The Colonial Family Album: Photography and Identity in Otago, 1848-1890 Volume 1

263 Pages·2017·1.97 MB·English

by  Jill Haley

The Colonial Family Album:
Photography and Identity in Otago,
1848-1890
Volume 1

Jill Marie Haley

A thesis submitted for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
at the University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.

January 2017
ii

Abstract
This thesis looks at photography and album culture in Otago, New Zealand,
between 1848 when the first Otago settlement colonists arrived and 1890 when
snapshot cameras became widely available. It builds on work by Elizabeth Siegel and
Martha Langford on nineteenth-century photograph albums, looking at their use as
oral devices for self-representation. Additionally, it investigates album culture in a
colonial context and situates photography in Otago within broader discussions on
nineteenth-century immigration, identity and modernity. A material culture approach,
which uses objects as evidence for exploring human behaviour, has been applied to 89
carte de visite and cabinet card albums holding approximately 6,000 photographs in
the collection of Toitū Otago Settlers Museum. These have been supplemented by
albums and photographs from other collections. This thesis examines in-depth two
albums from the 1880s; one compiled by an Otago-born woman of Scottish ancestry
and the other owned by a Māori (Kāi Tahu) family. It argues that during the late
nineteenth century immigrants to Otago, their Otago-born children, and local Kāi
Tahu used photographs and albums to create and communicate their colonial identity
and community.
The first photographer began working in the colony in 1855, and by the Otago
gold rush of 1861, several professional photography studios had been established in
Dunedin, the settlement’s urban centre. Shortly after carte de visite albums were
commercially available overseas, they were being sold in Dunedin. Much of Otago’s
photographic activity paralleled developments overseas. However, local practices
emerged that were shaped by the colonial experience. Through their albums the
residents of Otago portrayed themselves as members of a successful colonial society
and part of a modern world that extended across and beyond the British Empire. By
engaging in such activities as compiling albums and collecting photographs of
celebrities, they positioned themselves as part of a global imagined community of
photographic consumers. Through exchanging photographs and viewing albums, they
built, maintained, consolidated, and demonstrated their local connections and
membership in real communities. For colonial-era Kāi Tahu, albums illuminated their
“middle ground” lives and identities that blended aspects of customary and colonial
life. The title “The Colonial Family Album” summarises the argument that albums
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were used to create a new form of colonial family of connected people in the local
Otago context.
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Acknowledgements
Many hands, as the saying goes, make light work, and I would like to thank
the many hands that helped me with my project. I am deeply indebted to my
supervisors Associate Professor Erika Wolf and Dr. Michael Stevens. It was Erika’s
suggestion that I pursue my PhD, and I am grateful for her unwavering support and
confidence in my ideas. Likewise, I owe a debt of gratitude to Michael who provided
invaluable information and guidance on researching Kāi Tahu, a topic that I knew
little about when I embarked on my research. Dr. Christine Whybrew from Heritage
New Zealand served as an advisor, reading and commenting on all my drafts as well
as providing friendship and support when I needed it most. I must also extend my
thanks to the University of Otago for their support with a Doctoral Scholarship as well
as the Department of History and Art History. The Remote Library Services staff
provided quick and efficient service for all my requests, and this greatly facilitated my
research.
My former employer, Toitū Otago Settlers Museum and the Dunedin City
Council, allowed me time to work on my research and made their resources available
to me, and in return, I will deposit a copy of my thesis in the Museum’s Archive.
Emma Knowles, who took over my position as Archivist, provided access to the
collections whenever I requested. Curator Seán Brosnahan provided an abundance of
information on early Dunedin and lent a willing ear to my various ramblings about
photography. Bill Dacker offered his expertise on Kāi Tahu, and I would like to thank
him and his whanau for sharing their day with me at Arowhenua marae.
Staff from Te Papa Tongarewa, the Alexander Turnbull Library, Puki Ariki,
the Warrnambool and District Historical Society, and the Hocken Collections assisted
me with my research. Lissa Mitchell, Natalie Marshall, and Chanelle Carrick all
deserve special mention. Conversations with researchers of photography helped shape
my thesis. Advice from Geoffrey Batchen helped me to narrow my thesis to two case
studies. Sandy Callister shared her thoughts and research on women’s albums and
gave me perspective on album comping in New Zealand. Angella Wanhalla pointed
me towards a valuable set of letters in the Hocken Collections.
There are a number of people from the community whom I would like to
thank. Kathy Coombes helped me to unravel the mystery of the owner of what I now
know to be the Parata family’s album. John Broughton discussed his family’s albums
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with me and shared stories about his Parata and Evans forbears. Helen Edwards let me
copy unpublished photographs and letters of her Buchanan family and provided
encouragement for my project. Tony Rackstraw generously allowed me to use
photographs from his private collection. John Webster transcribed the nearly illegible
letters of Tannie Fidler and passed on valuable information about the Fidler family.
Finally, thank you to my husband, Craig Bunt, who stood beside me during
this journey.
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Table of Contents
Abstract ii
Acknowledgements iv
Table of Contents vi
List of Tables vii
Map of the Region of Otago viii
List of Figures ix
Introduction 1
Chapter 1 - Photographs, Likenesses, Albums 15
Chapter 2 - Early Photograph Albums 46
Chapter 3 - Otago’s Albums 73
Chapter 4 - Priscilla Smith’s Album 113
Chapter 5 - The Colonial Family Album 164
Conclusion 208
Epilogue 213
Appendix 1 – Albums Consulted 220
Appendix 2 – Subjects of Photographs in Albums 222
Appendix 3 – Numbers of Photographs by Studio Location 223
Bibliography 224
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Tables
Table Page
Table 1 Percentages of photographs of family and friends 105
by studio location
Table 2 Percentage of albums containing photographs of 105
Family and friends by studio location
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Map of the Region of Otago
Comprising the Provinces of Southland and Otago

Province of Southland (split from Otago in 1861 and re-joined in 1870)
Province of Otago (1861-1870)
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Figures
Figures are found in Volume 2.
Figure Page
Figure 1.1 David Octavius Hill 2
Detail of The First General Assembly of the Free
Church of Scotland; Signing the Act of Separation and
Deed of Demission - 23rd May 1843, n.d.
Lithograph reproduction of a painting
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Print Collection,
uncatalogued item
Figure 1.2 Théodore Maurisset 3
La Daguerréotypomanie, 1839
Lithograph
J. Paul Getty Museum, 84.XP.983.28, gift of Samuel J.
Wagstaff, Jr.
Digital image courtesy of the Getty's Open Content
Program
Figure 1.3 Unidentified photographer 4
Adam Wright with his son John Wright, 1850s
Daguerreotype
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, 1954/56/5
Figure 1.4 Unidentified photographer 5
Unidentified Man (possibly Adam Wright's father), 1854
Daguerreotype
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, 1954/56/6
Figure 1.5 Advertisement for George Baird Shaw 6
Otago Witness, February 3, 1855
Figure 1.6 James Wilson (attributed) 7
View of Dunedin, c. 1857
Albumen print
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Subject Photograph
Collection, Box 7, No. 68
Figure 1.7 Verso of carte de visite mount for the photographer John 8
Denslow (Dunedin), c. 1864
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Photo Portrait Collection,
A658
Figure 1.8 Lawson Insley (attributed) 9
Caroline and Sarah Barrett, c. 1852-53
Daguerreotype
Puke Ariki and District Libraries, A71.462, gifted by
Mr. Laurie Petty
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Figure 1.9 John McGregor (Dunedin) 10
Unidentified Boys (recto and verso), c. 1863-65
Carte de visite
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Dow Album, Album 102
Figure 1.10 Albert Berghaus 11
M.B. Brady's new photographic gallery, corner of
Broadway and Tenth Street, New York
Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper, January 5, 1861
Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division,
Civil War Photographs, [LC-USZ62-114481]
Figure 2.1 Francoise Remy Grumel 12
Patent for a photographic album, May 14, 1861
United States Patent Office, Specification of Letters
Patent No. 32,287
Figure 2.2 Front cover and pages from the photograph album of 13
Agnes McEwan, 1865
Carte de visite album
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, McEwan Album, Album
107
Figure 2.3 Louisa Will 14
Page from the photograph album of Louisa Will with a
pond scene, 1860s or 1870s
Albumen print and paper
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Will Album, Album 293
Figure 2.4 Kate Edith Gough 15
Page from The Gough Album with a pond scene, late
1870s
Watercolour and albumen print
Victoria and Albert Museum, London, Obj: 201515
Figure 2.5 Aemelia Turton 16
Page from the photograph album of Aemelia Turton
with photographs of herself, n.d.
Albumen prints and paper
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Turton Album, Album 93
Figure 2.6 Aemelia Turton 17
Page from the photograph album of Aemelia Turton
with cut out photographs, n.d.
Albumen prints and paper
Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Turton Album, Album 93