1880s Preston Ontario Under The Old Oak Grand River James Esson Stereo Card P386

1880's P reston Ontario Under The Old Oak Grand River By James Esson Of Preston Ontario Canada Stereo Card P386.

James Esson was born on 10 Aug 1853, one of six children of noted Preston photographer George Esson and his wife Jane. The elder Esson opened a daguerre type gallery in about 1852 and continued with it until 1870 when his son James took over the business apparently first operating it from the family home on Queen Street.

James Esson quickly made a name for himself as an "artist", that is, someone who "creates" a picture as opposed to someone who merely "takes" a picture. His first subjects were architectural and scenic views, subjects which later formed the basis of his famous stereoscopic views that were so popular in the late 19th century.

In 1878 an advertisement in the "County of Waterloo Gazetteer and Directory" announced "James Esson Photographer, Publisher and dealer in Stereoscopic Views, C.D.V. Statuary, Monumental and Headstone Designs. Queen Street - Preston - Ontario." Within three years Mr. Esson had added "portrait artist" to his list.

In 1884, at the age of 30, Mr Esson opened a studio at 105 King Street naming it the Atelier. So excellent was his work that he soon attained a reputation for excellence and attracted to his studio patrons of political and social distinction from as far away as Ottawa and Montreal. The Marquis of Lorne and Princess Louise, members of the Senate and Commons, famous stage artists and prominent ladies and gentlemen were numbered among Mr Esson's clients.

His reputation brought Preston, which was elsewhere described as "not indicative of much energy or enterprise", a certain distinction and his famous "Atelier" became one of Preston's prominent commercial buildings. As such, it was featured as an individual illustration on a bird's-eye view map of Preston published c.1895. In May 1892 the Atelier was described in "The Canadian Photographic Journal" as "three storeys high, built of red brick and trimmed with Credit Valley brownstone". Visitors to the Atelier first entered the office, which is described as "a cosy cheerful looking" fairly spacious room. "The counter, desk, screen and wainscotting, all of which are quartered oak, are beautifully carved from special designs". A "massive oak stairway" led to the bright studio with ample natural light allowed to enter through a skylight of "ground glass". Mr Esson's exclusive use of natural light added a special feel to his photographs and earned him the nickname "The Lightman".

In the late 1870's and the early 1880's, Mr Esson travelled across Canada and the United States taking hundreds of stereoviews of landscapes, buildings, street scenes and parks that were arranged into some 15 geographic or thematic series including cities such as Toronto, Guelph and Galt and scenes of the Muskoka District, the Northern Lakes, the Thousand Islands, Central Park in New York, and what he described as "Picturesque America", "Picturesque Canada" and "Gems of Statuary".

Mr Esson used a binocular camera fitted with two lenses several inches apart to record the same scene from slightly different angles roughly corresponding to the perspective of human eyes. The resultant double image would then produce a three-dimensional result when viewed through a stereoscope, a common appliance in Victorian households. It has been noted that Mr Esson was one of only a very small number of Canadian photographers to produce the stereoviews that were common in both Britian and the United States at the time. It is estimated that Mr Esson's collection, including stereoviews, numbered in the vicinity of 5000 images, of which only a fraction now remain.

Through these stereoviews Mr Esson gained a "world-wide" reputation as a landscape photographer and these photographs combined with his portrait photographs created a body of work that placed him, in the eyes of many, among the foremost photographers of his day.

A fall suffered in 1916 forced Mr Esson into retirement and he asked his nephew, Elliot Law to take over his business. In 1920, Mr Esson decided to leave Preston, sold his "Atelier" and moved to Toronto. He died there on 12 Sept. 1933 and is buried in Prospect Cemetery.

Condition is pre-owned. Please see photos for condition. Each stereoview card is 7" long x 3.5" wide. This item is not a reproduction, it is an original antique item with no modifications or repairs. Due to the age of this item, it may have some worn edges and some bowing in the card, please see photos. This is the exact item you will receive if you purchase this listing.