Vintage photo Friday

Isn't it funny how we always seem to pick the same spot/spots for those posed pictures?

In this case you see one of the famous shooting locations in front of my grandparents house!

The first picture shows (possibly in 1956?) my grandparents to the right, my mother at a guessed age of 14 in front of them, posing with my greataunt Anna and her husband George, who immigrated to the USA in thier twenties. I have noticed that Anna usually keeps a forced smile for pictures and looks sad at the same time. Just recently I found out that she was indeed sad. She always missed Germany, yet only came back for brief visits as shown on this photo. Between Anna and George in the background my aunt Marianne (my mother's sister), and all the way to the left my mother's brother's wife Rosamunde.

The second photo must have been taken quite a bit earlier, maybe 1938? Among the people my mother's grandmother, second from the left. Mom's uncle August is the one who carries the toddler, next to him in white his wife Emmi, whom I remember as the picture of a farmer's wife - always in an apron, baking, coming from milking the cows, always busy. August died when I was a young teenager and I've always regretted that I did not get the chance to have him teach me the art of basket making. As far as I remember he did it all - cutting and soaking the branches and weaving the basket. I find it rather odd, that in spite of my wish I cannot recall how his baskets looked like!

Now you may wonder, where do those doors lead to? One brought you into the laundry room (the other door possibly storage?)! - And please don't imagine anything like your own laundryroom, we are talking woodfired oven to heat the water and sink?/bins? for scrubbing - again no "picture" in front of my inner eye.

And who would guess that just behind the person, who took the pictures, on the other side of that yard was a little "tower"with pigeons, a dog on a chain that always (I mean it!) barked and was replaced by an equally barking dog as soon as it died, and a big pile of stinking manure, since the little barn with cows was right there as well!

Thanks Sarah and Donna for guessing my mother's age on vintage Friday 2 weeks ago. - If I would not know better, I'd say 13 myself!

I know that she must have been 26 when the picture was taken, isn't that something....