One of the things I enjoy most about collecting old storefront photographs is how often the smallest details end up telling the biggest stories.
This recently acquired photograph shows a man, likely “C. Geedy,” standing in the doorway of his “Picture Framing and Notions” shop. He wears a straw hat, vest, and pocket watch while posing calmly in front of the storefront. The right display window is filled with plates, teacups, saucers, and other household goods typical of a small notions shop in the early twentieth century.
At first glance, the photograph seemed straightforward enough: another quietly posed storefront portrait from an unknown town. But while looking more closely at the left display window, I noticed a partially visible poster.
The wording was just legible enough to stand out:
“The Saloon or the Boys and Girls — The Real Issue.”
That sent me searching.
After a little digging, I was able to locate the exact poster displayed in the photograph. Published in 1908 by the Young Boys and Girls Christian Temperance Union, the image was part of the broader temperance movement that eventually helped usher in Prohibition in the United States. A color image of the poster can be viewed at David Pollack Vintage Posters, whose website helped confirm the identification.
I was also able to locate and acquire an original, used 1909 postcard reproducing the same artwork.
Original 1909 postcard reproducing 'The Saloon or the Boys and Girls—The Real Issue.' (Author's collection.)
Seeing the poster and postcard in color gives the storefront photograph an entirely different feel. What initially appeared to be a simple picture framing and household goods store suddenly becomes connected to a much larger cultural moment. The poster was not merely decoration. It reflected one of the defining moral and political debates of the era.
I spent some time searching for “C. Geedy” in newspaper archives and directories, but so far nothing definitive has emerged. The surname appears in Pennsylvania records often enough to be tempting, though at the moment I cannot confidently connect this photograph to a specific person or location.
For now, the poster remains the most interesting detail.