So, we have this old family picture that's been hanging in my parents house as long as I can remember.
This is the picture. The first time I remember talking to my Mom about it was back in the 90s...this was about when I started getting interested in genealogy. I remember her telling me that many of the male Robinsons in this picture used to travel back to England when there was no work in Philadelphia.
The youngest child in this picture is a baby and was born in 1907, so I'd date it 1907-1908. The couple in the middle are Mary Robinson (nee Crossley) and John Raynor Robinson. They are my 2nd Great Grandparents and they moved to Philadelphia from England in 1868. The rest are their children, the children's spouses and their children. My mom had most of the people labeled (she and I had changed some as we learned more). The exception being the 2 ladies on either side in the back row, they have always been unknown. They are clearly dressed differently than the other women. We had speculated that maybe they were servents, then chuckled about that idea!
So, the back row is: Unknown Girl, Thomas, Jonas, James, Mary Elizabeth and Unknown Girl
Middle Row: Ida (wife of Thomas), Mary (wife of Jonas) with little Rayner on her lap, Mary and John Raynor, Lillian (wife of James) with Baby Howard on her lap, George Smith (husband of Mary Elizabeth). Seated in front of Ida and Mary is James B Robinson (my grandfather's brother), on the stool next to him is Jonas and Mary's daughter, Rebecca, on the stool in the middle is Samuel Raynor (my grandfather), on the floor next to him is Lillian Smith, next to her is Mae(or Mary), they are Mary Elizabeth's children.
Well, I came across another picture while cleaning out my email. And this one has an additional sibling in it.
Mary Elizabeth Robinson, ?, Thomas C Robinson (my great grandfather), Lilly Mae Robinson, Jonas Robinson, James H Robinson and John Raynor Robinson. Lilly was born in 1889. I'll guess she's about 3 or 4 here and say this photo was taken in about 1903. I think this is the house they lived in on G Street in Kensington. So, now I'm wondering if one of the gals on either end in the more formal picture is Lilly? And is the other one another unknown sibling. Everyone in that back row seems to be a child of John Raynor and Mary Robinson. So it makes sense to me that the 2 unknowns are also children of Mary and John Raynor and that perhaps they are dressed differently since they are unmarried. Now, the question is...can I find a name for the other Robinson Girl. The 1890 census would be so helpful here! It's a shame it was mostly destroyed! This picture also has an unknown woman, which could be Thomas wife, Ida, but it really doesn't look like her. I think Ida is very distinctive looking. Maybe she's the other missing girl?
