Thousands of people on Facebook are helping a woman solve the mystery behind these vintage photos

While thrifting, a photographer named Meagan Abell came across a box of stunning color photos she believed were taken in the fifties. Now Abell, who is from Virginia, is trying to track down the origin of the photos — and thousands of people have joined her search on Facebook.

PetaPixel reported Abell wrote a long Facebook status regarding the photos. Abell begins:

I found 4 sets of medium format negatives while I was thrift shop hunting a few weeks ago. They were sitting in a box of old vintage photographs in these plastic sleeves, and from what I could tell, they had been taken sometime in the 50's. So obviously I brought them home, and today finally had them scanned in, and holy wow they are beautiful!!

Here are a few of the photos, as per Abell's Facebook page:

 She continues:

I need the Internet's help. I would absolutely love to find the women in these photographs/the photographer who took them. The only info I have is that the negatives were found in a thrift store on Hull St in Richmond, VA. They are medium format, and judging by the style of dress, made in 1940-1950. The owner of the thrift store had no idea where they came from. I'm posting the best/clearest scans of the images, so if y'all could share this around, HOPEFULLY we can make it go viral and find the original photographer/subjects!!!!

A hashtag, #‎FindTheGirlsOnTheNegatives‬, started on July 29. Abell's search was shared on sites like PetaPixel, Mashable, Elle, and BuzzFeed. Lots of people joined in support, with either tips:

Facebook

Or encouragement:

Facebook

An update on Abell's original update showed some progress. 

**UPDATE 7/30 11:54pm: We have determined that these are actually slide film transparencies instead of negatives. Still use the same hashtag though! Most likely we think that these were taken by a professional photographer in the late 1950's in California, specifically Malibu! There's also reason to believe that these were shot for a magazine cover/feature story. KEEP SHARING Y'ALL!

If you click through the hashtag, you can see lots of people are looking, but Abell hasn't been able to track the exact origin of the photos yet. If you have any leads, she asks that you email her directly: heyhihello@meaganabellphotography.com.