Whisk Broom Beard of Belgian King, Leopold II (1835-1909)

Portrait of Belgian King, Leopold II (1835-1909).
Location: Belgium
Date taken: 1900

Photo Via LIFE archive on Google.

Leopold II (French: Léopold Louis Philippe Marie Victor, Dutch: Leopold Lodewijk Filips Maria Victor) (9 April 1835 – 17 December 1909) was the second king of the Belgians. Born in Brussels the second (but eldest surviving) son of Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orléans, he succeeded his father to the throne on 17 December 1865 and remained king until his death. He was the brother of Carlota, empress of Mexico, and first cousin to Victoria, queen of Britain.

Leopold is chiefly remembered as the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free State, a private project undertaken by the King. He used Henry Morton Stanley to help him lay claim to the Congo, an area now known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Powers at Berlin Conference agreed to set up the Free State in 1885, on condition that the inhabitants were to be brought into the modern world and that all nations be allowed to trade freely. From the beginning, however, Leopold essentially ignored these conditions and ran the Congo brutally, by proxy through a mercenary force, for his own personal gain. He extracted a personal fortune from the Congo, initially by the collection of ivory, and after a rise in the price of rubber in the 1890s by forcing the native population to collect sap from rubber plants. His harsh regime was directly or indirectly responsible for the death of millions of people. The Congo became one of the most infamous international scandals of the early 20th century, and Leopold was ultimately forced to relinquish control of it to the government of Belgium.

- Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leopold_II_of_Belgium

Happy Birthday George Bernard Shaw

from Wikipedia:
George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950) was an Irish playwright.

Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60 plays. Nearly all his writings deal sternly with prevailing social problems, but have a vein of comedy to make their stark themes more palatable. Shaw examined education, marriage, religion, government, health care and class privilege.

He was most angered by what he perceived as the exploitation of the working class, and most of his writings censure that abuse. An ardent socialist, Shaw wrote many brochures and speeches for the Fabian Society.

He became an accomplished orator in the furtherance of its causes, which included gaining equal rights for men and women, alleviating abuses of the working class, rescinding private ownership of productive land, and promoting healthy lifestyles.

Herzog Friedrich von Anhalt

Herzog Friedrich von Anhalt
Originally uploaded by Miss Mertens

Herzog Friedrich von Anhalt had a fantastic mustache and a nice helmet too.

from Wikipedia: Frederick II (19 August 1856 - 22 April 1918) was a Duke of Anhalt.

He was born in Dessau the second son of Hereditary Prince Frederick of Anhalt-Dessau and his wife Princess Antoinette of Saxe-Altenburg.[1] In 1863 his grandfather Leopold IV became Duke of the united Duchy of Anhalt following the death of the last Duke of Anhalt-Bernburg. His father succeeded as Duke of Anhalt on 22 May 1871. Frederick became heir apparent and Hereditary Prince following the death of his brother Leopold on 2 February 1886. Frederick was married on 2 July 1889 at Karlsruhe to Princess Marie of Baden, elder sister of Prince Maximilian of Baden, 8th Chancellor of Germany.[2]

On 24 January 1904 he succeeded his father as Duke of Anhalt.[3] During his reign he was known for his love of music and maintained a Court Theatre which became celebrated throughout Europe.[4] He died at Ballenstedt Castle and was succeeded by his brother Eduard.

Portuguese Beard Illustration, October 18 1909

Dr. G.S. Lincoln, Crutchfield St, Dallas, Texas, 1901,

Illustração Portugueza, No. 191, October 18 1909 - 1a Originally uploaded by Gatochy

King Oscar II. of Sweden 1829 - 1907

King Oscar II. of Sweden 1829 - 1907
Originally uploaded by Miss Mertens

Oscar II (21 January 1829 – 8 December 1907), born Oscar Fredrik was King of Norway from 1872 until 1905 and King of Sweden from 1872 until his death. The third son of King Oscar I of Sweden and Josephine of Leuchtenberg, he was a descendant of Gustav I of Sweden through his mother.
source: wikipedia.org

Coal Miner with a Dirty Moustache

Coal Miner, circa 1910
Originally uploaded by John McNab

Photographer: Lewis W Hines, Pennsylvania, circa 1910

Portrait of An Old Man With Whiskers

Portrait of An Old Man With Whiskers
Originally uploaded by John McNab

Peterborough, New Hampshire, USA, 1950.

1904 His Royal Highness the Toffee King

1904 His Royal Highness the Toffee King
Originally uploaded by clotho98

Police Gazette Ad

Police Gazette Ad
Originally uploaded by Stuff about Minneapolis

Portrait of Man with Moustache

Portrait of Man with Moustache
Originally uploaded by Wisconsin Historical Images

Studio portrait of a man with a long moustache posed sitting, possibly Brockwau.

This image is part of a collection of over 6,000 glass plate negatives created by Charles J. Van Schaick. Van Schaick learned the art of photography after moving to Jackson County, Wisconsin. In 1885, he opened a studio in Black River Falls, Wisconsin and served as the town photographer for over 50 years. His work includes both studio portraits and richly varied and intimate snapshots of small-town, Wisconsin life. A portion of his photographic work is represented in Wisconsin Death Trip by Michael Lesy.

For more information about this image, click here:

www.wisconsinhistory.org/whi/fullRecord.asp?id=28956

Doctor Sweany's 1895 Mustache

doctor sweany 1895
Originally uploaded by daves cupboard

When others fail, consult
Doctor Sweany,
737 Market St.,
San Francisco, CAL

Opposite Examiner Office

Dr. Francisco Bertrand, President of Honduras

Francisco Bertrand (1866–1926) was twice President of Honduras, first from March 28, 1911 to February 1, 1912, and then again between March 21, 1913 and September 9, 1919.

His successor and predecessor was Manuel Bonilla.

Bertrand started out with a reputation as a conciliator, but during his last presidency was involved in armed conflict with his political opponents.

It is believed that United States of America pressure was behind his abandoning the post of President. He spent the next few years in exile before returning to La Ceiba, Honduras to die in July 1926.

Source:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco_Bertrand

Image source: US Library of Congress
Bain News Service,, publisher.Dr. Francisco Bertrand - Pres. of Honduras[no date recorded on caption card]
1 negative : glass ; 5 x 7 in. or smaller.
Notes:Title from unverified data provided by the Bain News Service on the negatives or caption cards.
Forms part of: George Grantham Bain Collection (Library of Congress).
Format: Glass negatives.
Rights Info: No known restrictions on publication.
Repository: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA, hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print
General information about the Bain Collection is available at hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.ggbain
Persistent URL: hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ggbain.12676
Call Number: LC-B2- 2653-6

1915 Jubol Man Getting Tongue Scrubbed Ad

1915 Jubol Man Getting Tongue Scrubbed Ad
Originally uploaded by captainpandapants

1915 Jubol Man Getting Tongue Scrubbed by Small Workmen ad. From a 1915 edition of L'Illustration.

President Grover Cleveland

Cleveland in 1903 at age 66 by Frederick Gutekunst

from Wikipedia:

Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837 – June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th President of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms (1885–1889 and 1893–1897) and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents. He was the winner of the popular vote for president three times—in 1884, 1888, and 1892—and was the only Democrat elected to the presidency in the era of Republican political domination that lasted from 1860 to 1912. Cleveland's admirers praise him for his honesty, independence, integrity, and commitment to the principles of classical liberalism. As a leader of the Bourbon Democrats, he opposed imperialism, taxes, subsidies and inflationary policies. As a reformer he also worked against corruption, patronage, and bossism.

Some of Cleveland's actions caused controversy within his own party. He used the presidential veto 584 times, far more than any president before him. His intervention in the Pullman Strike of 1894 in order to keep the railroads moving angered labor unions, and his support of the gold standard and opposition to free silver alienated the agrarian wing of the Democrats. Furthermore, critics complained that he had little imagination and seemed overwhelmed by the nation's economic disasters—depressions and strikes—in his second term. Even so, his reputation for honesty and good character survived the troubles of his second term. Biographer Allan Nevins wrote, "in Grover Cleveland the greatness lies in typical rather than unusual qualities. He had no endowments that thousands of men do not have. He possessed honesty, courage, firmness, independence, and common sense. But he possessed them to a degree other men do not."

Mustache Portrait by Lamson of Portland Maine

Portrait Photo by Lamson. Portland, Maine