Summer socializing, 1890s style

Something soothing seems to be in order this morning as we begin what I suppose will be another nationally contentious week, so I thought I'd share a couple of the photographs that arrived unexpectedly at the museum last week in a package from Washington, D.C.

All of the photographs, 50 or so, relate to the family of Col. Warren S. and Abby (Proctor) Dungan. Col. Dungan was a pioneer Chariton attorney, Civil War officer, state legislator and lieutenant governor of Iowa. The family home was in the 300 block of North Grand Street (the address of the last Dungan home is 338 North Grand and it still stands on the lot where two earlier Dungan homes had been located). Col. Dungan, who died in 1913, did not live long enough to occupy the "new" house.

Many of the photographs are turn-of-the-20th-century "snapshots," probably taken by one or more of the Dungan daughters (there were five of them) and their friends. By the 1890s, photographic technology had advanced to the point that hobbyists were buying relatively compact and easy-to-use (by 19th century standards) cameras. The down side was, photographers also had to develop their own plates and print their own images so it was a hobby that demanded commitment.

The young people in the first image were with one exception neighbors in the 300 block of North Grand who had grown up together. The image and the others, below, probably were taken about 1895 somewhere near Chariton during a summer outing. The subjects are (from left) Harry Stewart, Effie Dungan, Minnie Dungan, Eloise Copeland and Luther "Lute" Busselle.

Harry, born in 1867, had grown up in the huge three-story Second Empire brick house that stood just south of the Assembly of God church until its recent demolition. The Dungans lived on the corner due east of the church, built by United Presbyterians but home as the years passed to various congregations --- and during the 1920s, to the Ku Klux Klan.

Eloise had grown up in a grand house the occupied the quarter of a block just south of the Stewart house --- currently the site of a "dollar store." 

All of these young people were of similar age --- Effie Dungan was born during 1866 and Minnie, during 1869. Eloise Copeland, a daughter of Elijah and Lydia Copeland, was born in 1866 and Lute, during 1865.

Harry Stewart married Mona Clayton during 1897, so this photo pre-dates that event. Neither of the Dungans --- professional educators and school administrators --- married. Lute Busselle, who by 1895 had his own hardware store on the square, and Eloise Copeland had what surely must have been one of Chariton's longest courtships. They finally decided to marry in 1911 when both were in their 40s and settled down in the old Copeland house where the remainder of their lives were spent. After their deaths, Keith Gartin purchased the lot, demolished the house and built Gartin Super Valu there.

Laura Fitch most likely took the first photograph here, then traded places behind the camera with Eloise and joined the others on the log they seem to be sitting on. Laura, born 1868, was a daughter of pioneer Chariton physician Dr. Charles Fitch and lived two blocks north on North Grand, across the street east of the current location of Chariton High School. Like the Dungans, Laura never married. She was by profession a librarian.

The third photograph appears to have been taken on the same occasion. In it, Minnie Dungan and Lute Busselle are aboard the team of mules that had transported the party into the woods; Laura and Effie, seated in the hammock. Eloise would have been behind the camera. There are some spots on this image that detract a little from it.

I'll be cataloging and scanning these images this week, so probably will share more in another post or two.