Sometime around 1910, a couple celebrated their engagement by having a photographic portrait made.
The photograph was printed on postcards, to be shared with friends and family members.
We see a young woman, wearing a smart ensemble of jacket and skirt, standing beside a man sporting an overcoat and bowler hat.
The woman is covered with a large hat that features a bow or crumpled material in front.
Our prospective bride is found in a white shirtwaist with a tight collar.
The prospective groom, whose eyeglasses make him appear owlish, wears a stiff white collar.
The man’s overcoat has a subdued pattern woven into it.
On the reverse, a child of the couple has inscribed, “Mother and Daddy (engaged)”.
One wishes that we might know the names of the newly-engaged couple, or even a date for the photograph.
Alas, this postcard was never mailed, and there are no other clues to the identity of the young lovers.
Like many other photographs from the early 20th century, this image invites speculation and elicits many imagined tales.
Too many postcard collectors never imagined that the photographs would outlive them for more than a century.
