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Edinburgh Professional Photographers named Mitchell
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George G Mitchell
d.1916
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Grierson G Mitchell
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Miss Maude Mitchell
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WB Mitchell
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WB Mitchell & Co
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Mitchell & Laing
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George
G Mitchell
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Partnerships
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Lawrie & Mitchell from 1857 to 1898
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Mitchell
& Laing from 1910 to 1915.
QUESTION
Was it George or Grierson Mitchell or both who were
partners in the above partnerships?
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About
three years before giving his first lecture to Edinburgh Photographic
Society, George G Mitchell wrote an article for the British
Journal Photographic Almanac for 1881
setting out several approaches to intensifying gelatine
negatives. [TEPS:
Sep 1881]
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Edinburgh
Photographic Society
George
G Mitchell was Secretary from 1885 to 1888. He gave the following lectures to
the Society:
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1884: Photographers
and Sitters
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1886: The
New Year and Development
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1886: A
Scheme of Cabinet Print Exchange
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1887: The
Camera and its Improvements.
He
presented transparencies to EPS Popular Meetings in 1886,
1887. and 1890.
These meetings also provided musical entertainment and attracted large
attendances.
In
1886, he made suggestions
that led later to the setting up of the EPS Survey Section.
At the
1890 EPS
Exhibition he exhibited landscape photographs (silver) and a pinhole camera,
with a negative and print produced by it.
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Obituary
The
British Journal of Photography reported the death of George G Greenhill
in 1916 at the age of 1884. It was reported that:
"In
early life he had been an employee of the Telegraph Co before the
business was taken over by the State.
"When
photography came to be a commercial undertaking he started a
business in the North Bridge where the Calton Hotel now stands,
removing afterwards to Nicolson Square.
For
some years, he taught photographic classes in the evening at Heriot
Watt College
[BJP: 12 May 1916]
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W B
Mitchell
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WB Mitchell was a
photographer in 1889, before setting up his business as WB Mitchell & Co for
the next two years.
He exhibited 4
photographs in the 1890 PSS Exhibition.
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1881
Census
There
was a William Mitchell listed as a Photographer in the 1881
census. Was this the same person as WB Mitchell, above, who did
not appear as a professional photographer in the Edinburgh Trade
Directories until 1889-91?
The
1881 census showed:
Photographic
Artist:
aged 32
Born:
Whiitburn, West Lothian
Resident:
23, Queensferry Street Lane, Edinburgh
[DR
Torrance] |
Grierson G Mitchell
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Professional
photographer
Grierson G Mitchell was
listed in the trade directories as:
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1865-1879
- Partner
in Laurie & Mitchell
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1880-1888
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Artist
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1889-1921
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Photographer.
COMMENT
The period above seems very long to have been covered by one photographer.
However, my first impression was that this may have been the case because I
regarded Grierson Mitchell as being a fairly unusual name.
However, David AM Grierson, author of 'Grierson World Project' has
discovered that there were several generations of the family given that name
- See below. So it now seems more likely that there might have been
more than one Grierson Mitchell in the above partnerships.
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Grierson Mitchell
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b. 22 April 1873, born in
Liberton, Midlothian |
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Grierson Mitchell |
b. 16 August 1836: born
in Edinburgh |
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Grierson Mitchell |
b. 17 January 1869:
Christened in Manchester |
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Miss
Maude Mitchell
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Miss
Maude Mitchell was based at the same address as Grierson G Mitchell
from 1911 to 1919.
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1881
Census
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There
was a Grierson Mitchell listed as a Photographic Artist in the 1881
census. Was this the same person as Grierson G Mitchell, above,
who was shown as being an Artist in 1881 in the Edinburgh Trade
Directories?
The
1881 census showed Grierson Mitchell to be:
Photographic
Artist:
aged 47
Born:
Edinburgh
Resident:
3, Gladstone Place, Edinburgh
Wife:
Helen M
Children
1.
Henry C: aged 16 (born: Edinburgh)
2.
Alice P: aged 13 (born: Edinburgh)
3.
Ernest: aged 9 (born: Edinburgh)
4.
Helen M: aged 6 (born: Edinburgh)
[DR
Torrance] |
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