Unknown Man in Formal Attire

No clue who this very well-dressed gentleman is.  The photo has faded and has a lot of "silvering" on the surface.  I included the original scan and one that has been adjusted.

Portrait of Unknown Woman by Ethel Standiford, Louisville KY ca 1910

Here is another unknown woman from the Moran Place photo collection.  It was taken by Ethel Standiford at her studio in Louisville Kentucky in the early 1900's.  

We don't know the subject of the portrait but the photographer was well-known.

Born Ethel Conway Jan 1871 in Indiana to John Hoaglund and Rebecca Buxton Conway, she married Frank L Standiford in 1891 in Jefferson Kentucky. She trained as a teacher but instead became an apprentice in a local photographers studio.  Ethel opened her own Lousiville studio in 1901 while her husband Frank was a bookkeeper in a local furniture store.  Frank died in 1916.  In 1917 Ethel married a dentist, Dr. Harold David Mehling in Brooke, West Virginia.  Ethel and David moved to Cleveland about 1919 where she opened another photography studio. While in Cleveland she was elected president of the Cleveland Photographers Association, the first woman to hold the position. She closed the studio in 1936 after going into debt. Ethel Conway Standiford Mehling died in 1963 in Ohio. She was buried in Cave Hill Cemetery beside her first husband, Frank Standiford.

Ethel was most known for her portraits of notable Cleveland men and her innovative portraits of children. She entered and won 1st Prize in the Photography Portrait division and received the Penton Medal for Excellence from the Cleveland Museum of Art.  She was also a golf enthusiast and a convert to the "new" Eastman Film Process.

Fire, Latin, Macbeth and Thank you for the Money Feb 14 1899

Jim Moran III
St Albans School 1899

Gustave Toutant Beauregard
St Albans School 1899

As much as I enjoy Moran letters I love it when they are written on letterhead giving additional information. For instance, this letterhead tells me Jim was an associate editor with his friend Gustave Toutant Beauregard on Promus '99 which might be the yearbook for St. Albans School.

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Malcolm J. Taylor, Editor-In-Chief
Ray Jones, Business Manager
PROMUS '99
Associate Editors:
Henry G. McCall
Charles S. Brent
James H. Moran
James B. Faulkner
Gustave T. Beauregard

Radford, VA    Feb 14, 1899

Dear Papa:

Your letter with the check enclosed was received a few days ago and I was very glad to hear from you.  The check could not have reached me at a better time, for it will now come in very handy.  Last night one of the main buildings caught fire from the furnace and it took us over an hour to put it out.  I never saw such a cold night in all my live, the water would freeze in ten steps of the fire.  I ruined my shoes and pants but otherwise come out alright.  The weather is moderating somewhat and I think it will be a great deal warmer tomorrow.

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page 3

Tell Sister (Fannie) that the book which I wrote for was the Latin book Livy and if yo she can find it to please send it at once, she can also send me her notes on Macbeth.  I must bring this letter to a close.  Write soon, with much love to all.

Your son,

J H Moran

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