H. C. Casserley
Encyclopedia
Henry Cyril Casserley was a British photographer of steam railways. His prolific work in the 1920s and 1930s, the result of travelling to remote corners of the railway network in the United Kingdom
and Ireland
, has provided subsequent generations with a valuable source of illustrations for books and magazines.
, South London
, the son of Edward Casserley, a minor Post Office
official, and his wife Sarah (née Turton). Edward Casserley loved mechanical objects and constructed from scratch a model railway in the loft, which may have inspired his son's enthusiasm for trains. Henry spent his working life in the head offices of the Prudential Assurance Company
in London (evacuated to Derby
in World War 2
). He married Kathleen Goose on 16 July 1931. Full details of their family are not published, but they had at least one son, Richard, born 1936 or 1937, who also took up photography and has latterly acted as custodian of his father's collection.
The family lived beside the railway line just east of Bromley South railway station
from 1931 to 1939 but moved to a house on a new estate at Berkhamsted
, Herts, because the electrification of the Southern Railway
greatly reduced the number of steam trains passing Bromley. Casserley acquired his first motor car
in 1934, which aided his reaching obscure small railway lines and investigating windmills, in which he had also developed an interest.
He was in military service from 1942–1944, mostly based in the Army stores section at Bicester
, but was invalided out and returned to his job at the Prudential. He retired in 1964 and devoted himself to his 'second career' as photographer and writer. His wife died in about 1986 and his interest and memory then declined until his death, aged 88.
no.2 folding Brownie
with f/8 Rapid rectilinear lens acquired in 1919, but this was soon replaced by a professional standard Butcher's 'Popular Pressman' quarter-plate reflex camera
(using 4¼" x 3¼" glass plates). In 1937 he replaced it with one of the new Leica 35 mm
cameras, which was much more convenient and served him until the end of his career, being replaced with an identical model when the original was stolen in 1963.
Despite a few experiments with early commercial colour film
, he remained committed to the black-and-white
medium to the end and always did his own processing and printing. He was meticulous in keeping records of his negatives, using a numbering system he later shared with his son, and estimated that he had personally taken 60,000 railway subjects by 1972, in some fifty-two years of work.
He started by recording locomotives, usually 'on shed' because of the bulk of his camera and the slow film speeds, but he expanded his range to cover scenes in and around stations
as his desire to travel over all lines of railway in the British Isles
took him to obscure corners of the railway system. There are many characteristic broadside shots of Southern Railway
locos 'at the bottom of the garden' in Bromley
in the 1930s, but generally he had little time for the scenic movement in railway photography, being strictly a 'photographer of record'. He largely stopped photographing railways with the end of steam traction
on British Rail
ways and Córas Iompair Éireann
.
and enthusiast society journals. An early success was to obtain the first photograph of Midland Railway
0-10-0 banker locomotive 2290
in steam, at Derby
in January 1920.
Before retirement he wrote or compiled only a few books, including the self-published Locomotive cavalcade (1952), and editions of The Observer's Book of Railway Locomotives of Britain for Frederick Warne & Co
. From 1964 to 1979 he put together more than 20 titles, mostly collections of photographs (usually his own), for specialist transport publishers David & Charles
, Ian Allan
, and D. Bradford Barton.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
, has provided subsequent generations with a valuable source of illustrations for books and magazines.
Life
Henry Cyril Casserley was born in ClaphamClapham
Clapham is a district in south London, England, within the London Borough of Lambeth.Clapham covers the postcodes of SW4 and parts of SW9, SW8 and SW12. Clapham Common is shared with the London Borough of Wandsworth, although Lambeth has responsibility for running the common as a whole. According...
, South London
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
, the son of Edward Casserley, a minor Post Office
General Post Office
General Post Office is the name of the British postal system from 1660 until 1969.General Post Office may also refer to:* General Post Office, Perth* General Post Office, Sydney* General Post Office, Melbourne* General Post Office, Brisbane...
official, and his wife Sarah (née Turton). Edward Casserley loved mechanical objects and constructed from scratch a model railway in the loft, which may have inspired his son's enthusiasm for trains. Henry spent his working life in the head offices of the Prudential Assurance Company
Prudential plc
Prudential plc is a multinational financial services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom.Prudential's largest division is Prudential Corporation Asia, which has over 15 million customers across 13 Asian markets and is a top-three provider of life insurance in mainland China, Hong...
in London (evacuated to Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
in World War 2
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
). He married Kathleen Goose on 16 July 1931. Full details of their family are not published, but they had at least one son, Richard, born 1936 or 1937, who also took up photography and has latterly acted as custodian of his father's collection.
The family lived beside the railway line just east of Bromley South railway station
Bromley South railway station
Bromley South railway station is a major interchange and station in Bromley town centre within the London Borough of Bromley in southeast London. It is in Travelcard Zone 5, and the station and all trains are operated by Southeastern...
from 1931 to 1939 but moved to a house on a new estate at Berkhamsted
Berkhamsted
-Climate:Berkhamsted experiences an oceanic climate similar to almost all of the United Kingdom.-Castle:...
, Herts, because the electrification of the Southern Railway
Southern Railway (Great Britain)
The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
greatly reduced the number of steam trains passing Bromley. Casserley acquired his first motor car
Automobile
An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
in 1934, which aided his reaching obscure small railway lines and investigating windmills, in which he had also developed an interest.
He was in military service from 1942–1944, mostly based in the Army stores section at Bicester
Bicester
Bicester is a town and civil parish in the Cherwell district of northeastern Oxfordshire in England.This historic market centre is one of the fastest growing towns in Oxfordshire Development has been favoured by its proximity to junction 9 of the M40 motorway linking it to London, Birmingham and...
, but was invalided out and returned to his job at the Prudential. He retired in 1964 and devoted himself to his 'second career' as photographer and writer. His wife died in about 1986 and his interest and memory then declined until his death, aged 88.
Photography
H. C. Casserley's first camera was a KodakEastman Kodak
Eastman Kodak Company is a multinational imaging and photographic equipment, materials and services company headquarted in Rochester, New York, United States. It was founded by George Eastman in 1892....
no.2 folding Brownie
Brownie (camera)
Brownie is the name of a long-running and extremely popular series of simple and inexpensive cameras made by Eastman Kodak. The Brownie popularized low-cost photography and introduced the concept of the snapshot. The first Brownie, introduced in February, 1900, was a very basic cardboard box camera...
with f/8 Rapid rectilinear lens acquired in 1919, but this was soon replaced by a professional standard Butcher's 'Popular Pressman' quarter-plate reflex camera
Twin-lens reflex camera
A twin-lens reflex camera is a type of camera with two objective lenses of the same focal length. One of the lenses is the photographic objective or "taking lens" , while the other is used for the viewfinder system, which is usually viewed from above at waist level...
(using 4¼" x 3¼" glass plates). In 1937 he replaced it with one of the new Leica 35 mm
35 mm film
35 mm film is the film gauge most commonly used for chemical still photography and motion pictures. The name of the gauge refers to the width of the photographic film, which consists of strips 35 millimeters in width...
cameras, which was much more convenient and served him until the end of his career, being replaced with an identical model when the original was stolen in 1963.
Despite a few experiments with early commercial colour film
Color photography
Color photography is photography that uses media capable of representing colors, which are traditionally produced chemically during the photographic processing phase...
, he remained committed to the black-and-white
Black-and-white
Black-and-white, often abbreviated B/W or B&W, is a term referring to a number of monochrome forms in visual arts.Black-and-white as a description is also something of a misnomer, for in addition to black and white, most of these media included varying shades of gray...
medium to the end and always did his own processing and printing. He was meticulous in keeping records of his negatives, using a numbering system he later shared with his son, and estimated that he had personally taken 60,000 railway subjects by 1972, in some fifty-two years of work.
He started by recording locomotives, usually 'on shed' because of the bulk of his camera and the slow film speeds, but he expanded his range to cover scenes in and around stations
Train station
A train station, also called a railroad station or railway station and often shortened to just station,"Station" is commonly understood to mean "train station" unless otherwise qualified. This is evident from dictionary entries e.g...
as his desire to travel over all lines of railway in the British Isles
British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include the islands of Great Britain and Ireland and over six thousand smaller isles. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and...
took him to obscure corners of the railway system. There are many characteristic broadside shots of Southern Railway
Southern Railway (Great Britain)
The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
locos 'at the bottom of the garden' in Bromley
Bromley
Bromley is a large suburban town in south east London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Bromley. It was historically a market town, and prior to 1963 was in the county of Kent and formed the administrative centre of the Municipal Borough of Bromley...
in the 1930s, but generally he had little time for the scenic movement in railway photography, being strictly a 'photographer of record'. He largely stopped photographing railways with the end of steam traction
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
on British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
ways and Córas Iompair Éireann
Córas Iompair Éireann
Córas Iompair Éireann , or CIÉ, is a statutory corporation of the Irish state, answerable to the Irish Government and responsible for most public transport in the Republic of Ireland and, jointly with its Northern Ireland counterpart, the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company, between the...
.
Publication
Casserley began contributing articles on railway and travel subjects from 1919, but was soon better known for supplying photographs to The Railway MagazineThe Railway Magazine
The Railway Magazine is a monthly British railway magazine, aimed at the railway enthusiast market, that has been published in London since July 1897. it has been, for three years running, the railway magazine with the largest circulation in the U.K., having a monthly average sale during 2009 of...
and enthusiast society journals. An early success was to obtain the first photograph of Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
0-10-0 banker locomotive 2290
MR 0-10-0 Lickey Banker
In 1919, the Midland Railway built a single 0-10-0 steam locomotive, No 2290 . It was designed by James Clayton for banking duties on the Lickey Incline in Worcestershire , England...
in steam, at Derby
Derby Midland railway station
Derby railway station , also known as Derby Midland Station, is a main line railway station serving the city of Derby in England. Owned by Network Rail and managed by East Midlands Trains, the station is also used by CrossCountry services and one Northern Rail service...
in January 1920.
Before retirement he wrote or compiled only a few books, including the self-published Locomotive cavalcade (1952), and editions of The Observer's Book of Railway Locomotives of Britain for Frederick Warne & Co
Frederick Warne & Co
Frederick Warne & Co was a British publishing firm famous for children's books, particularly those of Beatrix Potter. It was founded in 1865 by a bookseller, who gave his own name to the firm.- History :...
. From 1964 to 1979 he put together more than 20 titles, mostly collections of photographs (usually his own), for specialist transport publishers David & Charles
David & Charles
David & Charles is a publisher. The company was founded - and is still based - in the market town of Newton Abbot, in Devon, UK, on 1 April 1960 by David St John Thomas and Charles Hadfield. It first made its name publishing titles on Britain's canals and railways...
, Ian Allan
Ian Allan Publishing
Ian Allan Publishing is a UK publisher, established in 1942, which specialises in transport magazines and books.In 1942 Ian Allan, then working on enquiries on the Southern Railway, published his first book, "ABC of Southern Locomotives"...
, and D. Bradford Barton.
External links
- H. C. Casserley at SteamIndex.com
- Railway Photographers (steamindex.com)
- "A return trip to Burtonport" by H C Casserley
– Article about a journey on the Londonderry and Lough Swilly RailwayLondonderry and Lough Swilly RailwayThe Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway Company is an Irish public transport and freight company incorporated in June 1853. Despite its name it operates no railway services. It formerly operated 99 miles of railways but closed its last line in July 1953...
from The Railway MagazineThe Railway MagazineThe Railway Magazine is a monthly British railway magazine, aimed at the railway enthusiast market, that has been published in London since July 1897. it has been, for three years running, the railway magazine with the largest circulation in the U.K., having a monthly average sale during 2009 of...
, May 1938, with photos taken on the trip.