The Cottingley Fairies story is a fascinating tale of imagination, deception, and the quest for the magical.
Set against the backdrop of early 20th-century England, it began in 1917, in the small village of Cottingley, near Bradford in Yorkshire.
Two young cousins, Elsie Wright, who was 16, and Frances Griffiths, who was 9, were at the centre of what would become one of the most captivating mysteries of the time.
The Origin
The story started when Frances and Elsie, who spent much of their time playing near a stream at the bottom of the garden in Elsie’s home, claimed to see fairies.
Not long after, to substantiate their claims, they produced photographs of themselves with what appeared to be fairies. The first photograph, taken by Elsie using her father’s camera, showed Frances with a group of dancing fairies. In a subsequent photo taken by Frances, Elsie was seated on the grass with a gnome.
The Photographs Gain Attention
The photographs might have remained a family curiosity had they not come to the attention of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes and a fervent believer in spiritualism. Doyle was commissioned to write an article on fairies for “The Strand Magazine” and learned of the photographs from a spiritualist meeting.
Seeing them as evidence of supernatural phenomena, he used the photographs in his article, which was published in 1920, thus propelling the images and the girls into the public eye.
Techniques and Revelations
The photographs were analysed by photography experts of the time, with some asserting their authenticity while others pointed out inconsistencies and signs of fabrication. The debate raged on for decades, with the girls maintaining the veracity of their story through their adult lives.
It wasn’t until the 1980s that the truth was finally revealed. In interviews with various magazines and newspapers, Elsie and Frances confessed that the fairies in the photographs were fabricated from cardboard cut-outs, supported by hatpins, and positioned in the scene before the photos were taken. However, Frances maintained that although the photographs were faked, they did indeed see fairies.
The Aftermath
Despite the confession, the story of the Cottingley Fairies remains a poignant example of the era’s fascination with the supernatural, fuelled by the tragedies of World War I and a collective yearning for something beyond the grim realities of the time. It also speaks to the power of photography, not only as a means of documentation but as a tool that can create as well as capture reality.
The photographs themselves, and the story behind them, continue to be of interest to both believers and sceptics. They are seen as an intriguing insight into the human desire for wonder and the lengths to which imagination and hope can lead.
Legacy
Today, the Cottingley Fairies story is often cited in discussions of early 20th-century culture, the history of photography, and the psychology of belief. The original photographs and a camera believed to have been used to take them are held by the National Science and Media Museum in Bradford, serving as a testament to one of the most endearing hoaxes of the 20th century.
The Technique Behind the Magic
Elsie and Frances utilised a combination of natural backdrops, careful positioning, and hand-drawn figures to create the illusion of interacting with fairies. The process involved cutting out cardboard figures of fairies and positioning them in the scene, a method that, while simple, was remarkably effective when photographed. The camera, lacking the sophistication of modern devices, captured these staged scenes with a degree of blurriness that only added to the illusion.
What camera did Elsie and Frances use for their fairy photographs?
Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths used a Midg quarter-plate camera to take their famous fairy photographs and was manufactured by W Butcher & Sons, London, from 1902-1920.
This camera was borrowed from Elsie’s father, Arthur Wright, who was an amateur photographer himself. The Midg camera, typical of the period, was a relatively simple box camera, but it required a certain level of skill to use effectively, especially considering the photographic techniques and limitations of the early 20th century.
What Happened to Elsie and Frances?
Elsie Wright:
- Early Life: Born in 1901, Elsie was 16 years old when she and her cousin Frances took the first of the Cottingley Fairies photographs in 1917.
- Career: After the photographs became famous, Elsie trained as an illustrator and eventually worked as a commercial artist. She married in 1926 and moved to the United States for a time before returning to England.
- Later Years: Elsie largely stayed out of the public eye after the initial controversy surrounding the photos. In the 1980s, she publicly admitted that the fairy photographs were faked using cardboard cutouts but maintained that they had seen real fairies in the woods. Elsie passed away in 1988.
Frances Griffiths:
- Early Life: Frances was born in 1907 and was just nine years old when the first photographs were taken. She and her mother were living with Elsie’s family in Cottingley during World War I when the photographs were made.
- Career and Family: Frances returned to South Africa in the early 1920s, where she later married an army officer, and they had a daughter. She lived in South Africa for many years before eventually moving to England.
- Later Years: Like Elsie, Frances largely avoided the spotlight. In the 1980s, she also admitted that the photos were a hoax but maintained, like Elsie, that they had indeed seen fairies. Frances passed away in 1986.
Legacy:
Both Elsie and Frances spent much of their lives overshadowed by the Cottingley Fairies incident, which gained widespread attention after being endorsed by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who believed in their authenticity. Despite their admissions in their later years, the story remains a fascinating example of how a childhood prank could capture the imagination of the world.