Photo Types - Tintypes

Announcements

ATTENTION: Adobe Digital Editions has come out with version 3. However, it will NOT allow you to read books from older versions on your e-reader.  If you have an e-reader, do NOT upgrade to this newer version. If you do, there is no fix to enable you to read the older books.

STAR TREK MARATHON coming! First week of February 1-7, showing movies and episodes - leading up to…

Geek Day 2.8 on Saturday, February 8^th. Mark your calendar!!

Do you have a young reader in your house, or a pre-reader? Check out our Tumble Books in our e-resources. They are animated talking picture books for your young'uns, which will teach them to love reading.

Computer Classes every Sat. mornings 10-12. "Open House" Whatever you need. Drop in anytime during those two hours.

Check out our new blog on movies and music at: RPL's Movies and Music by Robert Finch

Captain Kirk

Genealogy tip for the day: Photo Types - Tin Types

Our last major type of the 19^th century is the Tintypes. These were pictures on a very thin sheet of iron. The surface is a coat of black varnish with a dark backing, patented by Hamilton Smith in 1856. More correctly called ferrotype, the tin type really has no tin at all in it. These were cased (framed) the same as the other photos (daguerreotypes, ambrotypes…), but uncased photos are easier to tell what type they are.

These were more expensive but popular with the traveling photographer and had the longest life of the photos from the 19^th Century. They were introduced in 1834 and were still popular way into the 1930’s.

The most common size was the 2.5 by 3.5, same as the carte de visites and later the wallet pictures and thus easily portable for show and tell.

The next couple of days or so we will wrap up, looking at the less popular forms of photos. Then we will talk about how to I.D. people in these older pictures by the clues they give us.                                                                                             

“History is who we are; Genealogy is who I am” sg

If any of these posts are helpful drop us a line in the comments section below. We just want to know if the information we provide to you is beneficial in anyway.

Today in History

Albert Einstein

January 28

28		The Roman Emperor Nerva names Trajan, an army general, as his successor.
1547		Henry VIII of England dies and is succeeded by his nine-year-old son Edward VI.
1757		Ahmed Shah, the first King of Afghanistan, occupies Delhi and annexes the Punjab.
1792		Rebellious slaves in Santo Domingo launch an attack on the city of Cap.
1871		Surrounded by Prussian troops and suffering from famine, the French army in Paris surrenders. During the siege, balloons were used to keep contact with the outside world.
1915		The U.S. Coast Guard is founded to fight contraband trade and aid distressed vessels at sea.
1915		The German navy attacks the U.S. freighter William P. Frye, loaded with wheat for Britain.
1921		Albert Einstein startles Berlin by suggesting the possibility of measuring the universe.
1932		The Japanese attack Shanghai, China, and declare martial law.
1936		A fellow prison inmate slashes infamous kidnapper, Richard Loeb, to death.
1941		French General Charles DeGaulle's Free French forces sack south Libya oasis.
1945		Chiang Kai-shek renames the Ledo-Burma Road the Stilwell Road, in honor of General Joseph Stilwell.
1955		The U.S. Congress passes a bill allowing mobilization of troops if China should attack Taiwan.
1964		The Soviets down a U.S. jet over East Germany killing three.
1970		Israeli fighter jets attack the suburbs of Cairo.
1986		The space shuttle Challenger explodes just after liftoff.
Born on January 28
1693		Anna "Ivanovna", Tsarina of Russia.
1706		John Baskerville, inventor of the "hot-pressing" method of printing.
1933		Susan Sontag, American essayist and novelist (The Style of Radical Will, Illness as a Metaphor).

John Baskerville

Word for the Day

skulduggery

PRONUNCIATION:

(skuhl-DUHG-uh-ree)

MEANING:

noun: Underhand dealing: trickery, bribery, etc.

ETYMOLOGY:

An American coinage, apparently from the alteration of Scots sculduddery (fornication, obscenity). Earliest documented use: 1867.

USAGE:

"In the 1980s [the Vatican Bank] was accused of involvement in financial skulduggery and responsibility for the still-mysterious death of a prominent Italian banker, Roberto Calvi."
God's Bankers; The Economist (London, UK); Jul 7, 2012.

Quote for the Day

A grain of poetry suffices to season a century. -José Martí, revolutionary and poet (1853-1895)

 

Today’s Recipe

Soups for Cold Winter Days

Mushroom Bisque w/ Pastry Hats

 

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 pounds common mushrooms or chanterelles (see notes)
• 1 slice bacon (1 oz.), chopped
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 1/4 cup cognac or brandy
• 1/3 cup dry white wine

Preparation

1. Trim and discard tough or discolored stem ends and any bruised spots from mushrooms. Rinse common mushrooms and drain well. (If using chanterelles, submerge in cool water and gently agitate with your hands to loosen dirt. Drain, rinse under running water, and gently pat dry with a towel.) Coarsely chop mushrooms.
2. In a 5- to 6-quart pan over high heat, stir bacon until fat begins to render, about 1 minute. Add onion, celery, and garlic; stir until onion is limp, about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms and stir often until their liquid is evaporated and mushrooms begin to brown, 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Add cognac and stir to scrape up browned bits from pan bottom and sides. Add wine and boil until most of the liquid has evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Add broth and return to a boil, then cover, reduce heat, and simmer, stirring occasionally, to blend flavors, 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. In a blender, holding down lid with a towel, whirl mixture, a portion at a time, until smooth. Pour into a bowl. Stir in cream, then salt and pepper to taste. Chill, stirring occasionally, until soup is at room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes.
5. Spoon soup into six round soufflé dishes or ovenproof bowls (1 1/4- to 1 1/2-cup size; 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 in. wide) to within 1/2 inch of rim.
6. On a lightly floured board, roll each puff pastry shell into a round 1 to 1 1/2 inches wider than top of soufflé dishes. Brush egg in a 1/2-inch border around the bottom edge (unscored side) of each pastry round. Carefully drape each round, egg side down, over a dish so that it doesn't touch soup; press edges firmly around sides of dish. Brush more egg lightly over pastry tops and sides (discard remaining egg or save foranother use). Set dishes at least 1 inch apart in a 12- by 17-inch baking pan.
7. Bake in a 375° regular or convection oven until pastry is richly browned, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve at once, with sherry-shallot butter to stir into portions at the table.
Sherry-shallot butter: In an 8- to 10-inch frying pan over high heat, stir 1/3 cup minced shallots and 1/3 cup dry sherry often until liquid is evaporated and shallots begin to brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Pour into a small bowl and let cool. Add 3 tablespoons butter (at room temperature) to shallots and mix. Divide into six equal portions and, with your hands, roll each into a ball. Arrange on a small plate. Cover and chill until firm, at least 15 minutes.

Nutritional Information

Amount per serving

• Calories: 533
• Calories from fat: 69%
• Protein: 10g
• Fat: 41g
• Saturated fat: 16g
• Carbohydrate: 33g
• Fiber: 2.5g
• Sodium: 247mg
• Cholesterol: 107mg

ENJOY!

Now You Know!

Photo Types – Ambrotypes

Announcements

ATTENTION: Adobe Digital Editions has come out with version 3. However, it will NOT allow you to read books from older versions on your e-reader.  If you have an e-reader, do NOT upgrade to this newer version. If you do, there is no fix to enable you to read the older books.

STAR TREK MARATHON coming! First week of February 1-7, showing movies and episodes - leading up to… Geek Day 2.8 on Saturday, February 8^th. Mark your calendar!!

Do you have a young reader in your house, or a pre-reader? Check out our Tumble Books in our e-resources. They are animated talking picture books for your young'uns, which will teach them to love reading.

Computer Classes every Sat. mornings 10-12. "Open House" Whatever you need. Drop in anytime during those two hours.

Check out our new blog on movies and music at: RPL's Movies and Music by Robert Finch.

Luc Picard

example of Ambrotypes

Genealogy tip for the day: Photo Types – Ambrotypes

Have you noticed yet how many of these photo types came about in the 1800’s? Some over lapped, others were successive, yet apparently many people were studying chemistry about the same time and discovered the various effects light had on chemicals that produced images. It has been an ongoing process to make photographs more stable.

Even in the 20^th century, we went from black and white pictures and colored pictures, to Polaroid to digital. You probably have seen pictures even from the 20^th century fade over time, or become almost monochromatic with a pink or yellow tinge or other.

So photography continues to advance and change. The biggest change is to digital which uses no chemical at all until you print it. Even then, if it is printed on a computer printer it is printed with ink and not a result of a chemical reaction. This process harks back to the days when images were produced as a positive from the start and no negative was needed. Next we are looking at the Ambrotypes of the 1800’s.

Ambrotypes*
“In 1851, Frederick Scott Archer announced his wet plate collodion process. Collodion is cellulose nitrate*¹ (i.e. cotton) dissolved in ether and alcohol. In order to provide the most sensitive film (fastest), the plate had to be exposed while still wet, hence its name, (Ed.: wet plate). This system provided a transparent negative and although through other methods this negative image could be made positive (as in the ambrotype), its most significant contribution was the use as a transparent negative.

“The use of the wet-plate negatives to produce positive images on albumen paper truly altered the course of photography, but the most popular use of this was the ambrotype. By backing the collodion negative with a dark material the image appeared as a positive. In some examples, dark purple, blue or red glass was used as a support, thus eliminating the need for a backing.

“Ambrotypes were presented in mounts and cases in the same fashion as daguerreotypes and because of this they are commonly mistake (sic) for daguerreotypes. It is a simple matter to distinguish between the two since ambrotypes appear as positives at all angles of viewing as opposed to the daguerreotype which is truly visible as a positive only at certain lighting angles. The popularity was from 1851 to 1880.”

The advantage of the ambrotypes were, they were cheaper and more convenient to produce than daguerreotypes and required a shorter time for exposure. *²

 

Ambrotype - negative                   Ambrotype - postive

Right photo is what you would see under normal viewing conditions. The left photo is what you would see if you were to shine light through the Ambrotype.

*Courtesy of http://genealogy.about.com/library/authors/ucmishkin1c.htm

*¹ Cellulose nitrate: any of several esters of nitric acid formed by the action of nitric acid on cellulose (as paper, linen, or cotton) and used for making explosives, plastics, and varnishes— Source OED

*² source - http://www.forensicgenealogy.info/History_of_Photography.html

“History is who we are; Genealogy is who I am” sg

If any of these posts are helpful drop us a line in the comments section below. We just want to know if the information we provide to you is beneficial in anyway.

Today in History

Mustafa II

January 27

1695		Mustafa II becomes the Ottoman sultan in Istanbul on the death of Amhed II.
1825		Congress approves Indian Territory (present-day Oklahoma), clearing the way for forced relocation of the Eastern Indians on the "Trail of Tears."
1862		President Abraham Lincoln issues General War Order No. 1, setting in motion the Union armies.
1900		Foreign diplomats in Peking fear revolt and demand that the Imperial Government discipline the Boxer Rebels.
1905		Russian General Kuropatkin takes the offensive in Manchuria. The Japanese under General Oyama suffer heavy casualties.
1916		President Woodrow Wilson opens preparedness program.
1918		Communists attempt to seize power in Finland.
1924		Lenin's body is laid in a marble tomb on Red Square near the Kremlin.
1935		A League of Nations majority favors depriving Japan of mandates.
1939		President Franklin D. Roosevelt approves the sale of U.S. war planes to France.
1941		The United States and Great Britain begin high-level military talks in Washington.
1943		The first U.S. raids on the Reich blast Wilhelmshaven base and Emden.
1959		NASA selects 110 candidates for the first U.S. space flight.
1965		Military leaders oust the civilian government of Tran Van Huong in Saigon.
1967		Three astronauts are killed in a flash fire that engulfed their Apollo 1 spacecraft.
1973		A cease fire in Vietnam is called as the Paris peace accords are signed by the United States and North Vietnam.
1978		The State Supreme Court rules that Nazis can display the Swastika in a march in Skokie, Illinois.
1985		Pope John Paul says mass to one million in Venezuela.
Born on January 27
1756		Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Austrian musical genius and composer whose works included The Marriage of Figaro and The Magic Flute.
1850		Samuel Gompers, first President of American Federation of Labor.
1859		Kaiser Wilhelm II, emperor who ruled Germany during World War I but was forced to abdicate in 1918.
1900		Hyman Rickover, American admiral who is considered the "Father of the Atomic Submarine."

Admiral Hyman Rickover

Word for the Day

This week we'll feature five Americanisms. Some of these are words from the American West. For most, the origin remains obscure. Many of these are pseudo-Latin words, fanciful formations that may sound highfalutin today. Use these words to bring a certain earthy flavor to your discourse. But like spices in a preparation, a little goes a long way. Use them judiciously.

bloviate

PRONUNCIATION:

(BLO-vee-ayt)

MEANING:

verb intr.: To speak pompously.

ETYMOLOGY:

Pseudo-Latin alteration of blow (to boast). Earliest documented use: 1845.

USAGE:

"All you cinephiles who like to find grand statements and social criticism in horror movies, prepare to bloviate. It's midnight at the Tribeca Film Festival."
Neil Genzlinger; Scare Me, Sure, But Also Make A Statement; The New York Times; Apr 18, 2013.

Quote for the Day
A fellow of mediocre talent will remain a mediocrity, whether he travels or not; but one of superior talent (which without impiety I cannot deny that I possess) will go to seed if he always remains in the same place. -Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer and musician (1756-1791)

Today’s Recipe

Soups for Cold Winter Days

Chicken-Andouille Gumbo

Ingredients

2 1/2 pound(s) chicken (2 skinless thighs; 2 large boneless, skinless breast halves)

1/2 teaspoon(s) salt

1/2 cup(s) all-purpose flour, divided

1 tablespoon(s) Creole seasoning (such as Tony Chachere’s)

1 teaspoon(s) garlic powder

5 tablespoon(s) canola oil

12 ounce(s) andouille sausage links, sliced

4 large bell peppers (2 red, 2 green), diced

1 medium onion, diced

6 cup(s) low-sodium chicken broth

1 can(s) (15-ounce) diced tomatoes, drained

2 1/2cup(s) sliced frozen okra

4 cup(s) cooked rice

1/2 cup(s) fresh chopped parsley, for garnish

Directions

1.      Sprinkle chicken with salt and let sit for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large resealable plastic bag, combine 1/4 cup flour, Creole seasoning, and garlic powder. In a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Add chicken to bag, 1 piece at a time, and shake to coat. Transfer chicken to pot and cook over medium heat, turning once, until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side.

2.      Transfer chicken to a paper-towel-lined plate and add sausage to pot. Cook until lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Add peppers and onion, and cook until slightly softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Transfer sausage-vegetable mixture to a bowl and set aside.

3.      Wipe pot clean and set on medium-low heat. Add remaining flour and oil, and stir constantly until a deep-brown roux forms, about 10 minutes. Add reserved sausage-vegetable mixture and stir to combine. Stir in chicken broth, increase heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Add chicken, reduce heat to medium-low, and allow to simmer for about 40 minutes.

4.      Remove chicken from pot and shred into bite-size pieces, discarding thigh bones. Return chicken to pot and add tomatoes and okra. Simmer until okra is tender, about 10 minutes. Serve over rice. Garnish with parsley

8 servings per recipe:

Nutritional Information
(per serving)

Calories	538
Total Fat	21g
Saturated Fat	--
Cholesterol	124mg
Sodium	1,000mg
Total Carbohydrate	42g
Dietary Fiber	4g
Sugars	--
Protein	45g
Calcium	--

ENJOY!

Now You Know!

Photo Types - Salt Prints

Announcements:

Do you have a young reader in your house, or a pre-reader? Check out our Tumble Books in our e-resources. They are animated talking picture books for your young'uns, which will teach them to love reading.

STAR TREK MARATHON coming! First week of February 1-7, showing movies and episodes - leading up to…

Geek Day 2.8 on Saturday, February 8^th. Mark your calendar!!

Computer Classes every Sat. mornings 10-12. "Open House" Whatever you need. Drop in anytime during those two hours.

Check out our new blog on movies and music at: RPL's Movies and Music by Robert Finch

Luc Picard 

Genealogy tip for the day: Photo Types – Salt Prints

I have done a lot of reading on the salt prints, but a lot of what I have tried to write up is rather confusing. So instead I will share with you what I found on www.about.com : “William Henry Fox Talbot patented a new process in 1841. This process became the first system to use a negative and a positive and allowed the photographer to produce positive prints in great quantities. Through additional refinements, one of the chemicals used to make the print more sensitive to light was sodium chloride (table salt)...Thus it acquired the name of salt print. It was soon noticed that these prints were subject to fading and that it was necessary to remove the fixer or the hypo from the paper. The normal identification features of a salted paper print are a smooth but dull surface, an obvious lack of very fine detail and a silver image located in the fibers of the paper support rather than confined to the surface. Depending upon the choice of papers and methods of altering the image tone, salt prints were made to have a wide variety of color hues, ranging from brick red to a rich purple-black. Since many of these prints were produced before the importance of fixing, washing and toning were realized, countless have suffered serious fading. Salted paper prints were popular from 1839-1860.”

Talbot also developed the calotype for creating a negative. This made possible making multiple salt print pictures, something that could not be done using the Daguerreotype method. The process of using the calotype for the negatives continued, but making a positive print that did not fade required coming up with a fixative that stabilized the positive print, which in turn gave longevity to the picture.

Tomorrow we will look at Albumen pictures. If that sounds like egg shells, you’re very close!

“History is who we are; Genealogy is who I am” sg

If any of these posts are helpful drop us a line in the comments section below. We just want to know if the information we provide to you is beneficial in anyway.

Montreal after the fire

Today in History

1901		A great fire ravages Montreal, resulting in $2.5 million in property lost.
1913		The "Young Turks" revolt because they are angered by the concessions made at the London peace talks.
1932		Franklin D. Roosevelt enters the presidential race.
1948		The Soviets refuse UN entry into North Korea to administer elections.
1949		The Communist Chinese forces begin their advance on Nanking.
1950		Jerusalem becomes the official capital of Israel.
1951		President Truman creates the Commission on Internal Security and Individual Rights, to monitor the anti-Communist campaign.
1969		NASA unveils moon-landing craft.
1973		President Richard Nixon claims that Vietnam peace has been reached in Paris and that the POWs would be home in 60 days.
1977		Alex Haley's Roots begins a record-breaking eight-night broadcast on ABC.
1981		Under international pressure, opposition leader Kim Dae Jung's death sentence is commuted to life imprisonment in Seoul.
1986		U.S. begins maneuvers off the Libyan coast.
Born on January 23
1832		Édouard Manet, French impressionist painter best known for Luncheon in the Grass.
1899		Humphrey Bogart, U.S. film actor (The African Queen, Casablanca, The Maltese Falcon).
1919		Ernie Kovacs, U.S. comedian and television personality.
1957		Princess Caroline of Monaco.

Princess Caroline

Word for the Day

iliad

PRONUNCIATION:

(IL-ee-uhd)

MEANING:

noun:
1. A long narrative, especially an epic poem describing martial exploits.
2. A long series of miseries or disasters.

ETYMOLOGY:

After Iliad, a Greek epic poem traditionally attributed to Homer. From Ilion, ancient Greek name of the city of Troy, an area now in modern Turkey. Earliest documented use: 1579.

USAGE:

"She knew ... stories which form part of an Iliad of obscure hatreds, quarrels, adulteries, marriages."
Storm Jameson; Journey from the North, Volume 2; Collins; 1970.

"Professional football players are our gladiators. The only difference is that we, the fans, don't, as they did at the Colosseum in Rome, put our thumbs up or down to decide a player's fate. But then we don't have to; they all but kill themselves. In each of his interviews, Mr. Cohen asks former players: 'How're you holding up physically?' Everyone answers with an Iliad of injuries and woes."
Joseph Epstein; When Defense Ruled the Game; The Wall Street Journal (New York); Oct 26, 2013.

Quote for the Day
Most people think that shadows follow, precede, or surround beings or objects. The truth is that they also surround words, ideas, desires, deeds, impulses and memories. -Elie Wiesel, writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1928)

[Ed. That makes a good point!! I’d never thought of that before. SG]

Today’s Recipe

Soups for Cold Winter Days

Bread Bowls

Soups are popular in the winter as they warm the body and the soul! Along with that, bread bowls have become popular, so "you can have your soup-in-a-bowl and eat it, too” – to paraphrase a phrase! Here is one recipe you might enjoy:

Makes 4 Bread Bowls to Fill with your Favorite Soup or Chili

5-1/2 to 6 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 envelopes Fleischmann's® RapidRise Yeast

1-1/2 teaspoons salt

1 cup water

1 cup milk

2 tablespoon butter or margarine

Directions

In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, sugar, undissolved yeast, and salt. Heat water, milk, and butter until very warm (120 to 130°F). Gradually add to flour mixture. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes. Cover; let rest for 10 minutes.

Divide dough into 4 equal portions; shape each into a ball. Place on greased baking sheet. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

With sharp knife, make 4 (1/4-inch deep) slashes in crisscross fashion on top of loaves. Bake at 375°F for 25 to 25 minutes or until done. Remove from baking sheets; cool on wire rack. Cut off one-third of loaf; hollow out loaf to form 1/4-inch thick bowl. Fill with soup.


Nutritional Information:
Per Serving Serving Size: one bowl (1/4 of recipe)
Calories: 355; Total Fat:  5 g; Saturated Fat:  2 g;
Cholesterol: 10 mg; Sodium: 485 mg; Carbohydrates: 74 g; Dietary Fiber:  3 g; Protein:  11 g

[Editor’s Note: First of all, this idea I have, I have never tried!!! So if you try this, it is at your own risk. J However, I wonder if you take a votive candle holder (used to high heat), and push it down on the center of the ball, before the last rising, ...would not the dough rise up around it? Then I would think you would need to bake it with the votive in it to get the indention to stay. You could get a bowl, without scraping out and therefore wasting the bread inside. Just a thought! If you try this let me know if it works!]

ENJOY!

Now You Know!