Past, not forgotten
When local Historical Society member Anthony Cherrington was asked to dig out some photographs of a long-forgotten Victorian photographer, he uncovered a treasure trove of images of life from Harborough’s past.
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After months of research, a new exhibition at Harborough Museum is bringing this remarkable local story back into view. Discover Marston Trussell’s Forgotten Photographer introduces visitors to the pioneering Victorian image‑maker, Revd. William Law, whose early photographs capture Market Harborough’s past, along with vivid portraits of village life in the 19th century.
How did you first discover William Law? To be honest, I had actually never heard of the Revd. Law! I was asked by a fellow Historical Society member if I could use my contacts within Culture Leicestershire to locate some photographs used in a William Law exhibition that was held by the Society in the 1980’s. After some research at the museum, and help from a fellow Society member, I discovered that Law was a prolific Victorian (but now forgotten) photographer, who took the first photograph of Market Harborough in around 1855. How did the exhibition come about? I discussed my research with Denise Wilding, the Volunteer Officer at the Harborough Museum, who suggested I make this a research project. The Collections and Conservation Dept at Culture Leicestershire (under Leicestershire County Council) were contacted, and they confirmed they had a large archive of Law’s work in storage from various collections donated or loaned over the years. After viewing many of his records, photographs and negatives – all in protective covers as some are almost 170 years old – we decided, along with Museum Officer Tim Savage, to create an exhibition to illustrate his work at the Harborough Museum. We could not use any of the originals, however, as they need to be stored in a preserved environment. I was also privileged to be lent a private collection of Law photographs, owned by a Market Harborough family, that showed that although Law was famous at the time for his architectural, flora and fauna photographs, he also recorded social history of families and workers throughout his life. Over the next few months I carefully photographed various pieces of his work for the exhibition. What can the exhibition show us about life in Victorian-era Harborough? I hope it gives a brief ‘snapshot’ (please excuse the pun) of how Harborough looked in Victorian times, how it has changed and the fashions of the time. One photograph of a carpenter, taken in 1861, turned out to be an ancestor of the family who lent me their private collection. I think visitors will get a glimpse of Victorian life from one man’s perception, and will compliment other old photographs of Harborough on display in the museum. What do you think Law would make of people in 2026 coming to see his work? I hope he would be pleased that he has been ‘rediscovered’ and is no longer forgotten. Hopefully he will see how much we appreciate how he recorded Harborough in the past. The exhibition will be at Harborough Museum until the end of September 2026.
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Issue 30
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