Historical Reminiscing with Robert B. Hitchings
The Crystal Palace, London Fair, London England, 1851
A few days ago I was thumbing through the Norfolk & Portsmouth Herald newspapers of 1851. To my astonishment, I came across two very interesting articles about two business men from Norfolk, Virginia. These two men sent their wares over to London, England, to be exhibited at the World's Fair. And these two men received recognition for their work in creating superb products exhibiting shoes and in the art of photography and daguerreotypes. Both of these men from Norfolk received beautiful bronze medals which were awarded them by the Committees of Awards for their fine superb wares, at the World’s Fair, London, England.
The great Exhibition, works of Industry of all nations, was held in London’s Hyde Park from May 1 to October 15, 1851. It was the first world's fair in Europe and organized by Prince Albert of England. It showed industrial technology in everything in the iconic glass-and-iron called "The Crystal Palace" symbolizing British industrial dominance.
Six million people all over the world attended this huge event and it was an enormous success and was considered an architectural marvel but also an engineering triumph for Great Britain. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert opened the event with much pomp and pageantry that only the Queen could do. This would be the first in a series of world fairs of exhibitions of culture and industry that became popular in the 19th century.
New inventions were displayed in all fields. These exhibits showed many new inventions, such as the public flush toilet invented by George Jennings. It was here at the Crystal Palace that the first international chess tournament took place. And also the world’s first soft drink called Schweppes was introduced and was the official sponsor of the event. Heads of states, royalty and the famous attended this Great Exhibition.
Interestingly, Mr. William A. Addington, a Norfolk native (1815-1855) and a Boot & Shoe Merchant, had sent to the World's Fair a pair of superbly wrought pair of boots, handmade here in Norfolk, Virginia, to be exhibited.
Children's Shoes
The subscriber is happy to announce to his customers, and the public generally, that his stock of CHILDREN'S SHOES is now very complete embracing no doubt the greatest variety ever known in Norfolk or elsewhere. Etc.
Beacon, July 31, 1846To his astonishment and surprise, a year later on April 6, 1852, Mr. Addington received a small package of a beautiful bronze medal which was struck by the British Government Mint. On the medal was inscribed his name and the image of Queen Victoria & Prince Albert. The medal also had three X’s on the coin. The medals had been designed by William Wyon and his son, Leonard. The medal arrived in an elegant morocco case lined with velvet and silk. Mr. Addington was speechless and so proud receiving this recognition. The next day he quickly exhibited his prized medal at his Ladies Saloon of Boots & Shoes in downtown Norfolk on Main Street for all to see.
Another award winner at the London Fair was a Jesse Harrison Whitehurst (1821-1875), a native of Princess Anne County, Virginia, and a pioneer in the promotion of the photographic daguerreotype process. He opened up a studio in Norfolk around 1843 and within a few years he had half dozen galleries in Washington, Richmond, New York, Petersburg, Norfolk, Lynchburg, and Wilmington. He also had 21 assistants and throughout his career over 30 thousand daguerreotypes were made.
Whitehurst was the inventor of a rotary background that was shown in the background of each picture. He also perfected the skylight in his studios. His images were of perfection and, with the effects of the background and his new skylight, he captured the pure perfection of light and each "photograph plate" was equally pleasing to the eyes.
The Richmond Daily newspaper reported on June 26, 1851, that Whitehurst had sailed on the steamer Africa with his portfolio of daguerreotypes to enter the London World's Fair. His elegant photographs were of President Franklin Pierce of the United States and his cabinet. Along in his portfolio were his famous daguerreotype of views of Niagara Falls.
Whitehurst received many medals for his outstanding work in his photography. We do not know how excited Whitehurst was to receive his medals because the local newspaper tells us very little. However, these two extraordinary men from our area were rewarded with medals for their artistic excellence in industrial and manufacturing.
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Robert B. Hitchings is a seventh generation Norfolk resident, graduating with an Associate's Degree in Biology from Old Dominion University and BA in history from Virginia Wesleyan University. During his studies he was awarded a scholarship at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, England, and he was an exchange student at Brooks-Westminster College, Oxford, England. From 1999-2014 he worked as head of the Sargeant Memorial History Room at Norfolk Public Library, and since then has headed the Wallace History Room at Chesapeake Public Library. He is also the President of the Norfolk County Historical Society, and for six years was a columnist for The Virginian-Pilot. Robert may be reached at nchs.wallaceroom@gmail.com
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