John Masterton photographer breakthrough!

[AsH62]

Hi. I am trying to find out about the Commercial Hotel in Portsoy.

My great great uncle John Masterton died there in 1908. The odd thing was that he was from Fife and he had been a successful grocer with 13 children but in 1897 he went bankrupt and then seems to have left the family to become a photographer in Banff! I can't find any evidence of his photographs but this job was on his death certificate and the 1901 census when he was a lodger in Aberlour. I can't find him listed or advertising his profession and this has always fascinated me so i have decided to approach it from another angle and look at where he was living.

Please does anyone know if the hotel was a big set up and so he might have been working for them or was it in effect a B&B for a man on his uppers?

Any information would be great
Thanks
Alison

[GR2]

Hey Presto!

[AsH62]

Oh my goodness, your post just came through and i feel a but shaky!
I have been looking for evidence of this decade of his life for about 7 years and even asked for help from the local archives with no success and now you have managed this - thank you so much, real evidence!

Alison

[GR2]

I had thought that the photograph was taken after 1908, but unless the business was continued under the same name, it must be older. It was taken at Scotsward, Brae of Crombie, parish of Marnoch, and shows my great, great grandparents, Alexander Runcie and Elspet Stuart. Your uncle, or one of his employees, obviously travelled about Banffshire to get business.

[AsH62]

That is remarkable, and even more wonderful to know the names of the sitters.

John just disappeared from his family and I couldn't work out if he went bankrupt and that made him leave or if he left and the business collapsed.
He might have had employees but I am sure that there wasn't a family member to take on the photography, they all emigrated and were scattered around the world.
I feel that I should apologise to him, when the archives couldn't turn up any evidence I thought it was a sort of mid life crisis thing and he pretended to be a photographer - feeling a bit guilty!

[GR2]

Perhaps you could post on the Banffshire forum and ask if anyone else has examples of his work.

[AsH62]

Thank you, I’ll do that now and see what happens
Alison

[isobelw]

This thread has cheered up my morning! How wonderful to have such an immediate and successful result from your posting. Good luck with your search for more examples of his work.
Isobel

[AsH62]

Hi Isobel

It has made my morning as well!
I have just posted on the Banff page and am hopeful
Alison