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BRITANNIA racing on Sydney Harbour
BRITANNIA racing on Sydney Harbour

BRITANNIA racing on Sydney Harbour

Photographer (Australian, 1877 - 1951)
Date1919-1941
Object number00011339
NameGlass plate negative
MediumEmulsion on glass
ClassificationsPhotographs
Credit LineANMM Collection Transfer from the Mitchell Library
DescriptionA black and white image of the champion 18 foot skiff BRITANNIA racing on Sydney Harbour. BRITANNIA is now part of the Australian Register of Historic Vessels, number HV000003. Negative ID number, 2215.HistoryWilliam Frederick Hall, a fingerprint expert at Long Bay Gaol, set up a photographic studio in Sydney in 1890. Hall, formerly a butcher from England, became a well-known photographer whose photographic career in Sydney spanned a number of decades. William James Hall (1877 – 1951), also a photographer was his son with Caroline Asimus, who was born on 11 May 1877 in Woolloomooloo, Sydney. William James Hall joined the business and took over its operations in 1902. He established Hall & Co in 1904. Hall married Alice Rosina Hopson on 14 August 1901 in Bowral. Although neither the father nor the son were sailors, both developed a keen interest in sailing and sailing craft. During the late 1880 and early 1890s William Frederick Hall documented the weekend sailors and yachts of Sydney Harbour. William James Hall took over the tradition until the early 1930s capturing photographs from his motor boat. Each Monday, Hall would display photographs of weekend races on Sydney Harbour in the window of his studio at 20 Hunter Street. Hall also ventured into other areas of photography, and is generally considered to have pioneered the art of livestock photography in Australia at the start of the 20th Century. Hall’s company, Hall & Co were also known for their aerial, landscape, portraiture, city and rural photography. Survived by his second wife, Edith Hannah Gilkes, Hall died on 26 August 1951. A number of photographic studios were established by William F Hall and William J Hall. Known at different times as Hall studio, Hall & Co, W F Hall and Hall W the businesses were located variously at 7 Castlereagh Street, 39, 44 and 70 Hunter Street, 91 Phillip Street and 21 Blight Street in Sydney city from 1890 onwards. SignificanceBRITANNIA was one of the most famous of the 18 foot racing skiffs on Sydney Harbour in the pre Second World War period. Built in 1918 by 'Wee' Georgie Robinson, BRITANNIA raced in the 18 footer class for 26 years until the skiff was converted to a starter boat in 1945. BRITANNIA sailed 691 races and won 41 titles and cup races, clocking up a total of 17,000 nautical miles.