I am researching the photographer R. J. Arnold, born in England in 1856, died in Monterey, California, in 1929. I see him advertising in the BJP on April 20, 1883, p. 230, as follows: “Wanted, outdoor backgrounds and accessories, in exchange for other backgrounds, Seavey’s boat, and cabinet portrait lens.— Address, R. J. Arnold, photographer, Market Drayton.” Question: what is "Seavey's boat"? I'm also interested in any more information about his activities in the UK. A collector has identified a CDV of him made in 1875 in Washington, DC, at the Mathew Brady studio, but I wonder if he did indeed visit the United States in the 1870s when I find him in the UK in 1883. He immigrated to California by 1886, when he is running a studio in San Luis Obispo.
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Many thanks, much appreciated!
I also found out that Seavey's was a very well-known American manufacturer of photographic backdrops. So I'm a little embarrassed about that initial question but very grateful to know I was conflating two different biographies.
Hi Britt, you are referring to two different photographers. The one in Market Drayton (Shropshire) was Richard George Arnold, born 1849 in Aldbury or Worley Wigan Worcestershire, d. 1919 in Market Drayton. He was a long time photographer in the town from around 1871. Richard John Arnold was born in 1856 in Whetstone, Middlesex and emigrated around 1872 to New York. His older brother James was a book keeper there. Cheers! Marcel