Cecil Shadbolt
- George Shadbolt
Cecil Victor Shadbolt (1859 – 8 July 1892) was a British photographer, who pioneered aerial photography from flying balloons.
Life
Shadbolt was born in 1859, the son of the mahogany dealer and photographer George Shadbolt.[1][2]
He showed photographs of Welsh landscapes at the 1877 Photographic Society exhibition.[2]
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c7/Cecil_Shadbolt_collection_-_54_-_An_aerial_view_showing_Stonebridge_Road%2C_Stamford_Hill%2C_and_Seven_Sisters_Curve%2C_part_of_the_Tottenham_and_Hampstead_Junction_Railway%2C_taken_from_2000ft.jpg/220px-thumbnail.jpg)
His first balloon ascent was in May 1882, at Alexandra Palace.[1] He made his own device for attaching a camera to the basket below a balloon, allowing him to take pictures looking directly downwards.[1] One of his images, taken from 2,000 feet (610 m) over Stamford Hill, is the earliest extant aerial photograph taken in the British Isles.[1] A print of the same image, An Instantaneous Map Photograph taken from the Car of a Balloon, 2,000 feet high, was shown at the 1882 Photographic Society exhibition.[2]
Shadbolt gave public lectures, using magic lantern slides, with the title Balloons and Ballooning, Upward and Onwards.[3]
He was secretary of the West Kent Sunday School Union from 1886.[2]
Death
On 29 June 1892, he took a flight in a gas balloon owned by (or which he co-owned with; sources vary) his friend 'Captain' William D. Dale, at Crystal Palace.[1] The balloon ripped during the initial ascent, at around 600 feet (180 m),[2] and though those aboard dropped ballast, the basket crashed to the ground, immediately killing Dale.[1] Shadbolt and the other passengers were taken to Norwood Cottage Hospital,[2] but Shadbolt died on 8 July,[3] aged 33.[1] He was buried, alongside members of his family, in grave 1,932, square 113, at West Norwood Cemetery.[2] His father was later buried in the adjacent plot.[2]
An inquest at the hospital, on 12 July 1892, under coroner, Mr Jackson, returned verdicts of accidental death.[2]
Shadbolt Collection
The Shadbolt Collection of 76 glass lantern slides taken between 1882 and 1892 is held by Historic England,[1] The slides were found at a car boot sale and subsequently purchased at auction by Historic England in 2015.[1][4]
Publications
- Harper, Henry Andrew (1888). Walks in Palestine. Religious Tract Society. – includes 24 photogravures by Shadbolt[2][5]
- An 1894 edition was subtitled "With a Portrait and Brief Memoir of the Late Cecil V. Shadbolt".
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "The Shadbolt Collection". Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Colin, Fenn (2016). "George & Cecil Shadbolt – Pioneer Photographers" (PDF). Friends of West Norwood. Newsletter (86): 6–8.
- ^ a b "Cecil Shadbolt (left) and 'Captain' William Dale (right)..." Historic England. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ "'Earliest' aerial photos auctioned". BBC News. BBC News. 8 October 2015. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
- ^ "Henry Andrew Harper (1835–1900) – Walks in Palestine". Royal Collection Trust. Retrieved 27 April 2020.
Further reading
- report, Illustrated London News, 9 July 1892
- report, Blackheath Gazette, 15 July 1892
- v
- t
- e
- Jun 15, 1785 De Rozier's balloon incident
- Apr 15, 1875 Zénith balloon incident
- Jul 13, 1897 Arctic Balloon Expedition
- Feb 14, 1902 Santos-Dumont nº6 crash (Monaco)
- May 12, 1902 Pax airship disaster
- Nov 30, 1907 Patrie airship disappearance
- Sep 25, 1909 Lebaudy République airship
- Apr 24, 1910 Zeppelin LZ 5 crash
- Jul 13, 1910 Erbslöh airship crash
- May 21, 1911 Paris to Madrid air race accident
- Feb 17, 1912 Martin-Handasyde No. 3
- May 13, 1912 Brooklands Flanders Monoplane crash
- Sep 10, 1912 Bristol Coanda Monoplane crash
- Dec 15, 1912 Handley Page Type F crash
- Apr 17, 1913 Zodiac balloon accident
- Aug 7, 1913 Cody Floatplane crash
- Sep 9, 1913 Helgoland disaster
- Oct 17, 1913 Johannisthal disaster
- Aug 23, 1914 Zeppelin LZ 23 shot down
- Feb 17, 1915 Zeppelin LZ 24
- Mar 21, 1915 Zeppelin LZ 29 crash
- Jun 07, 1915 Zeppelin LZ 37 shot down
- Jun 07, 1915 Zeppelin LZ 38 shed bombardment
- Aug 10, 1915 Zeppelin LZ 43 fire
- Oct 2, 1915 Alsace crash
- Dec 17, 1915 Zeppelin LZ 39
- Feb 01, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 54 crash
- Feb 21, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 47
- Apr 01, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 48
- May 03, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 59 crash
- May 04, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 32
- May 05, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 55 shot down
- Sep 16, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 31
- Sep 24, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 76
- Sep 24, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 74
- Oct 02, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 72
- Nov 27, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 78 shot down
- Nov 28, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 61 shot down
- Dec 28, 1916 Zeppelin LZ 53 fire
- Mar 17, 1917 Zeppelin LZ 86
- May 14, 1917 Zeppelin LZ 64
- Jun 17, 1917 Zeppelin LZ 95 shot down
- Aug 21, 1917 Zeppelin LZ 66
- Oct 08, 1917 Zeppelin LZ 102
- Oct 20, 1917 Zeppelin LZ 85 crash
- Oct 20, 1917 Zeppelin LZ 89 crash
- Dec 14, 1917 C.26 crash
- Apr 07, 1918 Zeppelin LZ 104
- Aug 06, 1918 Zeppelin LZ 112
- Aug 11, 1918 Zeppelin LZ 100
- Aug 19, 1918 Maxstoke air crash
- May 26, 1919 Tarrant Tabor
- Jul 15, 1919 Airship N.S.11 crash
- Jul 21, 1919 Wingfoot Air Express crash
- Aug 2, 1919 Verona Caproni Ca. 48 crash
- For single-person aviation accidents see:
Aviators killed in early aviation accidents