Christina Broom

Christina Broom (née Livingston 28 December 1862 – 5 June 1939) was a Scottish photographer, credited as "the UK's first female press photographer".

Christina Livingston's parents were Scottish though she was born at 8 King's Road, Chelsea, London, the seventh of eight children. Her father was Alexander Livingston (1812-1875), a master bootmaker and her mother Margaret Fair (1826-1884). She married Albert Edward Broom (1864–1912) in 1889. They had a daughter Winifred Margaret, born 7 August 1890. In 1903, following the failure of the family ironmongery business and other business ventures, Christina borrowed a box camera and taught herself the rudiments of photography. She set up a stall in the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace, selling postcards of photographs that she had taken. She maintained this stall from 1904 until 1930.

When the family moved to Burnfoot Avenue, she used the coal cellar as her dark room. She was assisted by her daughter Winifred, who had left school to assist her mother; Albert wrote the captions for the postcards in his neat script. The postcards sold well: in one night-time session Broom printed 1000.

Christina was appointed official photographer to the Household Division from 1904 to 1939 and had a darkroom in the Chelsea Barracks; she also took many photographs of local scenes, including those at the Palace, as well as The Boat Race and Suffragette marches.

Albert died in 1912 and Christina and Winifred moved to Munster Road, Fulham. Christina took the professional name of Mrs Albert Broom. In the 1920s and 1930s her work was featured in publications such as the Illustrated London News, The Tatler, The Sphere, and Country Life.

Christina died on 5 June 1939 and was buried in Fulham old cemetery. Winifred was instrumental in safeguarding Christina's negatives by having them housed in public institutions.

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