1899 – Belle of Calle Cristo & Calle San Sebastián in San Juan

This fascinating and stylish photo is from the Teodoro Vidal Collection, Archives Center, National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, the original image appeared in the 1899, 2-volume history, Our Islands and Their People as Seen with Camera and Pencil.

The caption beneath the photograph reads, “A Colored Belle of Puerto Rico: The mixture of African with Spanish blood is not found in all of the people of this island. The higher classes of white people hold themselves as strictly in their own society as in any other country. This attractive colored girl is of the higher type of that race.” via The NMAH Blog



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