Exhibition of G W Wilson carte-de-visite views, 1862-1900.

[Edward McCann]

New research based on a view of 'Roslyn Chapel --- The Apprentice's Pillar' confirms Mr Wilson introduced CDV views before late 1868. The printed caption appears on the recto and the seller's label, 'William Smith, 43 Lord Street, Liverpool' on the verso.

In 1862, the British Journal of Photography suggested to readers, they buy from Mr. Smith at 43 Lord street cartes of American personalities, published by Anthony of NYC, to support a Lancashire charity. Gore's Liverpool Directory of 1867 no longer listed Mr.Smith at that address.

From a selection of 12 hand-captioned CDVs, one of "Peterborough Cathedral" is printed on watermarked paper dated '1862'. Dr. Blair in his 2020 update of a listing of GWW's stereoscopic views notes this script is in Mr. Wilson's own hand.

Mr. Wilson's ambition has led to confusion. Coincidental to his 1863 list 'Stereoscopic and Album Views' he created a print from half of a stereo neg, he called an 'Album'. [later called 'scraps'] Mounted cards are very uncommon today on the dealers and collector's market. I believe his '... Album Views' are CDVs and follow an evolution easily traced.

The exhibition 'Mr. Wilson's Album Views' is a follow-up to 2017's 'The Artist Mr. Wilson' hosted at the same venue, The Atwater Library, 1200 Atwater Avenue, Westmount, Quebec, Canada from September 17 to December 10, 2020. See: https://www.atwaterlibrary.ca/exhibitions/current-short-term/

[Edward McCann]

  From c.1863 to c.1868, he may have offered a view with title and credit on the recto and a blank verso.

   I have 36 examples -- illustrated are the only four dated by the owners: 1865;1866;1866 and August15/66.

[Edward McCann]

  The scarcest views in my collection -- only seven -- are the printed captions on recto and early GWW ident. device on the verso. One, the Smith sold view predating 1867, is from stereo #362 of 1862.The other numbers are 144a, 141, 66, 37, 30 and 13. Most unusual is 30, with the misspelling of Katrine and on-the- market for how long?

[Edward McCann]

  The 1862 "Peterborough Cathedral" is from stereo #388 of 1862. All the 11 other hand captioned views are from # 257a and before, back to #1.

[Edward McCann]

 The exhibition ran a lucky 13 days before the pandemic closed it down along with my access to a computer. Now at a friend's machine, I want to add more on my 117 CDV GWW view collection.

  First, with apologies to Dr. Blair, he only said the handwriting of the style on the watermarked 1862 ''Peterborough Cathedral" was "likely" by Mr. Wilson. My own study -- I had some experience in the RCMP crime lab hand writing analysis unit, while curator of their museum -- leads me to the same conclusion. So pictures and more text to follow about views, both hand captioned and printed titles with the early logo on the verso.

[Edward McCann]

 Another thought: in 1863, could GWW's list "... Album Views." mean both CDV and his new format 3x4 "album"?

[Edward McCann]

Follow-up; In nine years of collecting Mr. Wilson's, I have acquired two 'Album' cards.Note, one has the 'registered' notation added shortly after the copyright law of 1862. 

A hand-captioned CDV for size comparison is in the middle. The full length vertical print is common on these early  CDVs.

[Edward McCann]

 Thanks Paul -- a UK dealer in his four decades of collecting, only remembers having one example of GWWs 'album' format 3x4 inch on a printed board mount.  For auction, it was described as a large CDV.

[Paul Godfrey]

In the Yarmouth Independent of 22nd August 1863, the Great Yarmouth letterpress printer and stationer George Nall advertised his “NALL’S SERIES OF Stereoscopic Views of Yarmouth, 46 sorts, 1s. Each or 10s per Dozen. These have not been equalled for beauty or finish. SOLD ONLY AT Nall’s Library, 182, King-St, Yarmouth.” Later that year in the Yarmouth columns of the Norfolk Chronicle dated Saturday 31st October 1863, George Nall was advertising “NALL'S SIXPENNY ALBUM VIEWS OF YARMOUTH. PHOTOGRAPHED BY SEDGFIELD. Nearly 40 sorts. To be had only at Nall's Library. Great Yarmouth.” 

This initial batch of 40+ stereoviews were taken by William Russell Sedgfield in 1860 for George Nall who had the upper floors of his Great Yarmouth bookshop adapted to print and mount the photographs. The term “Album Views” seems to suggest a different size or format to a Carte de Visite but examples of Nall’s views, that I haveI found, are all CDVs measuring four by two and a half inches. Just like George Washington Wilson’s “Album Views” George Nall’s  “Sixpenny Album Views” were made from one negative of a stereoscopic pair and these days they are hard to find by comparison with the stereoviews.