Arthur James MELHUISH

 

Arthur James was born on 8 August 1829 in London, the son of Samuel Melhuish and Charlotte (ms Castle).[i]  At his marriage to Caroline Powell, daughter of Daniel Powell and Ann (ms Seward) he was described as a Mathematical Instrument Maker of Blackheath, and his bride as living in Gold Street Tiverton where her widowed mother ran a grocery store.  The couple was married in the Tiverton Baptist Church on 2 June 1853 with Caroline’s brother Daniel as one of the witnesses. Like the majority of the Melhuish, Powell and Seward family from Tiverton, Arthur was baptised as a Nonconformist Protestant.

 I have been researching the Powell family for many years so imagine my surprise when I thought to Google the groom’s name to find many articles on him.  He was a man with considerable standing within the Photographic community and seemingly a favourite of the aristocracy of Britain and Europe.

 Shortly after his marriage he patented a roll-back for waxed paper which he demonstrated to Prince Albert two years later.  He continued with his various inventions throughout his life.  His first public showing was in the 1855 London exhibition of the Photographic Society.  In1856 he patented his design for a roller slide that permitted the photographer to carry a number of sheets of sensitized paper and change them in the camera without the need for a darkroom.

 By 1857 Arthur had begun working with collodion, but continued to show two waxed-paper views at the society.[ii] His 1860 metal camera was promoted as being one-third lighter than wooden ones and twice as strong. This was the first all-metal camera and one extant example resides in the collection of the National Museum of Photography, Film and Television in Bradford.[iii] He last participated in major exhibitions at the 1861 Architectural Photographic Association in London.[iv]

 In the 1861 census Arthur, Caroline and their youngest child Caroline Constance (aka Constance age 4 yrs) resided at Linden Cottage in Greenwich, Kent, but their oldest two children Arthur (aged 6 yrs) and Adele Elizabeth (aka Elizabeth 5yrs) were not with them.[v]  Strangely enough the family continued with this practice of several children living elsewhere in most census results. At this stage Arthur was employing 8 men and 8 boys.

 He became Honorary Secretary to the Amateur Photographic Association, formed in 1861, which had the Prince of Wales as President. In 1873 he was created Photographer Royal to the Shah of Persia following the Shah’s visit to London.[vi]  During his career he worked with various photographers in several partnerships.

 Arthur Melhuish was successful at building a photographic printing business, employing several assistants, but he had some economic reversals and by 1871 was listed as a picture dealer.  At this time he was operating out of his mother and stepfather’s house in Blackheath Park, Charlton in London and also living there were the two oldest children, Arthur and Adele Elizabeth. 

 In this census his wife Caroline and daughter Caroline Constance were visiting Charles and Ann Woodhouse at Tiverton in Devon.  Charles, originally a Lacemaker, was listed as a Groom during this period and was born in 1814 at Loughborough, which is the town in Leicestershire where Caroline Powell’s father and his siblings were all born so maybe he was an old family friend. 

 Amazingly during this period John, Charlotte (8 yrs) and Alberta L.B. (daughter aged 6 yrs) were living separately in Blackheath. Nine-year-old John was described as the ‘Head’ of the household, which included a cook aged 24 years, a housemaid aged 22 years and a nurse aged 22 years.

 For the first and only time in the 1881 census the family were all together in one place ie 12 York House, York Place, Portman Square in the Borough of St Marylebone.[vii] Arthur is at this stage an artist (aged 51 years), Caroline his wife (52 yrs) and children Arthur a 26 year old photographer; Adele Elizabeth, 25 year old Artist/Photographer; Constance Caroline a 24 year old of no occupation; John a 19 year old Student; Charlotte a 18 year old Artist/Photographer and their youngest child aged 16 with no occupation.  Very strangely this child was now described as a son named Leon B. Melhuish whereas previously this child was a daughter named Alberta Louisa Blanch Melhuish.[viii] In following census results the child reverted to her birth name of Alberta.

Most of the biographies of Arthur James Melhuish that I’ve read on the Internet described his family as being ‘3 sons and 4 daughters.’ I feel the confusion stems from this 1881 census when Alberta the daughter was listed as Leon a son.  In fact Arthur James and Caroline Melhuish had a total of six children consisting of 2 sons and 4 daughters. They were Arthur Newton Melhuish (Born 1855), Adele Elizabeth (1856), Constance aka Caroline (1857), John (1862), Charlotte Mary Gertrude (1863).  All of those children were born in Blackheath, Kent and lastly their daughter Alberta Louisa Blanch who was born in London in 1865.

Hard times and bad decisions meant Arthur was declared bankrupt by 1882 however he rebuilt his reputation, becoming Photographer Royal and by the 1890s was hosting a British Museum of Portraits at his Pall Mall studio; he occupied the studio at 58 Pall Mall, Westminster from 1890 until February 1894.[ix]&[x]  John, the second son of the couple died in the March quarter of 1890 aged 28 years.[xi]

In the 1891 census the remaining children were all still living with their father and mother at 5 Crossfield Road, Borough of Hampstead in St Peters Parish at St. John, London.[xii] Their surviving son, Arthur was shown as a Photographic/Artists and daughters Elizabeth, Caroline and Charlotte as Artists.  Once again Alberta Louisa is a daughter with no occupation. The children’s mother, Caroline Melhuish ms Powell passed away two years later at 63 years old.[xiii]

Away from photography Melhuish started the Church of England Pulpit and Ecclesiastical Review in 1873 and published articles on a diverse range of subjects such as mental analysis, ghosts and the geology of the bible. He was an Honorary Fellow of the Meteorological Society and elected a Fellow of the Astronomical Society in 1863. He died at 10 Fordwych Road in Brondesbury, London on 1 November 1895 leaving an estate valued at £794.[xiv]&[xv]

An article appeared in the York Herald on Tuesday 5 November 1895 with the heading:-

DAILY NOTES  "The late Mr. Arthur Melhuish, whose death was announced yesterday, was a well-known photographer and the founder of the Amateur Photographic Association He had been interviewed shortly before his fatal illness, and, strangely enough, the account of the account of the interview appears on the same day as the announcement of his decease.  The Amateur Photographic Association was established in 1863 with the Prince of Wales as President and the Archbishop of York the late Dr Thomson one of the Vice Presidents and under it's auspices an interesting and national collection of valuable portraits has been formed at South Kensington.  Mr. Melhuish was a man of scientific attainments.  In his opinion photography is of inestimable value to astronomy.' etc etc. 

 Another article appeared in the Western Times, (South West England) on 4 Nov 1895. Page 3 of 4.  Headed - LONDON LETTER   "Arthur James Melhuish, whose death is just announced, was the founder of the Amateur Photographic Association, and a man of considerable scientific attainments. He took photographs of the Queen and members of the Royal Family” etc etc

 It’s rather sad that this talented man and his wife had six children, most of whom were talented in their own right and who all remained single and without issue.

BIBLIOGRAPHY REFERENCE & WEBSITES

·      Portrait of Princess Beatrice of Battenberg: Queen Victoria Portrait by Arthur James ('A.J.') Melhuish, albumen cabinet card, 1879  NPG x76537. National Portrait Gallery St Martin's Place London WC2H OHE.

Copyright: Creative Commons. Rights and Images Department, National Portrait Gallery St Martin's Place London WC2H OHE. http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/use-this-image.php?mkey=mw138490

also http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/   Websites sighted by author Nov 2013.

·      Portrait of Edward VII. By Arthur J. Melhuish London (Carte de Visite Photo) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons. This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. This applies to Australia, the European Union and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 70 years. This file has been identified as being free of known restrictions under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights. Website sighted by author Nov 2013.  http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AEdward_VII_.jpg#filelinks

·      Photograph: Thames Street, Windsor. Date - 1854-1856. By Arthur James Melhuish. This work is in the public domain in the United States, and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or less. This file has been identified as being free of known restrictions under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights.  Website sighted by author Nov 2013. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arthur_James_Melhuish_-_Thames_Street,_Windsor_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg

 ·      Photograph of Thames Street Windsor.

o   http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arthur_James_Melhuish_-_Thames_Street,_Windsor_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg

o   This remarkably early view of the Curfew Tower dating from about 1855 is not copyright and is part of the Google Art Project. The details are: Photographer - Arthur James Melhuish (1824 - 1895) (Google Art Project). Title - Thames Street, Windsor. Date - 1854-1856. Medium - Salted paper print. Dimensions - Height: 382 mm (15.04 in). Width: 490 mm (19.29 in).. Current location - Royal Collection . Accession number - RCIN 2100349. Object history - Acquired by Queen Victoria. Source - Google Art Project[1]

·      Portraits from National Portrait Gallery

o   http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person.php?LinkID=mp69324&wPage=2

o   A.J. Melhuish (1829-1895)   Arthur James ('A.J.') Melhuish     Artist associated with 42 portraits 

·      Life details of Arthur James Melhuish:-

o   http://www.photolondon.org.uk/pages/details.asp?pid=5258

·      BPatent November 27 1857 paper roll holder & roll film camera.

·      BPatent 2557 November 10 1859 photos by single or stereo cameras, provisional specification.

·      BPatent 2965 December 28 1859 cameras & dark slides, provisional specification.

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[1] http://theroyalwindsorforum.yuku.com/topic/699/Rare-Victorian-Photo-of-the-Curfew-Tower-in-1850s#.Ume8DSRzroA

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[i] Baptism Source Place: Dr. Williams Library, London, London, England; Collection: Dr. William's Library; Nonconformist Registers; Date Range: 1815 - 1832; Film Number: 838737.

[ii] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collodion  (Sighted by author Oct 2013) an alternative to egg-white on glass photographic plates

[iii] http://dating-au.com/melhuish-arthur-james-1829-1895/  (sighted by author Oct 2013)

[iv] From (Sighted by author Oct 2013) http://www.luminous-lint.com/app/photographer/Arthur_James__Melhuish/A

[v] Kent, Greenwich, Greenwich East District 18, page 18.  Schedule 113.  Linden Cottage

[vi] From (Oct 2013): http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/person/mp69324/arthur-james-aj-melhuish

[vii] Marylebone. Rectory  District 1a  Page 3.  Sch 15.  No. 12 York House

[viii] Melhuish, Alberta Louisa Blanch. Born June quarter 1865 of District: Marylebone, London.  Volume 1a Page 439

[ix] http://www.luminous-lint.com/app/photographer/Arthur_James__Melhuish/A

[x] http://www.photolondon.org.uk/pages/details.asp?pid=5258

[xi] Melhuish, John. Age 28.  District: Hampstead, London. Volume 1a Page 571

[xii] 1891 census London. Hampstead Dist 15 Pge 10

[xiii] Melhuish, Caroline. Age 63. District: Hampstead, London. Volume 1a Page 656.

[xiv] http://dating-au.com/melhuish-arthur-james-1829-1895/

[xv] Melhuish, Arthur James age 66. Dec  Quarter. Death. Reg Dist: Hampstead, London. Volume 1a Page 413

 Well, it's now three years or so since I began setting up this blog site. In the meantime I played with a few different blogs in Wordpress on my own account, also titled Bobbies Blog and found it quite frustrating in getting the set-up the way I wanted it to look.

After attending a GSQ presentation yesterday by Jill Ball aka GeniAus, I decided to come back to Blogger and see if I could get it looking better here. In the intervening years, much has changed.  I have now been the GSQ Blog Admin for two years and thoroughly enjoy the role. I've continued as a blogger for GSQ in my own right. https://gsq-blog.gsq.org.au/author/bobbieedes/

Now to begin publishing some of my past blogs here in my own account, so that the stories are here for my grandchildren's family in future years.

 

Introduction to Bobbie

I always feel particularly enthused after attending an educational talk and having been to a Writing seminar today (28 April 2018) and listened to stand-in speaker Fran Kitto's really interesting presentation on writing Blogs, da dah - here I am.

As a member of GSQ (Genealogical Society of Queensland) for many years, one of the benefits I particularly enjoy is their various Support Interest Groups (SIG). I actively attend both the DNA SIG and the Writers Group.  Pre grand-children I also attended the English/Irish SIG, but now family time is precious so I prioritise, although I haven't abandoned my Irish roots totally as I very much enjoy running an Irish Help Desk on our GSQ Open Days.

A few times a year I do a stint as the Guest Blogger on GSQ's weekly blog and enjoy that task, with another of my stories to be published in a month or so. At this stage my intention in my personal blog is to publish little stories that make up the big picture of where our family comes from.

Family History is not just about dates. These are commonly referred to as BMDs by Genie addicts like myself. It is about the interesting details that make up each of those characters in our ancestral tree.
Where did they come from?
What did they do for a living?
What was everyday living like?
How close was their extended family?
How difficult was it to simply exist?
What event or happening led to that family eventually migrating?
And then what happened?

So many questions. Hopefully each blog will tell you a little bit about a particular character, not necessarily everything about that person, as sometimes their life may have been so interesting that it takes up several blogs. Bear with me, and enjoy the journey.

Bobbie