Day and night in Dublin, Postcard views from 1904 and 1905

I wrote about the daytime version of this Dublin scene in an earlier post on the pre-1907 phenomenon of writing messages on the front of postcards. The same photograph was altered by the publishers for use in the ‘Valentine Moonlight Series.’ The addition of a full moon; a reduction in the traffic and the depopulated street transform the original scene into a quieter nocturnal world.

Valentine and Sons were one of the main producers of postcards at the turn of the nineteenth century and I wrote an entry on their extensive business for John Hannavy’s Encyclopedia of Nineteenth Century Photography.

The message on the 1904 postcard is a fascinating snippet of life. Apparently the person sending the postcard has been inconvenienced by the death of an uncle and may not now be able to go on a proposed outing with Miss Brenton!

‘Dear A, Uncle died on Tuesday afternoon. I am not quite sure if the folks here will think I ought to got to the fair, but will come if I can.’

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Where were you? Dublin street style in a 1950s snapshot

The monument, which is just visible in the background of this 1950s snapshot, allowed me to pinpoint the photograph’s exact location as being on Hawkins Street. The gothic revival and Celtic monument was erected ca.1906 to commemorate a Dublin Metropolitan Police Constable, Patrick Sheahan, who lost his life in the line of duty. The group stand at the rere of the faux-tudor Gas Company headquarters which was designed by Robinson Keefe. You can see some detailed photographs of it here.

This photograph was rescued from a skip by my good friend, Garry O’Neill, and features in his long awaited book on decades of Dublin street style entitled Where were you? It was published and designed by Niall McCormack of HiTone and will be launched tomorrow in the Gallery of Photography, Meeting House Square, Temple Bar.

On another note, I was delighted to be asked by the excellent Irish history blog Pue’s Occurrences to review a new photography book. Revolution: a photographic history of revolutionary Ireland, 1913-1923 includes some rarely seen images from private and public collections.

I also wrote a little piece for Stacy Waldman’s blog House of Mirth on my favourite Halloween photograph. Stacy’s gathered together some really amazing photographs from collectors and fans of vernacular photography including Barbara Levine, Ron Slattery and Robert E. Jackson.

As if this wasn’t enough photography related activity, I went to Après Paris at the Sugar Club last Thursday. This event was organised by PhotoIreland festival and featured up-dates on Paris Photo and talk of next year’s PhotoIreland festival which I am already looking forward to! 

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Words and pictures

Before 1907, if you were sending a postcard to the United States you couldn’t write anything other than the address on the back of the card. As a result of this people wrote their messages around the image and this led to an interesting and quirky intersection of words and pictures. The pattern created by the text against the image is often fascinating. The sender of the first postcard from Howth/Beann Eadair has managed to write a considerable amount of text over the sea and sky! It was sent to California in April 1905. The second card was sent to Boston in 1905 and mentions a trip to the Dublin Horse Show and Donaghadee, near Belfast. 

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Private Wine Rooms over mystery Dublin pub?

This snapshot is crammed full of amazing details like the sign for ‘private wine rooms upstairs’;  the young fella peaking over the odd little car;  the banner advertising Player’s cigarettes and the shadowy sign in the window. Despite my loathing of Arthur’s Day I am still fond of the ‘Guinness is good for you’ sign.

This photograph has me totally puzzled though as I cannot locate a Dublin pub whose street number is 32 and which is also next door to a stationer’s/tobacconist’s. The name of the shop looks like Hegarty and in the original print I can faintly make out a surname ending in ‘lly’ on the etched pub sign. I have checked one or two Thom’s Street directories for the 1920s, 30s and 40s but to no avail.

Perhaps the photograph wasn’t taken in Dublin which would disappoint me though it really shouldn’t matter as the image is a great snippet of street life wherever it originates. Any suggestions welcome?

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Westmoreland Street portraits, Dublin, 1860s

This pair of cartes de visite typify the type of inexpensive studio portrait produced in the 1860s and 70s. They are remarkably similar even though they were taken by two different studios on Westmoreland Street, Dublin.  The crude tinting blurred the individual features and produces a mask-like appearance. Only the painted backdrop and furniture styles differentiate the studios from each other. 

Despite the claims of excellence made by both studios, they display a standardisation of pose that the format’s detractors frequently pointed out. The craze for these inexpensive portraits reached its peak on the 1860s and this is reflected by the sheer number of studios on three of the main streets of the capital: Sackville Street (now O’Connell Street); Westmoreland Street and Grafton Street. This strip became known as ‘The photographic mile’ and at one time boasted over 60 studios.

The man with the tinted cheeks was taken by Forster’s who were  according to an 1868 advertisement situated on the ‘drawing room’ floor of  30 Westmoreland Street.  Access was through the front door of the New Medical Hall. Forster  entered into several partnerships – in March 1862 he was in business with Mr. A.J. Scott, however, by February 16th, 1864 he was working alongside T.F. Haskoll. This partnership was in turn dissolved by 1864 when Haskoll set up on his studio own at 118 Grafton Street.

The firm of Lauder appears to have been more stable venture as it continued in business into the 20th century. Another branch of the family started the famous and highly successful Lafayette studio. The following advertisement by Lauder from 1878 gives an indication of the claims made by the studios “Lauder have made most important alterations and improvements in their principal galleries, by means of which photographs are now produced in half the usual time, thereby rendering them more natural, pleasing and successful, and have spared no expense in providing the best lenses and apparatus and a great variety of new and beautiful scenery accessories.”

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Musical trio, Rathmines, 1920s

The subject matter of this photograph shows the playfulness of snapshot photography. The incidental details such as the wallpaper, worn chair and the doorway add to the overall ambience and the white flannel trousers are very typical of the 1920s.

The photograph was processed by Elite Portrait Studios, Rathmines, which was run by Max Stein for several years in the 1920s. In addition to photographic processing (using The Elite Process) he also offered camera rental! I like the simple stamp on the back of the photo – it contrasts with the ornate logos used by earlier studios.

The photographic trade was thought by many to be an easy way to make money but business didn’t go well for Max. A 1928 court report in The Irish Times shows that he owed £232 to Amalgamated Photographic Manufacturers (London) for photographic supplies obtained on credit. The business was registered in his Russian-born father’s name as Max was under twenty-one when he started the studio. His father Solomon, according to the article, was a rabbit skin-dealer at Britain Street, off Parnell Street.

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Hi-jinks in Dublin!

This jumping man comes from an album I recently received from a military historian friend. It belonged to the well-to-do Foley family from North County Dublin and dates from between 1900 and 1920. It is full of great snapshots like this one which is part of a series taken at some sort of camp along the coast of Dublin. The ability to freeze action was called ‘instant photography’ and it became a staple of amateur practice in the early decades of the 20th Century. It reminds me of the iconic Lartigue photograph of his cousin ‘flying’.  This is featured in the BBC’s documentary series The Genius of Photography.

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