Jamieson Sisters, Pittsburgh Photographers

Jamieson Sisters Portrait, from
Complete Self-Instructing Library
of Practical Photography, 1909

Jamieson Sisters was a photography studio in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which opened around 1900. It was operated by two sisters, Katherine and Henrietta Jamieson. The photo to the right is an example of their work.

Katherine was older (born in 1862) and, by 1912, was President of the Woman's Federation of the Photographers' Association of America. The September 1912 issue of Snap Shots stated that the "Federation under the presidency of Miss Katherine Jamieson is taking a prominent place in the affairs of the National Association and doing much to improve the standing of women photographers."

Henrietta (born in 1867) married George Robinsteen in February 1903 and continued to work in the studio. Four years later, her husband died on a train of heart disease at the age of 49.

In 1921, Katherine decided to move to Los Angeles. Abel's Photographic Weekly announced that "Miss Katherine Jamieson, of Pittsburgh, Pa., will shortly open a studio in Los Angeles, Calif., the present Jamieson Studio to continue under the management of Miss Jamieson's sister, Henrietta Jamieson Robinsteen."

Six years later, Henrietta decided to retire and move to Alhambra, California, presumably to be closer to her sister.

In 1931, Henrietta Jamieson Robinsteen died in a Los Angeles hospital at the age of 64. The Pittsburgh Press reported that the funeral was held in Pittsburgh. A year later, Katherine Jamieson died in Alhambra. Both sisters are buried in Pittsburgh's Homewood Cemetery.