Early Photographers & Unidentified Photos

We've had another successful photo identification on July 12, 2023!

The States Right Democrat, La Grange, February 12, 1859 Ambrotypes. THE Ladies and Gentlemen of La Grange and Fayette county are respectfully informed by W. B. Clark, that his room is now open over Cavanagh's store, for a short time only. Those wishing a true and correct likeness of themselves or friends, are invited to give him a call. Prices moderate. Feruary 12, 1859.

 

SEE UNIDENTIFIED PHOTOS BY THESE FAYETTE COUNTY, TEXAS PHOTOGRAPHERS
M. Cadwell, Flatonia Gustav Froelich, Round Top F. D. Foytik, Fayetteville Herzik, Schulenburg Legler, Schulenburg Joseph J. Machann, Lyons Martin, John and Anna, La Grange W. A. Meiners, Waldeck Louis Melcher, O'Quinn Charles A. Meyer, La Grange Moeller & Kunz, Schulenburg	Louis Muenzler, Industry/Fayetteville Arthur Nichols, Warrenton C. Petersen, La Grange Friederike Recknagel, Round Top Louis Rice, La Grange Will A. Robinson, La Grange Tauch & Pannewitz, Schulenburg H. Tauch, Fayetteville Wm. Tauch, Schulenburg Wallace & Hooben, La Grange R. J. Zimmermann, Schulenburg

Fayette County Photographers
Location	Name and Approximate Time in Business in the 1800s
Engle	Louis Melcher, 1900-1902, also at O'Quinn and La Grange	Frank Fojtik, 1908
Fayetteville	Henry Tauch, 1892-1902	Reiner J. Zimmermann, 1869-1870, later in Schulenburg
Flatonia	Aaron W. Cadwell, 1870-1876 Fred B. Cadwell, 1900	Moses Cadwell, 1870-1899 Frank J. Schlueter, 1891
High Hill	Nicholas B. Gorsuch, 1869,1873
La Grange	Adolphus Behn, 1847 Samuel T. Blessing, 1856 W. B. Clark, 1859 Crayton Studios [C. C. Creighton], 1940s-early 1970s H. H. (or W. H.) Gilliam, 1866 Luck, 1900 John R. Martin, 1868-1870 Louis Melcher, 1895, 1914-1921, also at O'Quinn and Engle Charles Meyer, c 1895, later in Giddings Charles Joseph Migurski, 1888-1898, co-owner Russian Eagle Photo Gallery, early 1890s Frank C. Mills, 1890-1891	C. Petersen, 1872-1914 Leo Petersen, early 1900s C. Prealinouz, 1866-1867 Carver W. Rains, 1900 Louis Rice, 1887-1907 William A. Robinson, 1893-1894 John Scott, 1872 V. P. Sargeant, 1866 Stanislaus Szmidensky, 1880 Mat S. Wallace, 1869-1870 Wallace & Hooben, 1867-1868
O'Quinn	Louis Melcher, 1892-1899	Melcher and Meyer, 1895
Oso	W. F. E. C. Henausin, 1869	Joseph D. Sloan, 1869-1872
Round Top	Gus Froelich, 1872-1910	Mrs. Friederike Recknagel, 1892-1916
Schulenburg	L. M. Herzik Studios, c1907 - Moeller & Kunz, 1893 Gustav A. Pannewitz, 1889-1891 Tauch & Pannewitz, 1886-1899	Wm. Tauch, 1883-1891, 1902 Wm H. Thomas, 1878-1880 Reiner J. Zimmermann, 1876-1900, previously in Fayetteville
Waldeck	W. A. Meiners, 1898-early 1900s
Warrenton	Arthur Nichols, 1898, then in nearby Industry from 1900-1914
Winchester	W. B. Clark, 1866
Unspecified community	W. H. Bannifer, 1873 L. Boehm. 1883 T. C. Bolton & T. E. Mitchell, 1895 A. H. Butler, 1872 J. E. H. Chapman, 1894 Willy Chukinger, 1900 Arthur Cordes, 1900 E. H. (or C. H.) Doolittle, 1871 Mrs. C. L. Fouzer, 1893 F. M. Hall, 1872 Harper, 1883 Janes & Banta, 1871-1872 Maximillian T. Jesse, 1871 Joiner & Cox, 1873 William Karechel/Kauechel, 1896	William Keudell, 1884-1892 Ed Knox, 1891 Larn & Miller, 1889 J. M. Layton, 1872 Ernst Leifs, 1875 Frank B. Lovejoy, 1895 Alfred Otto, 1900 W. N. & J. T. Park, 1875 Rice & Potash, 1887 George F. Roesberg, 1873 A. Snell, 1882 P. R. Stamps, 1871-1872 F. Strebel, 1895-1896 P. Vivier, 1860 Wallace & Karnes, 1871-1873

Walter A. Meiners, Waldeck

 

Walter A. Meiners (1873-1954) was a farmer and photographer at Waldeck. His grandparents were German immigrants Ricklef (1814-1902) and Anke (1816-1908) Meiners. His parents were John and Laura Weber Meiners.

Walter Meiners taught in the Waldeck School in 1897 and still listed his occupation as teacher in the 1900 census. He was on the tax rolls as a photographer in Fayette County by 1898 and had a studio in a building separate from his home on his property. He is shown here on a card with his logo. His ornate wicker photographer's chair remains in the family.

Meiners married Julia Heller Goerner in 1906 in Waldeck where they raised their family of five children. He was listed as a farm laborer in the 1910 census and we believe he had given up working as a photographer by this time.

Sources:
Haynes, David. Catching Shadows—A Directory of 19th-Century Texas Photographers. Texas State Historical Commission, 1993.
Photo and biographical information contributed by granddaughter, Elva Meiners Keilers

 

Identified on 11/05/22 as Otto Reinhard Speckels Please contact Sidney Levesque

Now identified as Ida Weyand Thomas Please contact Sabra Sauer

This photo, found in a Victoria antique shop, has been identifed on 11/25/07 as Wilhelm H. Folterman, 1840-1921, who is buried in the Waldeck Cemetery. Thanks go to Judy Matejowsky for working on this one. Submitted by Sabra Sauer

Arthur A. Nichols, Warrenton & Industry

Arthur Nichols was born in Illinois in 1874. He appears on the tax roles in Fayette County in 1898, but was living in Austin County by 1900 where he had a photography studio in Industry. In 1907 Nichols took Louis O. Muenzler of Willow Springs as an apprentice. The following year Muenzler bought a house across the street from Nichols and set up his own shop. Nichols is still listed as a photographer inhis own shop in the 1910 census. In 1914 Nichols sold his studio building and home and moved to Columbus where he worked as a railroad machinist and later as a salesman.

Sources:
Haynes, David. Catching Shadows—A Directory of 19th-Century Texas Photographers. Texas State Historical Commission, 1993.
Industry-West End Historical Society. Historical Accounts of Industry, Texas 1831-1986. New Ulm Enterprise Print, 1986.
1910, 1920, 1930 Census

Gathering of Fayette County Woodmen of the World camps. The communities of Cedar and Carmine can be seen on two of the flags. There is a large obelisk in the center of the photo and a band was present. Was this at a cemetery? Members of the Menking family were probably taking part in this gathering, which likely took place between 1900 and 1914. Please contact Sue Menking Standford if you have information about this photo.
This young woman was a friend or relative of the Voelkel, Albers or Schuhmann families. Please contact Sidney Schuhmann Levesque	Now identified as Paula C. Albert Gruesen. She was the daughter of Johan "Carl" and Pauline Henniger Albert and married Pierre C. Gruesen. Please contact Sidney Schuhmann Levesque	These are friends or relatives of the Menking family. Please contact Sue Menking Standford

Louis Melcher, O'Quinn

Born in 1870, Louis Melcher was one of the ten children of John Carl Melcher, a merchant at O'Quinn, and Wilhelmine Clementine Gebert. Louis married Ida Loessin and they lived at O'Quinn, El Campo, and Engle where he had a saloon. He was on the Fayette County Tax Rolls beginning in 1892. On April 28, 1892 The La Grange Journal reported "Mr. J. C. Melcher at O'Quinn south of Cedar is building an addition to his store which his son, Louis, will occupy for a photograph gallery." Melcher died at O'Quinn in 1948.

Sources:
La Grange Journal obituary, March 1914
Fayette County Texas Heritage. Curtis Media, Inc., 1996
Lotto, F. Fayette County, Her History and Her People. Schulenburg, 1902.
Haynes, David. Catching Shadows, A Directory of 19th-Century Texas Photographers. Austin: Texas State Historical Association, 1993.

This is a friend or relative of Clara Surman Heinsohn Contributed by Tommy Heinsohn and Rox Ann Johnson
Ida and Marie Ramthun. Successfully identified by Sandy Otto! Ida married August Fahrenthold and Marie married Conrad Lindstrom. The photographer, Louis Melcher, was married to their father's first cousin. Contributed by Rox Ann Johnson	Successfully identified as Augusta Margaretha Minna Loessin and Richard Hermann Contributed by Sandy Otto	Friends or Relatives of the Loessin, Vogt or Willrich Families Contributed by Sandy Otto

See Lavaca County Unidentified Photographs

Fayette County Photographers Index

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