When I had previously posted this image, I stated that I didn’t know the identities of everyone, especially the little person on the right, although I had seen him before somewhere. Well, troll Ebay long enough and another image will show up. He’s Colonel Small. The other little man is Commodore Foote. I’m not certain of the identity of the little woman in the middle, but all three were Barnum performers.
I’m feeling a little bit like doing a review of the little people in my collection, so here goes nothing:
Miss Suzie Reed, by BradyMajor Littlefinger & Wife, by EisenmannThe Strattons, George Nutt and Minnie Warren in their Tuilieries outfitsUnknown Little Person, H.B. Gerncore’s Temple of ArtThree little people, by CD FredricksTom Thumb and Lavinia Warren, in middle ageThe Thumbs, Commodore Nutt and Minnie Warren, as presented to the QueenLavinia Warren Stratton Magri and the Magri Brothers, by OllivierAnonymous CDV, The Thumbs, at middle ageMr. Tower, by L.J. HurdMr. Chas. Decker, by Henry HeydeThe Thumbs, by the Stereoscopic Co of LondonMinnie Warren, by BradyAdmiral Dot & Lottie Swartwood By Chas EisenmannGeneral Cardenas, Anonymous PhotographerAdmiral Dot, published by Anthony, photographer unnamedTom Thumb by C.D. FredricksThe Magri Brothers with Lavinia Warren, ca. 1895Baron Littlefinger & FamilyMajor S.E. HoughtonLavinia Warren Stratton, by C.D. FredricksTom Thumb & Lavinia Warren – Walzl, Photographer, BaltimoreComic Actor by GurneyThe Rice Family, by J. Wood, The BoweryNellie Keeler, on Bogardus’ SideboardTom Thumb and Minnie Warren, in their advancing yearsTom Thumb and Lavinia Warren, by Masury of BostonAdmiral Dot, published by E&HT AnthonyNellie Keeler, by BogardusSideshow Family, Aledo, IllinoisWaino and Plutano, The Wild Men of Borneo, by EisenmannMajor Atom, by Chas. EisenmannThe Reception Dress, The Fairy WeddingGeorge Nutt & Minnie Warren, Groomsman & BridesmaidTom Thumb, Wife and “child”Bride & Groom, The Fairy WeddingLavinia Warren Stratton, Mrs. Tom ThumbFairy Wedding Group #3Commodore Nutt and unknown little woman, Anonymous CDV (probably Brady)Commodore Nutt, Mrs. and Mr. Tom ThumbThe Fairy Wedding, 1863 E&HT Anthony print, ObverseNellie Keeler- by Bogardus
Mr. Chas. Decker, by Henry HeydeMr. Tower, by L.J. Hurd
Two more little people. This collecting of circus folk, specifically little people, makes me wonder if anyone has ever written about the Victorian fixation with little people. Compared to today there seems to be a veritable cornucopia of them in the Victorian era – today there’s the family on Little People, Big World (the reality TV show), Vern Troyer, Hornswoggle (part of the WWE cast), Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister on Game of Thrones) and the lady who played E.T. That’s really about it. But in the 1860s-1890s, there was Tom Thumb, Commodore Nutt, Lavinia Warren, Minnie Warren, Admiral Dot, Major Atom, General Cardenas, The Magri brothers, Nellie Keeler, the Rice Family, Che Mah, Maj. S.E. Houghton, and Chas. Decker. And that’s just to name some of the better known ones whose images I’ve collected. I’ll even go out on a limb and include Waino and Plutano on that list although I think strictly speaking they weren’t midgets/dwarves. Perhaps it was a side effect of marginalization – in the Victorian era, if you were not an able-bodied white male, employment options were VERY limited for you. There may not have been any greater percent of the population born with disabilities/physical deviations in the last half of the 19th century, but perhaps we know of more of them because the only thing they could do to survive was go into show business.
I was particularly intrigued by Mr. Tower, by L.J. Hurd, because not only is he atypically large for a little person, and relatively proportionate, but the note on the back from the photographer caught my attention: “L.J. Hurd, Artist, Traveling Photograph Gallery. The Plate from which this was made will be preserved one month.” This is the first time I’ve seen anyone specify a lifespan for a negative – most of them have said something to the effect of “reprints available at any time”. It makes perfect sense to discard/recycle your glass plates every month if you’re an itinerant photographer. Glass is heavy and a pain to haul around. IF that was true of this image, in all probability this is unique or nearly so. Then again, if Mr. Tower was a well-known performer, this could be one of dozens if not hundreds that Mr. Hurd printed and sold, and he probably retained the negative beyond his stated month.
dcphotoartist 