I love this photo! Harriett being seated while others to either side are standing would seem to indicate that she is placed in a position of respect in this posed photograph. Having checked out her birthplace of Paradise, Pennsylvania and comparing that to where this picture was taken in Yolo, California, it's clear she must have had many a story regarding how she crossed the great expanses of country at a time when such travel was extremely dependent upon weather, and the going was slow.
I also see from Harriett's WikiTree profile page that this photo is a zoom-in kind of close-up, taken from a photograph of her with a gentleman (her husband?) and two younger women (daughters?). This is clearly from a day and age when hats and gloves where part of proper attire.
The most interesting thing I see about Harriett's expression and face is a real no-nonsense attitude. This is clearly the person running the show--clearly this is the person who makes the rules and says what is and isn't OK, and what will be happening next. This is even more evident in the group photo from which this was excerpted, where the others seem aware that this is the case as well.