This week's photo shows two men hanging out in front of a shop - and that gave me the inspiration for my theme hanging out in front of shops.
It seems that it was a very popular thing to have your photo taken in front of your shop - a form of advertising I guess.
I got my inspiration from two old photos I have in my collection. The first is a photo of my great grandfather's seed and florist shop in Rundle Street, Adelaide, at the east end where the old East End Market was. He also had a plant nursery about 2 kms out of the city. I have mentioned my gr grandfather in earlier posts and this was his shop. I'm not sure if he was hanging out in front, but I imagine he may have been. I like the very large dog in the photo. Probably belonged to the boy. You rarely see dogs in the city these days. This is now a very busy main street in Adelaide.
The next photo, also in my collection came with the family photos, but is a shop in Melbourne, so I'm not sure of the family connection. The advertisement on the shop are interesting, but the photo is very faded.
Having been hooked I went online a discovered a plethora of similar photos, most of them portraying old shops in English towns, always with the shopkeeper proudly showing off the shop..
Cowley's Hardware. Wouldn't a collector love to get hold of some of those old pieces now.
a Grocery, Drapery, Fruit and Provisions shop.
Produce shop - fruit and vegetables. The ad for Rinso washing powder reminded me that my mother used Rinso for her wash too.
a Hosier and Draper. I wonder if those are the proprietor's children.
And this one with women outside. Perhaps it sold women's clothing or hats. Quite an affluent looking building for a shop. It was the only one I was able to find with women in it. Maybe a front for an ancient profession? LOL!!
Agents for the famous James Cycles. I had never heard of these cycles so a bit of research was in order. James Cycles started in 1880 and finally sold the business in 1967, having indeed manufactured a famous brand.
I rather liked this ad for a woman's bike. 
Liz Needle
I just love photos of old storefronts - they give us such a lovely peek into the lives of our ancestors. I particularly like the way the proprietors always pose so proudly in the front of their shops. Thank you for sharing these wonderful photos!
ReplyDeleteA very fun selection of great old time photos. I always enjoy seeing the city and all the offerings it had in store! Even seeing dogs run about freely with out being on a leash is an extra bonus!
ReplyDeleteLiz, 1872, Rundle street does not yet look so busy. Life was not so hectic. Enjoyed looking at all the store fronts of days gone by. I rather enjoy the small grocery stores now here totally gone with the big grocery chains competing them out. Interestingly in Paris in the middle of the city where ever one goes are many small bakeries, so tempting; or tiny grocery stores as old fashioned as from yesteryear tucked into the smallest places of a busy city where people from the neighbourhood can shop. Yes, the ad with the girl with the bike is very IN!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your selection of store fronts. Yes, we had the same idea this week.
ReplyDeleteI really love the storefront of Hoiser and Draper. The man to the right of the door looks more like a mannequin, he's standing so straight and stiff. Maybe it is a mannequin!
Nancy
As a retired chartered accountant and insolvency practitioner I could not help myself becoming fascinated with the shop "The Assigned Estate of A Chamberlain" Whilst a trustee in bankruptcy may keep a business going for the benefit of creditors, I do not know of a case where the trustee is so bold as to have a new and massive sign made advertising the insolvency. Poor bankrupt Albert Chamberlain, of Chapel Street, Windsor, assigned his business and estate over to his trustee in bankruptcy on September 29, 1898, for the benefit of his creitors. Source Victoria Government Gazette.
ReplyDeletehttp://goo.gl/M3L2d
Nigel,
DeleteThanks for that interesting info. It doesn't clear up why the photo was in with my mother's photos, but it is interesting nonetheless.
Your photographs of the Rundle Street shop and Chamberlain's Drapery Arcade are wonderful - so much detail to browse. There were a couple of photographers with studios in Rundle Street, Adelaide. I have a couple of their portraits in an album in my collection. C.A. Owen was at number 85, while W.H. Hammer was at number 172. I wonder if one of them took the photo of your great grandfather's seed and florist shop?
ReplyDeleteRundle St seems to have been a mecca for photographers. I have Bond & Co at 91, Fruhling & Co at 62, Paris Photographic Company at 164, Melbourne Photographic Co at 16, S Solomon at 51, Otto von Hartitzsch at 125, T Duryea at 158, Cohen & Co at 65, Art Portrait, Landscape and Enlarging Co at 174a, Niesche at 97, Goode & Co at 69, J R Dobson & Co at 44, and that is just in the 2 albums I have. Quite amazing I think. I have a photo of E B Heyne done by the Melbourne Photographic Company about 1868, but they may not have taken the shot of the shop.
DeleteA great collection of photos - shop fronts are always so revealing. I suppose such shots were popular as a form of advertising, but they also had the advantage in those early photography days of making full use of the available light,
ReplyDeleteWhen I see what modern planners are doing to our main streets and destroying old shop fronts in the process it's enough top make anyone despair - charity shops and 'gold' pawn shops are no substitute as many have no character at all. Soon all that will be left will be old photos like yours.
ReplyDeleteThose old shops always seem to have lots of inventory. Great photos!
ReplyDeleteA nice selection of shop front photos.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad they documented their businesses with photographs and made sure to be in the photographs themselves.
ReplyDeleteOh YES! How I would love to go back in time and browse a general dealer/hardware store. As it is, I can spend hours browsing second hand shops now.
ReplyDeleteI do enjoy window- shopping in the past. These are a fine array of store fronts with endless details to pore over.
ReplyDelete