William
Sifferlen was the youngest child of Theobold and Theresa Christen
Siefferlen.
Theobold
Siefferlen immigrated from France to the US c. 1831. Theresa's
parents were Fredolin and Magdalena Arnold Christen who immigrated
from Germany in c. 1832. Theresa was their first child born in
this country.
Theobold
and Theresa were married c. 1858 at the Sacred Heart Church in
the Bethlehem Settlement between Shelby and Crestline. William
was born in September of 1876, the youngest of nine children.
William was raised on the family farm and helped as a farm hand.
Theobold passed away in 1891 and by 1900, William's mother and
four of her sons were living on the farm.
William
married Maude Henry c. 1905 and the 1910 census finds them living
on the Sifferlen farm with their daughter Pearl (4) and William's
mother Theresa. Theresa passed away in 1913 and it is at about
that time, William began his career as a photographer in Shelby.
There
is no Sifferlen listing in the 1913 / 1914 Shelby directory,
however in the 1917 Shelby directory, Sifferlen Studio is listed
at 16 South Gamble Street. This location was on the west side
of Gamble Street directly south of the Mickey building which
is on the South-West corner of Main and Gamble Streets. The 1920
census shows William (photographer) and Maude with daughter Pearl
M. Sifferlen living at 12 South Gamble Street. The 1925 Shelby
directory shows the Sifferlen Studio at 12 1/2 South Gamble Street.
All of these addresses "fit" within the space that
is now the parking area between the Mickey building and the First
United Methodist Church at 18 South Gamble Street. This location
must be the same as that used by Bert Mossholder during the period
of 1913 - 1915.
In
1926 the William Sifferlen family was living on Clark Avenue
and the 1926 Shelby directory lists the Sifferlen Studio location
now at 68 West Main Street. This is the same location occupied
by the Armstrong and Rauch hardware store in 1906.
Check out
their store in 1906 at the Shelby - Richland County Chapter of
OGS website.
In
the summer of 1920 William took his camera equipment to the Shelby
Salesbook and took the following picture of the company baseball
team.
1920
- Shelby Salesbook Baseball Team - July, 1920
Picture
courtesy of the Shelby Museum
Team
Members (left to
right)
Front
Row: John Howard Pry, Chic Cline, Herman Faulke
Second
Row: Boyd Boreman, Raymond Zeiters, George McLaughlin, Harry
Smith
Back
Row: Albert Cook, Otto Shoup, Sturgis Dunlap
The
image is approximately 8 x 10 inches on a 11 1/2 x 13 1/2 inch
hardboard mount. This size was to be used on many occasions for
Sifferlen Studio group pictures. The picture is embossed with
"Sifferlen" at the lower center. Since the mount has
been damaged at the lower edge the embossed labeling is incomplete
but appears below.
1926
Shelby High School Graduation Class.
Image
is approximately 8 x 10 inches and the mount is 9 1/2 x 13 1/2
inches. The photo was taken in May of 1926 when the Sifferlen
Studio was located at 68 West Main Street. This is the first
class to graduate from the newly constructed High School.
The
Sifferlen / Shelby, Ohio embossed label is shown above.
Frank
Family Reunion - Summer of 1927
Picture
courtesy of a private owner
The
image is approximately 8 x 10 inches on a 11 1/2 x 13 1/2 inch
hardboard mount. Sifferlen Studio used this size and style mount
often for large group photographs. The Sifferlen / Shelby, Ohio
embossed label is identical to that shown previously.
The
location of the family gathering is 2 South Street in Shelby.
To those who may be interested, all the subjects in the Frank
Reunion picture have been identified and we will be happy to
share information.
The
Shelby Museum has many more Sifferlen photographs and each one
is composed and finished with great attention to the details.
William Sifferlen is one of the first photographers in our area
to take many large group formats or large outdoor scenes and
generally produce large mounted prints. He tends to have gotten
away from the individual studio portrait venue to spend much
time on this type of outdoor photograph.
The
1929 Shelby directory has no listing for William Sifferlen or
Sifferlen Studio, nor does the 1931 directory. The 1930 census
finds William and Maude Sifferlen living with their only daughter
Pearl (who is now widowed with a son Bernard Dowling born c.
1926) in Fremont, Ohio. William lists his occupation as a proprietor
of a mineral bath house.
William
A. Sifferlen passed away in Fremont, Ohio in May of 1958 leaving
his widow Maude and only daughter.
William
and Maude are buried in the St. Joseph's cemetery in Fremont,
Ohio.
If
you have additional information on the William Sifferlen family
or photographs that you would like to share,
