Pierce Mott Cazneau father of Harold Cazneaux

Pierce Mott Cazneau was born around 1850 in Birkenhead, Cheshire (1851 census) but grew up in Liverpool. His father Edward Lancelot Cazneau from Liverpool was a portrait and landscape painter who had studied at the Royal Academy of Arts and his mother Margaret Sharpe was Irish, in fact their first four children, all boys, were born in Ireland. The Cazneaus were French Huguenots whose ancestor Paix (Peace) Cazneau migrated to America and established the family in Boston Massachussetts in the late 17th century. A branch of the family settled in Liverpool in the mid 18th century. Edward Lancelot Cazneau died in 1855 so his widow Margaret with her five sons (Edward Lancelot junior died in 1853 and another son was named after him in 1854) migrated to Australia in 1857 aboard the "Great Britain" and they landed in Melbourne. Mrs. Cazneau taught music to support her family, a gift she was to pass on to her children.

Mott Cazneau started working as a teenager in Freeman's studio in Sydney, gathering experience that held him in good stead for a lifetime and he eventually became Freeman's chief operator. He formed a short lived partnership the "Cazneau Brothers" with his older brother Warren in 1870, taking over the studio of Alex Smithers in Hunter Street, Newcastle that appears to have closed the following year. Around 1876 Mott moved to Wellington, New Zealand and found employment in the studio of Wrigglesworth and Binns. James Dacey Wrigglesworth had first established a studio in 1863 and taken on F. C. Binns as a partner in 1874. Whilst working in Sydney, Mott met Emily Florence Bentley, a miniature painter who worked as a colourist in the Freeman studios. Florence joined Mott in Wellington where they were married and they worked together for Wrigglesworth and Binns. They resided in Martin's Cottages, Taranaki Street and had three children, including a son Harold Pierce Cazneau born 30 March 1878 who was to become a very prominent photographer in Australia. It seems for a period Mott Cazneau had his own studio during the period of his tenure with Wrigglesworth and Binns for he was fined for allowing the chimney in his home to catch fire and he was described as a photographer of Cuba St (Evening Post, 22 May 1878) whereas Wrigglesworth & Binns studio was in Willis Street.

In 1883 Mott Cazneau eventually left the employment of Wrigglesworth and Binns and opened his own studio on Lambton Quay, Wellington with James Bennett Connolly trading as "Cazneau & Connolly" and they advertised that they had "spared no expense in importing the very newest instruments from London, and a large variety of the latest accessories and scenery from Paris and San Francisco" (Evening Post, 24 January 1883). Mott and James Connolly were acquainted as musicians. They played together in amateur and professional productions in Wellington, often at the Athenaeum Hall with Mott playing violin, cello and bass and Connolly playing violin or conducting.

Later in 1883 Cazneau and Connolly advertised the employment of a first-class American photographer (Evening Post, 5 December 1883). This is probably the Mr. Besse mentioned in advertisements as manager of a branch facility that opened 4 February 1884 in Hastings St, Napier in premises previously occupied by photographer James Corbett. Briggs G. Besse was from Maine in the USA and had worked as a photographer in Bombala and Bega, New South Wales and Deloraine, Tasmania during the preceding couple of years. Interestingly this branch studio had a mammoth plate camera "which will produce negatives 24 inches long by 17 wide" (Hawkes Bay Herald, 12 March 1884).

In early 1885 the Wellington Studio was renovated with a "new collection of accessories" "just imported from Home" (Evening Post, 24 January 1885) but by the middle of the year the business partnership had ended with Connolly retaining the business name (Evening Post, 27 June 1885) and later taking former employee Richard Herrmann in as a new partner. Cazneau announced that he was opening his own studio on 1 August (Evening Post, 1 July 1885) but this studio at 64 Cuba Street operated under his wife's name no doubt to avoid conflict with his former partner. It was just over a year later that the studio folded and the equipment was auctioned by Francis Sidey & Co on 21 September including a George Hare camera, two Dallmeyer B lenses, contents of printing and finishing rooms and household furniture (Evening Post, 18 September 1886). The studio was taken over by Frederick Hill who advertised a month later "having taken over Mrs. Cazneau's negatives he will be able to supply copies of the same" (Evening Post, 13 October 1886). Wrigglesworth & Binns later advertised that they had the negative collections of a number of former Wellington studios including Cazneau and Connolly (Evening Post, 25 September 1891). William Kinsey took over the former Cazneau and Connelly studio in Lambton Quay in 1892 which by then was operated by Connolly, Beauchamp & Price. Some years later he advertised that he held the negatives of Cazneau & Connolly (Evening Post, 28 October 1899).

The Cazneau family returned to Australia after some ten years in New Zealand and Mott managed "London Photographic Company" at 419 George St, Sydney (which had been previously owned by Andrew Chandler & Albert Lomer) from 1887 until 1889. The family then relocated to Adelaide where Mott worked for a time managing Townsend Duryea junior's studio in Rundle Street, then he moved on to Hammer & Co's studio at 6 Rundle Street. Cazneau was usually associated with more prestigious facilities and the Hammer studios was no exception, describing themselves as "art photographers" catering to the cream of society and specializing in fine platinotypes. William Henry Hammer had established his first studio in Adelaide in 1879 and at one point he had three city studios and one at Port Adelaide. By 1888 he had consolidated to just one studio. After a couple of years working in Adelaide, Florence Cazneau succumbed to tuberculosis in 1892, leaving Mott to support his family. Three years later in 1895 he married Christina "Tean" Harley who was working in the Hammer studios and their union produced twin boys and a daughter.

Harold Cazneaux started as a retoucher and colourist for Hammer & Co in 1896 but by 1900 was living in Redfern, Sydney (Sands Sydney and NSW Directory 1900). Mott Cazneau remained with Hammer & Co where he had gone on to become manager until 1903 and then retired from professional photography. During 1904 Harold Cazneau joined Freeman Studios in Sydney where his parents had both previously worked. The studio was by that time being managed by Alfred Samuel George who had also been a former manager of the London Photographic Company and thus likely a friend or at least acquaintance of Mott Cazneau. Harold was joined in Sydney by Mabel Winifred Hodge in Sydney during 1905 who was another former employee of Hammer & Co and the pair married not long after. Mott Cazneau's daughter Carmen married Albert Hammer, the son of his former employer in the same year. Pierce Cazneau died in Adelaide during 1928 aged 78 years.

Chronology:

operator at Freeman Studios
Sydney c.1865-1870
Cazneau Brothers (Pierce Mott Cazneau & Warren Cazneau)
Hunter St, Newcastle, NSW 1870-1871
operator at Wrigglesworth & Binns
Wellington, NZ 1877-1882
Cazneau & Connolly
Lambton Quay, Wellington, NZ 1883-1885
Hastings St, Napier, NZ (managed by Briggs Besse) 1884-?
Mrs. E. F. Cazneau
Cuba St, Wellington, NZ 1885-1886
London Photographic Co. (late Chandler Lomer & Co)
419 George St. 1887-1889
operator at Townsend Duryea jnr. studio
Rundle St, Adelaide 1890
operator and later manager Hammer & Co
6 Rundle St, Adelaide 1890-1903

C. W. Mountfort - early photographer of Timaru

Charles Wheeler Mountfort was born in Birmingham in 1829, the son of Thomas Mountfort a jeweller and Susanna Wale Woolfield. Charles emigrated with his wife Mary Adnam, his elder brother Benjamin (who was accompanied by his wife Emily Newman) and their sister Susanna aboard the 'Charlotte Jane' arriving amongst the first settlers in Lyttleton 16 December 1850.

Benjamin Mountfort was an architect, but after his first commission was a failure he took up bookselling and photography. In 1857 he resumed his architectural career and he went on to become one of New Zealand's most prominent architects. Charles farmed at Opawa, then took up an appointment in 1856 as a surveyor, working under John Turnbull Thomson the chief surveyor for Otago. He left the survey department in Otago and returned to Canterbury where he took over the photo studio of Monsier Cabot in Timaru in March 1867. Charles may have learnt photography from his brother Benjamin or possibly Cabot. The studio was destroyed in the large fire that swept through Timaru on 8 December 1868. There is no mention of Charles resuming photography after this. He farmed and resumed work as a surveyor, training his son Charles Adnam Mountfort in the profession. Charles joined the Survey Department in 1878 and retired to Napier in 1878. He lived to the ripe age of 91.

Timaru Herald, Volume VI, Issue 188, 20 March 1867, Page 2

Family Tree:

1. THOMAS MOUNTFORT m. 16 DEC 1818, Saint Martin, Birmingham, Warwick, SUSANNA WATE WOOLFIELD.
Children:
i BENJAMIN WOODFIELD MOUNTFORD b. 13 MAR 1825, bap. 1 SEP 1825, Saint Phillips, Birmingham, Warwick, d. 15 MAR 1898.
2. ii CHARLES WHEELER MOUNTFORT bap. 2 JAN 1829, Saint George, Birmingham, Warwick.
iii SUSANNA WALE MOUNTFORT bap. 2 JAN 1829, Saint George, Birmingham, Warwick.
iv THOMAS MOUNTFORT b. 1840.

Second Generation

2. CHARLES WHEELER MOUNTFORT bap. 2 JAN 1829, Saint George, Birmingham, Warwick, m. 1850, London, MARY ELIZA ADNAM.
Children:
i CHARLES ADNAM MOUNTFORT b. 9 FEB 1854, Christchurch, d. 11 MAY 1941, Fielding.
ii ALFRED JOHN MOUNTFORT d. 17 AUG 1927.
iii HERBERT BENJAMIN MOUNTFORT.

Any Mountfort relations or anyone with further information is welcome to get in touch.