This photo from the Dobb Long Book is from the lower right side of the second open page. It is next to the photograph of the mother and sweet baby we featured yesterday, and under the photo of the handsome couple. This completes the second open page. You cannot help but notice the elaborate beadwork on this dress, as well as the lovely tissue collar with probably hand tatted lace edging. The big sleeves are indicative of the 1890s as the look during that decade was the predecessor to the 1980s shoulder pads we all probably wore at one time or another! She also has an interesting hair adornment sticking up from the back of her head. It looks like a small version of the pieneta we looked at a few months ago. To me, it looks like a handle.
The photographer, J. B. Dedrick, is a little difficult to track down. Perhaps Iggy would like to try his hand. There are a lot of modern photographers with combinations of the initials, last name, and New Era Studios.
Who Were They? 
According to “Chicago photographers, 1847 through 1900 : as listed in Chicago city directories (1958)” (http://www.archive.org/details/chicagophotograp00chic you can download it in PDF form), the photographer is James B. Dedrick.
He is listed in the directory in the years 1895-98 – Rm 710, 7 Blue
Island and not listed in 1899.
I found this information in Ancestry.com:
James B Dedrick (b. 1866) married Miss Pansy Eagle (age 18) in 08 May 1908 when he was 42.
United States Census, 1920 for Pansy Dedrick
Residence: Chicago Illinois Ward 18, Cook, Illinois
Estimated Birth Year: 1891
Age: 29
Birthplace: Michigan
Relationship to Head of Household: Self
Gender: Female
Race: White
Marital Status: Married
Household Gender Age
Pansy Dedrick F 29y
–Child James Dedrick M 12y (1908)
–Parent William Eagle M 74y
Makes you wonder what happened there huh?
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From what I have read..photographers led a life of their own..conforming to no rules..they were “free spirits”.
I like her hair thing.. I will have to look up Pieneta..I have a cabinet card with similar adornments.
This lady’s dress must be brocade..it is stunning dark blue or dark green shows up in my imagination:)
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A pieneta is the comb that holds the mantilla scarf. I used to call it a mantilla comb until I learned I was wrong. Pieneta means crown or something like that.
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Interesting how the beading on her dress sort of mirrors the hair comb.
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J.B. Dedrick is my paternal great, grandfather. Unfortunately, I do not have much more information than what is listed above (my family knew very little of him) although I do have information as to his mother and father and siblings. After he married Pansy Eagle and the birth of his son James B. Dedrick, Jr. in 1909, his trail goes cold. I haven’t been able to find out any additional information about him although I do know that Pansy remarried 3 times and had relocated to Fresno, California before her death.
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Kim, thank you for visiting! I hope that you find more information on J.B. Dedrick.
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To date, I have yet to find out anything more on J.B, Dedrick. However, I have found another photographer with the name J.V. Dedrick who became well known for his photographs depicting the lives of the American Indian tribes. I’m wondering if they might be one and the same person…any ideas?
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Hi Kim, I really don’t know, but we can look at Find A Grave or even Library of Congress for more information. Don’t give up!
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I was hesitating to post this, because it is a link to a commercial website named classy arts. It is by Andrew J. Morris who has a collection of photos and data on historic photographers which he is selling. It is possible to view examples of photos and records from the database. Acccording to his website he is in cyber business since 1993. Apparently, Morris holds info on 4 Photographers named Dedrick: James B. Chicago, Illinois and J. V. Taloga, Oklahoma beeing two of them. Please see for yourself. There is also a photo in the photograph archive available which names Dedrick, J.B. and New Era Studios, Cor Blue Island Ave Chicago, Il. as the photographer. Hope this is somekind of help.
http://www.classyarts.com/search.htm
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Kim – I just found this website by Ethan McNerney. He states that the photographer J. V. Dedrick was his great-grandfather. There is also a photo of him. And that some postcards are in the digital archive of the library of congress. So maybe this way you will be able to find out more.
http://www.emcnerney.com/about.html
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