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| Residents of Marshall Alley Photographer: Arthur Rothstein Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division July 1938 |
One of the more widely-known photos taken in the summer of 1938 for the Farm Security Administration (FSA) by acclaimed photojournalist Arthur Rothstein is of a girl sitting in a large galvanized tub in Ambridge's Marshall Alley. I know people have wondered who the girl is, and why she was sitting in the tub in an alley.
The girl in the tub is Rose DeGennaro who lived at 285 Marshall Alley. I think it's a good bet that Rose was sitting in the tub to try to cool off. It was summer, and it was hot. At best, the families who lived in Marshall Alley might have owned a fan. The only pool in the area was the short-lived Dead-End Pool the neighborhood kids had built in Big Sewickley Creek. So a tub in the alley was relief from the heat.
The woman behind Rose is her mother, Sylvia DeGennaro. The taller of the two children behind Rose is her brother John.
The girl in the plaid dress is Irene Mantzaris. Her family lived at 293 Marshall Alley.
So far, I haven't been able to confirm the identity of the man, although someone told me it might have been Rose's father, Anthony, or to identify the
Here are two more of Rothstein's photos featuring Rose that he took for the FSA during his Ambridge visit. These are unprinted "killed" negatives. The black circles in them are actually holes that were punched in negatives that the FSA considered unsuitable for publication.
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| Rose DeGennaro Marshall Alley Photographer: Arthur Rothstein Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division July 1938 |
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| Rose DeGennaro Marshall Alley Photographer: Arthur Rothstein Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division July 1938 |
Similar tubs also served as a bathtubs for Marshall Alley families, as the houses there didn't have one.
You can read more about Marshall Alley and the people who lived there here.
If you know who the unidentified people in the photos are, please leave a comment.
jd aka john domansky
ReplyDeletewhen i first looked at the photo of rose degennaro & the boy standing behind her,i knew them. rose shows up in a 1945 AHS yearbook as a sophomore & in 1947 as a senior. cute as a button as a little girl, she is really cute in 45 & even cuter in 1947, her brother john was one year ahead of me, a junior in 1948 AHS yearbook, he graduated with walt wacht in 1949, do not have that yearbook tho. i knew & had contact with him in school at times,
the galvanized tub thing was a saturday night special for many of us, sisters turned backs, boys left house when girls has theirs.
if rose & or john are still around, hello & best regards,
johnny,
Thanks! Which boy is John? The taller of the two?
Deletejd aka john domansky
Deletethe boy with the suspenders & knickers ( i wore them too) the other pic shows him behind the girl the mom is patting on the head. the older girl standing on the right side looks so familar, i know her , but no name yet. take a look at a 1948 AHS yearbook & look at john grown up, my 1980 valley phone book shows him living in aliquippa, maybe working at J&L. your J&L link is great, nice new blog about bowling I quit there mid 40s, bowled 10 pins in boys town & setup pins too, drop pins in a rack & lower rack down on floor & next ball please.
Are you referring to the girl in the plaid dress? She's already identified: Irene Mantzaris. Is that incorrect?
Deletejd aka john domansky
ReplyDeleteirene is in the 1948 AHS yearbook as a junior, grad 1949, mary is her sister grad 1950, they look so much alike, i knew the face, the name did not mean anything until i saw the face & name in yearbooks. anyone have a 1949 AHS yearbook to sell me?? oh yes john degennaro is a junior in 1948 & a senior in 1950, how did that happen??? stayed a junior 2 years??
just watching news here a tornado just missed us again by 20 miles or so, but more is coming in again, 10:30 pm