We’ll probably never know the identity of this boy, photographed sometime between 1895 and 1914.
The photo is amongst a collection by Blantyre amateur photographer, David Ritchie and despite it being up to 127 years old, the photo is in pristine condition, taken from a negative plate. The fashions suggest Edwardian, rather than Victorian, so I would put this photo closer to WW1. There’s every chance this is a Blantyre lad, though I don’t think its the photographer’s son.
The location also is unknown, but the climbing roses and beds of flowers make a good backdrop. In Sunday best, this may have been for attending a wedding or family celebration, the buttonhole a giveaway.
For now, without a name, this photo is simply ,the “boy with buttonhole”.
