Morrow, Nancy Jane "Jennie" Whitney (1855-1938) (2 of 5)
/Unidentified Photographer, Portrait Photograph of
Nancy Jane “jennie” Whitney, Etta Attenbury & “Millie”
THE PHOTOGRAPHER/ PHOTOGRAPHIC STUDIO:
Photographer: unidentified
THE SITTERS:
Names: Nancy Jane “Jennie” Whitney Morrow, Millie, and Etta Attenbury (When this portrait was taken, Nancy Jane would have been known by her maiden name, Whitney.
Description: In this group portrait, Nancy Jane “Jennie” Whitney is seated on the viewer’s left and is fifteen years old. The age of the other two girls, Millie standing and Etta Attenbury seated right, is unknown. All three girls are wearing cinched dresses with ruffled, flounced, hems which were characteristic of the late 1860s and early 1870s. The surname name of “Millie” has not been identified, and little is known of Etta Attenbury. It appears she was a close friend of Nancy Jane. See the double portrait of them in this archive in which they are dressed and groomed identically.
Biographical Note: As a member of a prominent Petaluma family, Nancy Jane “Jennie” Whitney attended “Professor Lippitt’s Scientific & Classical Institute” on D Street in Petaluma, and served as a Sunday school teacher at Petaluma’s St. John’s Episcopal Church under Reverend George Barbour Allen (1833-1918). On April 20, 1881, at the age of 26, in her parent’s home at 6th and F Streets in Petaluma, she married George Pilson Morrow of Temescal, Alameda County, California (1858 -1904). George Morrow was connected with the grain industry and president of George P. Morrow & Company, 303 California Street, San Francisco. On June 7, 1897, the Petaluma Daily Courier reported that Nancy Jane had been elected to the School Board of Temescal, a neighborhood of Oakland, California. In 1904, George died at the age of 45. In 1938, Nancy Jane died at age 81. Both were buried in Mountain View Cemetery in Oakland.
Family Affiliation: Nancy Jane “Jennie” Whitney was the second daughter of the prominent Petaluma pioneers, Albion Paris Whitney (1825-1884) and Susan Durgin Eastman Whitney (1832-1917). Her father was a California State Senator and wealthy businessman. Her mother managed the family business after his death and was an active participant in the women’s suffrage movement. Her paternal grandmother was Olive Parlin Whitney (1791-1874), and her siblings were Cleora Melissa Whitney Hewlett, Arthur Leslie Whitney, Leona Merrill Whitney, Marcella “Ella” Whitney Wheaton, Albion Harvey Whitney and Clara Whitney Spears. With her husband, George Pilson Morrow (1858-1904) Nancy Jane had two children, Rachel Morrow and George Whitney Morrow. Following in his maternal grandfather’s footsteps, George Whitney Morrow worked in the grocery industry.
Bibliography:
THE PHOTOGRAPH:
Format / Size: carte de visite
Medium: albumen photographic print mounted on cardstock
Description, Front: This carte de visit group portrait was taken in front of a painted, studio backdrop depicting a lush landscape. On the floor is a rug with large floral medallions.
Description, Back: It is difficult to decipher the script. In the top left is handwritten in cursive, in pencil, “For Rae” (underlined) and “1870”. Lower down, on a diagonal, also handwritten in cursive in pencil appears to be, “Millie”, “+ farends”. This word has been marked over with two bold lines. Its author may have meant to write “friends”. Below, also handwritten in cursive in pencil appears “Etta Attenbury” and towards the bottom right appears “Jennie”.
Date: 1870
Condition: This card is heavily soiled, the edges have been trimmed, and the top corners clipped. There is also a dark black mark on the front bottom right corner.
Owner: Petaluma Historical Library & Museum,1981-835-20
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