Collection: Philip E Norman

Description

Comprising 10 photograph albums and two files, this collection records London sites under threat of destruction, including London City churches, many designed by Wren, destroyed both in the nineteenth century and during the Second World war. There are two albums on Westminster, three on London Boroughs particularly including Kensington and Chelsea and Camden, two albums on City churches and two more on the City in general.

Many of the photographs were taken by professional commercial photographers, including Will F Taylor and Edward Yates, and show busy street scenes with people and vehicles. 50% of the collection depicts London houses or ecclesiastical sites, with a further 9% showing tombs and wall monuments. Inns feature in 6% of the coverage, almshouses and hospitals another 6%, while commercial and public building comprise 11% of the total.

Hardly any of the items are positively dated and a date range of 1860 to 1930 has been inferred from internal evidence. The albums appear to have been compiled in 1930.

The collection also includes a series of photographs, notes and publication proofs relating to the archaeological work of Philip Norman at the beginning of the twentieth century. The photographs show excavations along the line of the Roman Wall, exposed by construction and demolition work, in the following areas: Newgate and Christ's Hospital; All Hallows; Jewry Street; Tower of London and America Square. Prints of masonry features exposed by construction and demolition work at the beginning of the 20th century along the line of the Roman Wall (originally catalogued as Collection 615777, see PEN02/01).

Archival History

Philip Norman (1842 - 1931) was an antiquarian and artist. He was elected Fellow of the Society of Antiquarians in 1886, becoming Treasurer (from 1897 to 1913) and Vice President (from 1913 to 1917). He was also Chairman and Hon Editor of the London Survey Committee between 1907 and 1931 and a specialist in London buildings.

His particular interest was in recording London antiquity before it was demolished or destroyed, and he captured archaeological sites and buildings both as an artist and with a camera. He also collected further photographs by commercial photographers, including Will F Taylor and Edward Yates, which he combined with his own in the nine albums represented here. His watercolour paintings and drawings are held at the Victoria and Albert Museum.

There is no information on the acquisition of the collection. It was passed from the Savile Row headquarters of the RCHME to the National Monuments Record (NMR) in 1991. The collection was catalogued in detail between February and July 2000

Content

Rights

Source: Historic England Archive