Identifying the Simon Family at John H. Coe’s New Canaan, CT Central Pharmacy (ca. 1909)

Recently I was able to date a photograph from my family’s collection. It was among photographs owned by Clara Simon of New Canaan, Connecticut. It is likely a very early photograph of her as a baby with her mother Gerda.

The photograph shows Mrs. Gerda Simon (center) who can be identified from other photographs. She is holding a baby who appears to be inquisitive—tugging at their mother’s hat or hair.

The shop window in the background bears the name “John H. Coe” and although the word below it is partially obscured it likely says “Druggist.” Starting in October 1905, John H. Coe ran the Central Pharmacy in New Canaan, CT until he sold the pharmacy in 1910.¹ In 1910 census enumerators listed John H. Coe (age 25) and his wife, Inez, in South Norwalk. ² There was only a five-year window during which Coe ran his shop. A photograph published in 2023 shows the cite of the shop in New Canaan.³

Gerda Paulson married Frank Simon in New Rochelle, New York, in 1907 (see Image 2). Her daughter Josephine Clara Simon, born in 1909, was her first known child.⁴ In 1910 Gerda (age 31), Frank (age 32), and Clara (age 1) comprised the Simon household in New Canaan.⁵

Some clues to the photograph’s age are more obvious. The women are dressed in hats and long skirts that were the style during the early years of the twentieth century before World War I. The baby’s rattan stroller is in keeping with that era. The man on the left appears to be looking at a pocket watch rather than a modern wristwatch. Additional clues in the photograph that help to identify age are as follows:

• The 1910 Federal census reported Gerda had one child and one living child. If she is holding her own child in the photograph, then that child would be Clara.⁶
• The baby’s age is consistent with Clara Simon born in January 1909.⁷ Children begin walking at about age one; the size of the baby and the use of a stroller show that the child had not started walking.
• This keeps the date of the photograph in 1909 or very early in 1910.
• Clothing offers clues that the photograph was taken during a warm season. The woman on the right is wearing white. The ladies are both wearing hats decorated with flowers, which are in keeping with spring or summer rather than a cold Connecticut winter. The man in the background has his sleeves rolled up, suggesting a warm day. He was probably not Mr. Coe, who was twenty-five in 1910.⁸
• A sign that advertised ice cream also suggests warm weather. I’ve been disappointed many times by the lack of year-round ice cream shops in Connecticut. Although slightly obscured by the stroller’s flag, the sign advertises Fussell Ice Cream, a product that continued to use the brand name from 1851 well into the mid-twentieth century.⁹
• U.S. flags are draped over the storefront and a small flag attached to the baby’s stroller whips in the wind. A local newspaper reported in 1909 a Memorial Day parade in New Canaan.¹⁰ The bunting suggests a patriotic holiday, possibly Memorial Day, which would place the photograph in late May 1909, when Clara was about four and a half months old.

Clara Simon kept this photograph for more than ninety years, suggesting its significance for her. The evidence within the photograph when read with documentary evidence is consistent with landmarks within the Simon family and the New Canaan community. It is reasonable to conclude this is a photograph of baby Clara Simon.

On 10 November 2026, I will speak about Clara’s sister, “Hometown Artist” Augusta Simon, at the New Canaan Historical Society and Museum. Because this photograph captures a moment in New Canaan’s history as well as my family’s, I plan to donate it to the Historical Society.

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FEATURED IMAGE: C. Hj. Leverin, photographer (d. 1942), “Gerda Paulson,” ca. 1895.

1. “Stamford News in Brief: New Canaan,” John H. Coe, Stamford [Connecticut] Advocate, 2 October 1905, p. 6, col. 2; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1289461556/). Also, “Review of Week’s News: New Canaan,” John H. Coe, Stamford [Connecticut] Advocate, 27 October 1910, p. 6, col. 4; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1291390001/).
2. “A Glance At The Week’s News: New Canaan,” engagement notice, Inez H. Tallmadge and John H. Coe, Stamford [Connecticut] Advocate, 1 November 1906, p. 7, col. 1; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1289858720/). Describing Coe as “the popular proprietor of the Central pharmacy of this town.” Also, 1910 U.S. census, Fairfield County, Connecticut, population schedule, ED 101, South Norwalk, sheet 4B, dwelling 70, family 99, John H. and Inez Coe in Earnest Talmadge household; imaged, “United States, Census, 1910,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRJB-W3S).
3. New Canaan Historical Society & Museum, “New Canaan Now & Then: 1850s-Built Main Street Structure,” 19 January 2023, New Canaanite (https://newcanaanite.com/new-canaan-now-then-1850s-built-main-street-structure-7328722).
4. New Canaan, Connecticut, Death Certificate, no. 044, Josephine Clara Simon, 8 May 2007. Identifying Clara’s birth on 14 January 1909.
5. 1910 U.S. census, Fairfield County, Connecticut, population schedule, ED 87, New Canaan, sheet 9B, dwelling 199, family 230, Gerda and Clara Simon in Frank Simon household; imaged, “United States, Census, 1910,” FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRJD-CVV).
6. 1910 U.S. census, Fairfield Co., CT, pop. sched., ED 87, New Canaan, sheet 9B, dwell. 199, fam. 230, Gerda and Clara Simon in Frank Simon household.
7. New Canaan, CT, Death Certificate, no. 044, Josephine Clara Simon, 8 May 2007.
8. 1910 U.S. census, Fairfield Co., CT, pop. sched., ED 101, South Norwalk, sheet 4B, dwell. 70, fam. 99, John H. (age 25) and Inez Coe in Earnest Talmadge household.
9. Federal Trade Commission, Federal Trade Commission Decisions: Findings, Opinions, and Orders, vol. 67 (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1965), 535–643, https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/documents/commission_decision_volumes/volume-67/ftcd-vol67january-june1965pages535-643.pdf. Page 604 shows the Fussell brand name was in use in 1960.
10. “Local News in Brief: City Jottings,” Stamford [Connecticut] Advocate, 28 April 1909, p. 6, col. 1; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1290562720).