"J Mangold"

reads the caption of this carte de visite. The photographer must have been about fifty years old when this self-portrait was made. No record of a Cobden studio exists but for the logo on the reverse side of the card. Possibly, Mangold returned with his family to Cobden, Illinois (near his hometown) during the hot summer months to escape the Florida heat. He would soon make the peninsular state his newest studio venture and permanent home. Apparently, not liking the climate, his wife would not accompany him.

This carte de visite appears to be one of a series of three portraits of Mangold family members. One is of J. G. Mangold, another has been identified as Piety (Cox) Mangold (wife of B. F. Mangold), and the other may be Margaret Mangold, daughter of B. F. Mangold. They were probably made at the same time due to the similarity of their image quality and sameness of logo and mount style.

Carte de visite on albumen paper, colored cardstock, circa 1878-1880, Imprint: J. G. Mangold, Cobden, Illinois. [AJB:20]