Lost Images Reunited

06/04/2026

# # case #176: "I am your father" but is that his mother? (sorry I coudn't resist)

I found this lovely family photograph for sale on eBay with two slightly conflicting annotations.
One reads

“Grandma Annakin, Will + Father” and the other says

“Father, Mother + Will, Annakin”

(I will try to keep the Star Wars jokes to a minimum but this is a real effort!)

So this is definitely Will and his father. Looking at their faces, I’m inclined to believe the second one. Mother does look quite formidable, don't you think? (perhaps the force was strong with her - sorry).

Surprisingly, there were quite a few William Annakins around—and Based on the ages, it appears "Will" is William John Annakin (b. 1894). Assuming this photo was taken around 1907, Will would be about 13 or 14 years old, which looks just right. I’ve also been experimenting with AI to improve the contrast and clean up the image; I think it did a great job.

The parents are Robert Annakin and his wife, Rosanna Hanney. Robert worked as a carpenter, and Will eventually followed into the trades himself as a plumber, so they came from a fairly humble, hardworking background.

Looking into the name Annakin I was actually really surprised to find it is a traditional Yorkshire name (where Robert was actually born) and interestingly may well have been the inspiration for Anakin Skywalker, as it is believed that George Lucas named Anakin after his friend Ken Annakin, a British film director.

I am very pleased to say that this photograph has now been reunited with a descendant of the Annakin family. Do you prefer the raw, authentic look of a 100-year-old original, or are you a fan of using modern tech to see your ancestors in high definition?

05/04/2026

case #170 Kind Faces and the "Beard Craze"

I found this photograph of a truly distinguished gentleman on eBay. Annotated as “John Warren Vivian” and taken around 1870, it was the work of a moment to track him down.

I often look at these photographs and wonder if they are a true picture of what the person was like? Looking at his portrait I think he a refined, kind and gentle face.

John was born in 1842 and lived until 1910, and the clear identification made finding his family a breeze. [cite: 9, 18, 81]

John’s life offers some fascinating glimpses into Victorian professional middle-class style. In 1870, he would have been right in the prime of the "beard craze" that followed the Crimean War. He is sporting some magnificent "friendly" mutton chops—where the sideburns connect to the mustache—a look that projected masculinity, authority, and professionalism. It’s the perfect "image" for a man who worked as a "Commercial Traveller / Drapery", "fancy goods dealer" and later as a "traveller." He married F***y Frank and they had a large family, which makes me think my hunch about his kind nature might be right.

Looking at the image too, I wonder if this might be his wedding photograph (1867), he is wearing a dapper suit, spotty bow tie and a floral button hole. It's a shame we don't have the corresponding photograph of his wife F***y on the day. I expect a copy of these portraits adorned their mantle.

I’m so pleased to say that this photograph has now been officially reunited with a relative! It’s always a success when these previously "orphaned" images find their way back to a branch of the family tree where they can be cherished again. I wonder if any of his descendants inherited that sharp sense of style, kind nature —or perhaps those impressive whiskers?

01/03/2026

case #161: The Faultless Physician

I recently spotted this great photograph of a very distinguished-looking gentleman on eBay. It was taken in London around 1870 and had some fantastic clues on the back: the name “Thomas Henry Green,” a note that he was a physician, and a reference to Charing Cross Hospital. These contemporary annotations are a genealogist's dream, making it a swift process to verify exactly who he was.

This is Thomas Henry Green, quite a prominent figure in the Victorian medical world. After qualifying in London in 1864 and studying under the famous Virchow in Berlin, he rose through the ranks at Charing Cross Hospital to become a full physician by 1874. He was clearly a man of immense discipline; his obituary describes him as "methodical in his habits," "faultless in his dress," and a "convincing teacher" whose bedside instruction was "dogmatic and precise." He wrote a textbook, *Introduction to Pathology and Morbid Anatomy*, which was so successful it reached its thirteenth edition by the time he passed away! I wonder if his "brief conversation" and "reserved manner" made him a daunting figure for his medical students? I'm unsure what "dogmatic and precise" bedside manner might have felt like to his patients, perhaps he was a role model for "House".

I’m pleased to say that after notifying some potential family historians, this photograph has been successfully reunited with his family. Thomas came from a wealthy background and left behind a significant professional legacy, so it’s wonderful to know his portrait is back where it belongs. Here is also a picture of him in later life. I am really interested to see how Victorians became Georgians - his later portrait would not look out of place as a portrait taken today.

21/02/2026

𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗲 #𝟭31: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗿’𝘀 𝗦𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼

This lovely photograph appeared on eBay and immediately got my attention. It was annotated as “Arthur Ralph and Harry Ralph Ricardo, aged 7 and 4”. It’s interesting that Harry appears to be wearing a dress, it was common to dress young children in dresses, no matter what their gender (I wonder why and when that changed?). The photograph was taken in Bath (more about the studio later). Harry also seems to be holding some kind of lamp, I’m not sure if this was a prop or a treasured toy. With these details and the fairly unusual name of Ricardo it was easy to find these two boys and their family.

This is Arthur (1858-1925) and Harry (1860-1945), they were two of the sons of Harry Ralph Ricardo (1822-1860), a banker who sadly passed away the same year Harry was born. However, the family seems to have been well provided for and in the 1861 census the family were living in Scion Place, and had several servants.

Harry grew up to lead an adventurous life. He became Major Harry William Ralph Ricardo of the 17th Lancers. He saw action in the Soudan campaign under Kitchener and was present at the Battle of Khartoum. He later served as Second-in-Command during the Boer War. After a long life of service, he died at the age of 85 in 1945. I wonder if, as a decorated Major, he ever looked back at this photo of himself as a 4-year-old in a dress?

This photograph was taken around 1865, which is quite an early image. It’s a good composition which may be due to the studio from which it came, which seems to have been of high status.

The photo was at the studio of Mrs. H.R. Williams of Milsom Street, Bath

The studio belonged to Lucy Matilda Williams (nee May), she used her late husband's initials when naming the studio. Lucy was a true pioneer—one of the first commercial female studio photographers in Bath, starting in 1857. She began as a painter of miniatures before transitioning to photography, and her studio even employed a young William Friese-Greene, who would later become a pioneer of cinema! It’s incredible to think that at a time when there were so few roles in trade for women, a community of women in Bath were successfully running these studios. Lucy had taken the business over from a woman, and when it was time for her to give up the business she passed it onto another woman. Some other examples of Lucy’s work can be found in the V&A Museum in London.

I am happy to say that this photograph has now been reunited with a cousin of the Ricardo family all the way in Australia! It’s amazing how a small piece of card from a Bath studio can travel across the world and back into the hands of family over 150 years later.

20/02/2026

case #147 Update: An unexpected update on the shoemaker and his wife

Do you remember the Moorewoods, Hugh and Mary? This lovely photograph was reunited with their Granddaughter.
Well, the Reunitees have been in touch since as the photograph has led to a wonderful new discovery. Some time ago they had received a print (which they had forgotten) from a cousin showing two older folk and six younger ones (presumably their adult children) but there were no names given. Your photo confirms that it is Hugh & Mary with their children one of whom would be the Reunitees grandmother. So an unknown mystery photograph has now been revealed.

The reunitees also told me a little more about Hugh and Mary.

They were both born in Congleton, Cheshire, Hugh in 1856 and Mary a year later. The 1871 Census showed young Hugh as a Silk Winder in one of the mills, indeed all working members of his family were there. Mary also was described as a Silk Hand; perhaps that's where they met!

Ten years later, in the 1881 census, it showed they were married and with two children, they were still in Congleton, but he was now a shoemaker, although Mary was still a Silk Worker. Within a couple of years however they moved to Crewe and one supposes that boot and shoe makers were much in demand to meet the needs of the rail workers.

The rest of the children were born there and Hugh and Mary lived in the same street until Hugh died a widower in 1923.

Isn't that a great photograph to have? They did well to have so many grown children.

31/12/2025

2025: A Round Up of Our Second Year

What an incredible year 2025 has been for "Lost Images Reunited"!
Since January, I have worked on..138 cases, ranging from single Victorian cartes-de-visite to sprawling family albums.

So far, I have..31 confirmed reunitees, which is a 22% success rate, not bad I think. Even when I don't get a direct "success," I’ve noticed that items I promote for sale on eBay—which often have little to no interest initially—frequently sell shortly after I message people about them.

These successes consist of 7 albums and 45 photographs, which have been reunited.

This year also saw the unofficial formation of our "Special Investigation Unit," led by the brilliant Rose. Her knack for digging up those hard-to-find details—like tracking down the inquest report for Captain Evan Evans—has been a game-changer for the more tragic and complex cases.

We were also in Who Do You Think You Are Magazine in May (thanks Abby) and also started up a Wordpress blog to mirror this page.

I’ve also noticed a much kinder reception lately; even when people aren't interested in buying a specific photo, they often become followers and offer wonderful words of encouragement.

I’ve been so touched by how generous everyone has been in sharing their family sagas and interesting facts about their ancestors, from the sugar plantations of Jamaica to the blacksmith shops of Wharton. I feel like an honorary family member to so many of you now!

As I look forward to "2026" (blimey, you blink and then another year goes by!), I’m currently preparing a short talk for my local genealogical and family history group to share the highs and lows of this fulfilling hobby. I want to say a massive thank you to everyone for your interest, support and encouragement.

30/12/2025

case #152: The Challenge of the Sparkhill Smiths

I bought this pair of albums a long time ago on eBay because they were listed at a low price with absolutely no interest. Despite the low price, they looked fascinating, filled with beautiful artwork and annotated photographs, I thought it was going to be easy to identify them. However, once they were delivered and I sat down for a good look, my heart sank: the main family name appeared to be "Smith"! As any genealogy enthusiast knows, a common name can be a brick wall, so I put the albums aside for a while. That was until Rose, our Senior Investigator (well she is the only one, but she still is great) in the Special Investigation Unit, came on the scene and managed to crack the case!

Through her research, she identified the subjects as Gwendoline ("Gwennie") Smith (1893-1976) and her sister, Hilda Julia Smith (1889-1964). The albums paint a picture of a very sociable pair, packed with photographs of holidays and day trips and friends, alongside charming drawings gifted by their companions. The girls lived at 848 Stratford Road, Sparkhill, Yardley, Birmingham, where their father, William, served as the sub-postmaster and stationer. Both Gwennie and Hilda worked right alongside him as clerks in the shop.

Finding a "reunitee" for this branch is proving tricky, as it doesn't appear that Gwennie or Hilda had any children of their own. Gwennie never married and Hilda married later in life. I’ve been looking into their Aunt, Emily Whitehead (née Smith), in the 1921 census for clues. That census contains some truly poignant details in the final column: it suggests Gwennie’s grandmother was blind from birth.

Because there are no existing trees for their parents (I think they may feature in a pair of photographs, we are now looking at the siblings of their mother and father to find a descendant. In the meantime, I have contacted the manager of Gwennie’s grave on "Find a Grave" to see if they’d like a short bio and some photos added, just in case we can't find a family home for the physical albums.

Does anyone have any connections to the Smiths or Whiteheads of Sparkhill, or perhaps recognize the address at 848 Stratford Road? I would love to see these sociable sisters' artwork reunited with a distant cousin! In the meantime the albums remain safely with me

13/12/2025

case #135: A Bouquet of Flowers in the Reeds
I was intrigued when I found this postcard one morning, I really liked the photograph and wondered about the relationships in the photograph. I loved the message on the back which reads…

"Dear Auntie, I only just received these (photos) from Scotland as I had some more done you know. How are you Auntie and everyone, You will be surprised to hear I have broken off my engagement and have another boy. Alice Sumpter is married last Saturday week I had some cake. Love to all Affect(ionate) Niece Rose."

It also has a name and address, which were invaluable in determining who these people are.

This photograph shows Rose Lydia Reed (1883-1963) with two of her sisters, Daisy (1878-1937) and Lily (born 1892) , along with Daisy's son, Charles William Henry Skinner (1900-1952), apparently known as "Willie"

The message on the postcard is such a lovely, personal glimpse into life back then, especially Rose's casual mention of breaking one engagement and having a "new boy"! Rose married Phillip Ryan in 1910, so, unless she was very fickle, perhaps this "new boy" became her husband. Rose and Daisy both eventually emigrated, with Rose following her sister by 1913.

The photograph has been reunited with Willie’s Grandson in Australia , which is fantastic given Willie had emigrated there. The reunitee shared some interesting, though sad, details about "Willie" Skinner's life. Tragically, when he was just 15 years old, he lost his arm in a freak accident, see the newspaper clipping the reunitee provided. Despite this hardship, he went on to have a full and happy life. The reunitee also shared Willie’s school photographs, one from England and one from Australia, taken only a few year apart, they really show a contrast, it really looks like two different worlds!

I’m so glad this little snapshot of the Reed sisters and Willie has made its long journey back to the family in Australia. I have so many links to Australia myself - so many branches of my tree end up there, much more so than any other country.

07/12/2025

case #147: Rose triumphs again with this Shoemaker and his wife

I have had this photograph for a while in my "interesting pile"! It's a characterful portrait of “Grandad and Grandma Moorewood”, likely taken or copied around the 1910s. I bought this one myself, thinking it looked promising! The photo came with the intriguing annotation "C.E. Hamilton" and lots of studio information. I am often struck by these photographs how the men's fashion seems far more flattering than the women's (I certainly like Grandad’s coat , watch chain and cane more than Grandma’s headgear).

I wasn't having much luck until the excellent Rose (LIRs own Special Investigation Unit lead) came to the rescue by researching the photographer's studio location in Congleton, and building a small family tree. She discovered that the Moorewoods married into the Hamilton family, which explained the annotation—it referred to their granddaughter, Caroline Hamilton.

This is Hugh Moorewood (1856-1923) and his wife, Mary Moorewood (née Hancock 1857-1920). Hugh was a shoemaker in Congleton, and he and Mary certainly had their hands full as they had lots of children! I wonder if any of their children or grandchildren continued the shoemaking trade? I come from a long line of shoemakers in Portsmouth (the Smees) and it seems to have been common to pass on this trade - everyone needs shoes. The family connection to C.E. Hamilton (Caroline), who was known to the reunitee as “Auntie Carrie,” really helped complete the picture. It's lovely when a small clue like a name on the back ends up being the key to the whole story!

I'm really pleased to say this photograph has now been reunited with a Great Granddaughter! (who actually doesn't live far from me). She was especially delighted because she also possesses Hugh and Mary’s family bible, which was passed down, and was actually the item that started her on her own family history journey. She didn’t have a photograph of her Great Grandparents, so that is even more pleasing.

02/12/2025

My Great Grandfather has made the front page!
Not a lost image, but just sharing that my research and my Great Grandfather's story is in the Christmas Issue of Who Do You Think You Are Magazine! Ironically photographs of William are very hard to find! It is strange to think that our ancestors would never consider that one day their skeletons in the cupboard would be of such interest (and they would have got away with it “if it wasn't for those pesky kids” ;)

23/11/2025

case #155: Annotations, seaweed and emigration!
I have found some wonderful albums recently, and this one was packed with information and lovely portraits! There was a particularly useful and fantastic annotated portrait of Caroline Millier (nee Manning) and her ten children (I wish my Great Grandparents did that with their 10 children!). The album contains many additional useful clues, including a photograph of William Henry Elston (1852-1939), with annotations that state he was a GWR Manager at Derby who emigrated to Australia around 1910, and later in the album a picture of his sons likely sent back to the family. (there’s also a statement that the family bible went with them, you can hear the longing for that information. I wonder if that still exists and who has it now? If anyone can track them down that would be great to add to the story). So it was relatively easy to track down who they were and find family trees with these families in. Looking through the album and all the annotations it appears to have belonged to Charles Edgar Millier (1872-1956), top right in the photograph, and his wife Alice Mary Elston (1864-1958). It would seem, looking at the annotations, that they were made by their daughter Edith (1902-2000).
The family have shared with me a fantastic story about Augusta’s descendents, she is Charles’ eldest sister and is on the left in the photograph. She once worked as a schoolmistress, married Walter Drew and they had four children. Their eldest was Kathleen Mary, Kathleen studied botany and was one of the first women to graduate from Manchester University in 1922. She stayed on to research edible seaweed from the North Welsh coastline. Sadly, she had to give up her employment when she married Henry Wright Baker, an engineering professor. However, a fellowship allowed her to continue her vital research. Her story then takes on a surprising international turn when her discoveries about the life-cycle of seaweed helped Japanese seaweed farmers recover from poor harvests. To honor her, the Nori farmers in Uto, Japan, erected a memorial (see photograph) for her and celebrate the Drew Festival every year on April 14th. She is locally known as the Mother of the Sea. Isn't that an incredible legacy? I've included a photograph of the memorial the Nori farmers erected to Kathleen in Japan! .
Considering the context of the photograph featuring William Elston (Alice’s brother) and his sons in Australia, it's worth noting that emigration was significantly more prevalent in the past. In a world with far fewer communication channels—prior to email or Zoom—it was common for emigrants to lose touch with their family entirely. Consequently, photographs like this one would have been highly treasured possessions.
I am so pleased this album is now back with the family, reunited with a 1st cousin three times removed of Charles (they share the reunitees 3xGGparents). It’s great to hear a woman’s story like Kathleen’s, and the next time you have sushi, perhaps you will remember her!

09/11/2025

I've created a blog!

I am constantly thinking of ways to help people accept my messages at face value and not view them as a scam. Which is why I created this FB page, which has helped.

But of course, in order to view this you have to be a member of facebook, and not everyone is, and my target demographic are probably less likely to be on social media than average. |

So, I've started a blog (using the same content) and am gradually transferring these posts over. I will, in future be creating posts on both platforms. Please go and have a look - and leave comments if you'd like - it will help with the launch of it.

https://lostimagesreunited.wordpress.com

Do you think this is a good idea?
Would you respond better to a message from someone with a blog and page? Please let me know what you think.

Reuniting vintage photographs with their families so they can be treasured again.