The Psychogenealogist Pic of the Week (#110) - "Minnie's Mother, Sue H. Leig"

Every Friday The Psychogenealogist shares a "Pic of the Week." The intent is to encourage thought and imagination about the spaces where psychology, genealogy, and history converge.

Here is a young woman with curly hair sitting for a portrait at the Strunk photography studio. It was located at 730 Penn St. in Reading, Pennsylvania. Her look is a calm one with just a hint of worry in her otherwise soulful eyes.

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On the back it says: “Minnie’s Mother”, Sue H. Leig”. At least that is what I think it says. What do you think? It appears to be older writing, but it is hard to tell. The “100” notation is written in pencil and likely suggests the price of one dollar. This photography as likely seen several estate sales, flea markets, and antique stores in its day. It finally came into my possession through a random eBay lot of cabinet card photographs that I purchased.

Here are some questions I encourage you to think about.

Questions:

• Who was Minnie and what is her story?

• Who was Sue H. Leig and what is HER story?

• Do I have her name right?

• When do you think this cabinet card photograph was taken?

• What do you make of this woman’s clothing?

• What do you think, feel, and wonder about as you look at her photo?

I would love to hear your thoughts about these questions or other ideas that occur to you about the photo. Please feel to leave a comment below!

Featured Tag: Your Storied Life: Unique Biographical Portraits