Francis Frith.

Francis Frith (October 7, 1822-February 25, 1898) was an English photographer of the Middle East and many towns in the United Kingdom. Image File history File links Please see the file description page for further information. ... Image File history File links Please see the file description page for further information. ... October 7 is the 280th day of the year (281st in leap years). ... 1822 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... February 25 is the 56th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1898 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ...

Frith was born in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, and started in the cutlery business, but leaving it in 1850 to start a photographic studio as Frith and Hayward in Liverpool. He journeyed to the Middle East on three occasions, starting with a first trip to Egypt in 1856, bearing with him very large cameras (16" x 20") and using the collodion process, a major technical achievement in hot and dusty conditions. For other locations with this name, see Chesterfield. ... Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough on Merseyside in north west England, on the north side of the Mersey estuary. ... The collodion process is an early photographic process which gave way in the late 19th century to todays gelatin emulsion process. ...

When he had finished his travels in the Middle East in 1859, he opened the firm of F. Frith & Co. in Reigate, Surrey. In 1860 he married and embarked upon a colossal project - to photograph every town and village in the United Kingdom, in particular notable historical or interesting sights. Initially he took the photographs himself, but as success came, he hired people to help him and set about establishing his postcard company, a firm that became one of the largest photographic studios in the world. Within a few years, over two thousand shops throughout the United Kingdom were selling his postcards. Reigate is a commuter town in Surrey near London. ...

Frith died in Reigate in 1898. His family continued the firm, which was finally sold in 1968, and closed in 1971.