Likenesses of Dunning family members of Dover, Del., and Philadelphia, Penna. in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries are posted here. For a study of the Dunning family, see 1328 North Fifteenth Street: the Dunning Family and Its Things available at Lulu.com.
James A. Dunning (1811-1865)
James Anderson Dunning married as his second wife Margaret Ann Stevenson, the granddaughter of James Lewis and Margaret (Denny) Stevenson. Here they are:
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| James Anderson Dunning, in 1847
He was born August 28, 1811 in Maryland, and died Feb. 6, 1865 in Dover, Delaware. |
Margaret Ann Stevenson Dunning, in 1847
She was born Oct. 26, 1818 in Dover, and died. June 26, 1904 in Philadelphia. |
1847 daguerreotype of Margaret and James Dunning (slightly damaged)
James A. was a shopkeeper in Dover, Delaware. After his death in 1865 the store was continued by his son James H. This photo was taken in 1869 or 1870, showing an ox cart in the street in front of the store.
James and his first wife, Louisa Turner, had three children:
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| Caroline Dunning, b. Oct. 3, 1838 | Anna Eliza Dunning, b. Sept. 27, 1840 | Erasmus Clark Dunning, b. June 18, 1843 |
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 C. J. |
Caroline, called Lina, and Anna were the "belles of Dover". In a double wedding on January 26, 1860 Lina married C. J. Jones. He was a physician and enlisted in the Union army. |  Lina |
After Dr. Jones's death, Lina married Cyrus F. Woods of Enfield, Mass. The photo on the right shows great niece Lucy with Lina on the porch of the Woods' home in Enfield. The town of Enfield was destroyed in the late 1920s to build the Quabbin Reservoir to supply water to Boston and other eastern Massachusetts towns. A number of photographs of the Woods' home are in the New Salem Historical Society, with copies in the Quabbin Visitors' Center.
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Albert Cowgill, the husband of Anna E. Dunning, was a pharmacist in
Dover.
The Cowgills had several children, including Albert James, shown here with his parents. But all the children died young. |
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Clara Cowgill, born 6/23/1861,
Anna Louisa Cowgill, called Lulu,
the Cowgill's home in Dover, Delaware
died 5/18/1865
born 4/14/1867, died 10/14/1870
James A. Dunning and his second wife, Margaret Ann Stevenson Dunning
also had three children.
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| Thomas Stevenson Dunning, age 6, 1854 (b. 8m/1/1848) | James Henry Dunning, age 8, 1858 (b. 2m/5/1850) | Charles Thompson Dunning, (b. 11m/21/1852) |
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Three Dunning brothers: James, Charles, and Thomas
The two younger boys, Charles age 1 1/2, James age 4 (1854)
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a picture will be added here |
| Thomas Stevenson Dunning, b. Aug. 1, 1848; d. Jan. _, 1945 in Philadelphia, Pa. | James Henry Dunning, b. 1850; d. Sept. 8, 1870 in Dover, Del. | Charles Thompson Dunning, b. Nov. 21, 1852; d. Oct. 22, 1932 in Pittsburgh, Pa. |
Charles Thompson Dunning's family, 1885:
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| Charles T. Dunning and his family: grandson Charles Wesley Dunning, daughter-in-law Elizabeth "Daisy" (Fisher) Dunning, son James Edwin Dunning, and grandson Edwin Crever Dunning. Los Angeles, 1930. | Charlie Paxson, his wife Martie (Dunning) Paxson, and her uncle Charles T. Dunning |
Margaret Ann Stevenson Dunning lived her final years in the home of
her son, Thomas, at 1328 North 15th Street, Philadelphia.
She purchased a bedroom set for her use in his home when it became too
difficult for her to climb up into the high two-poster bed made by her
father. The cherry wood set was in Lucy's home until 2003. The pillow on the bed in this photograph is the log cabin pattern, made by Lili.
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 Margaret Ann |
Thomas Stevenson Dunning married Lydia Balderston, the daughter of Samuel
F. and Martha Ann (Griffith) Balderston. Click here to see the Balderston
page.
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| Lydia Balderston Dunning | TSD at "Camp Paxson" in Collegeville, beside the Perkiomen Creek, July 27, 1922. | 1940, 68th wedding anniversary of Thomas and Lydia |
A Bachrach portrait
of Dr. Thomas S. Dunning.
Thomas S. and Lydia B. Dunning had eight children, of whom six survived
past their teen years.
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| Mary Esther Dunning, born Oct. 31, 1878; died Dec. 5, 1969. | Lydia James Dunning, born Oct. 11, 1883; died July 4, 1946 | Anna Bartlett Dunning, born May 27, 1894;
died Sept. 25, 1915 of tuberculosis. |
| The other two children were John Erasmus Dunning, born Oct. 20, 1880, died April 13, 1885, and a girl who died at birth on Dec. 12, 1891, simply named Cherub Dunning. |  |
The Dunning family, ca. 1900, from left: Lydia,
Thomas "Bud", Lydia B. holding Anna, Margaret, Thomas S., Mary (in back)
with Martha "Martie" in front of her.
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| First five Dunning children: Mary, James, Margaret, Thomas "Bud", and Martha "Martie". | The hospitable Dunning home took in an extended family of related and unrelated people. Back row: Hannah M. James, Martie, Mary, Margaret, Charles T. Dunning; seated: Margaret Ann Stevenson Dunning, her son Thomas S. Dunning, Lydia B. holding Anna, Mary Crever Dunning (wife of Charles); in front: Thos. Snively "Bud", and Lydia J. October 28, 1898, 1328 N. 15th St. |
To learn more about Dr. Thomas S. Dunning and his wife Lydia Balderston, see 1328 North Fifteenth Street: the Dunning Family and Its things (© 2008), available here.
The next section will feature each of the Dunning children in turn.Margaret Balderston Dunning married Walter Scott Adams. They
had a daughter, Lydia Adams.
The second daughter, Martha Kelso Dunning, called "Martie", attended
the Pennsylvania School of Design. She had her own studio for a while,
and has recently been entered in the National Museum of Women Artists.
Martha Kelso Dunning,
age 11 months.
Growing up, Martie's best friend was Helen Childs. To see something
about her, click on "Nellie" Shepler.
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| Martie designed these stained glass windows, but I do not believe they were ever actually made. To see her painting of her daughter's house in Lansdowne, click here. | Martie's children with their grandfather Dunning: Tom, Moggie, Helen, and Charley |
Thomas Snively Dunning, called by his family "Bud", and by his
colleagues T. Snively, married first Elizabeth Nittinger. They had
a daughter, Ruth Nittinger Dunning. After an unpleasant divorce and court
case Bud moved to Nevada. He married Louise Krumbigh Wentzel on Nov. 12,
1943. They eventually returned to the Philadelphia area, and I remember
him as our family physician.
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Elizabeth, Bud, and his parents Lydia and Thomas |
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| T. Snively Dunning and Louise at home | in Wayne, Penna. |
Mary Esther Dunning married William Bonaparte Shoe, called "Dub".
They had a daughter, Lucy Taxis Shoe.
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| Lucy at 16 for the Girls High School (Philadelphia) class book, 1923 | Mary and Lucy at Ocean City, June 1924 | Dub, Helen and Phil with daughter Helen, and Mary E. D. Shoe |
Lydia James Dunning worked for years for a Baptist Publishing firm. She sang semi-professionally, and worked with the Young Friends Movement directing theatrical performances. She left several albums of photographs of young people at the beach, having theatricals, and generally having fun together, but most of them are unlabelled. She never married, but remained at home caring for her elderly parents. Eventually there will be several photographs of Lydia posted here.
Lydia B. D. with her youngest daughter, Anna Bartlett Dunning,
being held by Mrs. Bartlett, for whom Anna was given her middle name. Anna
was the apple of her parents' eye. She exhibited a fair amount of artistic
talent and followed her sister Martie to the Philadelphia School of Design.
A number of her paintings and sketches remain. She was diagnosed with tuberculosis
shortly after her graduation in May and was died in September.
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| The Philadelphia School of Design for Women, founded in 1844. | Anna B. Dunning on right being coached by the professor, Henry B. Snell. The painting of a Native American in a red blanket is hanging in Lucy's home. 1905. |
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Anna
Bartlett Dunning
The Dunning family enjoyed summers outside of the city. In 1895 they
rented a house on the Main Line, in Haverford. In later years they went
to the sea shore, usually Wildwood, NJ.
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| Martie, Mary, Margaret, Thomas S.; front row: Bud, Anna, Lydia B., Margaret Ann Stevenson Dunning; seated on the ground: Lydia J. summer 1895, Haverford. | Margaret, Lydia, Walter Adams, Ralph Adams, Elizabeth N. Dunning (wife of Bud), and little Lydia Adams. 1915. |
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| Margaret Ann Stevenson Dunning, Martha K. Dunning and "Auntie Jay" ( Hannah M. James). They all lived in the Dunning home. | Lydia J., Martie, Thomas, Lydia B., and Mary in the yard of Martie's home, 2104 W. Ontario St., Philadelphia, on June 2, 1935. |
Auntie J's chest of drawers, Aunt Lina's brass Martie's birthday? ca. 1940, Charley, Tom, T. Snively, Mary, Walter, Harry
clock and candle holders, painting by Anna Marion Townsend, Charley, Martie, Thomas S. Dunning, Lydia J. Dunning
B. Dunning. Helen, Anne, Margaret, Kitty
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The Dunnings worshipped at Grace Methodist Episcopal Church at Broad and Master Streets. Photograph taken in 1905. On the right is the interior, decorated for a "harvest home" service. |
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To find a book about 1328 North Fifteenth Street: the Dunning Family and Its things.
To see photographs of other ancestors related to the Dunnings, click
on Balderston, or Paxson.
To see photographs of descendants of the Dunnings, click on Cousins.