A very early studio portrait of a lady by Henry Clark, ‘On the Cliff’, Cleethorps c1860s.

An original carte de visite (CdV) studio portrait. Carte de visite, small format photographs appeared in the UK in the 1860s. This is a very early one and possibly dates to the mid to late 1860s. It would be very difficult to find another Cleethorpes studio portrait as old as this one by Henry Clark. The address also suggests that it dates to the 1860s rather than early 1870s. The photographer, Henry Clark (1815-1874), son of Saul and Ann Clark, was born in Friskney (or Thorpe St Peter), Lincolnshire. He became a Bazaar keeper in Wragby by 1861 and a Bazaar Keeper in Cleethorpes by 1869. He also became a photographer before he died on a trip to Skegness and Alford in September 1874. There’s a record of him taking a photo in Cleethorpes in 1869. After the death of Henry, his son Alfred Vurney Clark (1848 Lincoln – 1911 Brigg) became a photographer in both Cleethorpes and Brigg. Examples of his excellent work can be seen on this website. Henry was assisted by a brother at some point and they traded as Clark Bros. of Cleethorpes and Brigg. Research by Grimsby & Cleethorpes Museum.