Frances Dann was Reading’s first female photographer, know locally as ‘Mrs Dann’. She opened her shop on 35 Broad Street in 1856. At the time she was recorded as one of the only photographers practicing in Reading. However, social conventions meant that her husband, Francis H. Dann, was listed as the business owner. She opened a second studio at 774 Oxford Road towards the end of the 19th Century.
The business photographed local scenes, landmarks, portraits and they helped to develop X-rays for the hospital. At the time, photography was still a privilege for those who could afford it but as well as photographing members of high society, Mrs Dann photographed prisoners from the local police station.
When Mrs Dann retired, the business was taken over by her granddaughter, Frances Lewis who was married to Henry Lewis. Shortly after, in 1903, the practice moved London Street and changed it’s name to Dann-Lewis. When Henry Lewis died, his son Walter ran the business (now at 27 Argyle Street) until it was closed.
There is a large collection of Dann-Lewis photography that can be accessed at the Museum of English Rural Life archives. Below is a panorama taken by the Dann-Lewis company from the top of a water tower- now the site of the Oracle car park.
