Alice Austen Correspondence Collection, 1883-1884

PI

Version: 9 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:57:08 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 6:29:22 PM

Added description

Description

Alice Austen Correspondence Collection, 1883‑1884

Overview

This digitized collection comprises the personal correspondence, Victorian‑era calling cards, and photography‑related ephemera that Alice Austen (1866‑1952) received and sent during the years 1883‑1884. The materials are presented as scanned JPEG images of the original documents and accompanying typed transcriptions in TXT format. The collection is one of fifteen year‑based folders that together span the entire Alice Austen Papers.

Background

Alice Austen was a pioneering American photographer based in Staten Island, New York. During the early 1880s she was establishing her photographic studio and building a network of friends and patrons. The letters in this folder were exchanged with close acquaintances—Minn (Austen) Muller, Gertrude Eccleston, Julie Marsh Lord, Bessie Hazard, Julia Bredt, and the ambiguous “EUB or EAB.” The correspondence reflects Austen’s social life, her burgeoning photography business, and her personal relationships.

Contents

The collection contains: * Personal letters (handwritten and typed) covering topics such as winter social events (skating parties, sleigh rides, whist parties), church gatherings, and family news (sympathy for a deceased grandfather). * Calling cards that illustrate Victorian social etiquette. * Negative sleeves and other photography‑related items that hint at Austen’s commercial activities, including sales of photographs from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. * Transcription files that provide readable versions of the handwritten correspondence.

Representative examples include a May 4, 1883 letter from Minn Muller in Hong Kong, a July 26, 1883 note from Gertrude Eccleston describing a lake‑side stay, and a December 26, 1884 Christmas letter from Julia Bredt in West Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.

Scope

The collection covers the period 1883‑1884, documents exchanges primarily between Alice Austen and her friends and family, and is geographically diverse—Staten Island, Hong Kong, Lake George (NY), and West Virginia, among others. It offers insight into the social milieu of upper‑middle‑class Staten Island society, Austen’s early professional endeavors, and the personal networks that sustained her life and work.

Raw Cheimarros Data

@alice_austen:person {full_name: "Elizabeth Alice Austen", birth: @date_1866, death: @date_1952, occupation: "photographer", location: @staten_island_ny}

@minn_muller:person {full_name: "Minn (Austen) Muller", relationship: "friend", location: @hong_kong}

@gertrude_eccleston:person {full_name: "Gertrude Eccleston", relationship: "friend", location: @lake_george_ny}

@julie_marsh_lord:person {full_name: "Julie (Marsh) Lord", relationship: "friend", location: @west_virginia}

@bessie_hazard:person {full_name: "Bessie Hazard", relationship: "friend", location: @staten_island_ny}

@julia_bredt:person {full_name: "Julia Bredt", relationship: "friend", location: @west_bethlehem_pa}

@eub_eab:person {full_name: "EUB or EAB", relationship: "correspondent"}

@mr_greenfield:person {full_name: "Mr Greenfield"}

@mr_wheeler:person {full_name: "Mr Wheeler"}

@mr_potter:person {full_name: "Mr Potter", role: "engineer officer"}

@edith:person {full_name: "Edith"}

@grace_hamilton:person {full_name: "Grace Hamilton"}

@campbell_hamilton:person {full_name: "Campbell Hamilton"}

@prentice:person {full_name: "Mr Prentice"}

@willie:person {full_name: "Willie"}

@albert:person {full_name: "Albert"}

@eleanor:person {full_name: "Eleanor"}

@hong_kong:place

@lake_george_ny:place {state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@presidio_ca:place {state: @california, country: @united_states}

@west_virginia:place {state: @west_virginia, country: @united_states}

@woodstock_wv:place {state: @west_virginia, country: @united_states}

@rocky_mountains:place

@lick_observatory_ca:place {state: @california, country: @united_states}

@university_club_ny:place {city: @new_york, state: @new_york}

@grace_church:place {city: @staten_island_ny}

@worlds_columbian_exposition_1893:event {type: "exposition", year: @date_1893}

@steinway_piano:object {type: "piano"}

@skating_party:event {type: "social"}

@sleigh_ride:event {type: "social"}

@whist_party:event {type: "social"}

@church_event:event {type: "social"}

@letter_1883_05_04_min:document {date: @date_1883_05_04, sender: @minn_muller, recipient: @alice_austen, location: @hong_kong, content: "Letter from Hong Kong describing travel, costumes, Catskills, etc."}

@letter_1883_07_26_gertrude:document {date: @date_1883_07_26, sender: @gertrude_eccleston, recipient: @alice_austen, location: @lake_george_ny, content: "Letter describing lake stay, circus, candlelight parade, boat race."}

@letter_1884_08_20_gertrude:document {date: @date_1884_08_20, sender: @gertrude_eccleston, recipient: @alice_austen, location: @presidio_ca, content: "Letter about illness, dinner party, Lick Observatory, University Club, musical activities."}

@letter_1884_08_24_julie:document {date: @date_1884_08_24, sender: @julie_marsh_lord, recipient: @alice_austen, location: @west_virginia, content: "Letter requesting news, describing cottage, tennis courts, church."}

@letter_1884_09_28_bessie:document {date: @date_1884_09_28, sender: @bessie_hazard, recipient: @alice_austen, location: @staten_island_ny, content: "Letter about tennis schedule."}

@letter_1884_12_26_julia:document {date: @date_1884_12_26, sender: @julia_bredt, recipient: @alice_austen, location: @west_bethlehem_pa, content: "Christmas presents."}

@letter_1884_12_30_eub:document {date: @date_1884_12_30, sender: @eub_eab, recipient: @alice_austen, content: "Handkerchief holder token."}

@alice_austen_correspondence_collection:event {date_range: {start: @date_1883, end: @date_1884}, description: "Personal letters, calling cards, and photography-related materials from Alice Austen Papers."}

@alice_austen_house_museum:organization {location: @staten_island_ny, type: "museum"}

@alice_austen_correspondence_collection -> contains -> [@letter_1883_05_04_min, @letter_1883_07_26_gertrude, @letter_1884_08_20_gertrude, @letter_1884_08_24_julie, @letter_1884_09_28_bessie, @letter_1884_12_26_julia, @letter_1884_12_30_eub]

@alice_austen_correspondence_collection -> held at -> @alice_austen_house_museum

@minn_muller -> wrote -> @letter_1883_05_04_min

@letter_1883_05_04_min -> addressed to -> @alice_austen

@gertrude_eccleston -> wrote -> @letter_1883_07_26_gertrude

@letter_1883_07_26_gertrude -> addressed to -> @alice_austen

@gertrude_eccleston -> wrote -> @letter_1884_08_20_gertrude

@letter_1884_08_20_gertrude -> addressed to -> @alice_austen

@julie_marsh_lord -> wrote -> @letter_1884_08_24_julie

@letter_1884_08_24_julie -> addressed to -> @alice_austen

@bessie_hazard -> wrote -> @letter_1884_09_28_bessie

@letter_1884_09_28_bessie -> addressed to -> @alice_austen

@julia_bredt -> wrote -> @letter_1884_12_26_julia

@letter_1884_12_26_julia -> addressed to -> @alice_austen

@eub_eab -> wrote -> @letter_1884_12_30_eub

@letter_1884_12_30_eub -> addressed to -> @alice_austen

@gertrude_eccleston -> visited -> @lick_observatory_ca {when: @date_1884_08_20}

@gertrude_eccleston -> attended -> @university_club_ny {when: @date_1884_08_20}

@gertrude_eccleston -> sang at -> @grace_church {when: @date_1884_08_20}

@gertrude_eccleston -> mentioned -> @mr_potter

@gertrude_eccleston -> mentioned -> @edith

@gertrude_eccleston -> mentioned -> @prentice

@gertrude_eccleston -> mentioned -> @grace_hamilton

@gertrude_eccleston -> mentioned -> @campbell_hamilton

@gertrude_eccleston -> mentioned -> @willie

@gertrude_eccleston -> mentioned -> @albert

@gertrude_eccleston -> mentioned -> @eleanor

@alice_austen -> sold photographs -> @worlds_columbian_exposition_1893

@alice_austen -> owned -> @steinway_piano

@alice_austen -> participated in -> @skating_party

@alice_austen -> participated in -> @sleigh_ride

@alice_austen -> participated in -> @whist_party

@alice_austen -> participated in -> @church_event

Metadata

Version History (9 versions)

Additional Components (39)

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1883-1884 transcripts.docx.ref.json
1883-1884 transcripts.txt
1883_5-4-May 1001-AUNT-MIN copy.jpg.ref.json
1883_5-4-May 1002-AUNT-MIN copy.jpg.ref.json
1883_7-27-july 1001-trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1883_7-27-july 1002-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1883_7-27-july 1003-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1883_7-27-july 1004-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1883_7-27-july 1005-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_1-11-Jan 1001-bredt copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_1-11-Jan 1002-bredt copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_12-17-Dec 1001 Anne Loomis wedding invitation.jpg.ref.json
1884_12-26-Dec 3.1-Bredt copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_12-Dec 2001 copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_12-Dec 2003 copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_12-Dec 3001 copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_12Dec 2002 copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_4-16-April Invitation to Emma Stone wedding.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20- 3005-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20-Aug 3001-trude-Presideo.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20-Aug 3002-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20-Aug 3003-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20-Aug 3004-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20-Aug 3006-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20-Aug 3007-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20-Aug 3008-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-20-Aug 3009-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-24-Aug 2001 copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-24-Aug 2002 copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-24-Aug 2003-Marsh copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-24-Aug 2004-Marsh copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-26-Aug 1002-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-26-Aug 1003-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-26-Aug 1004-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-26-Aug 1005-Trude copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_8-30-Aug 1001-trude-Woodstock.jpg.ref.json
1884_9-28-Sept 1001 copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_9-28-Sept 1002-Hazard copy.jpg.ref.json
1884_9-28-Sept 1003-Hazard copy.jpg.ref.json

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