William James

Who was William James?

William James was an early and prolific photographer who chronicled Toronto, Ontario, and whose works have been widely collected and republished. James came to Canada, from England, in 1906, when he was forty years old. He made freelance photography his occupation in 1909, and was the founding President of the Canadian Photographers Association.

Mike Filey, the author of a long-running column in the Toronto Sun, on the history of Toronto, described James as a technical innovator.

The City of Toronto Archives hosts a collection of over 6,000 of James's photographs.