What's a disgraph operator?

[Vio]

I found this occupation in a 1921 membership list of a Freemason's lodge in New Zealand.

I've pasted in a snippet - it's the third occupation down. Elsewhere on the page (not in the snippet) there are words with an ag in the middle, and this is definitely disgraph, not diagraph.



Anyone have any idea what this might be please?

Thanks.

 

[Susan48]

I think it's Biograph Operator - someone who works in a cinema, a projectionist.

 

[Vio]

Thanks Susan48 - interesting thought. But the first occupation on the list is a Builder and the capital B of that word doesn't look the same as the first letter of my word. I'll look at the list again to find more Bs and Ds and small o.

 

[Vio]

Here's another snippet with more letters. Draughtsman's D looks half-way between the B of builder and the first letter of my word. But in Forest ranger, the s looks similar to my word, and the o is quite rounded.

 

[Susan48]

Wikipedia mentions the Biograph Theater in Illinois which was built in 1915 as a movie theater. Can you find out whether there was a cinema near the Lodge in 1921?

 

[Vio]

The lodge is in Otahuhu - I'll take a look at what they had back then.

 

[Vio]

No cinemas/theatres in Otahuhu until 1924, but lots in Auckland so it's looking possible. Thanks for spotting Biograph.

 

[At home in NZ]

I am inclined to agree with Susan48 because the word disgraph does not exist. Perhaps you could find the person in the NZ Electoral rolls, they are in Ancestry, occupations are given in them.

 

[Susan48]

The word "Biograph" jumped out at me because in Sweden they still use the word "bio" - short for "biograf" - for cinema (I studied Swedish as part of my degree).

 

[Pauline]

I wonder if it actually says Diograph Operator and is a misspelling of Diagraph. The initial letter looks more like the 'D' of Draughtsman than the 'B' of Builder.

 

[Vio]

But in that case, what is a Diograph???

 

[Pauline]

But in that case, what is a Diograph???

As I suggested, a misspelling of Diagraph.

 

[Vio]

And a diagraph is???

 

[Pauline]

And a diagraph is???

A drawing instrument, eg for copying a drawing at a different scale, such as map maker might use.

 

[Vio]

Ah, thank you. Would someone using one be called a draughtsman though, or is diagraph operator a job title?

 

[Pauline]

is diagraph operator a job title?

To be honest, I don't know, and from that point of view, a Biograph Operator perhaps sounds more likely.

But I still think the initial letter looks more like a 'D' than a 'B'. Maybe there are more 'D's and 'B's to compare it with?

 

[Vio]

There are more Ds and Bs on the page by the same writer, but more distinct. The capital D for Diagraph is similar to how I form a capital D (I was taught quite old fashioned cursive script by my parents before I started school).

Here's a clearer more deliberate D, and B.





I suppose it just depends when the writer dipped their pen into the ink as to how thick or thin the letters were, and whether they were joined up or not, as they might have had to dip the pen part-way through a word. Happy days of inkwells - not!

 

[Vio]

I also need to look at those electoral rolls on Ancestry for NZ if they're part of the free access this Easter weekend.

 

[Pauline]

Here's a clearer more deliberate D, and B.

It looks to me as though 'B' in the first example starts with an upstroke, then goes straight down for the main stem, then up it again, and then round & down clockwise for the curved bits. The 'B' in this latest example is done differently.

With 'D's the writer seems to start with a down stroke for the straight edge, then do a curl at the bottom, then do the curved part of the letter anti-clockwise as an upstroke, before (mostly) finishing with some kind of flourish at the top.

So I still think it starts with a 'D', but I agree with your post #18 - you need to look at other sources to see what the occupation is there.

 

[Vio]

I write my cursive D by starting at the top and writing right to left to form the base of the top curl, then curve round clockwise in a big loop and down to make a reverse C, then on the line I make a little loop to move the pen straight up to meet the top curl.

There are inconsistencies on this page but I think it is the same hand.