Fox & Symons portraits of Latter-day Saint church officers
Scope and Contents
Collection includes portraits of presidents and church officers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints taken by Fox & Symons, and later by Charles W. Symons. Subjects include Brigham Young, Joseph F. Smith, and Heber J. Grant. All are cabinet photographs. Dated approximately 1874-1906.
Dates
- Creation: approximately 1874-1906
Creator
- Fox & Symons (Firm) (creator, Organization)
- Symons, Charles W. (Charles William), 1845-1934 (creator, Person)
- Fox, Alexander (creator, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
Open for public research. Items kept in cold storage; access requires 24 hours advance notice.
Conditions Governing Use
It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to use material from this collection must be obtained from Reference Services at specialcollections@byu.edu.
Biographical / Historical
Fox & Symons was a photography gallery and studio established in Salt Lake City, Utah in 1874. The proprietors of the gallery were photographers Alexander Fox (1828-1882) and Charles W. Symons (1845-1934). They bought a studio from C.W. Carter in 1879 where they ran their business. The gallery closed in 1883, following the death of Fox. Symons continued to photograph after the death of Fox until 1906 when Henry Newell bought the photography studio. The photographs included portraits of presidents of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and other people and scenes in Utah.
Biographical / Historical
Charles W. Symons was born on June 17, 1845 in London England to parents Sarah Elsey and Charles Henry Symons. He then migrated to Utah from England in the year 1864. He married his wife Azella Whitaker and was shortly thereafter called on a mission to England on March 4, 1889. Charles W. Symons started a photography business with Alexander Fox in 1874 in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was the joint owner of the Fox & Symons photograph gallery between 1874 and 1883. Their photographs mainly consisted of people and places in Salt Lake City and a large collection of them can be found in the Brigham Young University Archives. He later opened his own studio which closed in 1906. He died at the age of 89 on July 23, 1934 and was buried next to his wife in the Salt Lake cemetery.
Biographical / Historical
Alexander Fox was born on August 22, 1825 in Norwich, Norfolk, United Kingdom to parents Joel Fox and Eliza Emanuel. He married Rosetta Phillips on September 20, 1854 in Melbourne, Australia. He then moved to California where he photographed in San Rafael, California and subsequently moved to Salt Lake City, Utah. There he opened a photography gallery with his friend Charles W. Symons in 1879. Their photographs mainly consist of portraits of Utah people and images from the Utah area. He and his wife went on to have eight children. He died in Salt Lake City, Utah on March 10, 1882.
Extent
3 folders (0.15 linear ft.)
Language of Materials
English
Custodial History
Materials were donated to L. Tom Perry Special Collections by Roger Flick in 1985.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated; Roger Flick; 1985.
Appraisal
Photographs (Photograph Archives).
Processing Information
Processed; Anne Ashton; August 2022. Updated finding aid for DACS compliance and accuracy. Rehoused photographs to plastic sleeves for preservation.
Subject
- Grant, Heber J. (Heber Jeddy), 1856-1945 -- Portraits (Person)
- Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- Apostles--Photographs (Organization)
- Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints -- Presidents--Photographs (Organization)
- Smith, Joseph F. (Joseph Fielding), 1838-1918 -- Portraits (Person)
- Young, Brigham, 1801-1877 -- Portraits (Person)
- Title
- Register of Fox & Symons portraits of Latter-day Saint church officers
- Status
- Under Revision
- Author
- Abe Austin
- Date
- 2012 February 23
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid written in English in Latin script.
Repository Details
Part of the L. Tom Perry Special Collections Repository
1130 HBLL
Brigham Young University
Provo Utah 84602 United States