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Further information and updates The identity of W and Company is uncertain, but may be Walker and Company based in Margate. The collection is made up of original black and white photographic prints and a collotype. Copy negatives exist for 8 of the prints. Coverage is primarily seaside scenes with some views of and town village street scenes, also country homes churches and landscapes. The coverage includes beach scenes with bathing machines and holidaymakers, promenades, harbours showing various fishing boats and other vessels and fishermen, piers, bandstands and parks.
The collection focuses on the coastal regions popular with late Victorian Society in particular the seaside resorts of Kent,Lancashire and Merseyside. The Kent coverage includes most of the seaside towns in North and East Kent, particularly Margate, Ramsgate, Deal and the Herne Bay area. Lancashire locations represented include Blackpool, Lytham and the Flyde peninsular. Coverage for Merseyside is Liverpool, New Brighton and Southport, including several good Southport street scenes and the Pier Head in Liverpool, with SS Etruria at the landing stage.
Although the full name of the company is not known, it is believed to be Walker and Company Ltd, of 1 Marine Terrace, Margate, Kent. Most of the prints are captioned on the front, and carry the W & Co monogram. Some prints are numbered with a "W" prefix. No information is available regarding the acquisition of this collection.
In 1998 the prints were removed from the National Monuments Record Red Box collection and temporarily stored under the name of "Originals". They were catalogued between July and August 1999.
Source: Historic England Archive
