The back of this portrait provides the following information:

  1. The name and address of the photographer which is Vandyke V. Brown, 31 Bold Street and 34 Castle Street, Liverpool, England.
  2. A handwritten script which appears to be Presser Acct. This could be short for Presser Account. If it is Presser, it is not known who Presser is as the name is unfamiliar.

The Castle Street address in Liverpool suggests that this portrait is somehow connected with the William and Jane Knowles 1884 portraits as the back of Jane Knowles 1884 portrait indicates Castle Street and Liverpool. Given that this young woman’s portrait was in the Leonhardt collection, it is likely that she is someone in the Knowles line.

The Castle Street address in Liverpool suggests that this portrait is somehow connected with the William and Jane Knowles 1884 portraits as the back of Jane Knowles 1884 portrait indicates Castle Street and Liverpool. Given that this young woman’s portrait was in the Leonhardt collection, it is likely that she is someone in the Knowles line.

It took many years to formulate a better reason as to why the three portraits were taken in Liverpool along with this 3rd portrait of a younger woman taken in Liverpool. For reference and viewing these portraits are:

  1. William Knowles Portrait - July 14, 1884
  2. Jane Wallace Knowles Portrait - July 28, 1884
  3. Possibly Jane Grayston Knowles Portrait (circa 1879)

The connection became clearer when it was found that William and Jane Knowles’ son, Robert married Jane Grayston in Liverpool, England on 18 June 1879. At the time, Robert was around 27-28 and Jane about 19.

Based on 1881 Census data, Robert and Jane Knowles lived in Liverpool for a number of years following their marriage as he continued managing a pub. But it appears around 1884, they decided to emigrate to Chicago. Around the same time Robert's brother, William Wallace Knowles was traveling back and forth from Montreal to Chicago in trying to establish a tailoring business in Chicago. And presumably both William and Isabella and Robert and Jane Knowles chose to seek better circumstances in then rapidly growing Chicago.

Thus given this portrait was in the Leonhardt collection, the youthful woman is probably Jane Grayston Knowles’ wedding or pre-wedding portrait at which time she was 19 years old. She then took the portrait on her voyage to Chicago and it eventually made its way to Muriel Leonhardt, a daughter of William Wallace Knowles in Chicago.

The Leonhardt family lent the original of this Studio Portrait to Dave Jordan in 1990 who photographed it. The Leonhardt connection to the Jordans is Margaret Jane Jordan and Muriel Leonhardt were Knowles sisters.

If you would like to add information about this picture, please contact Dave Jordan, a 3x g-grandson of William and Jane Knowles. The Picture Reference Number are 18790618a1 and Digitized Negative: 161-13.