Happy birthday to us!

We hope all our readers had a fantastic Christmas!

In the Central Refuge Yard, 1890

As always, as we welcome in the New Year, the Together Trust celebrates another 12 months of helping people break through barriers. The beginning of January is always a special time of the year for the charity as it takes pride in its long illustrious history and celebrates another birthday. Today we reach the grand old age of 143!

I thought we’d celebrate this wondrous event with two images taken from one of our older photograph albums. The first was taken in the Refuge Yard on Francis Street, Manchester and shows a group photograph of the Caxton Brigade alongside Mr Shaw, one of the charity's founders.

The second image was taken in 1883 showing some of the younger boys from the charity. Mr Shaw is again visible on the left hand side, this time without his traditional black top hat. The image, although still posed, seems much more relaxed than that of the Caxton Brigade.

Why is nobody smiling?

In both these images, not one smile can be seen on any of the children’s (or adults’) faces. This was not a sign of unhappiness however, but rather revealed the photography techniques at the time. Nineteenth-century photographic materials were nowhere near as light-sensitive as today's films. This meant the pioneer photographers needed several minutes to properly set up an image. A common theory was that smiling would be an uncomfortable expression to hold for these long exposure times, explaining why few attempted it. Any movement made when the photograph was being taken would result in blurring, as seen on a couple of the boys' faces in this image.

I doubt even Mr Shaw would ever have predicted his beloved organisation would still be going strong 143 years after he first opened its doors at the small terraced house on Quay Street. I am sure however, that he would have been proud!