1920s Lantern Slides of Tristan for Sale on eBay
By Peter Millington
A set of 66 rare colourised magic lantern slides of Tristan da Cunha have come up for sale on eBay. They are being sold individually, and some have already gone, but the vendor would be willing to consider offers for the remaining set. Sample images are reproduced here by permission of the vendor.
The glass slides are 4 inches x 3.25 inches (10.16cm x 8.25cm), and appear to be in good condition, apart from a few with mostly minor degradation. Two images are duplicated. Most are original photographs, but several are halftone images copied from printed sources, and others have appeared in later publications.
 Robert Swain and family 1929. - Slide BRG |
 Gaetano Lavarello and family. 1929. - Slide BRH |
Context
The provenance of the slides is not stated, but the printed labels name companies in Paris, New York and Chicago, and the vendor in based in the US. From the subject matter, it seems that they were produced for lectures by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG).
Three photos were copied from the book "The Lonely Island" by Rose Rogers, whose husband Rev. Martin Rogers was the priest on the island from 1922 to 1925. The original photographs in the collection seem to have been taken during the visits of three or possibly four ships. The RMSP Orca (Capt. Le Brecht) dropped a raft with supplies and mail off Tristan in 1926, but did not establish contact with the islanders. Unfortunately, the raft was carried the wrong way by the current and lost. Capt. Le Brecht tried again in 1927 on the RMSP Asturias. This time, the supply raft was intercepted successfully, and he entertained 30 islanders on board ship. The Rev. R.A.C. Pooley and his lay assistant Philip Lindsay arrived later that year on the SS Suveric. They appear prominently on the photographs taken in 1928 during the visit of the cruise ship RMS Empress of France (Capt. Griffiths), which brought supplies to Tristan. Pooley was not a well man, and when the RMS Duchess of Atholl brought 25 tons of stores in 1929 (again Capt. Griffiths), he was relieved by the Rev. A.G. Partridge. Lindsay, however, stayed on for a further year, leaving on the SS Tymeric in 1930.
 Island men & women heading for shore. 1927. - Slide BSP |
 The Duchess of Atholl landing Supplies. 1929. - Slide BSQ |
Summary Subjects
Many of the slides feature St. Mary's Church and its clergy, with three showing the interior of the church during its refurbishment. There are several interesting pictures of families, including Lavarellos, Swains and Glasses, as well as other groups of islanders, mostly taken on the beach while landing supplies. There are some photos of cottages, and more general views. Several pictures are taken on board ships, with shots showing supply rafts being built and launched, and islanders visiting the Duchess of Atholl, including women. Lastly there are odd slides of graves, longboat building, water supply, visiting doctors, etc.
 Doctors ashore on Tristan with R.F.Glass. Slide BRI |
 The Rock Stream. - Slide BTD |
Slide List
All but three of the slides are labelled with three-letter codes in a discrete block. They tend to group certain topics together when sorted alphabetically, although there is no obvious flow of subjects. In the list below, the slides without codes have been inserted in the most appropriate gaps and identified with an asterisk.
The list below gives: the slide code letters, the vendor's lot titles, and the captions written on the slides, plus my notes. Zoomable images of all the slides are available on your local version of eBay. To find a slide, search for "lantern" and the slide code letters (e.g. "BRH"), or keywords from the lot titles - e.g. "lantern BSZ" or "lantern Repetto". Please note that the vendor's lot titles contain a few errors.
-
BQZ* - TRISTAN ISLAND MISSION HOUSE Meteorological
Tristan: MISSION HOUSE. White boxes contain METEOROLOGICAL Instruments: 1929 -
BRA - TRISTAIN [sic] DA CUNHA 1927 island CAPTAIN MEN
Tristan da Cunha. Capt. Le Brecht and men at the island. Feb. 1927 -
BRB - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA 1928 Rev POOLEY
The Rev. Pooley: 1928. -
BRC - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA 1929 Rev PARTRIDGE
Rev. Partridge 1929 -
BRD - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA 1927 Rev POOLEY CHURCH
Rev. Pooley at the church: 1929
[Published in The Times, 20th March 1929, p.20] -
BRE - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA 1929 PARTRIDGE MONGOOSE
Rev. Partridge and the mongoose. 1929. -
BRF - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA EARLY WOMEN OF TRISTAIN
Old Betty Cotton on left [with three other women.]
[From a halftone print in R.A.Rogers' 'Lonely Island' (1927).] -
BRG - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA ROBERT SWAIN FAMILY 1929
Robert Swain family 1929. -
BRH - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA LAVERULLO FAMILY 1929
Gaetano Lavarello and family. 1929. -
BRI - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA THE DOCTORS ON TRISTAIN
Tristan: Dr. Vandenhaaf(?), Owen. C. Wilkinson, Dr. William Kline, H.G.M. R.F.Glass. -
BRJ - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Mrs Glass Son 1929
Mrs. Glass, son, and cart. 1929. [Ox yoke propped against wall.] -
BRK - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA FRED SWAIN FAMILY 1929
Fred Swain's family 1929. -
BRL - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Mrs Glass Lavurullo Gran
1929. Mrs. Glass, Granny Green, and Mrs. Lavarello. [with girl and two visiting men] -
BRM - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Family and Friends
Tristan. [Two visiting men with an island man and a boy outside a cottage.] -
BRN - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Family by Edge of WATER
[Women and girls with a bespectacled man. Big Point in the background]
[Image flipped horizontally.] -
BRO* - VERY RARE TRISTAN ISLAND Joe Repetto Home 1929
The Repetto Home (Joe Repetto): 1929 -
BRP - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA all the children !!
[All the island children, including Scouts in uniform.]
[From a halftone print in R.A.Rogers' 'Lonely Island' (1927) but flipped horizontally.] -
BRQ - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA TOM COTTON's GRAVE
Tom Cotton's grave on Tristan. -
BRR - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA WILLIAM GLASS GRAVE 1929
William Glass grave: 1929. -
BRS - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA ROB GLASS FAMILY 1929
Robert F. Glass and family. -
BRT - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA THE GLASS FAMILY 1929
Glass family 1929. -
BRU - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA LAVURULLO DAUGHTER 1929
Mrs. Gaetano Lavarello and daughter [Mary 'Jane' and Margaret Kathleen].
[Published in D.Gane 'Tristan da Cunha' 1932, facing p.112. Image flipped horizontally.] -
BRV - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Women and Children 1929
Some of the women and children: 1928 [on board a ship] -
BRW - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Women Children 1929 SHIP
Women and children of Tristan island: 1928 [On board a ship] -
BRX - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA One of the Cottages 1928
Women at the door of one of the cottages: 1928. -
BRY* - TRISTAN ISLAND Missionaries, Boys, Men
Our Captains, the Missionaries and men and boys of the island: NOTE SHOES
[Published in D.Gane 'Tristan da Cunha' 1932, facing p.144, credited to Canadian Pacific Steamships, Ltd.] -
BRZ - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Waiting for supply 1928
Waiting for the supplies to be landed. 1928. [Women & children by a crate] -
BSA - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA CHILDREN TRISTAIN
[Women and children on a beach.] -
BSB - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA CHILDREN STAY HOME
Some of the children who stayed at home. -
BSC - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA LINDSEY AND MARTIN 1928
Mr. Lindsey and Martin De Wirth[?] at Lindsey's cottage. 1928. -
BSD - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA FAMILY ON TRISTAIN
[Unidentified Tristan family - Boy the same as in slide BRM] -
BSE - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA HENRY HOME WITH FLAG!
Henry Green's house: Flag awarded by England for life saving. 1929. -
BSF - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA ST MARY CHURCH 1929
Church of St Mary: 1929.
[Possibly from a half tone print. Published later in The Times, 31st March 1951, p.10] -
BSG - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA COTTAGE 1928
One of the Cottages: 1928. -
BSH - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA COTTAGE FIREPLACE 1929
A Tristan fire place. 1929.
[Similar view to BSN but flipped horizontally] -
BSI - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SHIP EMPRESS FRANCE SEA
One of the Cottages and the "Empress of France" 1928 -
BSJ - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA ISLANDER AND HOME 1929
Tristan islander and his home: 1929. -
BSK - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA INSIDE ST MARY CHURCH
Inside of the church of St Mary. 1928.
[Published in D.Gane 'Tristan da Cunha' 1932, facing p.150] -
BSL - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA INSIDE ST MARY CHURCH #2
[Interior of St Mary's church.] -
BSM - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA INSIDE ST MARY CHURCH #3
Interior of the Church 1929. -
BSN - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA INSIDE COTTAGE FIREPLACE
[Hearth inside a cottage]
[Similar view to BSH but flipped horizontally] -
BSO - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA RAFT OFF ISLAND SUPPLY
The raft off at Tristan Island. 1926. -
BSP - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SHIP TO SHORE 1927 WOW!
Leaving our ship for the shore. 1927. -
BSQ - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SHIP EMPRESS SUPPLIES
Landing Supplies 1929 [Ship offshore. Longboat arriving to waiting women. Crates in foreground.]
[Duplicate of BST. Published in The Times, 20th March 1929, p.20. Image flipped horizontally.] -
BSR - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SHIP EMPRESS of FRANCE 2
Filling the raft for Tristan: 1926 [on board a ship] -
BSS - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SHIP EMPRESS of FRANCE 3
Swinging out the raft for Tristan: 1926. -
BST - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SHIP EMPRESS of FRANCE 4
Landing Supplies 1929 [Ship offshore. Longboat arriving to waiting women. Crates in foreground.]
[Duplicate of BSQ. Published in The Times, 20th March 1929, p.20] -
BSU - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA BOAT BUILDING on ISLAND
Boat building on Tristan Island.
[Published in D.Gane 'Tristan da Cunha' 1932, facing p.72] -
BSV - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SUPPLY LANDING SHIP
At the landing beach: 1929 [with most of the population behind crates & sacks.] -
BSW - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SHIP EMPRESS of FRANCE 5
Landing Supplies 1929 [Ship offshore. Longboat pushing off from women. Crates in foreground] -
BSX - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SUPPLY BACK TO SHIP
Back to the ship in a heavy sea. 1929. [Longboat] -
BSY* - Cpt Griffiths, Rev Pooley, Mr Lindsey, Chief E
Capt. Griffiths, Rev. Pooley, Mr. Lindsey and Chief Eng: 1928 -
BSZ - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA GOOD BY SUPPLY SHIP
Good Bye. 1929. [10 island men looking up and waving from a longboat.] -
BTA - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA BOAT FROM EMPRESS FRANCE
[Two longboats next to a ship off Tristan, one towing a raft.] -
BTB - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA BOAT EMPRESS FRANCE #2
Going ashore. 1929. [Longboat from above, incl. visitors Rev. Pooley and P.Lindsay.]
[Image flipped horizontally.] -
BTC - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA FROM THE EMPRESS FRANCE
1926. Tristan da Cunha. [From the sea - Looks more like Nightingale Island.] -
BTD - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA THE ROCK STREAM
[Water supply - stone construction directing the flow of the watron, with wooden bucket] -
BTE - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA ISLAND FROM THE EMPRESS
Tristan da Cunha. 1926 [Taken from the RMSP Asturias.]
[Frontispiece in D.Gane 'Tristan da Cunha' 1932] -
BTF - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA REMOTE ISLAND
Inaccessible Island
[From a halftone print in R.A.Rogers' 'Lonely Island' (1927).] -
BTG - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA SW CORNER FROM EMPRESS
S.W. Corner: Tristan da Cunha. [From the sea] -
BTH - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Plataou FROM EMPRESS
The plateau on island: Tristan da Cunha [from the sea, showing the settlement.]
[Detail published in D.Gane 'Tristan da Cunha' 1932, facing p.48] -
BTI - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA Edinburgh Settlement
Edinburgh Settlement: Tristan da Cunha: 1929. [From inland] -
BTJ - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA GEOGRAPHICAL MAP SKY
Tristan Island [printed map or chart]
[Image flipped horizontally.] -
BTK - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA GEOGRAPHICAL MAP SKY #2
[Detail of printed map/chart of 'Tristan Settlement'] -
BTL - TRISTAIN DA CUNHA William Glass CHARACTER
William Glass. Tristan. [Augustus Earle's painting.] -
BTM - SHIP cartoon island history help identify
[Printed engraving from 'The Graphic' (1875).]
[Image flipped horizontally.]