According to the Arlington Citizens Journal, Andrew J. Mahanay, clicked the first shutter as a professional photographer for the city of Arlington. He saw and photographed the first interurban to roll through Arlington, the first "flying machine" to visit the city, the first automobile to chug down the streets and witnessed the digging of the old mineral well in the city.
He saw a wide variety of experiences over the years from the time his he came to Arlington with his parents in 1875 from Missouri, where he had been born in 1866.
After moving from Missouri and settling near Johnson Station, Mahanay worked on the family farm until he was in his twenties. He then attended Baylor University where he studied to develop a natural talent for art. At the time his talent was doing professional painting portraits.
He later came back to Arlington to learn photography as a sideline since art did not pay much in those days. He served his apprenticeship as a photographer with D.H. Schwartz, on of Fort Worth's early photographers.
Among the early pictures taken by Mahanay were shots of the old mineral well with it's lion's head fountains, first pictures of the high school building of the Masonic Home, downtown scenes with wagons, surreys and model T's. As well as some of the old Arlington homes that have long since been razed.
His first gallery was on a portion of Arlington that in according to 1953 article in the Citizen Journal was the Interstate Theatre lot. He later sold out and had several locations in downtown Arlington. The last I believe was located on Main Street. Several stories tell that the purchaser of his old studio wasn't a photographer, and not knowing what he had ended up taking off a half a pickup load of glass plate negatives to the city dump, losing forever a part of the history of Arlington.
He was injured in 1945, shortly after his retirement, in what was perhaps Arlington's last horse "runaway". The team struck him as he was crossing the street. He spent months in the hospital, making a gradual recovery, but later walked with a cane.
Andrew J. Mahanay never married, he live with his mother who had been a widow since the early 1900's. And later with his brothers, Leonard Mahanay and F.W. Mahanay. F.W. was a business partner with him in the photography business for many years. Changing the name of Mahanay Photography to Mahanay Bros. Photography in later years. Several of Andrew‘s half brothers and sisters chose to settled in what was known as Prairie Valley, near Alvarado in Johnson Country, in 1875 and descendants still live in the area.
The Arlington history book relates a little bit insight about him. "A.J. Mahanay, Arlington's well known photographer with a sense of humor put this little squib in the Journal: "We guarantee to remove moles, freckles and wrinkles never to return . . . In our photographs."
Andrew lived to be an old man, and died in 1955 at the age of 88. He is buried along with other family members in the old Arlington City Cemetery.
He saw a wide variety of experiences over the years from the time his he came to Arlington with his parents in 1875 from Missouri, where he had been born in 1866.
After moving from Missouri and settling near Johnson Station, Mahanay worked on the family farm until he was in his twenties. He then attended Baylor University where he studied to develop a natural talent for art. At the time his talent was doing professional painting portraits.
He later came back to Arlington to learn photography as a sideline since art did not pay much in those days. He served his apprenticeship as a photographer with D.H. Schwartz, on of Fort Worth's early photographers.
Among the early pictures taken by Mahanay were shots of the old mineral well with it's lion's head fountains, first pictures of the high school building of the Masonic Home, downtown scenes with wagons, surreys and model T's. As well as some of the old Arlington homes that have long since been razed.
His first gallery was on a portion of Arlington that in according to 1953 article in the Citizen Journal was the Interstate Theatre lot. He later sold out and had several locations in downtown Arlington. The last I believe was located on Main Street. Several stories tell that the purchaser of his old studio wasn't a photographer, and not knowing what he had ended up taking off a half a pickup load of glass plate negatives to the city dump, losing forever a part of the history of Arlington.
He was injured in 1945, shortly after his retirement, in what was perhaps Arlington's last horse "runaway". The team struck him as he was crossing the street. He spent months in the hospital, making a gradual recovery, but later walked with a cane.
Andrew J. Mahanay never married, he live with his mother who had been a widow since the early 1900's. And later with his brothers, Leonard Mahanay and F.W. Mahanay. F.W. was a business partner with him in the photography business for many years. Changing the name of Mahanay Photography to Mahanay Bros. Photography in later years. Several of Andrew‘s half brothers and sisters chose to settled in what was known as Prairie Valley, near Alvarado in Johnson Country, in 1875 and descendants still live in the area.
The Arlington history book relates a little bit insight about him. "A.J. Mahanay, Arlington's well known photographer with a sense of humor put this little squib in the Journal: "We guarantee to remove moles, freckles and wrinkles never to return . . . In our photographs."
Andrew lived to be an old man, and died in 1955 at the age of 88. He is buried along with other family members in the old Arlington City Cemetery.
According to the Arlington Citizens Journal, Andrew J. Mahanay, clicked the first shutter as a professional photographer for the city of Arlington. He saw and photographed the first interurban to roll through Arlington, the first "flying machine" to visit the city, the first automobile to chug down the streets and witnessed the digging of the old mineral well in the city.
He saw a wide variety of experiences over the years from the time his he came to Arlington with his parents in 1875 from Missouri, where he had been born in 1866.
After moving from Missouri and settling near Johnson Station, Mahanay worked on the family farm until he was in his twenties. He then attended Baylor University where he studied to develop a natural talent for art. At the time his talent was doing professional painting portraits.
He later came back to Arlington to learn photography as a sideline since art did not pay much in those days. He served his apprenticeship as a photographer with D.H. Schwartz, on of Fort Worth's early photographers.
Among the early pictures taken by Mahanay were shots of the old mineral well with it's lion's head fountains, first pictures of the high school building of the Masonic Home, downtown scenes with wagons, surreys and model T's. As well as some of the old Arlington homes that have long since been razed.
His first gallery was on a portion of Arlington that in according to 1953 article in the Citizen Journal was the Interstate Theatre lot. He later sold out and had several locations in downtown Arlington. The last I believe was located on Main Street. Several stories tell that the purchaser of his old studio wasn't a photographer, and not knowing what he had ended up taking off a half a pickup load of glass plate negatives to the city dump, losing forever a part of the history of Arlington.
He was injured in 1945, shortly after his retirement, in what was perhaps Arlington's last horse "runaway". The team struck him as he was crossing the street. He spent months in the hospital, making a gradual recovery, but later walked with a cane.
Andrew J. Mahanay never married, he live with his mother who had been a widow since the early 1900's. And later with his brothers, Leonard Mahanay and F.W. Mahanay. F.W. was a business partner with him in the photography business for many years. Changing the name of Mahanay Photography to Mahanay Bros. Photography in later years. Several of Andrew‘s half brothers and sisters chose to settled in what was known as Prairie Valley, near Alvarado in Johnson Country, in 1875 and descendants still live in the area.
The Arlington history book relates a little bit insight about him. "A.J. Mahanay, Arlington's well known photographer with a sense of humor put this little squib in the Journal: "We guarantee to remove moles, freckles and wrinkles never to return . . . In our photographs."
Andrew lived to be an old man, and died in 1955 at the age of 88. He is buried along with other family members in the old Arlington City Cemetery.
He saw a wide variety of experiences over the years from the time his he came to Arlington with his parents in 1875 from Missouri, where he had been born in 1866.
After moving from Missouri and settling near Johnson Station, Mahanay worked on the family farm until he was in his twenties. He then attended Baylor University where he studied to develop a natural talent for art. At the time his talent was doing professional painting portraits.
He later came back to Arlington to learn photography as a sideline since art did not pay much in those days. He served his apprenticeship as a photographer with D.H. Schwartz, on of Fort Worth's early photographers.
Among the early pictures taken by Mahanay were shots of the old mineral well with it's lion's head fountains, first pictures of the high school building of the Masonic Home, downtown scenes with wagons, surreys and model T's. As well as some of the old Arlington homes that have long since been razed.
His first gallery was on a portion of Arlington that in according to 1953 article in the Citizen Journal was the Interstate Theatre lot. He later sold out and had several locations in downtown Arlington. The last I believe was located on Main Street. Several stories tell that the purchaser of his old studio wasn't a photographer, and not knowing what he had ended up taking off a half a pickup load of glass plate negatives to the city dump, losing forever a part of the history of Arlington.
He was injured in 1945, shortly after his retirement, in what was perhaps Arlington's last horse "runaway". The team struck him as he was crossing the street. He spent months in the hospital, making a gradual recovery, but later walked with a cane.
Andrew J. Mahanay never married, he live with his mother who had been a widow since the early 1900's. And later with his brothers, Leonard Mahanay and F.W. Mahanay. F.W. was a business partner with him in the photography business for many years. Changing the name of Mahanay Photography to Mahanay Bros. Photography in later years. Several of Andrew‘s half brothers and sisters chose to settled in what was known as Prairie Valley, near Alvarado in Johnson Country, in 1875 and descendants still live in the area.
The Arlington history book relates a little bit insight about him. "A.J. Mahanay, Arlington's well known photographer with a sense of humor put this little squib in the Journal: "We guarantee to remove moles, freckles and wrinkles never to return . . . In our photographs."
Andrew lived to be an old man, and died in 1955 at the age of 88. He is buried along with other family members in the old Arlington City Cemetery.
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