I found this portrait along with the Baptism of the girl I wrote about last week on Mystery Monday. I believe this is a young couple from one of the Karpuk, Stroik or Dreffs families. I don’t think it is Rose Karpuk and Ed Dreffs. They were married February 9, 1946. However, Aunt Rose didn’t wear glasses.
My mother believes this is Marie D. Betlinski and her first husband Mr. Dabrowski. Marie later remarried again and when she died her last name was Augustyniak. She was born June 26, 1911 and died January 7, 2007 in Bay City, Michigan. Marie was my grandmother Mary Rose Stroik’s best friend.
This photo seems to be earlier than the 1940’s. If anyone out there is good at determining the age of a photo by the style or the clothing, please chime in below in the comments! I need some help with this one.
Happy Couple, Chicago
What really struck me about this portrait is the inscription at the bottom of the beautifully embossed paper frame:
Z. Rozanski, 1073 Milwaukee Ave., Chicago
The inscription reads, “Z. Rozanski, 1073 Milwaukee Ave., Chicago.” Now to most people, this is a clue that the couple was married in Chicago. That got me thinking; I don’t know of anyone from these families who moved to or lived in Chicago during the first half of the 20th century. Marie M. Betlinski was born in South Chicago, Illinois so it is likely this is her wedding portrait.
Milwaukee Avenue… I have seen Milwaukee Avenue before in my research. Where did I see it? EUREKA! My husband’s family was from Chicago. Andrew’s great-grandfather Andrew JÄ™drzej Dominik was a portrait photographer in Chicago starting around 1915 until he moved to Arizona in the early 1950’s. In fact, the 1916 Chicago Polk City Directory lists his place of business at 923 Milwaukee Avenue, just a few blocks down from the studio of Z. Rozanski at 1073 Milwaukee Ave.
By the 1930’s, Andrew’s photography business had moved to a new address. Scholl Studios was relocated to 1563 Milwaukee Avenue. We have an original portrait envelope from the studio with the new address printed on the front. It even says “between Damen and North Avenues” so you can be sure to find it:
Scholl Studio Photographs, 1563 Milwaukee Ave, Chicago
Milwaukee Avenue must have been Chicago’s Photography Central in the early 1900’s. It’s just neat to see the family lines crossing like this. To think that my husband’s family who moved to Arizona in the 1950’s could easily have photographed someone so close to my mother’s family from Michigan in Chicago is just a little crazy to me! I’m hoping someone out there can tell me who the happy young couple is above, or at least help me date the portrait a little better.
Good luck solving your genealogical mysteries!
