The Photo Detective
Join The Photo Detective, Maureen Taylor, each week as she discusses historical photos and how they fit into your family history. From ancestor identification to photo preservation, The Photo Detective Podcast covers it all. Featuring special experts from genealogy, fashion history, photo history, and restoration, it’s a not-to-miss for photo fans, genealogists, and lovers of history.
Episodes
274 episodes
How Forever.com is Revolutionizing Digital Memory Preservation
In this episode, Maureen Taylor speaks with Glen Meakem, founder and CEO of Forever.com. Glen shares his inspiration for starting the company in 2012—recognizing a gap in long-term, secure, digital storage for family memories. Forever offers us...
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Episode 267
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33:29
Military Images Magazine’s Ron Coddington Shares the Stories Behind Civil War Photos
Ron Coddington, editor and publisher of Military Images magazine, joins The Photo Detective podcast to share his journey from teenage Civil War photo collector to leading a respected history publication. He discusses the legac...
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Episode 266
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31:40
Spared and Shared: How One Man Made Civil War History Accessible to All
In this episode, Griff (Bill Griffing), the mind behind the Spared and Shared websites, shares how he turned his post-retirement passion for Civil War history into a monumental historical preservation project. Transcribing over 15,000 ...
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39:31
The Art of French Wallpaper: RISD Museum's Stunning Historical Showcase
In this episode of The Photo Detective, host Maureen Taylor welcomes Emily Banas, Associate Curator of Decorative Arts and Design at the RISD Museum, to explore the captivating world of French wallpaper. Their discussion centers on
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Episode 264
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22:56
A History of the American Bookstore with Author Evan Friss
In this episode of The Photo Detective, Maureen Taylor welcomes historian Evan Friss, author of The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore. Friss dives deep into the evolution of bookstores in America—from colonial time...
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Episode 263
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33:24
Family Photos and Preserving Your Memories
In the March 2025 episode of her solo podcast, Maureen Taylor, the Photo Detective, discusses a variety of personal and professional experiences related to photo management and genealogy. She begins by addressing the shutdown of MemoryWeb, a pl...
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Episode 262
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23:14
Diahan Southard’s ‘Monday Minutes’: Transforming Personal Reflections into Genealogical Gold
In this episode of the podcast, host Maureen Taylor is joined by Diahan Southard, known for her expertise as “Your DNA Guide.” Diahan discusses her new book, “Monday Minutes,” which is inspired by her popular newsletter. The book is a collectio...
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Episode 261
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21:21
The Photo Marketplace Shift: What It Means for Your Memories
In this episode, Rick Voigt, co-founder and CEO of Vivid-Pix.com, joins Maureen Taylor to discuss the evolving photo marketplace and its impact on genealogists and everyday users. They explore the recent shutdown of FileShadow, the risks of rel...
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Episode 260
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24:20
Digging Into Civil War Pension Files with Brian Rhinehart
In this episode of The Photo Detective, host Maureen Taylor speaks with Brian Rhinehart, founder of CivilWarRecords.com, about uncovering lost Civil War history through archival research. ...
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26:04
Exploring Project Kin: Barbara Tien's Community for Storytellers and Genealogists
Barbara Tien discusses her role as the “ringleader” of Project Kin on the Photo Detective podcast. After her startup, Ponga, shut down, Tien decided to keep her team together and transitioned to creating Project Kin, a community focused on s...
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Episode 258
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27:17
Fileshadow News. Photos of Famous People. Photo Detecting Clues
In this January 2025 solo episode of her podcast, Maureen Taylor, the photo detective, shares news for users of Fileshadow.com. She also shares insights into her professional life, detailing her expertise in analyzing historical photographs to ...
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17:03
Seth Rockman on Plantation Goods: Unveiling Material History of American Slavery
On this episode of The Photo Detective, I’m joined by Seth Rockman, author of Plantation Goods: A Material History of American Slavery. Seth’s groundbreaking research uncovers the economic and material ties that connected New ...
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Episode 256
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33:23
The Power of Knitting: History, Healing, and Resilience in Loretta Napoleoni's Book
Loretta Napoleoni’s The Power of Knitting explores the universal significance of knitting through history, culture, and personal memoir. An economist by profession, Napoleoni combines research with heartfelt reflections, revealing knit...
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28:14
Solving Family Photo Mysteries: A Journey with The Photo Detective
Welcome to the December 2024 solo episode of The Photo Detective with Maureen Taylor. In this episode, Maureen shares the story of Amy Barlow, who solved a photo mystery with Maureen’s guidance during a consultation. Amy’s photograph d...
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19:05
Preserving Everyday History: Kiki Smith's Journey with the Smith College Historic Clothing Collection
Kiki Smith, a professor from the theater department at Smith College, joins the “Photo Detective” podcast to discuss her unique journey with the Smith College Historic Clothing Collection. Initially joining the department temporarily, Smith fou...
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Episode 253
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35:05
Author Paul Frecker Discusses Cartomania: The Intersection of Photography and Fame
In this podcast episode, we are thrilled to have Paul Frecker, an expert on 19th-century photography and the author of Cartomania: Photography and Celebrity in the 19th Century. Paul brings a unique perspective from his days as a deale...
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Episode 252
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36:28
Through the Lens: Unveiling Family Stories
In this episode, Maureen Taylor, The Photo Detective TM explores the power of a photo through a series of case studies. She introduces a new photo storytelling option for clients.The Power of a PhotoDecoding the Context
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Episode 251
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18:10
Telling Her Story: How to Research and Write Women's Histories with Sharon Carmack
In today’s episode of The Photo Detective, guest Sharon Carmack introduces her groundbreaking book, Telling Her Story, a comprehensive guide to researching and writing about historical women. Sharon’s work, spanning 370 pages,...
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Episode 250
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26:53
The Beginner's Guide to Cemetery Sleuthing with Author Erin Moulton
Erin Moulton discusses her book, “The Beginner’s Guide to Cemetery Sleuthing, Scavenger Hunt,” which is uniquely designed as a workbook. Moulton, a local history librarian at Derry Public Library, shares her journey from genealogy enthusiast to...
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Episode 249
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23:10
Genealogy Travel Tips: How to Plan an Effective Ancestral Research Trip
Exploring family history is a personal journey, often sparked by familial influences and nurtured through personal curiosity and research. My mother’s passion for family history was contagious, influencing my own exploration of our ancestry. Th...
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14:10
Trailblazing Women Behind the Camera: A Deep Dive with Katherine Manthorne
In this episode of the podcast, Katherine Manthorne returns to discuss her book “Women in the Dark: Female Photographers 1840 to 1900.” The conversation explores the overlooked contributions of female photographers during the early days of phot...
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30:31
Uncovering History with Kurt Deion: A Journey to Every Presidential Grave
Kurt Deion, author of Presidential Grave Hunter, shares his lifelong journey of visiting every U.S. president and vice president’s grave. Sparked by early interests in presidential history and inspired by books and family trips, Kurt’s...
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Episode 246
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28:23
The Enduring Legacy of Tintypes: From Civil War Soldiers to Contemporary Artists
Join Maureen Taylor, the Photo Detective, in a solo episode where she delves into the fascinating world of tintypes. This episode covers everything from their historical emergence in 1856 to their resurgence via modern itinerant artists. Discov...
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Episode 245
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13:38
Preserving Your Legacy: Insights from Amanda Meeks of Permanent.org
In this episode of The Photo Detective, host Maureen Taylor speaks with Amanda Meeks, the Community and Partnerships Manager at Permanent.org. They discuss the recent developments at Permanent.org, focusing on the Legacy Lab, a new program desi...
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20:18
The Hidden History of Pockets: A Conversation with Hannah Carlson
In this episode, Hannah Carlson, author of “Pockets: An Intimate History of How We Keep Things Close,” discusses the historical and social significance of pockets. Inspired by a personal experience where she had no pockets during an emergency, ...
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31:21