An antique photo of Temuka School by the photographer W Holwell.

The date on the tower is 1883 when the school was built and there's the date 1890 written on the back of the photograph. However the impressed photographer's name on the grey card surround is W Holwell and William Holwell(1862-1922) started his photography business called "Elite Studio" in 1910.

Arriving in NZ from the UK in the 1880s, as a young man he worked on the land, but following some form of injury requiring an operation, he turned to less manual work and took over an existing photography business in 1910 in half a building on the main street, that still functions as a shop(fish & game) today. I've seen a photograph of the two proprietors standing outside the shared building in 1913 when a second storey was added and the one in front of Elite Studio has a cane. As an aside, apparently William Holwell was also "a keen follower of trotting".

Consequently, this photograph is possibly Edwardian rather than Victorian, otherwise Holwell would've had to use an earlier glass negative. Perhaps someone will recognise the children's clothing and be able to assist with this quandary.

The photograph measures 20cm by 15cm and the card 30cm by 25cm. Generally it's in good condition and appropriate to an antique age.