Prince Ananias - 1894

This is an early design by Caroline Siedle, from 1894. It’s often tricky to identify what show an individual costume is from, but earlier shows such as this can be even more difficult to pinpoint; Siedle was not as well known and didn’t get mentioned as often in the programs and reviews. Until recently I’d been unable to identify where this costume was used, but it does offer up a clue or two. It can be identified as early due to the appearance of her signature; in later drawings her signature changed into a more stylized form, though it was always initials (C.F.) and the last name. I believe the change in style occurred around 1895, but that isn’t a definite date. 

At the lower left on the front is written “Mr. MacDonald for Music sheets”. This was intriguing; it seemed to indicate that not only was this a costume design, but this drawing was selected for use on the cover of sheet music for the production. It was not unusual for sheet music to feature a costumed character from a show, sometimes as a photo and sometimes as a drawing. But it was unclear if Mr. MacDonald was a character or a performer, and until I knew the name of the show I was drawing a blank.  

 

On the back of the board we find a name, Howard Carroll, but I'd been unable to trace this name to a performer.  There's also Siedle's name along with two addresses for the return of the drawing - the first is the Metropolitan Opera House in the city, the other is her home address in Yonkers.

Siedle did have a workspace at the opera house, where her husband Edward became a prop-man in 1891, as well as a studio space in her home. Many of her designs bear the rubber stamp of the Metropolitan Opera, even if they were not drawn for use in their productions. When mentioned in articles, she was often referred to as “Mrs. Siedle of the Metropolitan Opera”.

I started looking at early shows that Siedle was known to have worked on, and made a search for reviews of Prince Ananias, which was the first Victor Herbert comic opera. This finally gave me my answers. Produced by The Bostonians in 1894/95, an October, 1895 review of the production (then on tour in San Francisco) mentions Mr. W. H. MacDonald appearing in the role of Prince Ananias.  The Bostonians (1883 - 1905) were a well-known traveling comic opera company, and William H. MacDonald was one of the proprietors, as well as a leading player. Victor Herbert wrote a handful of his earliest operettas for the company, and Siedle’s earliest costume work was creating designs for several of their productions; according to an 1895 interview, her first show was The Knickerbockers, produced in 1893 by The Bostonians.

 

 

With the new information in hand, a quick internet search located sheet music featuring the design, proving the connection conclusively. If any further proof were needed, at the Museum of the City of New York I located a photo from the production showing Mr MacDonald in this costume (circled in red)!

 

St. Nicholas Magazine

In my last post I mentioned that Caroline Siedle provided illustrations for St. Nicholas magazine, and I’ve tracked down a few examples of her work from the publication. She was not as frequent a contributor as some of the other illustrators found in the pages of the periodical, but she was represented over a span of several years.

St. Nicholas was first published by Scribner’s in 1873. The Century Company took over publication in 1881, and the magazine continued through 1940 with a brief revival in 1943. The original editor was Mary Mapes Dodge, who is best remembered for the story of Hans Brinker, or the Silver Skates. Although St. Nicholas didn't reach the heights of circulation of some other juvenile magazines, like The Youth's Companion, many of the well known authors and illustrators of the period were featured within its pages. It was always a popular, quality production with good authors and excellent printing.

In the 1880’s Siedle provided several spot illustrations (stand-alone pieces dropped in among the other serials and regular features of the magazine), as well as drawings for specific stories.  Fortunately, her contributions are easily identified on the contents page of each issue.

In the December 1883 issue, she provided an illustration for what may be the first publication of Sophie’s Secret, a tale by Louisa May Alcott. This story was later included in the third volume of Lulu’s Library, published in 1889, but without the Siedle drawing. Judging by the monogram in the lower left corner, this image was flipped in the engraving process. When reversed, the initials are far more legible.

The January, 1884 issue had a poem by Emilie Poulsson titled Santa Claus and the Mouse, with a drawing by Siedle. The poem was an account of a wager between Santa Claus and a mouse; the mouse bets it can fit one more thing into the stocking Santa has fully stuffed; of course the one more thing is a hole in the toe! It’s interesting to note that rather than showing the interaction with Santa, she illustrates the results on Christmas morning, which is not part of the poem.

In the March 1884 issue, Siedle provided a couple drawings for the story Girl Noblesse by Mrs. Addeline D. T. Whitney. Whitney was 

a prolific writer of books for girls, featuring strong traditional morals.

In Blackberry Season was published in August, 1887 as a stand-alone illustration and shows a rural scene. Children and young women appear to have been her favorite subject in illustration work. 

Another example of this shows up a year later, in August of 1888. Summer Boarders features a bucolic farm landscape with a pair of girls pumping water.

Going Home With Autumn Leaves was published in November, 1888 and shows another country scene. Caroline was born in Camberwell, a part of South London, but seems to have enjoyed the idea of a rural childhood! 

In her February, 1889 drawing The Coal Age, a baby plays with a coal scuttle. It's easy to imagine that this might be a portrait of her son Edward, who was born in April of 1888.

Although not particularly distinctive from other illustrators of the time, Siedle's drawings are always charming and attractive.