Every glimpse of the past that we see is a chance for our imaginations to take off on a wild time-warp journey. The beautiful vintage photos of the past gathered by this amazing Facebook page also promise to take you on a journey across time and space.
Indeed, the photos featured by this account come from all around the world. Each photo tells a story of when, where, and who. We are invited to daydream (or, you know, research) about the lives of people in the photos, whether they’re hard-working peasants in a rice paddy, roguish children playing in a street, or businesspeople showing off their new-fangled horseless carriages.
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We can be glad that modern technology is helping us preserve and spread these photos. Many old paper or silver plate photos are in danger of irreversible deterioration, and countless more are already lost. These few remaining glimpses of the past are to be treasured and shared, so scroll onwards, brave time traveler. Let us know which ones are your favorites in the comments and share these old vintage photos far and wide!
#1 Dapper Young Man All Dressed Up To Have His Photo Made, 1905
Image credits: Old Photos
#2 Neighborhood Kids Sharing A Laugh In Nebraska, 1910
Image credits: Old Photos
#3 Three Women Who Completed Their Education And Graduated As Physicians In Philadelphia, 1885
Image credits: Old Photos
#4 Portrait Of A Very Handsome Young Man, 1904
Image credits: Old Photos
The history of photography begins with very tangible chemical processes, far from the powerful digital sensors and endless reproduction we enjoy today. The first photo that has survived to this day was taken in 1826 or 1827 by Joseph Nicéphore Niépce. In his heliograph, the view from a window in his home was reproduced in low fidelity using a process involving bitumen (a component of asphalt) and lavender oil.
#5 These Progressive High School Girls Learn The Finer Points Of Auto Mechanics In 1927
Image credits: Old Photos
#6 Three Young Ladies Posing With A Friend, 1930
Image credits: Old Photos
#7 Madame Decourcelle The First Female Taxi Driver In Paris, France, 1909
Image credits: Old Photos
#8 Shy Young Woman Smiling For The Camera 143 Years Ago
Image credits: Old Photos
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The first photo approximating modern life-like quality standards was invented by Louis Daguerre. He named the daguerreotype process after himself, so we must be grateful that better and less egotistically named processes were discovered later. Although daguerreotypes required longer exposure times of up to several minutes, this was a vast improvement over the 8-ish hours used for Niépce’s heliograph.
#9 A Young Woman Posing For A Studio Portrait, Kentucky, 1890-1910
Image credits: Old Photos
#10 4 Generations, 1 Picture, 1905
Image credits: Old Photos
#11 Apache Woman And Child. Fort Apache, Arizona, 1898
Image credits: Old Photos
Cultural attitudes towards photography also changed as the technology improved. With the long exposure times of early processes, photographs could be thought of much like still-life or portrait paintings. Families or dignitaries would dress up to sit for a portrait, or artists would select beautiful landscapes or scenes to photograph. As film exposure times shortened and film became easier to acquire and process, photographers were able to start experimenting more boldly and to start capturing dynamic shots.
#12 Louis & Lola, Titanic Survivors
Image credits: Old Photos
#13 Edwardian Woman With Her Friend, 1905
Image credits: Old Photos
#14 A Promising Young Photographer, 1880s
Image credits: Old Photos
#15 Young Couple In Love, 1920s
Image credits: Old Photos
The photographs in this collection come from a wide range of different historical photographic processes, but of course, the most fascinating aspect of each is the subject matter. In most, the people depicted are no longer with us, and if their memories don’t live on with their progeny, these may be the only signs of their existence that we have left. We invite you to spend some time with these photos and try to imagine what the moments they captured might have looked, sounded, felt, and even smelled like so many years ago.
#16 Woman And Horse By Félix Thiollier, 1899
Image credits: Old Photos
#17 Mother With Her Daughter, 1880
Image credits: Old Photos
#18 In The 1940s, Men Dressed In Shorts And Cowboy Boots Served Up To Women At A Drive Through In Texas
Image credits: Old Photos
#19 A Beautiful Couple From The 1940s
Image credits: Old Photos
#20 1926 Easter Celebration With Some Very Happy Children!
Image credits: Old Photos
#21 Elk River And His Wife, Montana, 1890
Image credits: Old Photos
#22 A Father With His 4 Daughters, 1904
Image credits: Old Photos
#23 Mother And Daughter Watch A Tall Ship Navigate The Thames In London, 1880
Image credits: Old Photos
#24 The High Jump At Olympics Games In London, 1908
Image credits: Old Photos
#25 Pulling Out A Splinter In 1910
Image credits: Old Photos
#26 Young Ladies In Norway, 1890s
Image credits: Old Photos
#27 Barefoot Kids At A Mobile Book Cart In The Appalachian Mountains
Image credits: Old Photos
#28 A Family From Wisconsin, Late 1800s
Image credits: Old Photos
#29 Two Friends Strolling In A Cool Stream On A Warm Day, 1910
Image credits: Old Photos
#30 A Mom Asks Not To Kiss Her Baby To Avoid Catching A Bug, 1939
Image credits: Old Photos
#31 Butterfly Boy, New York City, 1949
Image credits: Old Photos
#32 The Noonans, A Family Of 15 Living In 1920s. Lawrence, Massachusetts
Image credits: Old Photos
#33 Having A Little Fun On The Beach In 1940
Image credits: Old Photos
#34 A ‘Man In The Moon’ Hair-Beard Combo, 1895
Image credits: Old Photos
#35 Happy New Year 1907
Image credits: Old Photos
#36 A Stylish Woman Walking Her Dog At The Bois De Boulogne In Paris, 1910
Image credits: Old Photos
#37 Mistletoe Salesmen, Paris, 1928
Image credits: Old Photos
#38 Portrait Of A Young Boy, Claude Clark, Sitting On A Rocking Horse, 1902
Image credits: Old Photos
#39 A Drunken Man In Top Hat And Tails Clings To A Lamp-Post, London, 1934
Image credits: Old Photos
#40 A One Room School House, 1923
Image credits: Old Photos
#41 People Gathered In Front Of Stores In A Small Town. Eureka Springs, Arkansas, 1880
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