Tuesday, August 2, 2022

Otto F Waegan of Kansas



photographer: O F Waegan
Burlington, KS
example from Ancestry

Otto F Waegan
(1851 - 1929)

1851 Jul 13
Vienna, Austria, US census records: O F Waegan is born
1867-1870
Otto F Waegan arrives in the US (sources do not all agree on year)
1880 circa
Probably Wisconsin, Otto F Waegan marries Martha (unknown) No documents have been found.
1884 May 07 & Jun 07
St Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch, small classified ad for help for O F Waegan, artist at 506 Olive street
1884 Jun 01
Maryland, US, state records, daughter Violet M Waegan is born
1885 Jun 20
Horicon, WI, state census, O F Waegan as resident with two female (Wife and Daughter presumably)
1892 Dec 02 and Dec 09
Burlington (KS) Democrat, news item says O E Waegan has purchased a photograph gallery from Ross Gregg

1892 Dec 23
Burlington (KS) Democrat, small ad for Waegan as photographer
1893 Feb 10
Waverly (KS) Gazette, small ad for Waegan’s gallery in Burlington
1893 Mar 31
Burlington (KS) Democrat small ad for Waegan the photographer
1893 Apr 14
Burlington (KS) Courier small ad for Waegan as photographer
1893 May 19
Waverly (KS) Gazette small ad for Waegan as photographer
1893 Sep 08
Burlington (KS) Democrat small ad for Waegan’s corner 3rd and Neosho
1893 Sep 15 and 22
Burlington (KS) Courier display ad for Waegan’s Gallery at 3rd and Neosho, Stanford building
1894 Feb 16
Burlington (KS) Democrat, small ad for O F Weagan, photographer
1895 Jan 13
Springfield (MO) Leader and Press display ad for O F Waegan


1897 Jan 08
Springfield (MO) Leader and Press small ads for a photo gallery for sale and Millinery business for sale, call or address MRS WAEGAN and 205 e Commercial street
1900 Jun 01
St Charles, MO, US census, O F Waegan as milliner at 321 n Main
1904 Aug 19
Santa Cruz (CA) Sentinel small notice of real estate transfer from O F Waegan to Celestia M Kuebler (Note, here again, this is based on the similarity of the name which is unusual. No other documentation has been found to put photographer Waegan on the west coast US.)
1906
St Charles, MO, city directory, O F Waegan as photographer at 327 Main
1907
St Louis, MO, city directory, O F Waegen as Artist at 216 w 14th
1907 May 13
St Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch small item says O F Waegan of St Louis is visiting relatives in St Charles, MO



1910 Apr 23
St Louis, MO, US census, O F Waegen as photographer, as lodger at 219 N 14th; wife not listed
1911 Dec 10 and 17, 1912 Feb 04, 1912 Jul 21. 1913 Jan 05 and Feb 16 and Mar 09
St Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch small classified ad for 120 acre farm for sale, see Mrs M Waegan, St Charles, MO
1913 Jun 01
St Louis (Mo) Globe Democrat classified item says Millinery store is for sale by Mrs M Waegan of St Charles, MO
1920 Apr 25
Worchester, MD US census, O F Waegen as farmer living with wife Martha and daughter

(Worchester, MD, is way out of his usual area and profession for Otto Waegen, but the first name and initial are the same, the wife’s name is the same and the daughter Violet is listed as “Viola”. The ages are close and, except for Otto himself, the birth locations are close. The ages of the women are inconsistent but similar to all other documents found. Otto’s age and birth location varies from document to document.)

1929 Feb 10
St Louis, MO, state records, Otto F Waegen dies at age 77 of bronchial Pneumonia (His death certificate says he was a “civil servant” at the time of death. No other documents have been found to support this.)

Normally this would be the end of the coverage of the timeline for a photographer. However, there is a curious inconsistency in the documentation of daughter Violet and her mother after the death of Otto.

Although there is clear documentation of wife Martha Waegen’s death in 1935, she appears again five years later, in the 1940 US census, living with her daughter, Violet Waegen, in St Louis, MO. These documents have been included below.

The US Social Security system began in 1935, the year of Martha's death. Was this possibly a scam to continue collect payments for the deceased Martha Waegen, from the fledgling Social Security system?

It's probably just some clerical error.


photographer: O F Weagan
Burlington, KS
example from Psychogenealogist

reverse of card at left


photographer: O F Weagan
Burlington, KS
example from auction site
Suggested Date: 1893

photographer: Waegan and Bancroft
Jordan, Belle Plain and New Prague, MN
example from Passing Through

Otto Waegan is the only Waegan found so far to have been a photographer at least part of his career. So this Waegan is probably him.

There were several photographers in the cabinet card era that might have been the brief partner with Waegan in Minnesota.

Here are a few:
Charles T Bancroft
Charles D Bancroft
George Bancroft
Oscar F Bancroft, Springfield, OH
John R Bancroft, Niagara Falls, NY
Walter W Bancroft, Springfield, MO

The towns of Belle Plain, Jordan and New Prague are all within 20 miles of each other, all less than 50 miles southwest of Minneapolis, MN.

Nothing has been found to connect Otto Waegan with any of these photographers named Bancroft. Considering how Waegan moved around, it is quite probable that he, like some other photographers, took on a temporary partner just for the money up front or the use of rental rooms. No evidence has been found to support this.



St Louis (M)Post-Dispatch - 07 May 1884


Brulington (KS) Democrat - 02 Dec 1892


Brulington (KS) Democrat - 09 Dec 1892


Brulington (KS) Democrat - 23 Dec 1892


The Waverly (KS) Gazette - 10 Feb 1893

Brurlington (KS) Democrat - 31 Mar 1893


Brurlington (KS) Democrat -
14 Apr 1893


Brurlington (KS) Democrat -
08 Sep 1893


The Waverly (KS) Gazette -
29 May 1893

Burlington (KS) Courier -
15 Set 1893


Le Roy, (KS) Reporter -
22 Sep 1893


Burlington (KS) Democrat -
02 Feb 1894


Springfield (MO) Leader and Press -
16 Jan 1895

Springfield (MO) News Leader -
10 Jan 1897


Santa Cruz (CA) Sentinel -
19 Aug 1904


Salias (CA) Californian -
26 Aug 1904

St Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch
13 May 1907

Relatives? His wife and daughter lived there at that time.


St Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch - 10 Dec 1922


St Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch - 11 Feb 1912


St Louis (MO) Globe - 21 Jul 1912


St Louis (MO) Post-Dispatch - 05 Jan 1913

St Louis (MO) Globe-Democrat - 05 Jan 1913


St Louis (MO) Globe-Democrat - 17 Feb 1913


St Louis (MO) Post Dispatch - 09 Mar 1913


St Louis (MO) Globe Democrat - 01 Jun 1913





photographer: Gregg
Burlington, KS
example form pinterest
(See timeline mention at Dec 1892)

Not the one you were looking for? Here's the photographer's INDEX by name. Listed here are all the Cabinet Card photographers of the 19th century found in LOST GALLERY. This is a work in progress. For a look at the original postings go to LOST GALLERY.

New examples and additional information are always welcome. Any additional information will help narrow the time that these precious antiques were made.

All submissions should be free of glare and shadows. Do not crop. Leave a border around each card. The edges are sometimes an important clue to the age of the card.

Some examples on this page have been enhanced or restored for clarity and presentation here.

This page is free for educational and research purposes only but, as always, if the original owner of any of these examples objects to the use on this page, just let me know and they will be immediately removed.

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