30 Fascinating Vintage Photos of Life in 1890

Daniel Bonfiglio Published 12/23/2024 in wow

Back in 1890, things were different. Horses were our primary mode of transportation, the Ottoman Empire still ruled, and the United States wasn't done with its annexation and desecration of Native American society.

Luckily, photographs were slowly becoming more common, and we can use them to catch a glimpse of what the world looked like over 130 years ago, in 1890.

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1.
Candid Street Photography pioneered by Carl Størmer, Oslo, 1890.
2.
Times Square in 1890.
3.
A pile of bison bones along the railroad tracks in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in 1890. They were on their way to England to be ground and used for fine bone china.
4.
Six sumo wrestlers, circa 1890.
5.
A father and son in Istanbul, Ottoman Empire, 1890.
6.
The old "Telefontornet" telephone tower in Stockholm, Sweden, with approximately 5,500 telephone lines c. 1890.
7.
Persian woman holding a Kalgan waterpipe used for smoking, circa 1890.
8.
First known photo of a surfer. Hawaii, 1890.
9.
Paris in 1890.
10.
A pet photo from 1890.
11.
A fashionable 1890s man.
12.
Jacob Ista Ska or Jacob White Eyes and Iron Tail in Rome at Caffè Greco, 1890.
13.
An operation being conducted in the Boston City Hospital operating theater, Boston, Massachusetts, ca. 1890.
14.
People pose on the Fieldbrook stump, probably the largest redwood tree in the world, Humboldt County, California, 1890's. It was cut down to satisfy a drunken bet about making a table big enough to seat 40 guests.
15.
A group of Victorians doing the cakewalk, c. 1890.
16.
New York slums, 1890.
17.
Kumamoto castle from 1890 just after the Satsuma Rebellion.
18.
Kaiser Wilhelm II with his close friend and advisor, Philipp zu Eulenburg, in 1890.
19.
The Dakota circa 1890, when NYC's Upper West Side was the fringe of upper-crust civility.
20.
My great-great-grandma on her wedding day, around 1890.
21.
The Hong Kong skyline in 1890.
22.
Fruit store. Photo by E.G. Stillman. Japan, around 1890.
23.
The Market Town of Oundle, England, 1890.
24.
Saloon in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Note the child sized beer, 1890.
25.
Cheyenne man, Bird Wild Hog, also known as Hedge Hog, 1890.
26.
Chauncey Morlan, the “World's Fattest Man” in 1890.
27.
Sharpshooter Annie Oakley riding sidesaddle on rearing horse in 1890.
28.
Romany couple, 1890, Britain.
29.
Bird's-eye view of a Lakota camp, 1890.
30.
“My Irish, great-great-grandparents in 1890. He was a butler.”

1.
Candid Street Photography pioneered by Carl Størmer, Oslo, 1890.
2.
Times Square in 1890.
3.
A pile of bison bones along the railroad tracks in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in 1890. They were on their way to England to be ground and used for fine bone china.
4.
Six sumo wrestlers, circa 1890.
5.
A father and son in Istanbul, Ottoman Empire, 1890.
6.
The old "Telefontornet" telephone tower in Stockholm, Sweden, with approximately 5,500 telephone lines c. 1890.
7.
Persian woman holding a Kalgan waterpipe used for smoking, circa 1890.
8.
First known photo of a surfer. Hawaii, 1890.
9.
Paris in 1890.
10.
A pet photo from 1890.
11.
A fashionable 1890s man.
12.
Jacob Ista Ska or Jacob White Eyes and Iron Tail in Rome at Caffè Greco, 1890.
13.
An operation being conducted in the Boston City Hospital operating theater, Boston, Massachusetts, ca. 1890.
14.
People pose on the Fieldbrook stump, probably the largest redwood tree in the world, Humboldt County, California, 1890's. It was cut down to satisfy a drunken bet about making a table big enough to seat 40 guests.
15.
A group of Victorians doing the cakewalk, c. 1890.
16.
New York slums, 1890.
17.
Kumamoto castle from 1890 just after the Satsuma Rebellion.
18.
Kaiser Wilhelm II with his close friend and advisor, Philipp zu Eulenburg, in 1890.
19.
The Dakota circa 1890, when NYC's Upper West Side was the fringe of upper-crust civility.
20.
My great-great-grandma on her wedding day, around 1890.
21.
The Hong Kong skyline in 1890.
22.
Fruit store. Photo by E.G. Stillman. Japan, around 1890.
23.
The Market Town of Oundle, England, 1890.
24.
Saloon in Manitowoc, Wisconsin. Note the child sized beer, 1890.
25.
Cheyenne man, Bird Wild Hog, also known as Hedge Hog, 1890.
26.
Chauncey Morlan, the “World's Fattest Man” in 1890.
27.
Sharpshooter Annie Oakley riding sidesaddle on rearing horse in 1890.
28.
Romany couple, 1890, Britain.
29.
Bird's-eye view of a Lakota camp, 1890.
30.
“My Irish, great-great-grandparents in 1890. He was a butler.”