Cats

Washington, D.C., circa 1925. "Mrs. Thaddeus Caraway and cat." The cat's accomplishments are lost to history, but Hattie Caraway went on to become a two-term U.S. Senator, the first woman ever elected to that office. View full size.

This is my dad's cat he had in the early '60s. He said he was a very nice cat. He also said the carpet was an ugly shade of green. View full size

June 19, 1922. Washington, D.C. "Shelly & Jezebel." And that's all they wrote. National Photo Company Collection glass negative. View full size.

Usually when my father and Kitty were in the same room she'd be on his lap. Or actually, on a newspaper on his lap while he read another section, forming a kind of cat sandwich. "You're full of hair," he'd tell her after she jumped up on him. Here he's reading the Marin County Independent-Journal bearing a headline about President-elect Jimmy Carter. At this point, you may be wondering if he was ever seen without a newspaper in his hands. Well, at other times, he'd have garden tools: trimming, pruning, cultivating, raking, watering. Or a steering wheel. Occasionally he'd be seen carving a roast. The reason this is a quiet time (around Christmas, as you can see from the decorations here and there) is that I'm not blasting my stereo, thus banishing him to the kitchen. I'd bought a Sony Trinitron to keep him and my mother company there at such times. That's my record collection on the rack behind him, and one of my Infinity Monitors is just visible peeking over the chair in the corner. My Kodachrome, lit by bounce flash. View full size.

Hi, and thanks everyone for all the nice comments. I have never posted pictures on any website prior to Shorpy. What a place!

Anyway, here I am again with Mom. Presenting our big Persian cat Mac on the back patio. Sadly, Mac caught a skin disease called ringworm from being outside a lot. I am quite sure that there would be some lotion or simple treatment for it nowadays. Then there was no cure and he had to be put down. He was my buddy (so says my Mom). My memories of him are not as clear as I would like.

Thanks all. View full size.

Aboard the U.S.S. New York circa 1896. "Ship's tailor." The dog is Nick. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.

October 1910, aboard the steamship Trent off Bermuda. "M. Vaniman and cat." Melvin Vaniman, first engineer aboard the hydrogen airship America, with the tabby cat mascot of their ill-fated attempt at the first air crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. 5x7 glass negative, George Grantham Bain Collection. View full size.