Colonial Copyright and the Photographic Image: Canada in the Frame Philip John Hatfield Department of Geography Royal Holloway, University of London Submitted for the degree of PhD 1 Declaration of Authorship I, Philip John Hatfield, hereby declare that this thesis and the work presented in it is entirely my own. Where I have consulted the work of others, this is always clearly stated. Signed: ______________________ Date: ________________________ 2 Abstract Under Colonial Copyright Law, the British Museum Library acquired a substantial collection of Canadian photographs between 1895 and 1924, taken by a variety of amateurs and professionals across Canada. Due to the agency of individual photographers, the requirements of copyright legislation and the accumulating principle of the archive, the Collection displays multiple geographies and invites various interpretations. Chapter 1 discusses the development of Colonial Copyright Law and its application to photographic works, examining the extent to which the collection was born of an essentially colonial geography of knowledge. The chapter outlines the theoretical underpinnings of the thesis in relation to scholarship on colonial regulation, visual economies and Canadian historical geography. Chapter 2 presents an overview of the evolution of the Collection and provides a discussion of research strategy, focussing on how its diverse contents may inform understandings of Canada’s changing landscape, cities and people. The substantive core of the thesis examines the contents and genres represented in the collection through a series of linked studies. Chapter 3 considers the photographic representation of Canadian cities, focussing on the use of the camera in Victoria and Toronto to explore the political and commercial aspects of urban change. Chapter 4 explores the interaction of the camera and the railroads, two technologies at the cutting edge of modernity, examining how photography both promoted the railway and depicted the impact of railway disasters. Chapter 5 explores the visual economy of the photographic image through the medium of the postcard, with reference to the Canadian National Exhibition and the Bishop Barker Company of aviators. Chapter 6 considers a variety of views of Native American peoples, the result of the intersection of various photographic impulses with Colonial Copyright Law. The final chapter returns to the Collection as a whole to consider its agency in the digital age. 3 Acknowledgements This thesis has been generously funded by the Economic and Social Science Research Council and the British Library. Mention must also be made of those institutions and individuals, such as the Canadian High Commission in London, Dalhousie University School of Library and Information Studies and previous curators involved with the North American collections of the British Library, whose support and skills paved the road to Canada in the Frame . Felix Driver and Carole Holden deserve an especial mention as the co-supervisors of this project. Their support, thoughts and willingness to share their considerable expertise have greatly contributed to the development of this work. Many others have been involved in the development of Canada in the Frame , with David Lambert, Joan Schwartz, Andrew Rodger, Stephen Bury, John Falconer and all of ‘Team Americas’ deserving especial mentions for lending expertise and guiding the author along the path of doctoral study. A wider cast, referred to as the employees of the British Library, British Museum, National Archives (Kew), Library and Archives Canada, Galt Museum and Archives, the Royal British Columbia Archives and the Times-Colonist Newspaper of Victoria also deserve a mention. International research is required to understand a collection such as the Colonial Copyright Collection and this would not have been possible without the aid of those mentioned above. Lastly I must thank my family. My parents have been immeasurably patient and humoured the extension of a university education that was originally to last three years. My wife, Madeleine Hatfield, has been both insightful reader and anchoring rock over the length of this project. Canada in the Frame is the product of many pairs of eyes, not least hers. 4 Contents Abstract …………………………………………………………………………………….... p. 3 Acknowledgements ……………………………………………………………………………………... p. 4 Contents …………………………………………………………………………………….. p. 5 List of Figures ……………………………………………………………………………………. p. 6 1. Colonial Copyright and the Photographic Image: the Making of a Collection …………………………………………………………………………………… p. 10 2. Canada in the Frame: Researching the Colonial Copyright Collection …………………………………………………………………………………… p. 36 3. Copyright Photography and the Canadian City …………………………………………………………………………………… p. 67 4. Pictures of Modernity: Photography and the Canadian Railroad …………………………………………………………………………………… p. 97 5. Canada by Postcard: Views Over the Land …………………………………………………………………………………… p. 130 6. Native Portraits: the Photographic Representation of Native Americans in Canada, 1900 – 1910……………………………………………………………………… p. 167 7. Conclusion …………………………………………………………………………………… p. 208 Appendix A. List of Institutions with Photographic Material Deposited Via Colonial Copyright Law…………………………………………………………………… p. 227 Bibliography …………………………………………………………………………………… p. 228 5 List of Figures Figure 1.1: The formats of the Colonial Copyright Collection …………………… p. 11 Figure 2.1: Unique Copyright Deposits, by Year of Submission, 1895 – 1924 …... p. 47 Figure 2.2: Unique Copyright Deposits, by Province, 1895 – 1924 ………………. p. 54 Figure 2.3: Unique Copyright Deposits, by Province, 1906 ………………………. p. 56 Figure 2.4: Unique Copyright Deposits, by Province, 1915 ………………………. p. 56 Figure 2.5: Illustration of Unique Depositors, Comparing Men, Women and Companies, 1895 – 1924 ……………………………………………………………………….. p. 58 Figure 2.6: Individual Depositions, Comparing Men, Women and Companies, 1895 – 1924 ……………………………………………………………………………….. p. 58 Figure 2.7: Unique Copyright Deposits, by Subject, 1895 – 1924 ………………... p. 60 Figure 2.8: Subjects of Photographs deposited by William Notman and Sons, 1895 – 1924 ……………………………………………………………………………….. p. 63 Figure 2.9: Subjects of Photographs deposited by Geraldine Moodie, 1895 – 1924 p. 63 Figure 3.1: “The Esquimalt Dry Dock”. Copyright, J. W. Jones, 1900 …………... p. 72 Figure 3.2: “H.M.S. ‘Virago’ Firing in Honour of the King”. Copyright, J. W. Jones, 1901 ………………………………………………………………………………. p. 73 Figure 3.3: “Opening of New Parliament Buildings at Victoria, B. C., February 10 th , 1898”. Copyright, J. W. Jones, 1898 ……………………………………………... p. 77 Figure 3.4: “Arrival of Li Hung Chang”. Copyright, J. W. Jones, 1896 ……….... p. 78 Figure 3.5: Title page of Toronto: Album of Views , 1901 ……………………… p. 86 Figure 3.6: “City Hall, Queen Street and James Street”, in Toronto: Album of Views , 1901 ……………………………………………………………………………… p. 86 Figure 3.7: “Yonge Street, Viewed from Albert Street”, in Toronto: Album of Views , 1901 ……………………………………………………………………………… p. 89 Figure 3.8: “King Street, Viewed from Yonge Street”, in Toronto: Album of Views , 1901 ……………………………………………………………………………… p. 89 Figure 3.9: “Corner King and Yonge Streets, Looking North”, in Toronto: Album of Views , 1901 ………………………………………………………………………. p. 91 6 Figure 3.10: “The T. Eaton Co. Limited: Canada’s Greatest Store”, in Toronto: Album of Views , 1901 …………………………………………………………………… p. 91 Figure 3.11: “Southern view of the Industrial Exhibition pavilion”, in Toronto: Album of Views , 1901 …………………………………………………………………… p. 93 Figure 4.1: “Rotary Snow Plow, Number 1”. Copyright Byron Harmon, 1910.. p. 105 Figure 4.2: “Rotary Snow, Plow Number 2”. Copyright Byron Harmon, 1910.. p. 105 Figure 4.3: “First Passenger Train to Leave Prince Rupert to Mile 100, June 14 th , 1911”. Copyright Fred Button, 1912 …………………………………………………… p. 108 Figure 4.4: “Nanaimo River Canyon”. Copyright Howard H. King, 1907 ……... p. 110 Figure 4.5: “Panoramic view of the Canadian Pacific Railway viaduct, at Lethbridge, Alberta”. Copyright A. Rafton-Canning, 1909 …………………………………. p. 111 Figure 4.6: “Section of the C.N.R. Exhibit, at the Winnipeg Permanent Exposition”. Copyright Lyall Commercial Photo Co., 1912 ………………………………….. p. 115 Figure 4.7: “Bull Moose Swimming”, “Bull Moose Pursued by Canoe”, “Canoe Man Stepping on Back of Bull” and “Canoe Man Dropping onto Back of Bull”. Copyright Canadian Northern Railway Company, 1914 …………………………………… p. 117 Figure 4.8: “Azilda Wreck, No. 1”. Copyright William G. Gillespie, 1906 ……. p. 121 Figure 4.9: “Azilda Wreck, No. 10”. Copyright William G. Gillespie, 1906 …... p. 121 Figure 4.10: “The wreck of the artillery train at Enterprise, Ontario, June 9, 1903 (Number 8)”. Copyright Harriett Amelia May, 1903 …………………………… p. 124 Figure 4.11: “The wreck of the artillery train at Enterprise, Ontario, June 9, 1903 (Number 7)”. Copyright Harriett Amelia May, 1903 …………………………… p. 124 Figure 4.12: “The wreck of the artillery train at Enterprise, Ontario, June 9, 1903 (Number 10)”. Copyright Harriett Amelia May, 1903 …………………………. p. 125 Figure 5.1: “Azilda Train Wreck, No. 10”. Copyright, William Gillespie, 1906.. p. 141 Figure 5.2: “Homesteaders Trekking From Moosejaw, Saskatchewan”. Copyright Lewis Rice, 1909 ………………………………………………………………………. p. 141 Figure 5.3: “Ruins of Toronto Fire, 1904”. Copyright Galbraith Photo. Co., 1904 p. 141 Figure 5.4: Approaching Wilcox Pass. Copyright Byron Harmon, 1911 ………. p. 141 Figure 5.5: “Queen’s University, Kingston, Ont., Taken From an Aeroplane”. Copyright