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The records about the water carries are also very significant. Through these records we can do research about the cost of water and the social and technological aspects of the trade. It’s quite interesting to see the humbly dressed water carriers with their donkeys posing in front of the elegant sceneries.
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Water
carrier: Pedro Escobar, 1903 |
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Los cargadores lucen ante la cámara del fotógrafo una vestimenta muy similar a la de los aguadores, el único cambio es el instrumento de trabajo, es decir, ellos posan con su mecapal sobre la mesita o silla afrancesada. The Carriers regulations of 1891 in its Article 11 banned carriers from using foul language or working under the influence of alcohol, which carried severe penalties including mutilation.
Carrier:
Tiburcio Martínez, 1902 > |
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The records of merchants, unfortunately, have a bit less quality than the rest of the records.
The chauffeurs were the ones with the better social standing. Their trade forced them to be better dressed and have much better manners and language. They also had to have a timepiece to inform their passengers of the times of departure and arrival.
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| Chauffeur:
Carlos Ruiz, 1920 Click on image for a full view. |
Most of the shoeshine boys, ironically, did not have any shoes in the photographs, which invariably feature their inseparable shoeshine box. Most of them were 10 to 16 years old.
The information that we have about these people depends a great deal on the calligraphy of the city official that wrote the record, and the skill of the photographer to capture the “essence of their model.
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| Shoeshine
boy: José Coronado, 1917 Click on image for a full view. |
The photographs from the late 19th Century up to the 1930’s were full-body shots, which show the faces, garments and accessories. After the 1930’s the photographs became dreary due to the advent of the typical modern-day ID photo that only features the face. The calligraphy of the city officials also lost quality and beauty.
The original registry entry numbers have been respected which explains the leaps in the order of numbers, use of letters instead of numbers, etcetera.
We would like to thank ADABI Mexico for their contribution to this project.
Nora
Olivia Sedeño Torres
Director of the Historic Archive of the Oaxaca Municipality.
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