Josiah Bruce


Josiah Bruce was a Canadian, known for creating notable photographs, of historic value, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century.
Bruce's maternal grandfather, John Taylor, was a naval hero, who served under Horatio Nelson, who had his picture painted for Britain's National Picture Gallery, after he dived in and managed to retrieve dispatches a French officer had tried to dispose of by throwing them overboard. Bruce's parents joined Taylor, in Guelph, Ontario, in 1837. Bruce was born there, in 1840. Bruce studied at the Paisley Block School, there, and studied architecture.
In 1861, Bruce worked briefly, as an architect, in Quebec City, but soon started working under established photographer William Notman, in Montreal. Bruce worked for Notman, for about fifteen years, before setting up his own photography studio in Toronto.
According to his biographer, Joan M. Schwarz, Bruce's 1876 photo of Ned Hanlan was probably the first ever taken of the famous rower.
According to Graeme Mercer Adam's 1891 Toronto, Old and New, "There are few houses of refinement in Toronto, or for that matter, in Ontario, that do not contain one or more photographs executed in Mr. Bruce's excellent studio."
In 1894 Bruce was awarded a contract from Toronto's City Engineer to take photographs of the city's work on public projects. Bruce replace photographer F.W. Micklethwaite. Bruce documented city work for five years.