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February 15, 1922. Washington, D.C. "Laura and Inga Bryn." The daughter and wife of Norway's ambassador. National Photo glass negative. View full size.
Just to clarify, this picture is, most likely, a picture of sisters, Laura and Inga. Inga was born in 1901 and Laura in 1904. According to my research, Helmer Bryn's wife, Laura Grilstad, was born about 1865 and would have looked much older in this picture from 1922.
Laura is my paternal great-grandmother that passed away in 1981 before I met her. My Grandmother (one of three daughters) also passed away, but I visit the other two daughters (my Grand Aunts) every Summer.
Thank you to Dave for posting this pic and to Apple Farmer for the great pic of Helmer. And thank you to jsmakbkr for the society pages info. I will add that to my research.
And here is Helmer Halvorsen Bryn himself:
Two lovely ladies! and just a bit of the white stuff falling to frost their hats and coats. They both have lovely smiles as well.
Several society pages kept close tabs on the photogenic Laura Bryn, and for that reason we know the following. At a 1915 Easter costume ball, she was dressed as the Marquise D'Antin. She joined the Girl Scouts of America, attended the Friends School in 1918, then Vassar in 1921, had her debut in Washington in 1923, and in 1925 joined the staff of "a morning daily" in Washington. One society page photo includes both Laura Byrn and Miss Emily Dial (daughter of Senator Nathaniel Dial and a Shorpy favorite). In March 1927, she married Francis Winslow III.
The girl on the left looks just like Janis Joplin!
If Norwegians come from Norway, shouldn't Americans come from Amway?
very confidently, ain’t they sweet?
[Very possibly, but confidentially, it wouldn't be official until 1927, when the song was written.]
Oh dear …. I’ll wait five years and resubmit this - Rip
Technically, Laura's dad wasn't the ambassador. H.H. Byrn was the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Norway to the United States. At the time, Norway maintained a legation in the US, but not an embassy. Embassy status (and thus, led by an ambassador) wasn't afforded Norway until 1942 (to the Norwegian government in exile).
These two could be twins instead of mother and daughter. Mom and daughter both appear to be of the flapper mentality and Mom looks much like Myrna Loy (an actress with the same devilish personality). I will bet that poor Ambassador Bryn had plenty to handle with this duo.
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