Canada’s First Photojournalist

Portrait of William James, 1903. (Photo by Unknown but see the very end of this article. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

By the early 1890s, Toronto had seven daily newspapers but no staff photographers. Back then and through the early 1900s, newspapers depended on freelancers, a situation not unlike today.

In November 1906, English-born, 40-year-old, amateur photographer William James, along with his wife and their five children, came to Canada. They arrived in Quebec and took the train to their new home city of Toronto.

While working a variety of jobs to support his family, James took what seems to have been his first Toronto photo shortly after arriving in the city. The picture showed the aftermath of a fire that had, five weeks earlier, destroyed both the Crystal Palace and the Grandstand at the Canadian National Exhibition:

This picture is in fact a “selfie”. The person in the picture is James himself. He often had some sort of human interest in his photos. (Photo – William James. Source – City of Toronto Archives). In its coverage of the October 18, 1906, fire, the Toronto Evening Telegram used a sketch of the fire.

James became a full-time professional photographer around 1909. He shot news, sports, fashion, entertainment, lifestyle, social issues, visiting dignitaries, prime ministers, royal tours and everything else most newspaper photographers do today. His freelance business also did weddings, stereoscopic photos and aerial photography (more on this later).

William James photographs from a ladder, circa 1914. (Photo – Unknown. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

William James climbs a fence outside Varsity Stadium in Toronto, circa 1919. (Photo – Unknown. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

He sold his photographs to the local newspapers for $1 or $2 per print. Remember that he had to process the film, make prints and then deliver the prints to the paper. Adjusting for inflation only, in today’s economy, $2 back then is about $42 today.

The Toronto Daily Star city desk, circa 1908. The Daily Star was probably James’ best customer. He also sold pictures to other papers such as The Globe and Mail and to various magazines. (Photo – William James. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

Back in the early 1900s, Nikon, Canon, Leica and Sony did not exist. George Eastman had just introduced the Kodak Brownie in 1900. So there were few photographers and even fewer news photographers. So if you were a news photographer like William James, you got to shoot events such as one of Canada’s earliest airshows in 1910:

An airshow in Toronto, 1910. James’ interest in technology led him to photograph the various aviation clubs in the Toronto area as well as the city’s new airplane manufacturing industry. (Photo – William James. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

And in 1911, the first plane crash:

Men inspect the wreckage of Toronto’s first airplane crash in 1911. (Photo – William James. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

Maybe even the country’s first snowmobile:

Possibly the first snowmobile, Muskoka, Ontario, 1915. (Photo – William James. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

James wasn’t just a still photographer. He also shot moving pictures (aka. newsreels):

William James shoots movies (that’s “video” for you younger folk) of armed forces recruits at the University of Toronto, 1914. Using both stills and movies, James documented the city’s preparations for World War I and all other war related activities on the homefront. (Photo – Unknown. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

William James covers a game at Varsity Stadium in Toronto, 1915. Apparently a photographer could stand right on the playing field. (Photo – Unknown. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

James is thought to be the first photographer in Canada to shoot movies from a plane. If you think that was easy, remember that back then, airplanes were open biplanes and movie cameras were a lot bigger than they are today:

William James (L) shoots movies from an airplane in 1916. Bonus points if you can figure out how James shot this self-portrait. He did many selfies throughout his career. There’s a good chance the pilot was the famous Bert Acosta who was in Toronto at this time and with whom James did fly. (Photo – William James. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

James taught photography to the Turofsky brothers, Nathan and Louis. The Turofsky brothers became well-known sports photographers covering most pro sports in Toronto, and beyond, for about five decades (e.g. NHL, CFL, baseball, Queen’s Plate, all types of racing), as well as day-to-day life, news and commercial work.

Toronto photographers Nat (L) and Lou Turofsky prepare to head to Chicago, their birthplace, to cover the now infamous 1919 World Series between the Chicago White Sox and Cincinnati Reds. (Photo – Unknown. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

William James also taught photography to his three sons, William Jr., Joseph and Norman. After World War I, James opened a photo studio with his two older sons, William Jr. and Joseph. But Joseph soon moved to the USA and William Jr. opened his own photo studio.

William James Jr. and brother Joseph James in 1912. (Photo – William James. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

Several years later, around 1929, youngest son Norman joined his father’s photo business. But just a few years later, Norman was hired by the Toronto Daily Star as a staff photographer, a career that lasted 40 years. Norman James was inducted into the Canadian News Hall of Fame in 1981.

Norman James destroys his old box camera (on the ground) after getting a new “high-tech” camera (shown on the bench) which was smaller, lighter and more portable, circa 1917 (but it may be later than that since Norman was born in 1907 and he appears to be older than ten). Norman realized the new camera rendered the box camera obsolete. (Photo – William James. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

James continued working until his mid-70s (about 1940).

(L-R) Photographers William James Jr., William James Sr., and Norman James, in 1936. (Photo – Unknown. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

William James Sr., who died in 1948, is considered to be Toronto’s and even Canada’s first photojournalist. He spent over three decades documenting the changing city around him.

James wanted his photographs to serve as a historical record of the life and people of Toronto. Several thousand of his images shot in the Toronto area, and beyond, can be seen in the City of Toronto Archives.

Portrait of William James Sr. circa 1900. (Photo – Unknown. Source – City of Toronto Archives)

If you enjoy looking at old photos, especially if you live in Toronto, it’s well worth spending some time viewing William James’ photographs.

 

(Most of the photographs and information in this post are from the City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1244.)

 

 

The 1903 picture of William James (L) may have been shot by this unnamed photographer (R). The picture on the right was apparently taken by William James who at that time was working with other amateur photographers in England. (Source – City of Toronto Archives)