A 4"x6" glass plate negative, full-figure photograph of Mrs. Lettie Tillma, David City, Nebraska, holding her daughter, Hazel. The woman is wearing in a floor-length, long-sleeved, printed dress with ruffled bodice and small-stand collar with attached brooch and mid-length gloves. She is holding open a gate with one hand, and the baby is sitting in her other arm. Her hair is pulled up and a small, ribboned hat is perched on top of her head. The baby is wearing a full-length dress with cape and bonnet.
This is the oldest (known) surviving image from the Boston Studio negative collection. Lettie was born March 17, 1867, in Jefferson, Iowa, to Addison Monroe. She moved to David City in 1885 and married Michael Tillma, June 30, 1887, in O'Neill, Nebraska. They had four children: Earl, Delta, Hazel and Bernice. Michael operated a grocery store and meat market on the north side of the downtown square in David City. Michael and his brother, Tennis, built the building. Michael and Lettie Tillma lived in David City until 1920, when they moved to Lincoln, Nebraska. Hazel Tillma was born February 16, 1893, in David City to Michael and Lettie Tillma. She married Fred M. Strasser June 27, 1917. They lived in Lincoln and raised three children: Frederick, Dale and Lynn.
