Thursday, September 27, 2007

Freddy Woermer, Photographer






F.Woermer
Photo, Silvan

Fred Woermer was a photographer who lived in a humpy on the Middle Creek in Burleigh. His home was below the Monbulk Seville road just past the bush half way along from the Gospel Hall towards Ferndale Road during the 1920s, 30 and 40s or so.

My father Ronald Knoll remembers the Freddy Woermer had room in a hollow tree, which he thought might have been a toilet, but his older sister Eily [Whittingham] tells me it was his photographic darkroom. Dad remembers Mt Woermer coming to take the school photographs at Silvan South Primary school, with an old tripod style camera with a black hooded cape which Freddy used to get under to take the pictures. My aunt, Eily Whittingham still has some copies of these early school photographs.
Ferdinand (Ferdie?) WÖRMERwas born in Fitzroy, Melbourne in 1886 son of Johann Ferdinand WÖRMER & Helene Magdalene nee BOBSIEN, who I believe may have come from Hamburg. After his father died in 1888 Ferdie's mother remarried in 1898 to Robert SCHMIDT. I believe that Ferdie had a sister Mathilde who married Alex STRANG in 1914 and lived in Sandringham where their children were born. Ferdie Woermer died in 1950 at Burleigh. Maybe the Strang descendants have more of Freddy's photographs.

The insignia here is taken from the a colourised portrait above, taken in about 1930 or so of Mabel Knoll, nee Briggs, wife of Charles Knoll of Burleigh. The picture is typical of the 1920's style, framed a with gold-painted oval surround. Fred Woermer's signature insignia can be seen on the picture in the bottom right-hand corner. How he managed to do such fine copy and well finished work in a studio in a hollow tree is amazing.

2 comments:

Gus Woerner said...

My family name is Woermer. My family came from Hamburg, Germany. I can trace them back to the late 17th Century.

The Woermers were famous for book publishing, owners of the famous Convent Garden, and owners of the well-known Shoffenhaus Retreat Center and Spa in Elgesburg, Germany.

I wonder if there is a family connection.

August Woermer - email address: guswo@cox.net

Gus Woerner said...

I have two email addresses, guswo@cox.net and ajw2374@gmail.com

I'd like to hear from you. Just found out that the spelling of my surname is actually, WOERMER.

August J Woerner from Westerly, RI

Gus