Local Events

As an exhibition of Early Guernsey Photography 1845-1900 opened at The Gallery in Mill Street in July 2008 we asked Amanda Bennett, Chief Librarian at the Priaulx Library, about the photos and caring for them.

The Priaulx library has a large collection of photographs with the earliest dating from 1845.

Entrance to Seigneurie in Sark from 1875

Amanda Bennett explained how rare these are: "Most people will have never seen these photographs, some have been turned into postcards, some have been published in books but a lot have never been seen by the general public."

"It is a great opportunity to make use of the exhibition space and get the public in to have a look at these photographs."

The originals don't go on display but a detailed scan is taken and used to create larger copies. This not only makes the detail easier to see but keeps the originals safely out the way as they are very difficult to look after.

Amanda Bennett explained that the old photos are very sensitive. The earliest one they have is recorded on a glass plate which would be destroyed if it was exposed to light.

Gardner's Royal Hotel in the 1870s

The majority were made using Platinotype, an old printing process, which means they were produced on paper much thinner than today and are prone to curling. They are also sensitive to light and like modern prints can be badly affected by heat. So the photographs are stored carefully in a dark room which is kept cool.

The collection comes from several different sources.

"The library is often gifted photos from photographers, we have a collection from the well known Victorian photographer Thomas Singleton, who's most famous for a number of shots that were turned into postcards," she said.

"Another photographer is TB Hutton, who was from Birmingham but worked in Guernsey for 20 years. Some are one or two gifted to us from collections and some date back to when the library opened."