OHS, Maurice Crompton-Smith photographic collection

Descriptive Data

Archives IdentifierOS013Date Range1862-1940DescriptionIn 1972 Onslow Historical Society officially received a donation of photographs from Misses Elsie and Anne, and Mr Hector Crompton-Smith. The collection of between three to four boxes of photographs is the work of their father Mr Maurice Crompton-Smith, an enthusiastic and talented amateur photographer who lived in Khandallah area for 56 years. Mr Crompton-Smith travelled a lot in his work as a surveyor and he took his camera gear along with him on most occasions. Later he became chief draftsman and Acting Surveyor-General and did not travel much, hence a greater part of the collection is about Wellington region.

Maurice Crompton-Smith’s connection with Khandallah began when he bought a house at 46 Clark Street in 1892. In 1900 he married Miss Annie Powles, and they had four children. Hence, the bigger part of the collection is family photographs. There are photographic prints, original works that have sometimes been printed repeatedly, and some of the scenes have been photographed from both various angles and photographic lens settings. The repetition is often with subtle changes of chemical work during the print development process. Many are artistically mounted on art board, bordered signed and dated.

The bulk of the collection is of local visual scenes - Khandallah, Johnsonville, Ngaio, and Crofton Down. There are photographs of places that Crompton-Smith's visited, and he also collected postcards from Aotearoa NZ and UK. A big number of photographs from New Plymouth are part of this collection where the Smith family lived for many years. These photographs cover a wide range of subjects including his families and friends, farms, wetlands, foreshores, churches and places visited by the Smith family.

The collection consists of 29 photo albums in different sizes, loose prints, and prints affixed to thick paper. It provides an invaluable visual record of people, places, houses, and streets, filling a significant gap in the history of the northern suburbs of Wellington. This visual collection serves as historical memories of the region, documenting not only the Crompton-Smith family’s life but also the development of the surrounding communities.MediumPhotograph - printSystem of ArrangementThe albums are arranged in volumes from 1-29, with a few gaps between volumes 12-17 and volumes 18-23. Two albums are assigned the same number, 29, even though their subjects are unrelated. The loose prints have been rearranged and labeled by Onslow Historical Society archivists according to the subject of the photographs.Collection TypeOnslow Historical Society

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Controlling or Creating AgencyOnslow Historical Society

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OHS, Maurice Crompton-Smith photographic collection