicate their profession. Perhaps, then, they simply came in to have their portrait taken in the clothing they were wearing at that time. Whether purposefully showcasing their occupation or not (choosing to be photographed "as is"), these are interesting acts of self-representation. 

Additional information about Isaac Caldwell / the subjects photographed will be added as it is researched.

NOTE that the name with which the portrait is labelled (or, labelled "untitled") is not necessarily the name of the sitter(s) in the portrait, but rather the name of the person who paid for the portrait when it was taken (the date and name associated with each photograph is from the business ledgers of R. W. Holsinger).

Sources

- "Isaac Caldwell," 1917-10-6 photograph in UVA Library Catalogue (X05587A) 

- Finefield, Kristi. "Profiling Portraits: Occupational Portraits of the Nineteenth Century," Library of Congress Prints and Photos

SEE ALSO:

Holsinger Image Gallery of African Americans

J. F. Bell Funeral Home Records

Charlottesville City Directory, 1914-15 [Hathi Trust] 

1870 & 1910 U. S. Census - Charlottesville & Esmont Communities

First published: June 9, 2019    

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