1892_5-3-May 11002 copy.jpg

Alice Austen Invitations and Calling Cards Collection

PI

Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:43:19 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 7:29:28 PM

Added description

Description

Alice Austen Invitations and Calling Cards Collection

Overview

The Alice Austen Invitations and Calling Cards Collection is a digitized assemblage of three Victorian‑era social invitations dated 1892. The collection, housed at the Alice Austen House Museum in Staten Island, NY, comprises high‑resolution JPEG scans of handwritten invitations and calling cards, each accompanied by machine‑read OCR text. The items were produced by Mr. & Mrs. Henry Dresland, Mr. & Mrs. Edward H. Bonner, and the Pi Eta Society of Harvard University.

Background

Created in 1892, the collection reflects the social customs of upper‑middle‑class families in late‑19th‑century New York. The invitations were likely circulated among the Austen household’s friends and neighbors, providing a snapshot of the period’s etiquette and community life. The Alice Austen House, the former residence of pioneering photographer Elizabeth Alice Austen (1866‑1952), preserves these artifacts as part of its broader archival holdings (MS1).

Contents

  • Dance Invitation (May 11, 1892) – Issued by Mr. & Mrs. Henry Dresland, inviting guests to a dancing event at Arrochar Park, Staten Island.
  • Wedding Invitation (June 14, 1892) – Sent by Mr. & Mrs. Edward H. Bonner to celebrate the marriage of their daughter Constance Bonner to Ernest Frederick Schofer at Saint Mary’s Church, West Brighton.
  • Harvard Class Day Invitation (June 24, 1892) – Distributed by the Pi Eta Society, inviting attendees to the Class Day celebration at Massachusetts Hall, Harvard University.

Each invitation is rendered in a formal, calligraphic style typical of the era, and the OCR captures key details such as dates, times, and locations.

Scope

The collection is confined to the year 1892 and to three geographic locales: Arrochar Park and Saint Mary’s Church in Staten Island, and Massachusetts Hall in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It encompasses only social invitations and calling cards, excluding other correspondence or photographic materials. The items collectively illustrate the social rituals—dances, weddings, academic celebrations—of the period and provide insight into the networks surrounding the Austen family.

Raw Cheimarros Data

@alice_austen:person {full_name: "Elizabeth Alice Austen", birth_year: @date_1866, death_year: @date_1952, occupation: "photographer", location: @staten_island}

@staten_island:place {city: "Staten Island", state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@henry_dresland:person {full_name: "Henry Dresland"}

@mrs_henry_dresland:person {full_name: "Mrs. Henry Dresland"}

@edward_h_bonner:person {full_name: "Edward H. Bonner"}

@mrs_edward_h_bonner:person {full_name: "Mrs. Edward H. Bonner"}

@pi_eta_society:organization {name: "Pi Eta Society"}

@constance_bonner:person {full_name: "Constance Bonner"}

@ernest_frederick_schofer:person {full_name: "Ernest Frederick Schofer"}

@arrochar_park:place {city: @staten_island, description: "Arrochar Park"}

@saint_marys_church:place {address: "Castleton Avenue, West Brighton, Staten Island"}

@massachusetts_hall:place {institution: @harvard_university, description: "Massachusetts Hall"}

@harvard_university:place {city: "Cambridge", state: "Massachusetts", country: @united_states}

@alice_austen_house:organization {name: "Alice Austen House Museum"}

@alice_austen_invitations_and_calling_cards_collection:collection {title: "Alice Austen Invitations and Calling Cards Collection", created: @date_1892, description: "A collection of invitations and calling cards from 1892, including a dance invitation from Mr & Mrs Henry Dresland, a wedding invitation for Constance Bonner and Ernest Frederick Schofer, and an invitation from the Pi Eta Society at Harvard University."}

@dance_invitation_1892:document {type: "dance invitation"} {date: @date_1892_05_11, location: @arrochar_park, organizers: [@henry_dresland, @mrs_henry_dresland]}

@wedding_invitation_1892:document {type: "wedding invitation"} {date: @date_1892_06_14, location: @saint_marys_church, bride: @constance_bonner, groom: @ernest_frederick_schofer, organizers: [@edward_h_bonner, @mrs_edward_h_bonner]}

@harvard_class_day_1892:event {date: @date_1892_06_24, location: @massachusetts_hall, organizer: @pi_eta_society}

@file_pinax -> describes -> @alice_austen_invitations_and_calling_cards_collection {creator: [@henry_dresland, @edward_h_bonner, @pi_eta_society], institution: @alice_austen_house, language: "en", subjects: ["Social events","Weddings","Harvard University","Dancing","Invitations","Calling cards","Victorian-era social life"], place: [@arrochar_park, @saint_marys_church, @massachusetts_hall]}

@file_1892_5_3_may_11002_copy_jpg -> contains -> @dance_invitation_1892

@file_1892_6_14_june_2003_copy_jpg -> contains -> @wedding_invitation_1892

@file_1892_6_24_june_7004_copy_jpg -> contains -> @harvard_class_day_1892

@alice_austen -> born -> @date_1866

@alice_austen -> died -> @date_1952

@alice_austen -> lived in -> @staten_island

@constance_bonner -> daughter of -> @edward_h_bonner

Metadata

Title
Alice Austen Invitations and Calling Cards Collection
Type
Collection
Creator
Mr & Mrs Henry DreslandMr. & Mrs. Edward H. BonnerThe Pi Eta Society
Institution
Alice Austen House
Created
1892
Language
en
Subjects
Social events, Weddings, Harvard University, Dancing, Invitations, Calling cards, Victorian-era social life
Place
Arrochar Park, Staten Island, Saint Mary's Church, Castleton Avenue, West Brighton, Staten Island, Massachusetts Hall, Harvard University
Source
PINAX

Files (3)

1892_5-3-May 11002 copy.jpgJPEG
575.96 KB
OCR Text

HAWKHURST. ARROCHAR PARK, S.I. Mr & Mrs Henry Dresland request the pleasure of your Company on Wednesday evening May the eleventh at half past eight o'clock, informally Dancing 1892

1892_6-14-June 2003 copy.jpgJPEG
472.94 KB
OCR Text

Mr. & Mrs. Edward H. Bonner request your presence at the marriage of their daughter, Constance, to Mr. Ernest Frederick Schofer, on Tuesday evening, June the fourteenth, 1892 at eight o'clock. Saint Mary's Church, Castleton Avenue, West Brighton, Staten Island.

1892_6-24-June 7004 copy.jpgJPEG
419.77 KB
OCR Text

Harvard Class Day June the twenty-fourth, Eighteen hundred and ninety-two. The Pi Eta Society requests the pleasure of your company from half past two 1892 until half past five o'clock Massachusetts Hall.

Version History (4 versions)

  • ✓ v4 (current) · 12/9/2025, 9:43:19 PM
    "Added description"
  • v3 · 12/9/2025, 8:40:25 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v2 · 12/9/2025, 7:50:28 PM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v1 · 12/9/2025, 7:29:28 PM · View this version
    "Reorganization group: Invitations_Calling_Cards"

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