1/9th-Plate Ambrotype of Margaret I. Handy in Mourning, circa 1859
Despite having a name for this lovely sad lady, I cannot seem to find a suitable candidate on either the United States or British censuses of 1850/51 and 1860/61. Almost every Margaret Handy in the United States of an age that could potentially be this woman appears to be of a social level that could not afford this caliber of mourning clothing or, indeed, the cost of this 1/9th-plate Ambrotype, which is housed in a green leather case with a book-type clasp.
My best guess at the moment--and I am not confident in it--is that she is Margaret Handy, born in about 1817 in Sunderland, Durham, England, who is is listed on the 1851 British Census in Sunderland as a widow living with her 61-year-old seamstress mother or mother-in-law.
1/9th-Plate Ambrotype of Margaret I. Handy in Mourning, circa 1859
Despite having a name for this lovely sad lady, I cannot seem to find a suitable candidate on either the United States or British censuses of 1850/51 and 1860/61. Almost every Margaret Handy in the United States of an age that could potentially be this woman appears to be of a social level that could not afford this caliber of mourning clothing or, indeed, the cost of this 1/9th-plate Ambrotype, which is housed in a green leather case with a book-type clasp.
My best guess at the moment--and I am not confident in it--is that she is Margaret Handy, born in about 1817 in Sunderland, Durham, England, who is is listed on the 1851 British Census in Sunderland as a widow living with her 61-year-old seamstress mother or mother-in-law.