My Grandparents Alfred Stafford (1880-1947) & Margaret James Ramsey Hood Clark (1875-1967)

The young woman on the left is Margaret James Ramsey Hood Clark, my Grandmother.  The eldest daughter of Barbara Clark (nee Hood) and John Clark.  Next to the old lady in the cap is Margaret's husband, my Grandpa, Alfred Stafford.

Margaret's long given name contains the surnames of the maternal female line that had gone before her, mother, grandmother and great grandmother.

Margaret Stafford nee Clark (25 approx), unknown, Alfred Stafford (22 approx), Martha?

This photograph was printed on very thin,flimsy paper, so it is not surprising that after 117 years it is in poor condition. I reckon it was taken between 1899 and 1901. Thank goodness it has survived. 

To begin restoration, I zoomed in on the photograph. I thought I could see that the sun was reflecting on Margaret's left hand, which could be a wedding ring, If I am correct, the photograph must have been taken after Margaret married Alfred in 1899, and before she had her first child in 1902.

 Restored version of the Photograph

This is one of the few photographs I have of my Grandma when she was young.

Unfortunately I have no idea who the old lady is, wearing the cap. I have done date calculations regarding direct close family relatives, i.e. mothers and grandmothers, but none of the dates tally with the apparent age of this old lady. By this time Alfred's mother was dead, and Margaret's mother was much younger than the old lady. Next to her is Margaret's husband (my Grandpa Alfred Stafford 1880-1947), and next to him, could be a friend called Martha,(I have a postcard photograph taken some years later showing a lady called Martha, that bears a resemblance to this lady. 

The clothing of the three women is interesting - to me, it looks like the dress of servants, with large aprons over a black dress. Whereas Alfred looks as if he is in his 'Sunday Best'.  Another clue to this assumption is, that if you look at the size of the garden, and the terraced houses in the background, with their large chimneys with 4 chimney pots, show this is not an area where the poor lived. Margaret and Alfred were poor; their Marriage Certificate records they were living in East Street Gateshead, and that Alfred's "Rank or Profession was "iron-worker."  

This 1959 photograph shows East Street ready for demolition, this is the area, where some 60 years previously Margaret and Alfred had lived.

Finally, it should be noted that Margaret's photograph is not a studio photograph. You can tell that my Grandmother had probably never had her photograph taken by a professional photographer as she looks relaxed and is smiling. However, my Grandfather is following the professional photographers instructions by not smiling. 

This photograph was taken by someone who owned a camera. Could it have been a Brownie? In 1900 George Eastman marketed the original Brownie to be an inexpensive camera for the mass market priced at five shillings in the UK.  The Brownie made photography accessible to the masses. However, I still think at this time the cost of a Brownie Camera would still be prohibitive to the likes of Alfred and Margaret Stafford.