[View of the parlor]

The ornate parlor of Alice Austen's home, Clear Comfort. The Austen family wealth came from an auctioneering company started by Alice's great-grandfather -- specializing in textiles, French silk, carpets, and other high-end "dry goods," the company remained prosperous into the 1880s.
Due to the dire financial circumstances of Alice's later life, many of her family antiques, such as the ones pictured here, have been lost.