Denman, Isabel Grigsby St. John (1837-1917) (1 of 2)
/Bradley & Rulofson Studio Portrait Photograph of Isabelle Grigsby St. John Denman
THE PHOTOGRAPHER/ PHOTOGRAPHIC STUDIO:
Photographic Studio: Bradley & Rulofson, 429 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, California. Henry William Bradley (1813-1891) opened a photographic studio in San Francisco in 1850 and in 1860 took on his partner William Rulofson (1826-1876). Their studio was considered by many to be the best in California. Bradley retired in 1878.
THE SITTER:
Name: Isabel Grigsby St. John Denman. This portrait may have been taken when Isabel was married to her first husband, when she was known as Isabel Grigsby St. John.
Description: This is a full-body, seated portrait of Isabel Grigsby St. John Denman. She sits elegantly erect in a garden setting and gazes attentively to her right. Her hair is center-parted and arranged informally atop her head. She wears a front-buttoned, form-fitting bodice and a skirt with three layers of large fringed tassels. She wears a cameo at her throat and a very long necklace which falls to below her waist.
Biographical Note: Isabel Grigsby St. John Denman was a long-time member of St. John’s Episcopal Church’s Women’s Auxiliary and a member of the Antietam Relief Corps and the Easter Star. Isabel lived at 312 6th Street in Petaluma.
Family Affiliation: Isabel Grigsby St. John Denman was married to Adin Cady St. John (1822-1876) and together they had four children one of them was Anna Belle St. John Whitney, the wife of Arthur Whitney, son of the Petaluma pioneers, Senator Albion P. Whitney and Susan Eastman Whitney. Isabel later became the second wife of the early Petaluma pioneer, Ezekiel Denman.
Bibliography:
THE PHOTOGRAPH:
Format / Size: cabinet card, approximately 10.75 x 16.5 cm
Medium: gelatin or collodion photographic print mounted on cardstock
Description, front: This portrait was staged to appear as though it was taken out-of-doors. On the left edge of the composition is live foliage which is possibly cut ivy, and behind the sitter is a painted backdrop depicting lush flora.
Description, back: The elaborate imprint of the Bradley & Rulofson, San Francisco studio appears on the center of the back of this cabinet card. Handwritten in script at the bottom appears, “Grandmother Denman” , “Isabel Grigsby St. John Denman”, and “Mother of Anna Belle St. John Whitney”.
Date: undated
Condition: With the exception of peripheral minor foxing, this cabinet card is in good condition.
Owner: Petaluma Historical Library & Museum, 1992-IDI-01
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