Midhurst Photographers 1

Professional Photographers in the Midhurst Area (A-D)

John Albert Andrews - William Barnes - John Pryce Blair - Aldred Bucknell - Francis de la Coze - Miss Coze

John Etherington - Thomas O. Hume - Mrs Maude Reardon - Alfred Seeley - George Wolferstan

John Albert ANDREWS (1849-1876)

Photographer active in Cocking, near Midhurst, between 1870 and 1876

John Albert Andrews was born in the village of Cocking, near Midhurst, in 1849 [birth registered in the District of Midhurst during the 2nd Quarter of 1849]. John Albert Andrews was the second son of Eliza and William Andrews, a farmer of five acres. John's father, William Andrews (1813-1876), was born William Andrew in Bosham in 1813. William Andrew married Eliza Hopkins (born 1813, Cocking) in Eliza's home village of Cocking on Christmas Day, 1841. After their marriage, William and Eliza used the surname of Andrews. The couple's first child was George William Andrews, who was born in Cocking in 1843. John Albert Andrews was born in Cocking six years later in 1849.

On 3rd September 1869, John Albert Andrews married Sarah Anne Jupp (born c1848) in his home village of Cocking. This marriage was brief, lasting only about a year. John's wife, Mrs Sarah Ann Andrews (nee Jupp) died during the 3rd Quarter of 1870, aged 22. John Albert Andrews married for a second time at Midhurst on 4th October 1871. John's second wife was Mary Jane Grist (born 1843, Midhurst). Mary Jane Grist was baptised in Midhurst on 9th April 1843, the daughter of Charlotte and Henry Grist, who apparently worked as a boot & shoemaker in the town of Midhurst. The marriage of John Albert Andrews and Mary Jane Grist produced at least one child, a daughter named Sarah Anne Andrews, probably named in memory of his first wife who had died tragically young. [The birth of Sarah Anne Andrews was registered in the district of Midhurst during the 4th Quarter of 1872].

John Albert Andrews is recorded as a photographer in Cocking in the 1870 Post Office Directory of Sussex. At the time of the 1871 census, John Albert Andrews was living with his parents, William and Eliza Andrews, in the village of Cocking. John Albert Andrews is described on the census return as a "Photographer & Portrait Painter", aged 22. Later that year, on 4th October 1871, the young widower married twenty-eight year old Mary Jane Grist, the daughter of Mrs Charlotte Grist (1813-1883), the widow of a Midhurst shoemaker. John Andrews' wife, Mary Jane, gave birth to a daughter named Sarah Anne Andrews at the end of the following year.

John Albert Andrews died in 1876 at the age of twenty-six. [ Death registered in the district of Midhurst during the First Quarter of 1876 ]. When the 1881 census was taken, Mrs Mary Jane Andrews, John Andrews' widow, was still residing in Cocking. Mary Jane Andrews is described as a thirty-eight year old widow on the census return and she is shown living with her eight year old daughter Sarah and her unmarried younger sister Annie Grist (born 1853, Midhurst).

[ABOVE ] A 19th Century Map of Western Sussex showing the location of the village of Cocking, where John Albert Andrews worked as photographer in the 1870s. Cocking is a small village three miles south of Midhurst on the road to Chichester. At the time of the 1861 census, Cocking's total population was 430.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Janet Hopkins of Fireskye, Northern Arizona, for providing further information on William Andrew and Eliza Hopkins, the parents of John Albert Andrews. William Andrew (Andrews) of Cocking, West Sussex, was born around 1813. On 25th December 1841, in the village of Cocking, William Andrew(s) married Eliza Hopkins (born 1813). William Andrews died in Cocking at the age of sixty-three and was buried in the graveyard of the local church on 7th May 1876. Mrs Eliza Andrews, William's widow, died in the village of Cocking on 21st December, 1878, at the age of 65.

William BARNES

Active as a photographer in Midhurst around 1890

[ABOVE ] The trade stamp of William Barnes, Photographer, of Midhurst (c1890).

[ABOVE ] The trade stamp of William Barnes, Photographer, of North Street, Midhurst (c1890).

William Barnes was born in the Kent village of Boughton-under-Blean in 1841. [The birth of William John Clark Barnes was registered in the Faversham district of Kent during the 4th Quarter of 1841]. William was the eldest of ten children born to Halbowin and Richard Barnes, a saddler and harness maker.

When the 1871 census was taken, William Barnes was living in Midhurst with his thirty-two year old wife Harriett (born c 1839, Elsted, Sussex).

William Barnes was a saddler and taxidermist by profession and, although we have evidence that he took photographic portraits in Midhurst around 1890, his name does not appear in the lists of photographers which were printed in Sussex trade directories in the 1880s and 1890s.

The Post Office Directory of Sussex, published in 1878, records William Barnes as a "saddler & naturalist" residing at North Street, Midhurst. The 1881 census return shows William and Harriett Barnes living at a house in North Street, Midhurst and describes the Head of Household as a thirty-nine year old "Saddler & Taxidermist". The surviving carte-de-visite portraits produced by William Barnes of Midhurst date from around 1890, yet in the Sussex directories published about this time list William Barnes variously as a saddler, harness maker, "bird & animal preserver" and naturalist, but never as a photographer. The carte-de-visite portraits produced by William Barnes are rubber-stamped on the reverse with a decorative trade plate with either the words "W. BARNES, Photographer, North Street, MIDHURST" or "W. BARNES # Photographer # MIDHURST"

William Barnes' wife Harriett died at Midhurst in 1887. William Barnes took a second wife Eliza (born c1866, West Dean, Sussex) and at the end of 1888 she gave birth to their first child Adelaide Holbourne Barnes [ birth registered during the 4th Quarter of 1888 ]. Another child named William Barnes (junior) was born in 1900. When the 1901 census was taken, William Barnes was entered on the census return as a "Saddler / Shopkeeper" aged 58.

Examples of the Photographic Work of William Barnes of Midhurst


[ABOVE] Portrait of a seated young man holding a walking cane. A carte-de-visite portrait by William Barnes of North Street, Midhurst (c1890).	[ABOVE] The trade plate of William Barnes, Photographer, stamped on the back of a carte-de-visite photograph (c1890).	[ABOVE] Portrait of a young woman seated in a garden. A carte-de-visite portrait by William Barnes of North Street, Midhurst (c1890).

[ABOVE] Portrait of a seated youth. A carte-de-visite portrait by William Barnes of North Street, Midhurst (c1890).

[ABOVE] The trade plate of William Barnes, Photographer, North Street, Midhurst, rubber-stamped on the back of a carte-de-visite photograph (c1890).

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Bryan Davies of Gosport for providing additional material relating to William Barnes of Midhurst. Bryan Davies is related to James Barnes, one of William Barnes's brothers.

John Pryce BLAIR (c1834-1914)

Active as a photographer in Midhurst around 1895

[ABOVE ] Portrait of John Pryce Blair (c1834-1914), a photographer active in Midhurst and Petersfield (c1910). [PHOTO : Courtesy of Petersfield Museum]

John Pryce Blair was born in Liverpool around 1834. He appears to have become a professional photographer relatively late in life. A local newspaper reported that before he took up photography, John Pryce Blair had "spent a very varied and adventurous life and had lived for some years in America where he was engaged in business". On his return to England, Blair took up photography and travelled around Southern England. By the late 1870s, John P. Blair had reached the South-West of England and was working in the area of Weston-Super-Mare.

On 25th November 1878, at the Baptist Chapel in the Somerset village of Wedmore, John Pryce Blair, then aged about forty-four, married Charlotte Fisher, the 30 year old daughter of Emily and Joseph Fisher, a local butcher. Charlotte Fisher was born in Wedmore, Somerset, in 1848 (baptised on 30th March 1848), the eighth of eleven children born to Emily Lawrence and Joseph Fisher. Charlotte's father, Joseph Fisher (1804-1876), had begun his working life as a labourer but eventually became the village butcher, running a slaughterhouse in Guildhall Lane, Wedmore. Both Charlotte's parents were deceased by the time she wed John Pryce Blair in 1878. Charlotte's mother had died from tuberculosis in 1862 and her father died in 1876, two years before Charlotte's marriage to John Blair.

The 1881 census return records John Pryce Blair and his wife Charlotte lodging at the refreshment and lodging house of Mrs Susan J. Pike in Newcomen Road, Dartmouth, Devon. The photographer from Lancashire is entered on the census return as J. P. Blair, a "Photo Artist", aged 45. This suggests Blair might have been working as an itinerant or travelling photographer.

By the late 1880s, John Pryce Blair and his wife had settled in Petersfield, Hampshire, close to the border with Sussex. Kelly’s 1889 Directory of Hampshire describes John Pryce Blair as a "portrait and landscape photo artist, fancy stationer and picture frame maker " with business premises at Crystal Palace Studios, Chapel Street, Petersfield. It appears that John and Charlotte Blair lived not far from the photographic studio at a house in Lavant Street. Kelly's 1890 Directory of Hampshire lists John Pryce Blair as a photographer at Lavant Street, Petersfield, Hampshire.

Although he was based in Petersfield, John Pryce Blair still ventured further afield with his camera. At the time of the 1891 census Blair was staying at a house in Warblington near Emsworth in Hampshire. In the early 1890s, Blair expanded his photography business. An advertisement placed by Blair in The Hants and Sussex News on 6th January 1892 announced that he had recently opened a branch studio in West Meon. Around 1894, John Pryce Blair set up a branch studio in Midhurst, Sussex. The 1895 Post Office Directory of Sussex lists John P. Blair as a photographer in Station Road, Midhurst.

By the late 1890s, John Pryce Blair was well established as a photographer at 29 Chapel Street, Petersfield, but although he was residing in Petersfield there is evidence to suggest that he continued to operate as a photographer in Midhurst. Photographs produced by Blair in the 1890s are often printed with the words "J. P. BLAIR, Photographer, Petersfield and Midhurst." Kelly's Directory of Hampshire, issued in 1898, records John Pryce Blair as a "portrait & landscape photo artist" at the Crystal Palace Studio, Chapel Street, Petersfield. As in 1889, John Pryce Blair is also listed in the trade directory as a fancy stationer and picture frame maker.

When the 1901 census was taken, John P. Blair was still residing at 29 Chapel Street, Petersfield with his wife Charlotte. John Blair is described as a "Photographer Artist" ( the transcribed index for the 1901 census gives Blair's age as 62, but he was closer to 67 ). John P. Blair remained at Chapel Street until about 1906. A trade directory lists John P. Blair as a photographer based in Chapel Street, but there is evidence he moved back to Lavant Street, Petersfield, before the Summer of 1906. An advertisement, published in The Hants and Sussex News on 17th October 1906, provided the public with the following information:

"J P Blair, having made new arrangements & refitted his photographic studio, is able to produce first-class photographs in all styles at popular prices. A first class lady operator kept. Children a speciality. Every picture guaranteed perfect."

Kelly’s 1907 Directory of Hampshire records John Pryce Blair as a photographer at 19 Lavant Street, Petersfield. John Blair's wife Charlotte died from a cerebral haemorrhage at the age of 58 on 31st July 1906. The 1906 death certificate gives Charlotte's home address as 18 Lavant Street, Petersfield, Hampshire. Blair's studio and shop must have been next door to his residential address. According to the obituary published in The Hants and Sussex News, John Pryce Blair gave up the business of photography around 1911, a couple of years before his death.

John Pryce Blair died at The Crown Inn, Sussex Road, Petersfield on 25th January 1914 at the age of 80.

John Pryce Blair's obituary in the The Hants and Sussex News reveals that he was a radical in his politics and he was particularly concerned with the welfare of the poor and the elderly. [See the text of the obituary, below]. John Pryce Blair's obituary concluded with the following tribute :

"he had a warm and kindly heart, always ready and keen to combat injustice to the poor and needy, and we venture to believe that it will be as a friend of the poor that his memory will be cherished the longest ".

[ABOVE] A group portrait of members of the Fisher family photographed by John Pryce Blair of Petersfield, Hampshire (c1905). STANDING (left to right) : Mary Fisher (born 1876), Ernest Lot Fisher (born 1878) and his wife Emily Baker (born c 1873). SEATED (left to right) : Mrs Emily Fisher [nee Kitley] (born c1849), Mrs Charlotte Blair [nee Fisher] (born 1848), wife of the photographer John Pryce Blair, and Lot Fisher (born 1845). Lot Fisher, the bearded man seated on the right, was the elder brother of Charlotte, John Pryce Blair's wife, seated on his right. Mrs Emily Fisher sits on the left, between two of her children - Mary Fisher and her brother Ernest Lot Fisher. The photograph is signed "J. P. Blair, Photo. Petersfield " in the corner of the mount. [PHOTO : Courtesy of Liz Jones]

[ABOVE ] The trade plate of J. P. Blair of Chapel Street, Petersfield (c1898)

Photographs by John Pryce Blair

[ABOVE] A mounted photograph showing a group of people posing in a market garden in front of a house (c1898). The photograph is rubber-stamped on the reverse "J. P. BLAIR, Photographer, Petersfield and Midhurst."

Carte-de-visite Portraits by John Pryce Blair

[ABOVE ] Portrait of a man wearing a flower in his buttonhole. A carte-de-visite portrait by John Pryce Blair of Chapel Street, Petersfield (c1898).

[ABOVE ] The trade plate design on the reverse of a carte-de-visite portrait by J. P. Blair of the Crystal Palace Studio, Chapel Street, Petersfield (c1898)

[ABOVE ] Portrait of a young woman holding a letter. A carte-de-visite portrait by J. P. Blair of Chapel Street, Petersfield (c1898).

[ABOVE ] A carte-de-visite portrait of Eliza (Li) Fisher by J. P. Blair of the Crystal Palace Studio, Petersfield (c1902). The photograph is inscribed "Auntie Li". Eliza Fisher, known to her friends and family as "Li", was born in 1881. Eliza (Li) was the 9th child of Lot and Emily Fisher. Li 's father , Lot Fisher (1845-1934), was the elder brother of Charlotte Fisher, who had married the photographer John Pryce Blair in 1878. Li Fisher married Will Baker, the proprietor of a boot and shoe business, in 1904. [PHOTO : Courtesy of Liz Jones ]

[ABOVE ] The trade plate design on the reverse of a carte-de-visite portrait by J. P. Blair of the Crystal Palace Studio, Petersfield (c1905)

[ABOVE ] Portrait of a young child holding a hoop and a spade. A carte-de-visite portrait by J. P. Blair of Chapel Street, Petersfield (c1905).

[BELOW] The Obituary of John Pryce Blair which appeared in the The Hants and Sussex News (incorporating The Petersfield Weekly News) on Wednesday, 28th January 1914, three days after his death. [ TEXT: Courtesy of Liz Jones]

A FRIEND OF THE POOR

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PASSING OF MR J.P. BLAIR

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In the death on Sunday at Petersfield of Mr John Pryce Blair, there passed away an old inhabitant of the town whose loss will be keenly felt and none more than by the poorer members of the community whose friend and champion he was for many years. He was far advanced in years, his age being about 80, and for a long time past it was plain that his health and strength were failing fast, yet until almost the very last his indomitable spirit enabled him to keep about and to participate with a remarkable display of lively interest and some amount of energy in these things that were always nearest to his heart, especially the welfare of the poor and old people whose lot he had strive, not in vain, by sympathy and effort to ameliorate in years gone by.

It was not until the middle of last week that he really succumbed to the growing weakness which sapped his physical powers and he did not actually take to his bed until the day before his death. Even then his mental faculties remained clear and he was conscious until shortly before the end which came quite peacefully and painlessly about a quarter-past ten on Sunday night. He passed away at his lodgings, with Mrs Compton at Sussex Road, where he had been staying for he past twelve months, his latter days being made as happy and comfortable as possible by the help and service of friends who came to his aid when misfortune overtook him.

For many years he carried on the business of a photographer in the town but he gave it up about two years ago and then went to Eastleigh for a few months but returned to Petersfield to end his days, conscious that his health was broken but still possessed of a capacity (sadly diminished, it is true, compared with that which formerly characterized him) to cheer and brighten the lives of his old friends as opportunity offered.

The most striking evidence of this was afforded, as we noted at the time, at The Old Folks Dinner at St Peter’s Hall as recently as New Year’s Day and even later than that he presided at other social gatherings in the town and by his characteristic gaiety contributed in no small measure to the enjoyment of those functions.

Of his early career previous to coming to Petersfield not much is generally known, but he had certainly spent a very varied and adventurous life and had lived for some years in America where he was engaged in business.

In the course of a residence in Petersfield of something like 30 years Mr Blair attained a repute for public spirit, which, to a large degree, he thoroughly merited. His chief public work was in connection with the care of the poor. For 18 years he served as Guardian for Petersfield, only retiring in 1910, when the state of his health and business considerations induced him to relinquish the duties which he had so sympathetically and successfully discharged. The confidence and appreciation of the ratepayers were signally expressed by his being returned at the head of the poll at every contested election.

Whilst on the Board he was advocate of many improvements and reforms which have since become commonplace in the administration of relief, especially in regard to the treatment of old people in the Workhouse. On his retirement from the Board his colleagues granted him the privilege of visiting the Institution so that he might continue in touch with the old folk and this he had exercised ever since. The loss of his cheering and kindly influence will be greatly felt by the Inmates of that Institution.

Another sphere in which his abilities were prominently exerted was in the municipal government of the town. When the question of the removal of the market from the Square became a critical one, he came forward as a strong champion of its retention there and was returned as a member of the Urban District Council. There can be no douby that his speeches and the strong stand he took on the matter were a factor of some considerable weight in determining the issue. He sat as a councillor for some four years but on seeking re-election in 1907 he was unsuccessful.

He was also for some years a member of the Petersfield School Board. There were, in fact, few public affairs in which he did not make his influence felt and most people will agree that in many ways his influence was for the public good. He was a man of considerable natural gifts and a personality that challenged attention. Conspicuous among his gifts was oratorical power. He was a very effective speaker, and, as some people would say, “a great orator,” and this distinction was exhibited to the admiration and enjoyment of his hearers on many a public platform and also at the Petersfield Literary and Debating Society of which he was one of the oldest and for many years the most active members and a Vice-President. His oratorical powers were brought into play occasionally as a lay preacher, and he frequently took services in the country villages.

He was a strong Nonconformist, but did not ally himself with either of the Free churches in Petersfield, helping all in turn as opportunity presented itself. As an untiring Temperance advocate and worker he came prominently before the public, and in this connection all his life long showed the greatest zeal. He took an active interest in all Temperance efforts in Petersfield, especially in the lodge of Good Templars. During his residence in America he was initiated into the Order of Good Templars before it was established in England and he claimed to be the oldest Good Templar in the United Kingdom.

An uncompromising and extreme Radical in politics he came also to the front in all the political campaigns in East Hants during the last 30 years. For the party of his choice and the principles it enunciated he fought strenuously and dauntlessly, and the Liberals of East Hants will realise that they have lost a staunch and energetic worker who has rendered valiant service to their cause on innumerable occasions.

Much more might be written of the part he filled for so may years in the life of Petersfield now that he has run his course but it must be suffice to say that despite certain errors and faults due to temperament and perhaps lack of discrimination through excess of enthusiasm for the causes he championed, he had a warm and kindly heart, always ready and keen to combat injustice to the poor and needy, and we venture to believe that it will be as a friend of the poor that his memory will be cherished the longest and that he would best wish to be remembered.

Acknowledgements

I am indebted to Liz Jones for much of the information about the life and career of John Pryce Blair during his time in Petersfield. Liz Jones also provided the text of John Pryce Blair's obituary and supplied the Fisher Family group portrait by J. P. Blair. I am grateful to Sara Sadler, Curator of Petersfield Museum, for allowing me to use the portrait of John Pryce Blair which is held by Petersfield Museum .

For further information on Charlotte Fisher (the wife of John Pryce Blair) and the rest of the Fisher Family, please visit the Lizweb Family History website via the link below:

Lizweb Family History

The portrait of John Pryce Blair comes from Petersfield Museum's photograph collection. Petersfield Museum holds an extensive collection of objects, maps, photographs and archival material on the local history of Petersfield and the surrounding area. Visit the Petersfield Museum website via the link below:

Petersfield Museum

Aldred H. BUCKNELL (born 1845, Taunton, Somerset)

Photographer in Midhurst between 1877 and 1880

Aldred Holcombe Bucknell was born in Taunton, Somerset in 1845 [Birth registered in the St James district of Taunton during the 2nd Quarter of 1845]. Aldred Holcombe Bucknell was the son of Elizabeth Green and John Holcombe Bucknell, a carpenter and builder of Mary Street, Taunton.

By 1871, Aldred Bucknell was in London, probably serving his apprenticeship as a watchmaker and jeweller. By the mid 1870s, Aldred Bucknell was in Midhurst, Sussex. Aldred Holcombe Bucknell married Sarah Elizabeth Eldridge (born c1853, Boxgrove, Sussex) in Midhurst during the 3rd Quarter of 1876. At the end of 1877, Aldred's wife gave birth to a son named Aldred Holcombe Bucknell after his father. [ Aldred Holcombe Bucknell junior's birth was registered in Midhurst duting the 4th Quarter of 1877]. Aldred Bucknell established a watchmaking business in North Street, Midhurst. By 1878, Aldred Holcombe Bucknell was listed as a watchmaker and photographer at North Street, Midhurst, in Kelly's Post Office Directory of Sussex.

By the Spring of 1880, Aldred Bucknell had left Midhurst and had set himself up as a jeweller and watchmaker in Pulborough, Sussex. A second son, Harry Noel Bucknell, was born in Pulborough during the 2nd quarter of 1880. After a brief period in Pulborough, Aldred Bucknell and his family moved to London, where Sarah Bucknell gave birth to two more sons - Edwin James Bucknell (born 1881) and Robert Bucknell (born c1884). At the time of the 1901 census, Aldred Holcombe senior, now aged 55, was living with his wife and children in Shoreditch, where he was working as a jeweller.

[ABOVE] A photograph showing North Street, Midhurst in 1907. Aldred Bucknell worked as a watchmaker and photographer in North Street around 1878.

Francis de la COZE (c1847-1912)

Photographer in Dodsley, Easebourne, near Midhurst, from 1890 to 1912

Francis (Francois) William Marc de la Coze was born in France around 1847. Francis de la Coze was presumably the son of Eliza and Francois Marc de la Coze (c1811-1888), a Frenchman who died in the district of Midhurst in 1888. Francois Marc de la Coze must have settled in England before 1851 because in the census of that year he and his family are recorded in Surrey. At the age of 14, Francis de la Coze was living with relatives in Sussex.

In 1877, Francis William Marc de la Coze married Rose Anna (Roseanna) Rushbrook (born 1848, Devonport, Devon), the daughter of Rebecca and Henry Rushbrook. [The marriage of Francis William Marc de la Coze and Rose Anna Rushbrook was registered in the district of Petworth during the 2nd Quarter of 1877]. At the time of his marriage to Rose Rushbrook, Francis de la Coze was already the father of twins - Francis Mark de la Coze and Rosetta de la Coze, who had been born in Portslade in 1874 [ the birth of the twins was registered in the district of Steyning during the 3rd Quarter of 1874). At this stage in his working life, Francis de la Coze was earning his living as a cabinet maker. After their marriage, Francis and Rose de la Coze settled in the area of Midhurst, where, over the next four years, Rose gave birth to three more children - Jeanne de la Coze (born 3rd Quarter of 1877), Lydia Alice de la Coze (born 2nd Quarter of 1879) and Edith Eliza de la Coze (born 1st Quarter of 1881).

When the 1881 census was taken, Francis de la Coze was living with his wife Rose and their five children at a house in Lutener Road, Easebourne, near Midhurst. On the 1881 census return, Francis de la Coze is described as a "Cabinet Maker", aged 31. Around 1883, Francis de la Coze began to manufacture photographic apparatus at his Easebourne premises.

[ABOVE ] An advertisement for F. Coze, Photographic Artist and Photographic Apparatus Manufacturer of Easebourne, Midhurst. This advertisement appeared in the County Advertisements published in Kelly's 1890 Directory of Sussex.

By 1890, Francis de la Coze was, in addition to manufacturing photographic equipment, taking photographs with his own camera. Kelly's 1890 Directory of Sussex lists Francis Coze as a photographer at Dodsley, Easebourne, near Midhurst. Francis Coze was also one of only two photographic apparatus manufacturers mentioned in the trades section of the directory. (The other manufacturer who was listed was Ernest J. Alford of Brighton). An advertisement which appeared in the 1890 trade directory describes Francis Coze as a "Practical Cabinet Maker, French Polisher, Upholsterer & Picture Frame Maker" as well as a "Photographic Artist and Photographic Apparatus Manufacturer". When the 1891 census was taken, Francis W. M. de la Coze is entered on the census return as an "Artist in Portraiture" and a "Manufacturer of Photographic Equipment". The census return for the Coze household in Easebourne Lane, Easebourne, included Francis de la Coze, his wife Rose, and seven children. Two children had arrived since the last census - Love Victoria de la Coze (born 3rd Quarter of 1882) and America Rushbrook de la Coze (born 4th Quarter of 1884). From 1890 until his death in 1912, Francis Coze was regularly included in the lists of professional photographers that appeared in Sussex trade directories. Francis Coze mainly produced portraits at his Easebourne studio, but he was known to photograph views of Midhurst and the surrounding area. In 1908, at least one of Francis Coze's photographs was used to illustrate Gordon Home's guide book "What to See in England".

Francis William M. de la Coze is entered on the 1901 census return as a 53 year old photographer living in Easebourne. Of his seven children, three daughters, Rose, aged 25, Lydia, aged 21, and nineteen year old Edith, are recorded as either photographic artists or photographic assistants. Francis Mark de la Coze (born 1874, Portslade), the eldest son, is described on the return as a "Portrait and Landscape" artist.

Francis William Marc de la Coze died at Chichester in 1912 at the age of 65. Francis Coze was last listed as a photographer in Easebourne in Kelly's Directory of Sussex, published in 1915, three years after the death of Francis de la Coze. The business may have been continued by one or more of Francis Coze's daughters after his demise in 1912.

[ABOVE ] A portrait of a young man holding a straw boater and sitting on a rustic fence. A carte-de-visite portrait by Francis Coze of Easebourne Road, Midhurst (1900).

[ABOVE ] Portrait of a man with a moustache, a cabinet format photograph by Francis Coze of Easebourne Road, Midhurst ( Original photograph possibly taken around 1890 and copied by Coze round about 1900). Diane Marcotte, a descendant of Thomas Potter (born 1847, Easebourne) has suggested that this cabinet photograph could be connected to the family of Charles and Susannah Potter of Easebourne. The most likely candidate for the subject of this portrait by Francis Coze is Alfred Charles Potter (born 1856, Easebourne), Charles and Susan Potter's youngest son who worked as a gamekeeper in the Easebourne area up until about 1892. [See panel on Potter family below]

The Potter Family of Easebourne

Charles Potter (c1815-1867) originated from Surrey, but by the mid 1830s he had married his wife Susannah (born c1817 Buckfastleigh, Devon) and had settled in the Midhurst district of Sussex. Charles and Susannah Potter produced at least eight children, including Emily Potter (born 1836, Tuxlith /Milland), Fanny Potter (born 1837, Tuxlith /Milland -died 1845), Margaret Ellen Potter (born 1840, Linch), Mary Anne Potter (born 1845, Easebourne) Thomas Potter (born 1847, Easebourne), Jane Potter (born 1851, Easebourne), Arthur Potter (born 1854, Easebourne - died 1886, Easebourne) and Alfred Charles Potter (born 1856, Easebourne).

It has been suggested that the man with the moustache, depicted in the cabinet photograph by Francis Coze, above right, could be Alfred Charles Potter (born 1856, Easebourne). In the 1901 census, Alfred Charles Potter is recorded as a "Head Gamekeeper", aged 44, living in Thruxton, Hampshire. Also residing in Thruxton was his son Charles Potter (born 1887, Easebourne), a thirteen year old apprentice carpenter (possibly the boy in the carte-de-visite portrait by Coze, below left). Diane Potter Marcotte, a descendant of Tom Potter (born 1847, Easebourne) informs me that another copy of the Coze cabinet portrait of "the man with the moustache" appears in the Potter Family Photograph Album , held by a descendant of Alfred Charles Potter. Diane's cousin Jen, the relative who currently holds the Potter Family Photograph Album, is the grand daughter of Charles Potter, Alfred Charles Potter's son. Alfred Charles Potter (born 1856, Easebourne) married Mercy West (born 1854, Easebourne) in 1881 [ Marriage registered in the Midhurst District (which includes Easebourne) during the 2nd Quarter of 1881 ]. The couple lived in Easebourne after their marriage and had the following children - Lilian Potter (born 1882, Easebourne) and Charles Potter (born 1887, Easebourne). Mercy Potter (West), Alfred Charles Potter's wife, died in Thruxton, Hampshire in 1894 at the age of 39. Alfred Charles Potter then married Evelyn Louisa Parsons (born 1863, Pitton, Wiltshire) and they had a son named William Arthur Potter (born 1896, Thruxton). If the "man with the moustache" is Alfred Charles Potter, the photograph might have been taken around 1890, when Alfred was about 34, before the move to Thruxton. Alfred Charles Potter was living in Easebourne in 1891, when Francis Coze was operating as a photographer in Easebourne.


[ABOVE ] A vignette portrait of a youth, presumably related to the man depicted in the cabinet portrait (above right). A carte-de-visite portrait by Francis Coze of Easebourne Road, Midhurst (1900).	[ABOVE ] A portrait of a young girl . A carte-de-visite portrait by Francis Coze of Easebourne Road, Midhurst (1900). The child in this portrait appears to be a sibling of the adolescent girl pictured on the right - possibly connected to the Potter family of Easebourne (see above). [ PHOTO: Courtesy of Diane Marcotte ]	[ABOVE ] A portrait of an adolescent girl . A carte-de-visite portrait by Francis Coze of Easebourne Road, Midhurst (1900). The girl in this portrait appears to be an older sibling of the young girl pictured on the left - possibly connected to the Potter family of Easebourne. (see above). [ PHOTO: Courtesy of Diane Marcotte ]

The Children of Francis de la Coze

[ABOVE ] "Valley of the Rother", a landscape in oil colour, by Francis Mark de la Coze

[ABOVE ] ‘Vallee de Generia, France’, a landscape in watercolour by Francis Mark de la Coze (1938)

Francis Mark de la Coze (born 1874, Portslade, Sussex), Francis de la Coze's eldest son, became a professional artist. In the 1901 census, Francis Mark de la Coze, who was then in his mid twenties, gave his profession as "Artist - Portrait & Landscape". As a mature artist, F. M. De La Coze concentrated on landscape painting, although he did occasionally do figurative work. Francis toured France and travelled throughout the Middle East, India and South Africa, producing landscape paintings. Between 1932 and 1940, F. M. De La Coze lived in Hayling Island and displayed his work at exhibitions held by the Royal Society of British Artists and the Royal College of Art.

Rosetta (Rose) de la Coze (born 1874, Portslade, Sussex) was working as an assistant photographer in 1901. A professional photographer known as Miss Coze of Midhurst was taking photographs in Petworth and Midhurst from around 1908.

Jeanne de la Coze (born 1877, Midhurst) married Edward Dunk in 1903.

Lydia Alice de la Coze (born 1879, Midhurst) was employed as a "Photographic Artist" at the time of the 1901 census. A professional photographer known as Miss Coze of Midhurst was taking photographs in Petworth and Midhurst from around 1908.

Edith Eliza de la Coze (born 1881, Easebourne) was working as a "Photographic Artist" in 1901. A professional photographer known as Miss Coze of Midhurst was taking photographs in Petworth and Midhurst from around 1908.

Love Victoria de la Coze (born 1882, Easebourne) was employed as a school teacher before her marriage in 1911.

America Rushbrook de la Coze (born 1884, Easebourne) was working as a solicitor's clerk at the time of the 1901 census. In 1914, America de la Coze married Evelyn Madge Wales. America de la Coze's son John Rushbrook de la Coze served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Flying Officer John Rushbrook de la Coze was killed in action near Malta on 13th March 1943.

Miss COZE Edith de la Coze (born 1881), Lydia de la Coze (born 1879), or Rosetta de la Coze (born 1874)

Photographer in Easebourne, Midhurst and Petworth from 1900 to 1915

At the time of the 1901 census, three daughters of Francis de la Coze - Rosetta, Lydia and Edith - were earning their living by photography. One of the sisters, known as Miss Coze of Midhurst became a self-employed, professional photographer in Midhurst and the neighbouring town of Petworth. Any of the three sisters could have been the "Miss Coze" in question, yet, given her seniority, Miss Rosetta de la Coze seems the most likely candidate.

According to Peter Jerrome and Jonathan Newdick in their book "Petworth Time Out of Mind", on the retirement of Petworth's resident photographer Walter Kevis in 1908, a "Miss Coze of Midhurst" made visits to the market town to take portraits at Kevis's former studio in Lombard Street :

"Miss Coze of Midhurst was the formal successor to Kevis and in the years following his departure she came by appointment to the Lombard Street studio. After a while her visits became less regular and finally they ceased altogether. Photographs by her, whilst some are known, must be considered uncommon."

"Petworth Time Out of Mind" by Peter Jerrome and Jonathan Newdick (1982)

[ABOVE ] A photograph of Lloyd George Cottages, Station Road, Petworth by Miss Coze of Midhurst and Petworth (1914).

Acknowledgements & Sources

Thanks to Bryan Davies of Gosport for providing additional material relating to William Barnes of Midhurst. I am grateful to Liz Jones for her research into the life of Charlotte Fisher (1848-1906), the wife of the photographer John Pryce Blair, and for providing information on the Fisher family on her Lizweb Family History website. I am grateful to Diane Marcotte for providing images of two carte-de-visite portraits by Francis Coze. The two portraits are from the photograph album of the Potter Family, a family that originated in the Easebourne area, where Francis Coze worked as a photographer.

SOURCES : Books : Petworth Time Out of Mind by Peter Jerrome and Jonathan Newdick (The Window Press, 1982) ; Directory of Hampshire Photographers, compiled by Martin Norgate (Hampshire County Council, 1995) ; Websites : West Sussex Past Pictures website ; Lizweb Family History website

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