Newfoundland – Professor Holloway

Who was Robert Edwards Holloway?

Robert Edwards Holloway [1850-1904], educator, scientist, and photographer was born in

Barton-upon-Humber. In 1874 he travelled to Newfoundland in response to an

invitation to take the appointment as Principal of the St John’s Wesleyan Academy.

The appointment was intended to be for four years but in fact he stayed until his death in 1904. His academic area was chemistry so it was inevitable that he would be interested in the new science of photography, and he became an enthusiastic and very able photographer.

He was described as the ‘Newfoundland’s most able photographer.’ 1 As a sufferer from tuberculosis he would take every opportunity of travel into the countryside of Newfoundland and take photographs in the landscape. These images would form the basis of Through Newfoundland with the Camera, an album of 115 photographs, published posthumously in 1905.

A new stamp issue was released 1923/24 and of the 14 designs, 12 were based on photographs by Professor Holloway.

The example shown is the 8cent stamp with a scaled down version of the original photograph.

Newfoundland, 8 cent, 1923/24, SG

Qui Vidi Harbour, by Robert Edwards Holloway, 

Boggs, W.S., The Postage Stamps and Postal History of Newfoundland (Lawrence (USA), Quartermain Publications Inc., 1975) p. 98