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Derbyshire
Photographers' Profiles by Brett Payne, of Tauranga, New Zealand George Holdsworth of Glossop |
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| George Holdsworth operated a studio in Shrewsbury
Street, Glossop, from at least 1891 until 1895. |
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| George Holdsworth was born c.
1865 at Fulstone, near Holmfrith (south of Huddersfield) in Yorkshire,
the second son of a cloth (woollen) draper and farmer, James Nathaniel
Holdsworth (1839-) and his wife Hannah Berry (1841-). Although he
worked in the clothing trade as a boy, he probably became a
photographer soon after his marriage to Ellen Ann Wilkinson, daughter
of a Fulstone wollen weaver, in 1888. Certainly by the time of
the 1891 Census, when he is shown living alone at 22 Pikes Lane,
Glossop, he had already established his studio, shown in an 1891 trade
directory in Shrewsbury Street. His family, however, continued to
live at Dean Bridge between the villages of Fulstone, Wooldale and
Scholes, and perhaps George was a weekly commuter. In 1901, he is
shown living at home in Dean Bridge, by which time he and his wife had
four sons and two daughters. Adamson (1997) confirms that Holdsworth was operating the Shrewsbury Street studio from 1891 to 1895, but provides no further information. Kelly's 1899 trade directory for Glossop has no entry for him, so it appears that he had moved his trade elsewhere by this time, or was employed by another studio. The Picture the Past photographic database contains a number images attributed to "George Holdsworth & Son," including several school class photographs dated from c.1910 to c.1931 ("Somercotes Boy's School Group 6," "Hardwick Street School, Sutton-in-Ashfield," "Girls Class B, East Kirkby Council Infants School, Kirkby-in-Ashfield", "Standard 2B class, Chaucer Schools, Lower Chapel Street, Ilkeston", "Class 3, Welbeck Road Junior School, Bolsover" and "Class A, Shirebrook Model Village Infants School"). One the photos, dated 1931, has the following note printed on the mount, "Geo. Holdsworth & Son, Scholastic Photo Specialist, Hartlepool," suggesting that he had moved his base of operations to this north-east coastal town by that time. It appears that he started specialising in the scholastic trade fairly early on, because there is a series of photos showing the buildings, a school garden, pupils and teaching staff at the new infants school in Victoria Road, Sandiacre, taken from a booklet published by him c. 1910. |
| Portfolio |
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Sarah
Ann Cooper née Hambleton (1837-1898) by Geo. Holdsworth of Shrewsbury St, Glossop Undated, but probably taken c. 1888-1892 Format: Carte-de-visite Size: Mount 64 x 105 mm Image © & courtesy of Liz Sparkes Notes by LS: Sarah Ann Cooper
(nee Hambleton) was a sister of my great-grandfather John Hambleton. She was born on 19th June 1837 in Mellor, Derbyshire
and died in 1898 in Glossop. |
| References
Images kindly provided by Liz Sparkes 1841-1901 UK Census - online from Ancestry.com 1901 UK Census index - online from the PRO FreeBMD International Genealogical Index - online from the LDS church North East Midland Photographic Record - Picture the Past Anon (1887) Kelly's Directory of Derbyshire, Kelly & Co., London. Anon (1891) Kelly's Directory of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland & Nottinghamshire, Kelly & Co., London. University of Leicester's Digital Library of Historical Directories Anon (1895) Kelly's Directory of Derbyshire, Kelly & Co. Limited, London. Anon (1899) Kelly's Directory of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland & Nottinghamshire, Kelly & Co., London. University of Leicester's Digital Library of Historical DirectoriesAdamson, Keith I.P. (1997) Professional Photographers in Derbyshire 1843 - 1914, The PhotoHistorian, No. 118 Supplement, September 1997, ISSN 0957-0209. Courtesy of John Bradley. |
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