31 Aug 2018

Shropshire Shop Fronts of the 1880s

Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)

My father-in-law discovered this astonishing collection of high quality photography showing the high street in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, in 1888. They were photographed by Joseph Lewis della-Porta who came from a retailing family and had the foresight to document these images which convey so much of life 130 years ago. They are part of a collection of over 100 images which have been created as prints from large glass negatives. This explains the wonderful detail that has been reproduced, with echoes of the Greatest Wonder of the World exhibition, which featured images from 1870s Australia. Della-Porta’s photos were also displayed in an exhibition at Shropshire Archives back in 2013, and can be accessed in their entirety via the collection listing on their website.

Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)
Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)
Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)
Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)
Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)
Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)
Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)
Photo: Joseph Lewis della-Porta/Shropshire Archives (Shrewsbury, 1888)

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