Capps Family, Page One

Capps family at Columbia vaudeville. Baby of 21 months (been on stage for 6 months). Girl of 5 years (been on stage for 2 years). Boy of 7 years (been on stage for 1 year). Girl of 8 years (been on stage for 5 years). Boy of 12 years (been on stage for 8 years). Boy of 14 years (been on stage for 9 years). Oldest boy is acrobat, contortionist, etc. All do singing and dancing acts except baby, who appears in final scene as Charlie Chaplin. They appear 3 or 4 times a day--sometimes 7 days in the week, usually coming last on program (as a feature), which means they do not leave dressing room until nearly 11 p.m. Then, in addition, the life in cheap hotels and on the road "making new towns" is very unsettling. It was very touching to see the little ones curled up back of the scenes waiting for their act and getting 40 winks or the mother nursing the baby just before it was poked out onto the stage to do his little "turn." In spite of their stage life, their manners are good. They are quiet, well-appearing children, and the parents are kind and sympathetic. The father acts as nursemaid to the baby, and the mother dresses and changes the others and appears herself. She said: "They're never sick. It's the healthiest kind of life." The 8-year-old girl said: "I don't like it--the men in some places are so rough." There was some familiarity shown to them, but not much. Location: Grand Rapids, Michigan / Lewis W. Hine, November 29, 1917.

This is a strange picture by Lewis Hine. Records indicate that it is the final known child labor photograph that he took during his 10-year investigation, and one of only two he took of vaudeville families. I found a few old newspaper articles and other items about this family on the Internet, but no indication that they were very famous, or that anything substantial had been written about them. There were many families like this in vaudeville. A more serious search several hours later turned up a brief posting on a genealogy website by the descendent, whose contact information was given. I contacted the person, who quickly replied:

"Thank you for your interest in my incredible family. Many people have thought about writing a story on The Capps Family, but no one has really completed the project. Yes, I am aware of the photo of my father and his brothers and sisters and my grandparents and would love to correspond with you about them."

I can't wait to find out more.