Drummond Shiels

J Drummond Shiels

Studios

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Edinburgh Studios

J Drummond Shiels studio was established at 70 Lauriston Place in 1899, described in the company’s adverts as: “Successor to A Nichol”   - Note the usual spelling is Nicol. 

In most of the trade directories, the company was listed as Drummond Shiels from 1919.  In some trade directories, the change of name to Drummond Shiels did not occur until 1928 or later.  However, this postcard suggests that the change of name to Drummond Shiels may in fact have taken place around 1915 or earlier.

A second studio, James Drummond Shiels, opened at 22 Dalry Road, in 1924

Edinburgh Studio Dates

UPDATE

Trade directories give the following studio names and dates.

However, Carol Jones sent me a copy of one of her photos that does not match the details above.  Her photo is of her great grandfather, David Douglas Brockie, who died in March 1914.  The photo was taken in late-1913 and has the studio name and address below.

Carol Jones, Edinburgh:  18 June 2016

Glasgow Studios

There was a Drummond Shiels photographic studio at 49 Jamaica Street Glasgow.  It is listed under the following names:

-  1902-03      J Drummond Shields  (1)

-  1903-14+    James Drummond Shiels, junior  (2)

(1)  PhotoHistorian Supplement: Victorian and Edwardian Professional Photographers in Glasgow;  edited by Michael Hallett. 

Here and elsewhere I have seen the spelling 'Drummond Shields' or 'Drummond-Shields'.  However the name printed on all cabinet prints that I have seen  is 'Drummond Shiels'.

(2)  Photographers in Lanarkshire to 1914, compiled by D Richard Torrance.

J Drummond Shiels Jun.

Studio

Questions

The second photographer listed for the Glasgow studio above puzzles me, as it is the only time that I have seen 'junior' in a Drummond Shiels name. 

Might James Drummond Shiels junior with studios in Glasgow (1903-14+) be the same person as James Drummond Shiels who had a studio in Dalry Road, Edinburgh (1924-33).

Might James Drummond Shiels junior be the son of J Drummond Shiels  who had a studio at Lauriston Place, Edinburgh (from 1899) or of T Drummond Shiels who was also based at that studio (from 1917).

Comment

Thank you to Robert Shiels for e-mailing me to say he believes that 'junior' is unlikely to be a son, but he will check further.

J Drummond Shiels

Studio, Photographic Dealers and Opticians

Thank you to Eric Bower, Edinburgh  -  whose father's aunt was the wife of James Drummond Shiels and a partner with him in the business  -  for providing the following information.

Eric wrote:

Burlington Studio

"James Drummond Shiels  and his wife Nell were the business partners in a photographic studio in Dalry Road  ( Just across the bridge over the station ) called the Burlington Studio.  They had one assistant who seemed to be the main photographer.

Hand-Tinting

"My father's aunt Nell was very  skilled at hand-tinting the studio photographs.  She did this as well as handling the business side of things."

Photographic Dealers

"One or two years before 1939  James Drummond Shiels opened another shop in Haymarket (opposite the clock).  This was solely a photographic  retail outlet.

The studio and this shop were run together for a while and then (date unknown) the studio was closed. 

The photographic retail business (opposite the clock) continued. An opticians was added to the photographic business, and the business became 'Drummond & Sons'.

Opticians

"The optician was Drummond Shiels the son of James. The shop continued in this fashion until it the early 1960's when it closed and Drummond Shiels moved his opticians business to West Maitland Street.  

The photographic side was completely closed at this time."

Eric Bower, Edinburgh, based on information provided by his mother:  July 10, 2006

J Drummond Shiels

Family

Thank you to Robert Shiels, Edinburgh for e-mailing me with the following details.

 Robert wrote:

"The Dictionary of  National Biography (1951-1960) (published 1971)  says:

'James Drummond Shiels was a lithographic printer.  He was the father of 8 children one of whom became an MP.'

'The MP son at first went into business with the father and one of his sons (a brother of the MP) at Lauriston Place. The family had previously lived in Glasgow for a while.'

Robert added

 I have separately noticed that in 1908 a James Drummond Shiels photographer of 13 Cumin Place, Edinburgh was cited to appear as a possible juror at the famous trial of Oscar Slater although he was not actually balloted to sit on the jury."

Robert Shiels, Corstorphine, Edinburgh,  9 January 2006

Eric Bower, Edinburgh, wrote:

"James Drummond Shiels  ( the photographer and studio owner)  was an official in the Hibernian Football Club at Easter Road.

His brother Sir Drummond Shiels was a Member of Parliament."

Drummond Shiels

Post Cards

Please click on the thumbnail images for further details.

Postcard 1

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Postcard 2

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Folder containing a Postcard

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Drummond Shiels

Mounted Photos

Please click on the thumbnail image for further details.

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J Drummond Shiels

EPS Debates

J Drummond Shiels was a prominent speaker in EPS debates.  He proposed the first motion below and led the opposition to the second:   

 In Jan 1910, he proposed the Motion:  

“That Photography achieves its greatest success in Portraiture” . 

J Robertson Christie led the argument against the motion.  The motion was narrowly defeated.

 In Dec1910, he led the opposition to the Motion:

“That the picture which shows most of the individuality of the Artist is the most  Artistic.”.

 In Jan 1913, he led a debate on:

“Judging the Awards at Photographic Exhibitions”.

T Drummond Shiels

Professional Photographer

Question

T Drummond Shiels only appeared briefly in the trade directories under his own name.  He was listed in 1917 and 1918. 

However, judging from the titles of Wednesday evening lectures given to Edinburgh Photographic Society, he appears to have been a professional photographer for many years before being listed in the directories.

Please click here to read extracts from the T Drummond Shiels' 1907 Lecture to the Edinburgh Photographic Society.

For how long was T Drummond Shiels a Professional photographer in Edinburgh?

Reply

Thank you to Robert Shiels, for e-mailing me with the following details.   Robert wrote:

Robert wrote two months later to say that the book he was looking for had not yet appeared in the library.  However, he sent the following additional details.

BJP and Professional Photographers' Association

Sunday Closing

At the time of the Professional Photographers' Convention, in May 1911, Parliament was debating a Shops Bill, under which there were Sunday Closing provisions.

The Bill proposed that Sunday closing should apply to traders - those  who buy and sell - but that photographic studios should be exempt.

The subject was debated in the correspondence pages of the BJP with contributions in the early months of 1911from:

- A Professional, 

- William Coles, 

- John Arnall, 

- H Roe, 

- McMahon,

- Nimrod, 

- James J Honohon,

-  Manager II, 

-  Disgusted, 

-  Ajax Secundus,

-  A Simpson 

-  HJ Rigden 

[BJP 1911,  pp12, 13, 54, 90, 130, 149, 184, 294, 350]

At the Professional Photographers' Congress, in May 1911, T Drummond Shiels advanced vigorous arguments in favour of the Sunday Closing provisions also being applied to photographic studios.

Sunday Closing

The Edinburgh Campaign

He reported that the Edinburgh branch of Professional Photographers' Association had already created a petition in favour of Sunday closing, which had been circulated to Glasgow, Dundee and Aberdeen.  T Drummond Shiels added:

"Practically every photographer's signature was secured in these towns, except those of the Sunday openers, though one of these who had been approached by mistake gladly signed the petition, showing that many open only out of self-defence, and would willingly be closed if all others were compelled to be."

"The difficulty of what seems to be a comparatively simple matter is that a photographic studio is both a factory and a shop.  Under the Factory Acts, printing, retouching, etc., may not be done on Sunday, but men over eighteen are not affected by these acts, nor are receptionists who do not retouch or spot."

"But we have pointed out that if a hairdresser is to be considered a shop, there is no reason why the front saloon and actual studio of a photographer should not also be entitled to be called a shop."

"... And the best wishes of all Scottish photographers will be with their English brethren in their efforts to stop a seven days' week, which is degrading to the status of photography as a profession, and which encourages the worst  type of camera-exploiter and gives him power to regulate the hours and prices of bona-fide photographers."

T Drummond Shiels spoke of the considerable amount of work being done in support of this cause by FP Moffat, President of the Congress and Hon Secretary of Edinburgh PPA, with support from:

- Fred J Hardie (Aberdeen), 
- William Crooke (Edinburgh), 
- Mr Swan Watson (Edinburgh), 
- Craig Annan (Glasgow), 
- Mr Whyte (Glasgow) and
- Messrs Valentine (Dundee).

 [BJP, 26 May 1911,  pp394, 408]

Sunday Closing

 Amendment to the Bill

Two months later the Scottish campaigners heard the news they had been waiting for.  It was reported that the Lord Advocate had amended the Shops Bill so as to make the Sunday Closing provisions apply to Scotland:

"As milk shops and chemists' are the only shops allowed to open on Sunday under this Act it follows as a matter of course in the almost certain event of the Bill passing into law this session, that after January 1, 1912 all photographic studios in Scotland will be closed ion Sundays."

[BJP:  7 Jul 1911,  p.520]

Meanwhile letters continued to be written to the  British Journal of Photography on Sunday Closing.  Correspondents included:

- Only an Assistant 

- Free Sunday,

- Disgusted (again)

- An Observer

 [BJP,   pp.522, 582, 618

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