1897_1-6-Jan 2002 copy.jpg

Alice Austen Social Invitations Collection, 1897

PI

Version: 5 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:52:17 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 7:37:17 PM

Added description

Description

Alice Austen Social Invitations Collection, 1897

Overview

The Alice Austen Social Invitations Collection is a digitized set of eight high‑resolution images of Victorian‑era social invitations and marriage announcements dated 1897. The items were created by a group of upper‑middle‑class residents of Staten Island and its environs, including Mrs. Beverley Robinson, Mr. and Mrs. George P. Ludlam, Mrs. Albert C. Rupé, Rev. William Wardlaw, and Mr. and Mrs. William Francis Russell. The collection is housed by the Alice Austen House Museum and is available online through the museum’s digital archive.

Background

These invitations were originally printed on fine paper and mailed to friends and family to announce nuptial unions or social gatherings. The creators were prominent local families whose social networks spanned Staten Island, New York City, and Newark, New Jersey. The collection reflects the customs of late‑Victorian society, where formal written invitations were a key component of social etiquette.

Contents

The eight images include:
  • A marriage invitation for Maud de Lancey to William J. Gordon (Christ Church, New Brighton).
  • A marriage announcement for Clarice Kennedy to William L. De Bost (New York).
  • A marriage announcement for Janet Wardlaw to William Cathbertson Evans (Clifton).
  • A marriage announcement for Mabel Russell to Frederick William Mercer (Grace Church, Newark).
  • An at‑home social invitation hosted by Mrs. L.H. Meyer at Fox Hill Villa, Fort Wadsworth.
  • A regret notice from Mrs. Albert C. Rupé due to the death of Mrs. L.H. Meyer.
  • Two additional invitations from the same families, illustrating variations in wording and design.

Each image is accompanied by OCR‑derived text that reproduces the invitation’s wording, dates, and locations.

Scope

The collection covers a single calendar year (1897) and focuses on the social life of Staten Island’s upper‑middle class. Geographic coverage includes Staten Island (New Brighton, Fort Wadsworth, Clifton), New York City, and Newark, New Jersey. The materials provide primary evidence of marriage practices, social networking, and community events in the late 19th‑century American Northeast. The collection is useful for scholars of social history, genealogy, and Victorian culture.

Raw Cheimarros Data

@file_pinax -> documents -> @alice_austen_social_invitations_collection:collection {title: "Alice Austen Social Invitations Collection, 1897", creator: [@beverley_robinson, @george_p_ludlam, @albert_c_rupe, @rev_william_wardlaw, @william_francis_russell], institution: @alice_austen_house, created: @date_1897, description: "A collection of social invitations and marriage announcements from 1897, primarily from Staten Island, New York.", subjects: ["Social invitations", "Weddings", "Marriage announcements", "Victorian social life", "Staten Island social events"], places: [@staten_island, @new_brighton, @fort_wadsworth, @clifton, @new_york_city, @newark]}

@alice_austen_house:organization {type: "Museum", location: @staten_island}

@beverley_robinson:person {full_name: "Mrs. Beverley Robinson"}

@george_p_ludlam:person {full_name: "Mr. George P. Ludlam"}

@albert_c_rupe:person {full_name: "Mrs. Albert C. Rupé"}

@rev_william_wardlaw:person {full_name: "The Rev. William Wardlaw"}

@william_francis_russell:person {full_name: "Mr. William Francis Russell"}

@staten_island:place {city: @new_york_city, state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@new_brighton:place {city: @staten_island, state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@fort_wadsworth:place {city: @staten_island, state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@clifton:place {city: @staten_island, state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

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

@newark:place {state: @new_jersey, country: @united_states}

@christ_church:place {location: @new_brighton, city: @staten_island, state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@fox_hill_villa:place {location: @fort_wadsworth, city: @staten_island, state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@grace_church:place {city: @newark, state: @new_jersey, country: @united_states}

@maud_de_lancey:person {full_name: "Maud de Lancey"}

@william_j_gordon:person {full_name: "William J. Gordon"}

@marriage_invitation_beverley_robinson:document {type: "Marriage invitation", source_file: @file_1897_1_6_jan_2002_copy_jpg}

@beverley_robinson -> announced marriage of -> @maud_de_lancey:person {spouse: @william_j_gordon, when: @date_1897_01_06, where: @christ_church}

@clarice_kennedy:person {full_name: "Clarice Kennedy"}

@william_l_de_bost:person {full_name: "William L. De Bost"}

@marriage_invitation_ludlam:document {type: "Marriage announcement", source_file: @file_1897_11_4_nov_1002_copy_jpg}

@george_p_ludlam -> announced marriage of -> @clarice_kennedy:person {spouse: @william_l_de_bost, when: @date_1897_11_04, where: @new_york_city}

@miss_rupe:person {full_name: "Miss Rupé"}

@at_home_event_albert_rupe:document {type: "At‑home social invitation", source_file: @file_1897_11_6_nov_2002_copy_jpg}

@albert_c_rupe -> hosted at home -> @miss_rupe:person {event: "At Home", when: @date_1897_11_06, start_time: "16:00", end_time: "19:00", where: @fox_hill_villa, activity: "Dancing after nine o'clock"}

@regret_notice_albert_rupe:document {type: "Regret notice", source_file: @file_1897_11_6_nov_2003_copy_jpg}

@albert_c_rupe -> issued regret notice {reason: "death of Mrs. L. H. Meyer", when: @date_1897_11_06, affected_event: @at_home_event_albert_rupe}

@l_h_meyer:person {full_name: "Mrs. L. H. Meyer"}

@janet:person {full_name: "Janet"}

@william_cathbertson_evans:person {full_name: "William Cathbertson Evans"}

@marriage_announcement_wardlaw:document {type: "Marriage announcement", source_file: @file_1897_4_21_april_2002_copy_jpg}

@rev_william_wardlaw -> announced marriage of -> @janet:person {spouse: @william_cathbertson_evans, when: @date_1897_04_21, where: @clifton}

@mabel:person {full_name: "Mabel"}

@frederick_william_mercer:person {full_name: "Frederick William Mercer"}

@marriage_announcement_russell:document {type: "Marriage announcement", source_file: @file_1897_4_28_april_1001_copy_jpg}

@william_francis_russell -> announced marriage of -> @mabel:person {spouse: @frederick_william_mercer, when: @date_1897_04_28, where: @grace_church}

Metadata

Files (6)

1897_1-6-Jan 2002 copy.jpgJPEG
870.71 KB
OCR Text

Mrs. Beverley Robinson requests the honour of your presence at the marriage of her daughter, Maud de Lancey, to Mr. William J. Gordon, on Wednesday afternoon, January the sixth, at four o'clock. 1897 Christ Church, New Brighton, Staten Island.

1897_11-4-Nov 1002 copy.jpgJPEG
1.17 MB
OCR Text

Mr. and Mrs. George P. Ludlam have the honour of announcing the marriage of their daughter, Clarice Kennedy, to Mr. William L. De Bost, on Thursday, November the fourth, eighteen hundred and ninety-seven, at Eight West Sixteenth Street, New York.

1897_11-6-Nov 2002 copy.jpgJPEG
938.7 KB
OCR Text

Mrs. Albert C. Rupé Miss Rupé At Home on Saturday, November the sixth, 1897 from four until seven o'clock, at the residence of Mrs. L.H. Meyer: Fox Hill Villa, Fort Wadsworth, Staten Island. Dancing after nine o'clock.

1897_11-6-Nov 2003 copy.jpgJPEG
435.83 KB
OCR Text

Mrs. Albert C. Rupé, Miss Rupé regret that in consequence of the death of Mrs. L. H. Meyer, they will be unable to receive their friends on Saturday, November the sixth.

1897_4-21-April 2002 copy.jpgJPEG
931.34 KB
OCR Text

The Rev. William Wardlaw announces the marriage of his daughter, Janet, to William Cathbertson Evans, on Wednesday, April twenty-first, eighteen hundred and ninety-seven. Clifton, Staten Island.

1897_4-28-April 1001 copy.jpgJPEG
1.01 MB
OCR Text

Mr. and Mrs. William Francis Russell request the honour of your presence at the marriage of their daughter Mabel to Mr. Frederick William Mercer on Wednesday, April the twenty-eighth, eighteen hundred and ninety-seven, at twelve o'clock noon. Grace Church, Newark.

Version History (5 versions)

  • ✓ v5 (current) · 12/9/2025, 9:52:17 PM
    "Added description"
  • v4 · 12/9/2025, 9:09:03 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v3 · 12/9/2025, 9:07:30 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v2 · 12/9/2025, 7:56:08 PM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v1 · 12/9/2025, 7:37:17 PM · View this version
    "Reorganization group: Social_Invitations"

Parent

01KC29F44VZQYSDBNMSRBY37NN

No children (leaf entity)