 |
| Advertisement, The Bay of Plenty Times, 28 Mar 1889 |
“Mr
Chissell” announced his arrival on the Tauranga photographic scene in late
March 1889 with some fanfare.[1]
Having leased Charles Spencer’s studio for a few weeks, his emphasis was
clearly on studio portraiture, with a list of prices for carte de visite,
cabinet and boudoir portraits. (Note: the boudoir portrait was a larger mounted
format measuring 5¼ x 8½ inches, nothing
to do with the modern fad of so-called boudoir photography.) The advert also
prominently displayed his late partnership with well known Auckland
photographer R.H. Bartlett and, by dint of the latter’s claim to an appointment
to the royal family, a coat of arms.[2]
 |
Carte de visite portrait of unidentified young man
Taken by G.A. Chissell, probably at Tauranga, Mar-Apr-May 1889
Image courtesy of The Elms Foundation Collection, Westlake Album Ref. 2002.0170 |
For much of
the 1880s Charles Spencer had operated a photographic studio behind his
chemist’s shop on the Strand, Tauranga, taking portraits, landscapes and
capturing a number of local events.[3]
Many fine views of the Bay of Plenty during this period carry his imprint, usually
blind stamped on the print itself or printed in ink on the card mount.[4]
Towards the end of the decade, however, Spencer appears to have either lost
interest in the commercial portrait studio, or found it not sufficiently
remunerative to warrant much attention. Chissell was the first of a couple of
lessees before Spencer left Tauranga for Auckland in August 1890.[5]
Chissell
repeated his advert periodically until the end of April, with encouraging
reports in the Times:
2 May - Yesterday eight of our staff were
photographed by Mr Chissell.
6 May - We have seen a photograph, showing the
whole length of the Strand, taken by Mr Chissell. The subject makes a good
picture, and will convey to strangers a pleasing idea of our town.
Despite
announcing that his departure was imminent – a common trick of the trade – he
did seem to be kept fairly busy:
16 May - Mr Chissell, photograper, seems to be
doing good business previous to leaving us. On Saturday we noticed him taking
(in a photographic sense of course) the premises and staff of Mr Dames, cabinet
maker. At a later period he was busily engaged with several members of the
Gymnasium Club, who were collectively posed in a pretty but muscle-straining
position on the parallel bars. Observing that Mr Chissell seemed to be finished
with them almost as soon as they had taken up their respective positions; we
found on enquiry, that both groups were taken with the instantaneous shutter —
the first negative with an exposure of the 25th part of a second, and the
second with the l5th part of a second. "We have since seen the proofs, and
they are really capital photographs of such difficult subjects.
A final advertisement
indicated confirmed his departure, and notified his customers that all of his
negatives had been retained by Charles Spencer, from whom prints could be
obtained.[6]
 |
| Advertisement, Daily Telegraph (Napier), 4 Dec 1884 |
But who was
Mr Chissell, where had he come from, and where did he go to? It was believed
that he was William Chissell, a Napier storekeeper and carpenter who had
emigrated from England in 1883.[7]
Further evidence shows that the former partner of R.H. Bartlett and lessee of
Spencer’s studio was in fact William’s third son George Alfred Chissell, who
arrived in Napier in late 1884, more than a year after the other members of his
family, and opened a hair-dressing salon.[8]
In September 1886 he moved his business to Ruataniwha Road, Waipawa and
restyled the premises as a “hairdressing saloon” offering “hairbrushing by
machinery” and “tobacco, cigars and fancy goods.”[9]
 |
Waipawa, Albumen print by Burton Brothers studio, c.1880s
Collection of Te Papa Tongarewa, Ref. O.030758 |
In February
1888 George added photography to his repertoire, announcing in the Waipawa
Mail a partnership with R.H. Bartlett, who had probably taught him the
rudiments of the art, and advised him on the import of “all the latest
appliances for the successful carrying on of landscape and studio work on the
instantaneous principle” from England.[10]
Although Bartlett was a well-known Auckland photographer, he was experiencing
some financial troubles and in June 1888 would be declared bankrupt so, while
his wife fronted the Auckland studio, he appears to have avoided his creditors
by practicing in the provinces.[11]
George Chissell then sold the hairdressing saloon in Waipawa to his brother
Charles Henry in March 1888.[12]
Styled as the
photographic studio of Chissell & Bartlett, they offered portraiture, copy
work, enlargements, views and residences. The Waipawa Mail mentions in
particular a “view of the assembled multitude at the Anglican picnic” in March
1888 and the ceremony marking the opening of the Tamumu bridge in April, but it
appears they soon exhausted demand from what was a fairly small community. By
May they had moved to new premises in Omahu Road, Hastings,[13]
before the perhaps inevitable dissolution of the partnership in July.[14]
It is surmised that Bartlett may have removed to Auckland after the conclusion
of the bankruptcy proceedings. Chissell then continued on his own, advertising
as “G.A. Chissell, late Bartlett & Chissell, Artiste Photographers” until
mid-August 1888,[15]
after which there are no sightings until his appearance in Tauranga.
After
leaving Tauranga, it seems likely that George Chissell returned to Hawke’s Bay.
An inventory of his father’s household being sold by auction in 1890 includes a
“photographic studio.”[16]
In March 1891 George Chissell was back in Napier and had, with his brother
Charles, purchased the City Hairdessing Salon, operating as Chissell Brothers.[17]
By mid-June, however, they were in financial trouble again and declared
bankrupt.[18]
It appears
that George Chissell then decided to try his hand across the Tasman, although a
notice of several undelivered letters at the GPO in Sydney in January 1891
suggests he was leading a somewhat peripatetic lifestyle.[19]
He took photographs of groups of schoolchildren at Port Macquarie on Arbor Day
in August 1891,[20]
but in January 1892 was drowned while attempting to cross a river at Kendall,
New South Wales.[21]
The carte
de visite portrait displayed above is one of the few surviving images from
George Chissell’s stay in Tauranga. It may be that there are other images in
local collections, surviving either as original prints or as copies, which have
lost their attribution. The author (Email) would be very interested to hear from anybody
who has other information on his time as a photographer, Tauranga or Hawkes
Bay, or images taken by him.
References
[1] George Alfred Chissell, “Mr Chissell,
Portrait and Landscape Photographer. Advertisment,” The Bay of Plenty Times,
March 25, 1889, Vol XVI Issue 2401 edition.
[2] Tony Rackstraw, “Early New Zealand
Photographers: Bartlett, Robert Henry,” Early New Zealand Photographers
(blog), 2012, https://canterburyphotography.blogspot.com/2012/01/bartlett.html.
[3] Brett Payne, “Charles Spencer (1854-1933)
– Part III – Serving the Community,” Tauranga Historical Society (blog),
September 13, 2019,
http://taurangahistorical.blogspot.com/2019/09/charles-spencer-1854-1933-part-iii.html.
[4] Brett Payne, “Charles Spencer,
Photographer – Part II, The Rotorua Connection,” Tauranga Historical Society
(blog), July 12, 2019,
http://taurangahistorical.blogspot.com/2019/07/charles-spencer-photographer-part-ii.html.
[5] F.E. Stewart, “Photography. F.E. Stewart.
Advertisement,” Bay of Plenty Times, August 21, 1890, Vol XVII Issue
2545 edition.
[6] George Alfred Chissell, “Chissell and
Spencer. Advertisement,” Bay of Plenty Times, May 16, 1889, Vol XVI
Issue 2416 edition.
[7] “Auckland City Library - Photographers
Databases,” 2022, http://www.aucklandcity.govt.nz/dbtw-wpd/photographers/basic_search.htm.
[8] George Alfred Chissell, “Hastings Toilet
Club. Advertisement,” Daily Telegraph, December 4, 1884, Issue 4172
edition.
[9] George Alfred Chissell, “Hairdressing
Saloon. Advertisement,” Waipawa Mail, September 25, 1886, Vol X Issue
988 edition.
[10] George Alfred Chissell and Robert Henry
Bartlett, “G.A. Chissell, Photographer, Waipawa. Advertisement,” Waipawa
Mail, February 14, 1888, Vol XI Issue 2098 edition.
[11] “Auckland City Library - Photographers
Databases.”
[12] Charles Henry Chissell, “Hairdressing
& Tobacconist Business. Advertisement,” Waipawa Mail, March 10,
1888, Vol XI Issue 2109 edition.
[13] Robert Henry Bartlett and George Alfred
Chissell, “Bartlett & Chissell, Artiste Photographers. Advertisement,” Daily
Telegraph, May 17, 1888.
[14] George Alfred Chissell, “Dissolution of
Partnership. Advertisement,” Hawke’s Bay Herald, July 10, 1888, Vol
XXIII Issue 8101 edition.
[15] George Alfred Chissell, “G.A. Chissell,
Late Bartlett & Chissell, Artiste Photographers. Advertisement,” Daily
Telegraph, July 10, 1888, Issue 5267 edition.
[16] Anon, “Baker & Tabuteau’s Sales. Land
Sale. Advertisement.,” Hawke’s Bay Herald, March 31, 1890, Vol XXV Issue
8634 edition.
[17] Chissell Brothers, “Messrs Chissell Bros.
The City Hairdressing Salon. Advertisement,” Daily Telegraph, March 4,
1891, Issue 6089 edition.
[18] Anon, “Meeting of Creditors. Bankrupt
Estate of Chissell Bros.,” Hawke’s Bay Herald, June 16, 1891, Vol XXVI
Issue 8999 edition.
[19] General Post Office (Sydney), “List of
Letters Returned and Unclaimed, GPO Sydney,” Supplement to the New South
Wales Government Gazette, January 21, 1891, No 53 edition.
[20] Anon, “Arbor Day.,” Port Macquarie
News and Hastings River Advocate, August 29, 1891.
[21] Anon, “A Photographer Drowned,” Australian
Star, January 12, 1892.
