William George Gibson (1831-1900)

William Gibson had established his photographic business in Scarborough by 1859. Born in Whitby he was lodging at 28 Newborough, Scarborough with his Grandfather, William Lord by 1851 and working with him as a cabinet maker. He has a number of studios mostly in North Marine Road. The family appears on the 1871 census in West Hartlepool, County Durham, listed as a photographer but seems to return to Scarborough not long after.

William Gibson married Mary Ann Donkin (1829-1894) in 1852. They had seven children, Mary Ann (b.1855), Ellen Evangelene (1857->1881), John William (1859->1861), Jane Elizabeth (later Mollon) (1860-1939), Frederick William (1865-1901), Harry (1870-c.1914), Edith Coverdale (later Knox) (1876-1934). They were all born in Scarborough, except Harry who was born on the 28 March 1870 in Tottenham, Middlesex. Harry was listed on the 1901 census as a house painter in Scarborough. Frederick and his wife Lucretia were also photographers who operated from 18 North Marine Road. An advert in the Scarborough Evening News in 1899 lists Gibson as a photographer, looking for a 14 year old “respectable girl” at an address in Auborough Street.