
March 14, 2016

The "Dirty Dozen" with Carl Sandburg (Row
2, far right)
Seated from the left: Charles Bloomgren, Robert G. Samuelson, Lyle Tapp,
George W. Erickson. Standing: Charles Juneau, Fred Cook, Martin Sandburg, Willis Calkins, Oscar F. Larson, Lawrence Futhey, Victor Thurine, Carl Sandburg.
[The boys are identified on p. 31 of George Swank's CARL SANDBURG:
GALESBURG AND BEYOND, c1983.]
|
Hold Still!
by Barbara Schock
The
photograph above has illustrated
several articles in this series. It records the images of twelve teenage
boys in about 1894. Seven of them were the sons of Swedish immigrants; one
was the son of a French family and the others were descendants of families
with long histories in this country. It is a record of their appearance at a
young age. Most of them continued to live in Galesburg, to marry, work and
have children. Others attended college and followed careers in other parts
of the country or overseas. One of them went on to a career as poet, writer,
folk singer and friend to a vast number of celebrities. One spent time in
jail for petty larceny.
Having
one's picture taken was an arduous business in those days. Dressing in one's
best clothes wasn't the only requirement. The subjects were expected to be
well rested and in a relaxed mood so their faces could display a pleasant
appearance. They were expected
to follow the direction of the photographer as to how they would present
themselves.
The boys
had to be still for several minutes while the glass plate was exposed. They
had to look at the camera, but not stare. They had to avoid blinking their
eyes. There were no smiles because it is difficult to hold one's face in a
smile for a long period without it becoming a smirk. Any movement during the
exposure would cause the picture to be blurred.
Some of the
boys look to the left or right rather than directly at the camera. It was
easier to maintain a pose in that way. One or two have a hand resting on
another boy's shoulder as a way to maintain balance.
Photographers used iron stands to hold the subject's head steady. Most of
the time the stand was hidden, but, occasionally, a stand could be seen
behind the subject's feet. The photographer in this instance may not have
had enough stands to support each of the eight boys in the back row. The
boys in the front row probably didn't need support.
The
photographer may have put too many boys in the back row as they look
crowded. An odd number in each row might have made a more successful
photograph.
In this
picture, only a small portion of the scenery in the studio is seen in the
upper right corner of the photograph. It appears to be a tree, but we are
fairly sure the boys are in a studio. Photographers often used props and
scenery over and over whether they suited the subject of the picture or not.
The
finished photograph was a keepsake for the boys as well as their parents.
More than likely a number of copies were made to be given to family members
and friends. The Sandburg family had a photograph album on the table in the
front room of their home. Mrs. Sandburg surely was happy to have a
photograph of her two sons to put in the album.
The
photograph has continued to be treasured in the homes of certain Galesburg
families to this day. It has a
connection with Carl Sandburg and the world-wide fame he achieved in his
lifetime.
 |
Date |
Title |
March 14, 2016 |
Hold Still! |
March 7, 2016 |
Capt. T. L. McGirr |
February 29, 2016 |
Sparrow Season |
February 22, 2016 |
George W. Erickson |
February 15, 2016 |
George Helgeson Fitch |
February 8, 2016 |
Anna Charlotte Goldquist |
February 1, 2016 |
"Little Boy Blue" |
January 25, 2016 |
Always the Young
Strangers |
January 18, 2016 |
George R. Longbrake |
January 11, 2016 |
Fred Cook |
January 4, 2016 |
Domestic Help |
December 14, 2015 |
Justice of the Peace B.F. Holcomb |
November 30, 2015 |
Standardized Time |
November 23, 2015 |
Joseph H. Knutson |
November 16, 2015 |
Wells and Cisterns |
November 2, 2015 |
Willis E. Calkins |
October 26, 2015 |
Galesburg Pottery |
October 19, 2015 |
Private Lewis H. Kay |
October 12, 2015 |
The Klondike Gold Rush |
September 28, 2015 |
Charles L. Bloomgren |
September 21, 2015 |
The Gilded Age |
September 14, 2015 |
Oliver Optic |
August 31, 2015 |
The "Spanish" Cannon |
August 24, 2015 |
The Company C Men |
August 17, 2015 |
Jacob A. Riis |
August 10, 2015 |
Mason Jars |
August 3, 2015 |
October 7, 1896 |
July 27, 2015 |
The Soldier's Monument |
July 20, 2015 |
Ice |
July 13, 2015 |
Moses O. Williamson |
July 6, 2015 |
Sweet Little Alix |
June 29, 2015 |
Sharlie's Shickens |
June 22, 2015 |
Anna Held & John Drew |
June 15, 2015 |
Hartel & Secker Meat Market |
June 8, 2015 |
Girls |
June 1, 2015 |
Old First Church - Part II |
May 25, 2015 |
Old First Church - Part I |
May 18, 2015 |
Marbles |
May 11, 2015 |
Pawnee County, Kansas |
May 4, 2015 |
Detective Stories and the
Real Thing |
April 27, 2015 |
Professor Isaac A. Parker |
April 20, 2015 |
Celluloid Collars |
April 13, 2015 |
Asparagus |
April 6, 2015 |
Mayor John C. Stewart |
March 30, 2015 |
Basket Ball |
March 23, 2015 |
The Courthouse of Knox
County, IL |
March 16, 2015 |
“Trifles make
perfection...”
|
March 9, 2015 |
Uncle Tom's Cabin |
March 2, 2015 |
Martha Sandburg Goldstone |
February 23, 2015 |
Devotion |
February 16,
2015 |
Gumbiner's
Pawn Shop |
February 9, 2015 |
White Bread |
February 2, 2015 |
The
Monarch Club |
January 26, 2015 |
The Silver Dollar |
January 19, 2015 |
The Fulton County Narrow Gauge Railway |
January 12, 2015 |
The
Four Corners |
December 22, 2014 |
Swedish
Christmas |
December 8, 2014 |
Christmas 1878 |
December 1, 2014 |
Bunker
Boots & Shoes |
November 24, 2014 |
Galesburg,
Illinois |
November 17, 2014 |
It was Buffalo Bill's Day |
November 10, 2014 |
The Election of 1896 (A follow-up story) |
November 3, 2014 |
The Election
of 1896 (continued) |
October 27, 2014 |
The Election
of 1896 |
October 24,
2014 |
The
Rissywarn |
October 20, 2014 |
The Parlor Stove |
October 13, 2014 |
Ashes to Ashes |
October 6, 2014 |
Jesse James |
Sept. 29, 2014 |
Lester T. Stone, Public Servant |
Sept. 22, 2014 |
It's Who You Know |
Sept 15, 2014 |
Mother of the Illinois Flag |
Sept 8, 2014 |
The Scissors
Grinder |
Sept 1, 2014 |
Baseball |
August 25, 2014 |
Howard K.
Knowles, Capitalist |
August 18,
2014 |
Alcoholic Beverages |
August 11, 2014 |
Soda
Water |
August 4, 2014 |
Sweet Corn |
July 28, 2014 |
Marching Through Georgia |
July 21, 2014 |
The Knox
County Fair |
July 14, 2014 |
The Panic of 1893 |
July 7, 2014 |
The Rev. T. N.
Hasselquist |
June 30, 2014 |
The Knox
County Courthouse |
June 23, 2014 |
The Family
Photograph Album |
June 16, 2014 |
Parades |
June 9, 2014 |
Lingonberries |
June 2, 2014 |
Where We Live |
May 26, 2014 |
Old Main |
May 19, 2014 |
Rhythms
of the Railroad |
May 12, 2014 |
Spring
Tonic |
May 5, 2014 |
The Milkmen |
April 28, 2014 |
Gray's
"Elegy..." |
April 21, 2014 |
Off to War |
April 14, 2014 |
Swedish Easter |
April 7, 2014 |
A Father's Face |
March 31, 2014 |
Secret Societies |
March 24, 2014 |
George A. Murdock, Merchant |
March 10, 2014 |
Trade
Cards |
March 3, 2014 |
The Demorest
Medal |
February 24, 2014 |
Rip
Van Winkle |
February 17, 2014 |
Cabbage
Soup |
February 10, 2014 |
Lincoln's Birthday |
February 3,
2014 4 |
The
Colonel |
January 27, 2014 |
The
Lincoln Penny - A Little History |
January 20, 2014 |
Walking to Work |
January 13,
2014 |
A Small Abode |
January 6, 2014 |
Birth of a Poet |
December 30, 2013 |
Christmas 1880 |
December 23, 2013 |
Swedish Christmas |
December 16, 2013 |
The Reporter
Sees Santa |
December 9, 2013 |
The Coming
of Christmas |
December 2, 2013 |
The Fire Boys Talk |
November 25, 2013 |
Galesburg Will Feast on Turkeys and Cranberries -
Thanksgiving 1893 |
November 18, 2013 |
Mary
Sandburg Johnson |
November 11, 2013 |
Carl
Sandburg's Bicycle |
November 4, 2013 |
Lace Curtains |
October 28, 2013 |
The
Front Room |
October 21, 2013 |
A Warm Breakfast |
October 14, 2013 |
Marion D.
Shutter |
October 7, 2013 |
Cigars and Consumption |
September 30, 2013 |
Forrest F. Cooke & August Sandburg |
September 16, 2013 |
Forrest F.
Cooke, Mayor |
September 9, 2013 |
Dusty
Streets |
September 2, 2013 |
Typhoid
Fever |
August 26, 2013 |
Coffee and Water |
August 19, 2013 |
A
Horse! A Horse! |
August 12, 2013 |
Gaddial Scott |
August 5, 2013 |
The
Racetrack |
July 29, 2013 |
John Peter
Algeld - Part II |
July 22, 2013 |
John Peter
Altgeld - Part I |
July
15, 2013 |
Tramps, Tramps, Tramps |
July 8, 2013 |
Lady
Liberty |
July 1, 2013 |
Galesburg's
Fourth |
June 24, 2013 |
John
H. Finley |
June 17, 2013 |
The
World's Columbian Exhibition |
June
10, 2013 |
Fruit
Short-Cake |
June 3, 2013 |
Horatio Alger,
Author |
May 27, 2013 |
Memorial Day,
1887 |
May 20, 2013 |
Professor
Jon W. Grubb |
May 13, 2013 |
Beginnings of Lombard University |
May 6, 2013 |
Young
Sandburg’s View of Lombard College |
April
29, 2013 |
Thinking |
April
22, 2013 |
Robert
Colville, Master Mechanic |
April 15,
2013 |
The Galesburg Opera House |
April 8, 2013 |
Grocery
Stores and Sample Rooms |
April 1, 2013 |
A
Hearty Breakfast |
March
25, 2013 |
The Lost
Wallpaper Legend |
March 18, 2013 |
Martin G. Sandburg |
March 4, 2013 |
The
Edison Talking Machine |
February 25, 2013 |
Joe Elser, Civil War
Veteran |
February 18, 2013 |
Remember
the Maine... |
February 11, 2013 |
Lincoln's
Birthday |
February 4, 2013 |
Curiosity |
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