![](http://www.alamy.com/thumbs/6/B85CB645-C303-47BB-9E60-1FB78467ED97/2WKMEYE.jpg)
Original Victorian Carte de Visite (visiting card or CDV) of working class man - a drover / shepherd wearing tall crowned bowler hat, carrying a crook, wearing leather boots with buttoned gaiters, with his faithful collie sheepdog. The man may have driven his sheep bound for the meat markets of London such as Smithfields, from as far away as Wales following ancient drovers routes. Possibly a Welshman. Many drovers grazed their animals on the Common at Peckham village before going on to London. Photographer - Theophilus Claudius Kirby (1829-1907) Peckham, London, Borough of Southwark,
By the photographer Theophilus Claudius Kirby (1829-1907), on the reverse of the card can be seen that it was whilst he had a studio at 85 Hill Street Peckham from 1879-1895 - which helps to date photograph. . Peckham was mostly a farming community. On a 1746 map fields and small farms are shown with the main development being at the junction of South Street and Peckham Lane (now known as Rye Lane) and the Peckham Road in the north. The boundaries of the Common seem to be almost unchanged today. Goose Green and Nunhead Green were then extensions of the Common. Cattle drovers used Peckham Village as it was known then, as a stopping place before going onto the markets of London. Their herds were put out to graze on the Common while they took refreshments at the various : Is this a sentimental photo of the rural poor, made to satisfy the market for Victorians nostalgic greetings cards, illustrating dying traditional ways of life - we also see fisherfolk for example. Or did the photographer set up an outside studio to catch trade from the drovers passing through Peckham?
Size: 4600px × 7135px
Location: Peckham, London,
Photo credit: © ThislifeThen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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