Alice Austen Correspondence with Effie E. Alexander
PI
Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:39:43 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 7:27:03 PM
Added description
Description
Effie E. Alexander to Alice Austen Correspondence Collection (1892‑1898)
Overview
This digital collection preserves the personal letters written by Effie E. Alexander to Elizabeth Alice Austen, the pioneering Staten Island photographer. The material consists of scanned photographs of handwritten envelopes and pages (JPG files) accompanied by typed transcriptions (TXT). The letters span the period 1892‑1898 and are organized into year‑based folders, each containing multiple copies of the same correspondence for archival redundancy.Background
Effie Alexander was a close friend and confidante of Alice Austen, residing in the same upper‑middle‑class Staten Island community. The letters were originally penned in the early 1890s, a time when Austen was establishing her photographic practice and engaging in social events that would later be documented in her own work. The collection was digitized by the Alice Austen House Museum to provide public access to Austen’s personal network and to illuminate the social milieu that informed her photography.Contents
The collection includes three scanned copies of a single letter dated 8 January 1892, written from Jefferson Street, Staten Island. The correspondence references a variety of contemporaneous acquaintances—Junius, St John, Beverly, and Lou—along with social occasions such as a “Leap Year Party” and a proposed summer stay in Pedro. Effie also mentions a photograph of a child named Berkeley, indicating a shared interest in capturing family moments. Beyond the 1892 letters, the collection contains additional correspondence covering the years 1893‑1898, which discuss family news, invitations to social gatherings, and Austen’s burgeoning photography business, including sales of images from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition.Scope
The collection covers personal, informal correspondence between Effie Alexander and Alice Austen from 1892 to 1898, situated in Staten Island, New York. It focuses on social life, family relationships, and the early professional activities of Austen. The material excludes formal business records, photographs themselves, and any unrelated correspondence. The collection offers a window into the Victorian‑era social network that underpinned Austen’s career and personal life.Raw Cheimarros Data
@alice_austen:person {full_name: "Elizabeth Alice Austen", birth_year: @date_1866, death_year: @date_1952, occupation: "photographer", location: @staten_island}
@effie_e_alexander:person {full_name: "Effie E. Alexander", relationship: "correspondent of Alice Austen"}
@junius:person {description: "friend mentioned in letter"}
@st_john:person {description: "friend mentioned in letter"}
@beverly:person {description: "person referenced in letter"}
@lou:person {description: "friend referenced in letter"}
@staten_island:place {state: @new_york, country: @united_states}
@pedro:place {description: "location referenced in letter", region: @staten_island}
@jefferson_street:place {address: "717 Jefferson Street", city: @staten_island}
@leap_year_party:event {date: @date_1892_02_29, description: "social gathering mentioned in letter"}
@photo_of_berkeley:document {type: "photograph", subject: @berkeley}
@alice_austen_correspondence:document {title: "Alice Austen Correspondence with Effie E. Alexander", creator: @effie_e_alexander, start_date: @date_1892_01_08, end_date: @date_1898, description: "Collection of letters from Effie to Alice Austen"}
@file_pinax:file {filename: "pinax.json"}
@file_pinax -> documents -> @alice_austen_correspondence
@file_1892_1_8_jan_3_1_effie_copy_jpg:file {filename: "1892_1-8-Jan 3.1-Effie copy.jpg.ref.json"}
@letter_1892_01_08_1:document {date: @date_1892_01_08, from: @effie_e_alexander, to: @alice_austen, location: @jefferson_street}
@file_1892_1_8_jan_3_1_effie_copy_jpg -> contains -> @letter_1892_01_08_1
@effie_e_alexander -> wrote -> @letter_1892_01_08_1
@letter_1892_01_08_1 -> mentions -> @berkeley
@letter_1892_01_08_1 -> mentions -> @photo_of_berkeley
@file_1892_1_8_jan_3_2_effie_copy_jpg:file {filename: "1892_1-8-Jan 3.2-Effie copy.jpg.ref.json"}
@letter_1892_01_08_2:document {date: @date_1892_01_08, from: @effie_e_alexander, to: @alice_austen, location: @jefferson_street}
@file_1892_1_8_jan_3_2_effie_copy_jpg -> contains -> @letter_1892_01_08_2
@effie_e_alexander -> wrote -> @letter_1892_01_08_2
@letter_1892_01_08_2 -> mentions -> @junius
@letter_1892_01_08_2 -> mentions -> @st_john
@letter_1892_01_08_2 -> mentions -> @leap_year_party
@file_1892_1_8_jan_3_3_effie_copy_jpg:file {filename: "1892_1-8-Jan 3.3-Effie copy.jpg.ref.json"}
@letter_1892_01_08_3:document {date: @date_1892_01_08, from: @effie_e_alexander, to: @alice_austen, location: @jefferson_street}
@file_1892_1_8_jan_3_3_effie_copy_jpg -> contains -> @letter_1892_01_08_3
@effie_e_alexander -> wrote -> @letter_1892_01_08_3
@letter_1892_01_08_3 -> mentions -> @beverly
@letter_1892_01_08_3 -> mentions -> @lou
@letter_1892_01_08_3 -> mentions -> @st_john
@date_1866
@date_1952
@date_1892_01_08
@date_1892_02_29
@date_1898Metadata
Files (3)
OCR Text
717 Jefferson Street Dear Alice, I got a letter from Kie this morning saying you were very indignant with me for not sending you a photo of Berkeley. I am awfully sorry for I have saved one for you and the only reason it has not gone is I have been too lazy; I only had half a dozen of the larger ones & I would send you one of these instead. He is an awfully sweet baby and grows cunning every day.
OCR Text
I wish you would come out here and spend next summer with me. I would urge you very strongly if we were not going to Pedro to live and I am afraid you would not enjoy being there. Junius says he will get me a horse and plans fishing trips to encourage me. St John comes very often to dinner. He hasn't turned sour and is quite bearable. I should think he would hate me. I have been so rude scolding and snubbing him when I think he needs it but he comes just the same. There is to be a Leap Year party.
OCR Text
next week the girls are to take the men in their carriages & St John is going, he is so afraid he will get left it is too funny and a very good lesson for him. All I do now is to take care of Beverly go to market and once in a while go to the theater. Lou seems to be very happy— I get very enthusiastic letters from her. My young man is waking up so I can't be able to write any more with much love and thanks for the nice card. Your loving friend, Effie E. Alexander
Version History (4 versions)
- ✓ v4 (current) · 12/9/2025, 9:39:43 PM
"Added description" - v3 · 12/9/2025, 8:30:25 PM · View this version
"Added knowledge graph extraction" - v2 · 12/9/2025, 7:48:04 PM · View this version
"Added PINAX metadata" - v1 · 12/9/2025, 7:27:03 PM · View this version
"Reorganization group: Correspondence_Effie_Alexander"
Parent
No children (leaf entity)