Step Back In Time pt 2

I'm so pleased you enjoyed the last post. Want more photos? Of course you do.




This is the Hardmans' House, number 59 Rodney Street. For those of you that don't know Liverpool, Rodney Street is sometimes called the Harley Street of the North (lots of doctors, dentists etc). It was even the birthplace of a Prime Minister as William Gladstone entered into the world at no. 62. Building work began on the street in 1783 so, as you may expect, the house and the basic interior are very classically Georgian. The living areas don't quite fit that style though.

The kitchen clearly doesn't belong to either a tidy person or a cook. Or even a person that throws things away. Those cabinets are full of unopened wartime rations. When they came to pack everything up in the early 2000s so that building work could be carried out prior to reopening the house, an ancient tin of treacle exploded over a member of staff. Let that be a warning to you - 60 years is too long to keep tins!


I'm sure I've seen a blogger with a copy of the New Zealand Lamb book...



I believe I mentioned clutter in the last post? There is So. Much. Stuff. It's everywhere. All fascinating though.






The business areas of the house are where the most time was spent and so they are equally chockablock with stuff, but in far more organised fashion.

Now that everyone has a camera it doesn't seem like such a big thing to have your photograph taken but professional photography was a good, solid business, especially during the war years. Official portraits would be taken to mark christenings, weddings, 21st birthdays and as mementos for loved ones.

Waiting Room

The studio looks quite basic for somewhere where so many beautiful portraits were taken. I suppose all you need is a backdrop, some cameras and lighting equipment though and it's definitely got those.


Can you believe they used to make babies pose on this? Terrifying!

I'm far from being an expert on old photographic techniques but I can definitely say that it was a lengthy process. The Hardmans employed a team of staff to work on mixing chemicals, developing negatives, touching up photos, tinting in the colours and mounting and framing the finished portraits.







Storing darkroom chemicals in old cider bottles, whatever next.




I showed some of Margaret's work in the last post and here is some of Edward's. He worked professionally on portraits, including publicity photos for stars appearing at Liverpool Playhouse, but his passion was landscapes. His work includes lots of amazing period photographs of Liverpool and Chester and some stunning shots of Scotland, France, Switzerland etc.

Ivor Novello, on display in the Exhibition Room at the house. Beautiful, beautiful man. Apologies for the blurriness - very hard to take non-flash photos in that room.

Property Merger
Margot Fonteyn
Searchlight on Anglican Cathedral
A Memory of Avignon
Museum Steps

If you want to see more of Edward's photographs then have a look at the Mersey Gateway site or the official NT prints site. He has the most amazing body of work.