Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Wordless Wednesday: Women on the Go

Wordless Wednesday is a daily prompt at Geneabloggers that asks family historians to create a post in which the main focus is a photograph or image.

During the month of March I am focusing on the family of my father’s maternal grandmother. Mary Theresa Sheehan Killeen Walsh and her sisters emigrated from Ireland to New York between 1883 and 1896. After Mary Theresa moved to Portsmouth, Virginia about 1905, she made many trips to New York to visit her sisters, and I have the pictures to prove it; however, very few photos are identified. Like this one:

Two women with suitcase probably sister or sisters of Mary Theresa Sheehan Killeen Walsh https://jollettetc.blogspot.com


Who are these women? Where are they going? What is this place with all the steps?

Wendy
© 2017, Wendy Mathias.  All rights reserved.

16 comments:

  1. Hmmmm. Quite a mystery. Looking at the clothes, I'm guessing after turn of the century but before 1915?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi Wendy, I don't know about in New York, but in Ireland widows often wore black for a year after their husbands deaths. Might not mean anything, but...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Interesting point - Mary Theresa lost her first husband in 1905 and the second in 1918. The sisters lost their husbands much later, 30s and 40s. That doesn't mean the picture is of Mary Theresa but maybe . . . ?

      Delete
  3. And who is that man walking up the stairs? (of course he more than likely is not related to the women in the picture)

    betty

    ReplyDelete
  4. I was thinking the same thing as Dara mentioned about the lady wearing the dark clothing. The one with the Mary Poppins bag could be Mary Theresa? Kind of looks like her eyes, but of course I have not studied the pictures as much as you.

    Love your little sister,
    Mary Jollette

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Mary Poppins" looks like the woman who usually is holding a poodle, but again, who knows??

      Delete
  5. I'm struck by the big satchel in the lady in white's hand. Is she on vacation? Is she a doctor?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah, and are they coming or going? And who was with them to take the picture?

      Delete
  6. Replies
    1. I do too. I can see these ladies in Disney's "Pollyanna" movie.

      Delete
  7. I have no idea about historical dress - I'm rubbish at modern fashion :) But that woman in white seems to be carrying a bag that either belongs to Mary Poppins or a doctor. My imagination tells me the building is a hospital and the gentleman is going to visit a relative. Probably completely off the mark, but never mind :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That makes for a good story though. Good to see you again!

      Delete
  8. There's something positively charming about the ladies in this photograph, Wendy, especially the lady on the right. I wish the photograph were more clear so we could see details better. The satchel the lady in white is carrying reminds me of a doctor's bag.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'd be happy with a fuzzy photo if the names were written on the back. No such luck though. Still, I like this photo. I can almost hear those shoes clicking along the sidewalk.

      Delete