Skip to main content
Advanced Search
Image of a three masted barque at anchor
Image of a three masted barque at anchor

Image of a three masted barque at anchor

Photographer
Date1890s-1910s
Object numberANMS1092[245]
NameGlass plate negative
MediumEmulsion on glass
ClassificationsPhotographs
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from Mr and Mrs Glassford
DescriptionA collection of glass plate and nitrate negatives, some by the William Hall photographic studio.HistoryWilliam James Hall (b. 1877) was a gifted photographer who documented the weekend sailors and yachts of Sydney Harbour from his motor boat. On Mondays, Hall would display photographs in the window of his Hunter Street Studio. Although Hall was not a sailor he maintained a keen interest in sailing and sailing craft. His images are a personal record of the recreational life of Sydney Harbour and its environs from the late 19th century and first half of the 20th century. The donor Roderick Winchcombe Glassford (1920-1995) commenced work with Macdonald Hamilton & Co, agents for P&O in the 1930s. During World War Two he served in the Coast Artillery at South Head, acheiving the rank of Captain. He returned to work with Macdonald Hamilton and became a Passenger Superintendent with P&O. Deeply interested in maritime history, Glassford owned a yacht and was a prolific collector of objects and books. With the decline in passenger ships from the 1970s, he managed the Art Gallery society and was involved in early efforts to form the first Sydney Maritime Museum.SignificanceWilliam Hall's photographs of Sydney Harbour are an important collection of Australian maritime history.