People interested in photography, women’s history, and family history are excited about a historic find. A forgotten attic and a pile of trash have turned into treasure over the years.

Portraits of Susan B. Anthony were hidden in the dust, waiting to be found.

What You Need To Know

  • The attic of the Geneva building was sealed off for about 100 years

  • Dave Whitcomb found a portrait of Susan B. Anthony among dust and soot

  • He has found countless other photos, discarded by photographer J.E. Hale

“There’s an access panel. But I guess if you weren’t looking for it you wouldn’t notice it," said Dave Whitcomb.

Whitcomb bought a building in Geneva to expand his law practice, but after going through the attic, he realized he had discovered something more. Through a hidden floor sealed away, sometime around 100 years ago, were the remnants of a photography studio.

“Everything that was up there was just left and forgotten, for 100 years," said Whitcomb.

Whitcomb climbed up with his curiosity into the dark ceiling, not knowing what he would find.

A portrait of Susan B. Anthony discovered in the hidden attic studio.

“At some point there was a fire in this space and the roof is charred, the ash is everywhere up here," said Whitcomb, which makes it a small miracle that anything survived up there at all.

“Every time we go through it, we find more and more material," said Whitcomb. There are piles of photos discarded by a photographer, and faces hidden in the scraps. Uncovering countless little mysteries from when J. E. Hale owned the studio from approximately 1900 to 1920.

But Dave’s most precious find doesn’t stay kept in the attic. Among the dozens of photos of women, a child, and married couples, is the most exciting find: a portrait of Susan B. Anthony. He described the moment he found the photo.

Another portrait of Susan B. in more mint condition.

“In the darkness of the attic, and then we looked and I said, ‘Does that look like Susan B. Anthony?’" When he Googled her name, the photo he had just found was the first result. “She felt this was her best angle basically, she had a little bit of a lazy eye, I think, and she didn’t like that to be seen in the photos,” said Whitcomb.

Dave found other photos of Susan B. Anthony in the attic too, some in better condition than others, but all around a historic find from a little attic in Geneva.

Lots of people have reached out to Dave asking if they have photos of their relative, but it’s hard to say. Hale didn’t mark the backs of any of his photographs. So if you think you can help identify one of the old pictures, he’s posting them slowly on this Facebook page.