The Photo Detective

This week on the podcast Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective, is joined by Colin Mustful, author, publisher, and founder of History Through Fiction.

He and Maureen discuss the differences between historical fiction, and what Colin calls “History Through Fiction,” where individuals write high-quality fiction that is rooted in historical research – or, as they call it on the podcast – history with footnotes! It’s a way to tackle history that encourages its readers to place themselves in the story – all within a historical context. 

This is a wonderful conversation on this “new” genre and how you can go about querying Colin if you’re interested in publishing your own work.

 Related Episodes:
Episode 190: Writing Genealogical Crime Mysteries with Nathan Dylan Goodwin 

Episode 191: Mathew Pearl on Narrative Non-Fiction & The Taking of Jemima Boone

Links:

• History Through Fiction 
• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos.
• Need help organizing your photos? Check out the Essential Photo Organizing Video Course.
• Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About My Guest:

Colin Mustful is an independent author, historian, editor, and publisher. His writing helps readers learn and understand the complicated and tragic history of settler-colonialism and Native displacement in the Upper Midwest. He has a Master of Arts degree in history and a Master of Fine Arts degree in creative writing. He is also the founder of History Through Fiction, an independent press that publishes high-quality fiction that is rooted in historical research. He believes that learning history is vital to understanding our world today and finding just, long-lasting solutions for the future.

About Maureen Taylor: Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo-related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com
Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective, is joined by Dr. Kate Strasdin, author and honorary deputy curator at the Totnes Fashion and Textile Museum. 

In this episode, Kate examines her upcoming book - inspired by The Dress Diary of Anne Sykes. This is a brilliant look into one of the rarer artifacts Kate has uncovered - a dress diary featuring fabric swatches from the 1800s. These types of diaries are so rare - and hard to find intact - that Kate believes there are only one or two in the United States.

Maureen and Kate talk about the importance of diaries like this, and how she’ll be covering this story all in her new book entitled The Dress Diary of Mrs. Anne Sykes and how this diary has given immense clues into Victorian fashion.

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week on the podcast, Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective is joined by Francois Brunelle. Francois is a professional photographer and author, who resides in Montreal.

Francois and Maureen discuss his fascinating project “I’m Not a Lookalike” where Francois photographs individuals who look similar – and then compares them. These individuals are not related and typically have never met. The idea is to show how sometimes we can have physical similarities to someone we don’t even know.

Francois has been working on this project since 2000 – making it 23 years since he first began. It’s a critical look at something that many who collect vintage photographs and work on their family photographs may not realize – that sometimes people look alike – but aren’t always your ancestor. Just like today.

Related Episodes:

Episode 114: Modern Tintypes Made With History with Photographer Josh Wool 

Episode 105: Women in the Dark with Katherine Manthorne

Links:

• Francois Brunnelle
• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos.
• Need help organizing your photos? Check out the Essential Photo Organizing Video Course.
• Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About My Guest:

Photography is François Brunelle’s chosen medium of artistic expression. Born in Sherbrooke, Canada, he discovered photography through the works of  André de Dienes and Richard Avedon, two photographers who look at the world sincerely and authentically.

He wrote a book titled The 7 Essential Tools for the Creative Photographer  published by Éditions du Trait. He has been working on the  I’m not a look-alike! project since 1999. François Brunelle lives and works in Montréal, Canada.

About Maureen Taylor:

Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week on the podcast Maureen is doing a solo episode! This episode is an intimate look at Maureen’s life and behind-the-scenes of how she became The Photo Detective. 

Additionally, Maureen details her journey over the past year as she’s updated her book Family Photo Detective, from getting the publishing rights to going through to update all links and book sources, to how the republishing of the updated edition has helped her continue in the work she’s always set out to do: help families understand more about where they come from through photographs and images.

Family Photo Detective, the updated version for 2023, is available now at MaureenTaylor.com, right on the homepage. 

Related Episodes:

Episode 204: Many Shades of Blue: Cyanotypes  

Episode 195: Imperfect History with Curator Sarah Weatherwax 

Links:
 

• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos.
• Need help organizing your photos? Check out the Essential Photo Organizing Video Course.
• Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About Maureen Taylor:

Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo-related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective, is joined by Will Hansen,  the Director of Reader Services and Curator of Americana at the Newberry Library in Chicago. 

Will and Maureen discuss several collections at Newberry Library, including their 1.6 million books, 600,000 different maps, and one collection with 44 glass lantern slides that document the great migration of African Americans from the South to the North. 

The two also discuss a fan favorite – postcards!  There are currently 600,000 unique postcard images within the library.

Related Episodes:
Episode 99: Finding Photos on the Smithsonian Learning Lab

Episode 183: History Galore: The Maine Memory Network

Links:

• Newberry Library on CBS News 
• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About My Guest:

Will Hansen is Director of Reader Services and Curator of Americana at the Newberry Library in Chicago. In his dual role, he directs the Department of Reader Services, which serves researchers at the library’s reference desks, in the reading rooms, and outside the Newberry’s walls via email and other communications; manages the Newberry’s collections in its 10-story stacks building; and coordinates hands-on instructional activities with the Newberry’s collections. 

Mr. Hansen holds a master’s degree in library and information science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

About Maureen Taylor:

Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo-related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

Did you enjoy this episode? Please 

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week on the Photo Detective Podcast, Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective, is joined by Daniel Patt, a software engineer and descendant of  three holocaust survivors. 

It’s this familial relation that inspired Daniel, in his spare time, to create an artificial intelligence platform called “From Numbers to Names” that aids those descended from individuals who faced the Holocaust to discover connections and photos of their loved ones. The project also aims to help identify the millions of unidentified faces in the Holocaust photo and video archives. 

It’s a project that all listeners should hear about, whether they are descendants of those who were in the Holocaust or not. 

Related Episodes:
Episode 187 : Building a Story with the Ancestry.com App

Episode 153: Ellis Island Immigrant Photos Identified with Louis Takács

Links:

• Numbers to Names
• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos.
• Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About My Guest:
Daniel Patt is a software engineer at Google, and is the grandson of three holocaust survivors. In his spare time, he created an artificial intelligence platform called From Numbers to Names to help Holocaust descendants discover photos of their loved ones – and help identify the millions of unidentified faces in Holocaust photo and video archives.

About Maureen Taylor:
Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week on The Photo Detective podcast, Maureen Taylor, the Photo Detective, is joined by Trevor Mattea. Trevor shares how finding a photo in his home’s attic helped inspire him to find who that photo belonged to – meaning the descendants of the people in the photo. 

This episode examines the intimate journey that can come from these so-called “orphan photos” and what a reunion looks like. Trevor reached out to Maureen for advice on what to do with the photo, and the two recount those steps and how to approach one of these ownerless photos to help find a descendant. 

 Related Episodes:
Bonus Episode: Lost History Discovered (in the Recycling) 

Episode 137: The Walls Can Talk: Finding History in a Hidden Room with David Whitcomb 

Links:

• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos.
• Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About My Guest:

Trevor Mattea has a range of professional experiences and interests grounded in conversation, knowledge-building, and creative expression. As an at-home parent to a young son, he focuses on genealogy, family traditions, homeschooling, and home renovation. He creates personalized gifts and party games through his Etsy store, BingoMe. He also hosted the New Books in Education podcast.

He holds an M.A. in Education from Stanford University and an A.B. in Political Science from Washington University.

About Maureen Taylor:

Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo-related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective, is joined by Sabine Ocker, a photo collector and photo historian with over 500 snapshot albums in her collection. 

The two dive into cyanotypes as a popular format with young women attending one of the 7-sister colleges, as well as their shared love of the cyanotype process, and Sabine’s collection of women’s cyanotype snapshot albums. 

Related Episodes:

Episode 196: Early Color Photos and More: The American Museum of Photography 

Episode 193 Stereographs with Pascal Martine

Links:

• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos.
• Need help organizing your photos? Check out the Essential Photo Organizing Video Course.
• Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About My Guest:

Sabine Ocker began collecting photos 20 years ago, initially focusing on snapshot albums, especially those between the period 1890-1920.  She was drawn to women’s photograph albums as they give insights into what life was like for women during that time period. Today She owns about 500 snapshot albums. 

She’s presented her research at the George Eastman House and the Photo Historical Society of New England and has contributed articles on 19th-century photographic processes to publications, journals, and newsletters. 

About Maureen Taylor:

Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo-related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective, is joined by Carol Cox, the founder and CEO of Speaking Your Brand, a coaching and training company. Carol and Maureen tackle one of the biggest topics out there right now: writing with artificial intelligence. Specifically, the two discuss the new ChatGPT AI-- what it does and how it can be used. Their conversation might spark some ideas on how you can use it for your genealogy work. They also talk about image generators that use AI with surprising results.

Related Episodes:
Bonus Episode: Tintypes Made for Movies and Television
Bonus Episode: Lost History Discovered (in the Recycling)

Links:

• Speaking Your Brand
• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page 
• Need help organizing your photos? Check out the Essential Photo Organizing Video Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About My Guest:

Carol Cox is the founder and CEO of Speaking Your Brand®, a coaching and training company.  Through her company and content, her mission is to empower more women to find and use their voice, to tell the stories that need to be told, and to activate ideas for change. Carol is host of the weekly 5-star rated Speaking Your Brand® podcast. Carol was named as one of Orlando’s Women of the Year in 2021 and has been featured in Forbes. Through her company and content, her mission is to empower more women to find and use their voice, to tell the stories that need to be told, and to activate ideas for change.

About Maureen Taylor:

Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts.

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show

This week Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective, is joined by Rosie Grant, a part-time digital librarian at the American Jewish University, who recently went viral for her work with finding recipes on gravestones. 

The two discuss Rosie’s TikTok account ghostlyarchive and how these recipes imprinted on gravestones help continue to tell the story of someone who has long passed, as well as keep their special recipes alive for generations to come.

Related Episodes:

Episode 105: Women in the Dark with Katherine Manthorne 

Episode 49: Women Patriots with Mary Tedesco

Links:

• GhostlyArchive
• Sign up for my newsletter.
• Watch my YouTube Channel.
• Like the Photo Detective Facebook Page so you get notified of my Facebook Live videos.
• Need help organizing your photos? Check out the Essential Photo Organizing Video Course.
• Need help identifying family photos? Check out the Identifying Family Photographs Online Course.
• Have a photo you need help identifying? Sign up for photo consultation.

About My Guest:

Rosie Grant is a part-time digital librarian at the American Jewish University in Los Angeles and full-time Outreach and Communications Manager for the CSW Women’s Center at UCLA. Follow her on TikTok @ghostlyarchive or message on Instagram @ghostly.archive. Fellow taphophiles and cemetery lovers are welcome to connect and share any favorite graves or cemetery recommendations.

About Maureen Taylor:

Maureen Taylor, The Photo DetectiveÒhelps clients with photo-related genealogical problems. Her pioneering work in historic photo research has earned her the title “the nation’s foremost historical photo detective” by The Wall Street Journal and appearances on The View, The Today Show, Pawn Stars, and others.   Learn more at Maureentaylor.com

Did you enjoy this episode? Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts

I'm thrilled to be offering something new. Photo investigations. These collaborative one-on-one sessions. Look at your family photos then you and I meet to discuss your mystery images. And find out how each clue and hint might contribute to your family history. Find out more by going to maureentaylor.com and clicking on family photo investigations. 

Support the show