Henry Walter Barnett

Henry Walter Barnett, c. 1894

Image courtesy of the National Library of Australia¹

Summary list of events in Henry Walter Barnett's life

25 January 1862: born at 4 Park Terrace, Fitzroy St, St Kilda, Melbourne, Victoria.²
24 July 1868: birth of Hilda Frances Clement (Ella) Forbes, HWB's future wife, at Bath, Somerset, England.³
c. 1876: began work as a studio assistant to Robert Stewart of Bourke St, Melbourne.²
c. May 1883: set up the Elite Studio in partnership with Harold Riise in Hobart, Tasmania.²
31 August 1883: partnership with Harold Riise dissolved.
1884: he was working for Isaiah West Taber in San Francisco, California.⁴
c. 1885: worked for W. and D. Downey in London.⁴
1886: returned to Australia.
1886: possibly set up a studio at Minerva Chambers, 126 Pitt St, Sydney.
late 1886: took over Emil Riisfeldt's photographic studios in Sydney, using the nom de caméra of Falk.⁵
(Riisfeldt moved to Newtown, Sydney.)
January 1887: copied photographs of the Mount Rennie criminals, which were published in The Referee (Sydney); this caused him some embarrassment and he published repudiations of any other connection.
late 1888: visited Europe (at least).
18 July 1889: married Hilda Frances Clement Forbes at the Registrar General's office, Sydney.⁶
early 1890: photographed Robert Louis Stevenson on his visit to Australia
c. 1891: rented the property Lindenan in East Crescent St, Macmahon's Point, Sydney
mid 1891: photographed Sarah Bernhardt on her visit to Australia.
7 September 1891 – 7 January 1892: trip to USA and Europe.
Probably another overseas trip.
1893 – 1896: lived at various addresses (rented) at Elizabeth Bay, Sydney.
29 April 1893: opening of the Ideal Portrait Company rooms, run by Barnett and his partner Aaron Blashki, at 480 George St, Sydney.
27 April 1894 – 5 October 1894: trip to Europe and USA.
16 March 1895: Falk's Studios, 92 - 94 Elizabeth St, Melbourne were opened.⁷
16 September 1895: photographed Mark Twain (Samuel L. Clemens) at Sydney.
15 February 1896: Barnetts present at first night of farewell season in Melbourne of Brough-Boucicault Comedy Company, at the Princess' Theatre, Melbourne.
6 June 1896: Barnetts present at opening night of As You Like It at the Princess' Theatre.
[14 June 1896: Marius Sestier departed from Marseille for Mumbai.]⁸
[30 June 1896: Marius Sestier arrived at Mumbai.]
July, August 1896: photographed various stage stars in Sydney and Melbourne.
13 July 1896: bought a block of land on the corner of Goodwood and Elsmere Streets, Randwick, Sydney.⁹
August, September 1896: HWB photographed Dorothy Usner in Melbourne and Sydney.
[26 August 1896: Marius Sestier departed from Mumbai for Australia.]
28 August 1896: Ella Barnett returned to Sydney from Adelaide.
29 August 1896: H. W. Barnett present at premiere of A Trip to Chinatown at the Princess' Theatre.
8 September 1896: auctioned his household furniture and appointments, including artworks, in Sydney.
10 September 1896: Barnetts attended the wedding of Scot Inglis and Yda Hamilton at St. Stephen's Presbyterian church, Sydney.
[16 September 1896: Marius Sestier arrived at Sydney.]
16 – 28 September 1896: together with Charles B. Westmacott, set up the Salon Lumière at 237 Pitt St, Sydney for Marius Sestier.
28 – 29 October 1896: travelled to Melbourne with Marius Sestier.
31 October 1896: filmed with Sestier at VRC Derby Day at Flemington racecourse, Melbourne.
3 November 1896: filmed with Sestier at the Melbourne Cup races at Flemington racecourse.
late November 1896: helped his friend, the artist Arthur Streeton, set up his art exhibition next door to Falk's Melbourne studios.
1 February 1897: departed from Adelaide, South Australia aboard the F.M.S. Polynésien, for Marseille and London.¹⁰ (Arthur Streeton was also on board.)
c. June 1897: living at Queen Anne's Mansions, Hyde Park, London.
30 September 1897: awarded the premier medal for portraiture from the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain for his studies of Henri Kowalski, Sir Henry Parkes, and John Tanner.
late 1897 – early 1898: HWB was ill (with rheumatism) and spent time at Bath and Buxton – "taking the waters"?
1897 – 1898: had a photographic materials dealer's shop at 66 Berners St, Oxford St, London.
May 1898: opened a studio at 1 Park Side, Hyde Park Corner, London.
10 May 1899: elected to the Linked Ring with the name "Antipodean".
by 1 January 1900: HWB no longer involved with the Ideal Portrait Company.
May 1900: ceased any connection with Falk Studios in Sydney.
6 February 1901: severed connection with the Linked Ring.
March 1901: the Barnetts were living at 5 Portman Mansions, East St, Marylebone, London.
1901: HWB was a founder member of the Professional Photographers' Association.
3 March 1903: HWB (alone) returned to Melbourne on board R.M.S. Australia.
23 March 1903: HWB departed from Sydney on board R.M.S. Sierra for San Francisco and London.
by May 1903: moved London studio to 12 Knightsbridge, Hyde Park Corner, London.
23 January 1904: sold (by attorney) his real estate in Randwick.⁹
15 November 1905 – 8 January 1906: HWB travelled from London to California and back.
1906: living at Greencroft Gardens, Hampstead, NW, London.
March 1908: HWB and Ella stayed at Hotel Montfleury, Menton, France.
December 1910 – January 1911: went to the USA to visit photographers in New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Chicago, Milwaukee, Niagara Falls, Buffalo, Rochester, Boston, and other places.
April 1911: the Barnetts were living at 15 Boundary Rd, St John's Wood, London.
1920: closed his London photographic business and moved to France.²
December 1924: living in Paris.
April 1926: living in Italy.
3 – 14 May 1927: held an exhibition of modern French art at the Fine Art Society's galleries in Melbourne.
c. September 1927: living at Villa Belmont, Boulevard Chantemerle, Aix-les-Bains, France.
29 April – 10 May 1930: exhibited modern French art at the Fine Art Society's Galleries, 100 Exhibition St, Melbourne.
27 May – 10 June 1930: exhibited modern French art at Anthony Hordern's Fine Art Gallery, Sydney.
late 1933: published an attack on the committee of the Felton Bequest for its policy of acquiring old masters rather than modern art.
January 1934: they were living at 36 avenue des Beaumettes, Nice, France.
16 January 1934: HWB died at 175 boulevard Carnot, Nice, France.²
20 January 1934: remains of HWB cremated at Guillotière cemetery, Lyon, France.¹¹
7 November 1951: death of Ella Barnett (aged 83 years) at 78 Clarence Gate Gardens, NW1, London.

Although Barnett was closely involved with Marius Sestier in producing the first motion pictures taken in Australia, there is no evidence that he did any of the filming. Quite possibly he experimented with operating Sestier's Lumière cinématographe but there is no reason to believe that any film taken in Sydney or Melbourne was shot by him.

Summary list of events in his parents' and siblings' lives

c. 1821: birth of Lewis Barnett, HWB's father, at London, England to Lewis Barnett and Rebecca (née Solomon).
c. 1833: birth of Alice Jacobs, HWB's mother.
c. 1838: Lewis Barnett came to Australia.
20 August 1851: Lewis Barnett and Alice Jacobs were married at Melbourne.
1852: birth of Bernard Barnett at South Australia.
1854: birth of Samuel Barnett at South Australia.
10 May 1860: birth of John Philip Barnett at Angas St, Adelaide, South Australia.
25 January 1862: birth of Henry Walter Barnett at St Kilda, Melbourne, Victoria.
1863: birth of Charles Lewis Barnett at St Kilda.
20 August 1865: birth of Louis Joseph Barnett at Melbourne.
1867: birth of Phoebe Barnett (HWB's only sister) at Melbourne.
4 May 1877: death of John Philip Barnett at Melbourne Hospital following an accident with sulfuric acid.
29 December 1899: Lewis Barnett made his last will.
1903: Lewis, Bernard, and Phoebe Barnett were living at 103 Hotham St, East Melbourne.
1906: Lewis, Bernard, and Phoebe Barnett were living at 167 Gipps St, East Melbourne.
23 November 1906: Lewis Barnett died at 167 Gipps St, East Melbourne.
25 November 1906: Lewis Barnett was buried in the Jewish section of Melbourne General Cemetery.
27 December 1906: probate of Lewis Barnett's estate. Phoebe was the sole executrix and everything went to her.
3 August 1910: Alice Barnett died at Ealing, London.
16 January 1934: HWB died at Nice, France.
27 April 1934: Bernard Barnett died at a private hospital, Cremorne, Sydney.
31 August 1955: death of Phoebe Barnett at Sydney.

References and notes

[1] Detail from National Library of Australia (NLA): Portrait of H. Walter Barnett:
call number 1135302; PIC Box PIC/5458 #PIC/5458; http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-141547809.

[2] File for entry for Henry Walter BARNETT in the online Australian Dictionary of Biography (ADB).
Address of birth from Sands' and McDougall's Melbourne directory, 1862, and the rates assessment book for the Municipality of St. Kilda, 1862–1863. (But it may have been somewhere else in St. Kilda.)

[3] English census returns of 3 April 1881 (The National Archives (TNA), London: RG 11/173, f 104 p 50, schedule number 204) and 2 April 1911 (TNA: RG 14/584, schedule number 264); and 29 September 1939, England and Wales Register (at Dawlish, Devon: Registration District and Sub-district 272-1, schedule number 302).

[4] September 1897, The Photogram (England), p.279, Current Topics.

[5] 1884 – 1889, Sands' Sydney directories, alphabetical, trades, and street indexes.

[6] ADB file: marriage certificate;
22 July 1889, The Sydney Morning Herald, p.1a, Marriages.

[7] 16 March 1895, The Herald (Melbourne), p.2ab, THE FALK STUDIOS

[8] The events for Marius Sestier are included to show that it was impossible for Barnett to have met him at any time between his departure from Marseille and arrival at Sydney. See The meeting of Marius Sestier and H. Walter Barnett for further details on this matter.

[9] New South Wales Land Registry Services: Certificate of Title, volume 1196 folio 133.
The land appears to have been bought as an investment, as there is no indication that the Barnetts ever built or lived there.

[10] Ann Galbally and Anne Gray (ed's): Letters from Smike: the letters of Arthur Streeton, 1890-1943, pp.70-72;
NLA: NL 759.994 S915

[11] 20 January 1934, Lyon Républicain (Lyon, France), p.5e; FUNERAILLES D'AUJOURD'HUI
[Why was he cremated at Lyon?]

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