Photo Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
A1987.055.016 |
Object Name |
Negative, Glass Plate |
Tagline |
Black and white glass plate negative of the McDonald family posed for a photograph on the steps of their house, circa 1909. |
Collection |
MS 36 – McDonald Family Collection |
Description |
Black and white glass plate negative of the McDonald family posing for a photograph on the steps of their house in Rossland. The scene consists of John Dingwall McDonald and Ethel Bell McDonald holding on to their two daughters – Pauline and Helen. John Dingwall is sitting on the left side of the stairs and is wearing a dark three-piece suit and a black bowler hat. His feet are resting on the ground and he has an arm wrapped around Pauline’s shoulders. Pauline is sitting to her father’s right and is wearing a dark coat with fur detailing as well as a mid-toned hat. She has dark shoulder-length hair and is looking at the camera. Ethel is sitting on the right side of the stairs and has one a dark dress/coat and is wearing a large hat. She is holding a baby Helen in her lap and is looking down at her. Helen is in an all-white outfit and is looking down at her mother’s hands. The house’s porch is in the background of the scene and its most notable feature is the striped curtains that have been hung on the far end. |
Date |
1909/ / |
Medium |
Gelatin Dry Plate |
Provenance |
The McDonald family came to Rossland in 1898, when John Dingwall McDonald (born 1874, Woodstock, Ontario) came to Rossland to work for the West Kootenay Power & Light Company. John Dingwall worked as the Superintendent for the company in Rossland. He married Ethel Bell Elder and the young family lived in the WKPL company residence. The couple had three children – Pauline Dingwall (1907), Helen Christian (1909), and John David (1915). John Dingwall worked for the WKPL until he retired in 1942, ultimately passing away two short years later on October 7, 1944. Ethel passed away on May 22, 1948. Pauline married George Wilson in 1938 and passed away in 1956, while Helen passed away in 1929. John David, known as Jack or JD, graduated with an engineering degree from UBC in 1941 and married Donna Berva McLeod on September 7, 1942. After his graduation, he worked for WKPL until he enlisted in the Canadian Navy in December 1942. Jack returned to Rossland in 1945 and worked at Cominco until his retirement in May 1980. Jack was active in the Rossland community, but was especially influential in the development of the Rossland Museum, a Canadian Centennial Project in 1967. He continued to be involved with the Museum, serving as president of the board until his death in 2003. |
People |
McDonald, Ethel Bell McDonald, John Dingwall McDonald, Pauline Dingwall McDonald, Helen Christian |
Subjects |
Photography Family Portrait Siblings Parents |