Leominster Historical Commission

08/31/2026

Leominster Citizens Posted by Leon Christoforo

08/31/2026

Leominster Center ca. 1930's Posted by Leon Christoforo

08/31/2026

Poster by Leon Christoforo

08/28/2026

The Kitchenware Sellers. Naples, Italy 1903

08/28/2026

08/28/2026

Concetta's - first pizza parlor in Leominster - 1943-1956

08/28/2026

Suffrage Parade - 1915

08/28/2026

A Face from 1895: The Woman with the Flowered Hat

This remarkable portrait was taken from an original Percy Johnson glass plate negative in 1895, capturing extraordinary detail in the woman’s face, expression, clothing, and elaborate flowered hat. She is dressed in the formal style of the late Victorian period, wearing a high-necked patterned dress with gathered sleeves, front buttons, and a large dark ribbon tied at her throat. Her ornate hat, decorated with flowers, leaves, fabric, and feathers, reflects the fashionable styles worn by women during the 1890s. The clarity of the glass negative beautifully preserves the fine lines of her face, her carefully arranged hair, and the calm, dignified expression that gives this portrait such a strong sense of personality more than 130 years later. Percy Johnson identified the image as “Woman with Flowered Hat,” but her identity remains unknown today—does anybody recognize this fascinating woman from Leominster’s past?

Story by ChatGPT — Description

08/27/2026

“Man with a Beard.”A Face from 1903 — The Percy Johnson Glass Negative Collection.
One of the things that continues to fascinate me while working with the Percy Johnson glass negative collection is the incredible amount of detail that can still be recovered from photographs more than a century old. This portrait was taken in 1903. Unfortunately, I have no information identifying this gentleman or telling us anything about his life. The only description associated with the negative was simply “Man with a Beard.”
Looking at his face, it is hard not to wonder about him. He appears to have already lived a very long life by the time Percy Johnson photographed him. If he was somewhere in his 70s or 80s in 1903, just imagine the history he may have personally witnessed and the changes he would have seen during his lifetime.
Who was he? What did he do for a living? Where did he grow up? What stories could he have told?
We may never know, but that mystery is part of what makes scanning and preserving these old glass negatives so fascinating. More than 120 years later, his expression, clothing, beard, and even the smallest details of his face remain remarkably clear.
From the Percy Johnson Glass Negative Collection — photograph dated 1903.
Story generated with the assistance of ChatGPT AI.