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Early Elmira Photo from Stereoscopic View Submitted by (the late) Norma Jenkins

Walt,
   Good to see that you are "still at it". You are welcome to use anything that I have sent you. Sounds like a very interesting project. Your question about the stamps intrigued me.  I checked with "googles" and found the following.  You might be interested in the other information there - I asked for "stamps on photographs".
 

REVENUE STAMPS ARE A TOOL FOR DATING PHOTOGRAPHSAs part of the effort by the Congress to fund the Civil War, among a number of taxes levied was an 1864 Act which provided that sellers of photographs affix stamps at the time of sale to "photographs, ambrotypes, daguerreotypes, or any  sun pictures", according to the following schedule, exempting photographs too small for the stamp to be affixed:  Less than 25 cents: 2 cents stamps (blue/orange).  25 to 50 cents: 3 cents stamps (green).  50 cents to $1: 5 cents stamps (red).  More than $1: 5 cents for each additional dollar or fraction thereof.  Stamps were applied from 1 Aug. 1864 to 1 Aug. 1866. Blue playing card stamps are known to have been used in the summer of 1866 as other stamps  were unavailable as the levy came to an end. The stamp was to be canceled by requiring that the seller cancel the stamp by initializing  and dating it in ink. The most rare of all of these stamps is the one  cent (red) "playing cards" and the most common is the orange two cent "playing cards". Values for all of these stamps appear in the Scott's Specialized Catalog of United States Stamps.  Ralph Weller

Dear Joyce,
Again I want to thank you for your web site. I was able to ascertain the approximate date of a photo, because you had listed the addresses of A. P. Hart, Photographer, Elmira with the dates. He moved around so much, and since I was looking for 176 Water St., I was able to find out that he was at that address in the 1860's.
This enabled me to put a name on the photo and be reasonably sure we were correct.
Keep up the good work.
Sincerely, Shirley Wadsworth [Note from Joyce to site guests} This is the result we hope to achieve in this section of the site. It can only happen with your dated logos and adds submitted. Don't be afraid to share with us and help this database develop

Dear Joyce; I am sending several carte-de-visite images that own. They were passed down in our family from a photo album originally owned by Caroline "Carrie" S. WOOD James (1849-1920). Where known, I have noted date and/or name identifications I have been able to deduce from oral family history and Craig's Daguerreian Registry website, or from matching logos and researching city directories on the Tri-Counties website. I was even able to date one photograph from a prop and setting identical to a photo posted on your site! Thank you so much for everything you are providing to history and family researchers. --Mary Holton Robare

Published On Site 5/04/2003 By Joyce M. Tice You are our welcome visitor since 4 MAY 2003