Identify age and type of this photo - 1860s-1880s?

[19cbb]

Originally Posted by orator1

Would 1887-1888 be too late for the cdv in question?

Yes, the CDV is likely 15 years earlier.

Most cameo portrait style CDVs I have are dated 72-75.

[orator1]

Originally Posted by 19cbb

Yes, the CDV is likely 15 years earlier.

Most cameo portrait style CDVs I have are dated 72-75.

If that's the case it would fit with being James O'Rourke who played in Boston from 1873-1875, and could not be John or Tom. There are no other O'Rourkes listed in baseball-almanac.com who played in the 1870s.

One last comparison with two earlier James O'Rourke photos - top left is 1873 and top right is 1874. Any opinions of this new comparison with these younger James H. O'Rourke photos? Are they the same person? All opinions welcome.

[bmarlowe1]

Orator1 - in your last post - the first 2 images are of course definitely Jim O'Rourke. They match in all respects the images posted below.

The HoF cdv cannot be Jim O'Rourke. The easiest thing to key on is the visible left earlobe (it helps if you up the contrast on the cdv) - it is detached. The real Jim O'Rourkes earlobe is very attached. Also the hair type is wrong.

Mistakes like this from HoF are not uncommon.

[orator1]

Originally Posted by bmarlowe1

Orator1 - in your last post - the first 2 images are of course definitely Jim O'Rourke. They match in all respects the images posted below.

The HoF cdv cannot be Jim O'Rourke. The easiest thing to key on is the visible left earlobe (it helps if you up the contrast on the cdv) - it is detached. The real Jim O'Rourkes earlobe is very attached. Also the hair type is wrong.

Mistakes like this from HoF are not uncommon.

From the earlobes it is clear that they are different people.
It certainly fooled REA 13 years ago as well as the HOF currently.

Since he's not in uniform there is no evidence that this is even a baseball player.
Maybe somebody found this CDV that could pass as O'Rourke, then wrote the name and team below the image to make a buck?

[bmarlowe1]

This nice photo of Vic Saier resides at HoF. On the back it says "Heine Zimmerman", for whom it has absolutely no resemblance. It was (is?) in the Heine Zimmerman file, and as such has appeared in two books indentified as Zimmerman.

In one case the author thought it looked more like Saier - but the HoF intern assured him it was Zimmerman.

There are stellar people at HoF, one senior person in particular I know is great with photos. But still - you have to be skeptical.