This photo depicts Hans Linus Findeisen, his friend Red Peterka, and two young women. The Findeisen family was a relatively prosperous German immigrant family that lived on the East Side. They left a treasure trove of striking black and white photos of Southeast Chicago from the early 20th century. The parents of the family, Anna Nega and Linus Findeisen Sr., emigrated from Germany in the 1880s and settled on the East Side. They married in 1890 and had four sons, including Hans, also known as “Linus.” Linus Sr. first worked in the steel mills; later, he and his sons formed a family business as plasterers. Although possessing only elementary school educations, the Findeisens appear relatively prosperous in their photographs. (Even owning a camera instead of having photos taken in a studio was unusual for the time). In addition to numerous family portraits and gatherings with neighbors, the photographs depict family vacations to neighboring states and a small pleasure boat the “Oro” that they used on local waterways. Other photographs capture Hans Linus as a World War I soldier stationed in Texas. In later years, Hans Linus’ own son would become a third-generation plasterer and live on the East Side, along with other cousins and extended family. This cache of historic photographs was donated by one of the founders of the Southeast Chicago Historical Society, Jim Fitzgibbons, a neighbor of the Findeisens.
