What: The plates measure 58mm x 43mm. The closest Imperial glass plate size that I can find was 1 5/8 x 2 1/8 inches, called “sixteenth plate.” According to Camera-Wiki, these were cut from whole plate (8 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches) by the photographer. I question this, because the photographs contained on the plates that I found are carefully posed, but some of the images are out of focus. One of these is of a tug boat, with a name on the bow. While I can’t quite make out the name, the first three letters seem to be “LAN” and on the digital copy I could see that the letters were reversed. If the plates had originally been loaded into the camera the wrong way around, the image would appear reversed and the result would be displacement of the emulsion by the thickness of the glass, which would result in the image being out of focus. Elementary, my dear Watson. I have accordingly reversed the images in question. I would be interested to know what make or type of camera was used. Your thoughts would be appreciated.
I have tried to find some reference to the tugboat, without success. All I can deduce is that there appears to be the emblem of the RAE towing company on the funnel.
Where: One of the images is that of a corner shop, with the street name sign of “St Paul’s Road” visible. Using Google maps, I found what I think is the original shop, with a few wartime changes to it’s facade. It is located at the corner of St Paul’s and Church Roads, Wallesey, Liverpool. The photo of the tugboat would support this, as the Merseyside docks are just a short distance away.
Who: Now that’s the real question. Who were these people? Are they all members of the same family? They appear to be well fed and healthy, even if their clothing seems to be somewhat shabby. If the tugboat and the shop are of any significance, then perhaps the man of the house was a tugboat captain and the family also had a corner dairy shop? The clean shaven young man with his hands behind his back would seem to be in his late twenties, early thirties. Is he the man of the house, or the son-in-law? The lady with her hands behind her back and the wild hairstyle seems to be around the same age. Are they man and wife, parents of the three children in the group photo? In the right background of this photo is what appears to be either a “soil” bucket or a slop bucket, neither of which lends itself to a middle class neighbourhood. Is the young man with his hands on his hips, a younger brother? Is the young girl posing in the overcoat and hat also a sibling? We mustn’t forget that there could very well have been more glass plate negatives, which may have contained images of an older man and / or woman, the head of the family and his wife.
When: Invented by Dr. Richard L. Maddox and first made available in 1873, dry plate negatives were the first economically successful durable photographic medium. Dry plate negatives are typically on thinner glass plates, with a more evenly coated emulsion. Dry plate glass negatives were in common use between the 1880s and the late 1920s. For our purposes here, I am going to surmise that these images were taken around the year 1900.
I would like to try and trace the family if possible, even if just to give them back their long lost photos. If anyone has any info at all, let me know. Stranger things have happened.
Addendum: A photo of the tugboat has bee found showing the name as "Langarth" and a data sheet showing that the tugboat was launched in 1922 and operated in Liverpool. That means that these glass plate images must date from 1922 or later.
Further research shows that the street name on the wall of the shop may be "Paul Rd" and not "St Paul's Rd." There is a "Paul St" which it is now an industrial area. There is no "Paul Rd" on any map of the Merseyside area.
