1907 — Mattie Sophia (Thayer) Gilbert with infant Katharine Gilbert and Edmond James Gilbert, probably at Chefoo, China

Alvin Walter Gilbert Sr. (1873-1948) · 1907-06-01T00:00:00Z

TITLE: Mattie Sophia (Thayer) Gilbert with infant Katharine Gilbert and Edmond James Gilbert, probably at Chefoo, China DATE: June 1907 LOCATION: Yantai (historically: Chefoo; Chinese: 烟台, Yāntái), Shandong Province, China. The image was likely made in the garden or yard of the Gilbert family’s Chefoo residence or associated compound; exact modern parcel not identified. The family is documented in Peking at Katharine’s birth on 7 March 1907 and in Chefoo by early June 1907. INTERPRETIVE SUMMARY: This informal outdoor family photograph shows Mattie Sophia (Thayer) Gilbert standing in a garden-like yard and holding her infant daughter, Katharine Gilbert, while her older son Edmond James Gilbert stands beside her near a wicker chair. HISTORICAL NOTE: Katharine Gilbert was born in Peking, China, on 7 March 1907. Mattie Gilbert wrote from Peking on 21 March 1907 after the baby’s arrival, and the reconstructed family timeline places the family in Chefoo by 3 June 1907. In a Chefoo letter of 3 June 1907, Mattie stated that they had “enjoyed the darling three months already,” which closely fits the developmental age of the infant seen here. The standing child should be identified as Edmond James Gilbert on the basis of the handwritten family caption supplied with the photograph: “Gilbert Mother with Katharine & Edmund (Aeschliman).” That identification also accords with the family birth sequence: Edmond, born 23 January 1904, was Katharine’s eldest brother and would have been a little over three years old in June 1907. The earlier identification of the standing child as Alvin Walter Gilbert Jr. should therefore be rejected. The garden setting, brick background, and full foliage are consistent with a warm-weather domestic outdoor photograph made during the family’s Chefoo residence in early summer 1907. The image belongs to the Gilbert family’s North China period, when Alvin Walter Gilbert’s work took the family between Peking and the Chefoo seaside station. MEDIUM: Black-and-white photographic print, scanned from a large-format negative; vertical-format family snapshot. The surviving digital surrogate shows overall fading, reduced contrast, scattered abrasions and spotting, edge darkening, and several dark blotches or chemical stains, especially at the upper right and lower right. Exact dimensions and verso characteristics are not determinable from the present surrogate. DETAILED VISUAL DESCRIPTION: A woman stands full length near the left half of the composition, turned slightly toward the camera and dressed in a long light-colored dress with a high collar and fitted waist. Her hair is drawn up and back from the face. She holds an infant across her torso with both arms. The baby wears a long pale gown extending below the knees and looks outward toward the camera; the head appears nearly bald, the cheeks are full, and the body is fully supported in the mother’s arms. At lower right of the infant, a small boy stands partly hidden behind the woman and the hanging edge of the baby’s gown. His face is turned toward the camera and his mouth is open. He wears a pale short jacket or tunic with short trousers. Behind him stands a wicker or cane chair with turned vertical supports and a woven body. A curved handle or frame element rises at the far right edge. The background is filled with leafy trees or dense shrubbery. Portions of a brick wall or brick building are visible behind the figures, especially at left and lower center. The ground appears dark and uneven. The print surface is worn and mottled, with broad fading, scattered white specks, light scratches, and several conspicuous dark blotches near the upper right and lower corners. RECTO / VERSO OBJECT DESCRIPTION AND INSCRIPTIONS: Recto examined from digital surrogate only. No visible printed caption or manuscript inscription appears within the cropped image area. Family annotation reported separately: handwritten caption, likely by Jim Huber, reads: “Gilbert Mother with Katharine & Edmund (Aeschliman).” Verso not examined in the present session. PROVENANCE: Gilbert family collection. Originally in the possession of Alvin Walter Gilbert Sr. (1873–1948) and Mattie Sophia (Thayer) Gilbert (1869–1937); by descent through Katharine P. (Gilbert) Aeschliman; later preserved within the Huber family line; digitized from the family-held original and uploaded by Travis Clayton Mallett.