Large photograph album containing various albumen photographs most of which appear to have been taken by Francis Frith and Co. There are a small number from 'Hudson's Series' - we are not sure if that was a separate company to Frith's. They are not modern reproductions.
There are approximately 70 photographs in the album. There are some blank pages / spaces presumably where photographs have been removed in the past. In gold coloured lettering on the front cover: 'Frith's Photo. Pictures'.
Also included are about another 30 loose albumen photographs, of the same size as the ones in the album, that came in or with the album when we acquired it. These appear to be duplicates of the ones in the album.
We wonder if the album may have been a display catalogue from which customers selected the images they wanted or perhaps it was compiled by a collector.
Inserted into the album (held in place by corner inserts but not pasted or stuck down):
14429a Oddicombe Beach
19067 Paignton Bay. Hudson's Series
19068 Paignton. Hudson's Series
19069 Paignton Hudson's Series
19070 Paignton. Hudson's Series
19072 Paignton Harbour - Hudson's Series
19074 Paignton Church - Hudson's Series
20148[?] Paignton. Hudson's Series (small piece missing bottom left edge)
20149 Paignton Hudson's Series
21536 Paignton Church, Screen
21569 Dartmouth and Kingswear
21617 River Dart, Dittisham
25474 Paignton Christchurch
25476 Paignton Christchurch
25480 Paignton Singer's House
26057 Dawlish
33574 Paignton The Gardens
33631 Dartmouth "Britannia and Hindostan"
33638 Paignton
33639 Paignton
33640 Paignton Jubilee Lamp
33647 Paignton Gerston Hotel
33648 Paignton Terrace
33659 Anstey's Cove (tear to top left corner)
33661 Babbicombe (heavily spotted)
36383a Teignmouth
37602 Teignmouth
37615 Dawlish from Royal Hotel
38215 Totnes - Totnes Castle (boat)
38234a Totnes
38543 Paignton (tear bottom left)
38546 Paignton Bathing Beach
38547 Paignton Bathing Beach
38548 Paignton from the Pier
38549 Paignton from the Pier
38550 Paignton North Sands from Pier
38553 Paignton Esplanade Hotel
38554 Paignton Club House
38556 Paignton The Esplanade
38557 Paignton Band Stand
38558 Paignton The Esplanade
38563 Paignton The Esplanade and Pier
38564 Paignton The Esplanade (marking in the sky area)
38566 Paignton The Sands
38568 Paignton The Harbour (spotting in sky)
38570 Paignton Palace Avenue
38571 Paignton Palace Avenue
38572 Paignton Palace Tower
38573 Paignton The Gardens and Wesleyan Chapel
38579 Paignton Regatta
38592 Vane Hill
38595 Torquay Rock Walk and Abbey Crescent
38596 Torquay Rock Walk and Abbey Crescent
38600 Torquay Rock Walk, Waldron Hill
38601 Torquay Imperial Hotel
38603 Torquay Hesketh Crescent
38606a Torquay Anstey's Cove
38610 Torquay Anstey's Cove (corners creased over)
38611 Torquay Anstey's Cove
38613 Babbicombe
38614 Oddicombe Beach
38615 Oddicombe Beach
38872 Waldron Hill
38874 Babbicombe from Oddicombe
38879 Babbicombe
38882 Brixham
38884 Brixham The Harbour
38888 Brixham Harbour (moonlight)
38901 Dartmouth Parish Church (interior
38902 Dartmouth Parish Church (interior)
38903 Dartmouth Parish Church (screen and pulpit)
38906 Dartmouth Parish Church (interior) - tear to bottom left edge
44567 St Andrews Church interior
44570 Goodrington Beach
44571 Goodrington Beach
44572 Torquay from Churston Golf Links
44584 Greenway Cottages
The following loose photographs, of the same size as the ones in the album, are also included. Most appear to be duplicates of the photographs in the album:
14429a Oddicombe Beach
19070 Paignton Hudson's Series
20149(?) Paignton, Hudson's Series (some damage along bottom edge) x 2 copies
25476 Paignton Christchurch (interior)
25906 Paignton Harbour (tears to top and right edges)
25935 Torquay Compton Castle (crease along top edge)
33640 Paignton
33647 Paignton Gerston Hotel
33650 Paignton Cliff Cottages (creased at top edge)
38546 Paignton Bathing Beach
38547a Paignton, Bathing Beach
38548 Paignton
38549 Paignton
38550 Paignton North Sands
38552 Paignton
38554 Paignton The Club House
38556(?) Paignton Esplanade
38557 Paignton Esplanade (large tear to left edge)
38558 Paignton Esplanade (tear to top edge)
38563 Paignton Esplanade and Pier
38564 Paignton Esplanade
38570 Paignton Palace Avenue
38571 Paignton Palace Avenue x 2
38573 Paignton The Gardens and Wesleyan Chapel x 2
38574 Paignton The Gardens
38579 Paignton Regatta
38592 Torquay Vane Hill
38595 Torquay Rock Walk and Abbey Crescent x 2
38596 Torquay Rock Walk x 2
38603 Torquay Hesketh Crescent
38614 Torquay Oddicombe Beach
38615 Oddicombe Beach
38881 Cockington Village
Commercial photographers and publishers, such as Frith, took many photographs and added them to their stock in trade. Judging by the Francis Frith collection catalogue (available online) most of the photographs here appear to date to the 1890s. Our feeling is the album and contents were probably put together in the late 1890s or early 1900s.
Each photograph measures about 7 inches x 11 inches (about 18 cm x 28 cm). The album containing the photographs is large and measures about 17 inches x 14.5 inches (about 44 cm x 37 cm).
Condition: some photographs have faded somewhat; various scuffs, spotting and other blemishes to images; some tears to photographs, several long; the photographs are loosely inserted into built in corner mounts in the album and consequently have marks / creases caused by those corner mounts; also, as the photographs are not laid down on card, they have various creases typical of these sorts of prints (some have many creases); many have locations etc written in pencil on their backs; wear to edges and corners of many; Francis Frith catalogue numbers or descriptions are written in pencil beneath most of the photographs in the album - we have not checked if these correspond with the actual photographs inserted; the album itself is in poor to fair condition overall, is disbound and is quite grubby; in our opinion the photographs are in overall fair condition for type and age with some going down to poor and some up towards good.
Condition is subjective so please study the photographs carefully to make your own judgement.
The colours in the photographs will not be completely accurate due to variables in the photos or scans we use and individual computer settings.
Please excuse any mistakes we may have made in our interpretation of meanings, names, places, dates, words or their spellings.
We have another two Frith albums that contain small and medium sized versions of some of the photographs in the above album - these will be listed and sold separately on eBay. The one for sale in this listing has the largest prints of the three.