John "Johnny" Stringer of Hallowell has posed for a studio portrait wearing a large top hat, carrying a woven basket, and holding a cane. Born in England in 1771, Stringer was a cabinetmaker and clothespin maker. He died in Hallowell in 1849. This ca. 1865 tintype is a copy of a daguerreotype by A.F. Morse of Hallowell.

Author Emma Huntington Nason included him as one of the interesting town characters in "Old Hallowell on the Kennebec," published in 1909.