Rare Historical Photos of the Netherlands Women on the Streets in the 1900s

Edward Linley Sambourne was an English cartoonist, photographer, and illustrator who worked for the satirical magazine ‘Punch’, for more than forty years. Among the first cartoonists of the 19th and 20th centuries, he was considered as the father of cartooning. He attended many different schools located all over England during his schooling years. His interest in drawing and sketching was first sparked while attending Chester Training College. At sixteen, Edward Linley gained admission to the South Kensington School of Art and attended for a few months. Linley’s career with Punch magazine began with a chance encounter or a referral.

His sketches were remarkable because he used several photographs. He was an exceptional cartoonist due to his artistic skills. He even received recognition and approval from the Royal Academy of Arts for his work with the magazine. His drawings over 20 years were showcased at the Academy’s exhibition. While working for Punch, Edward Linley also earned income by illustrating books, drawing for individuals, and drawing for magazines and ads.

In 1906, Edward Linley visited Holland with his wife, Marion. During the tour, he took photographs of women in the streets. While he was in The Hague and Amsterdam, he saw women dressed in the typical daywear of middle-class women that can be seen in his photographs of London and Paris.

#1 On a quieter street a group stop to talk, in a poorly composed picture (but understandable if Sambourne was using his right angle camera)

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#2 Here in The Hague a lone woman waits outside a grand building.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#3 One of the districts of The Hague is Scheveningen, a seaside area where Sambourne found young women dressed in traditional working class costume.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#4 One of this trio is giving him a suspicious look.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#5 But this pair seem happy to pose for a picture with part of the pier behind them.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#6 An excellent view of a woman crossing over one of the canals.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#7 Here, more tall windows, traditional costume and curious glances.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#8 The next stop was Haarlem.

Although the picture is also badly composed, Sambourne has inadvertently captured a tram line and a group of women carefully crossing it, along with his main subjects the two women in the foreground.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#9 And in this picture, his interest is probably in the uniform of the nursery maid, but we can also see some characteristic Dutch architecture.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#10 Although the picture has faded with age it is still a good street scene especially the curious man in the background not looking where he’s going.

The picture was taken in Amsterdam.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#11 Another picture taken the same day which catches activity in the background.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#12 From Amsterdam they went south to Utrecht where he met these three, who stopped long enough for a picture.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#13 Utrecht may have been an excursion as the same day they make their way back towards Amsterdam.

This is a river or canal side view taken in Muiden, a suburb or district of Amsterdam.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#14 This woman was photographed having difficulty in the wind another place near Amsterdam.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#15 The party turned south again and a few days later were in the city of Middelburg, the capital of Zeeland. Here he found another traditional costume.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#16 This group look fairly serious but the picture was taken in Westkapelle, a small city surrounded on three sides by water.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote

#17 A group of teenagers pay no attention to Sambourne but what three of them are looking at and the other one is ignoring we’ll never know.

0 Points

Upvote Downvote