Harold Bryce Thomson: Photographing Wensleydale

6th October 2026 to 1st November 2026

The Garden Rooms at Tennants is delighted to be holding an exhibition of images taken from the extraordinary archive of Harold Bryce Thomson (1896-1981), a passionate and talented photographer from Leeds.

Harold Bryce Thomson: Conversation Piece
Harold Bryce Thomson: Conversation Piece

The majority of the images in the exhibition were taken in the 1940s in and around Wensleydale. Thomson came to know and love the area after three of his children were evacuated to Redmire during the Second World War. Both during and after the war, he and his family were regular visitors to the area and became great friends with Fred Lawson and the Castle Bolton artists.

Harold Bryce Thomson: The Haycart
Harold Bryce Thomson: The Haycart

For Harold, a trichologist by trade, photography was much more than a hobby. It connected many different strands of his life – his interest in history, his friendships with artists and fellow photographers, his love of Yorkshire and the Dales, and his desire to document the people and places around him.

The photographs have been reproduced from a larger archive of approximately 400 of Thomson's glass slides, which will be sold in the Books, Maps & Manuscripts Sale at Tennants Auctioneers on 25th November with an estimate of £300-500 plus buyer’s premium.

Harold Bryce Thomson: For Waste Paper
Harold Bryce Thomson: For Waste Paper

The exhibition is free to enter.

OPENING HOURS