Adolphe Smith Author & Editor

Scottish photographer John Thomson (1837-1921) came to Street Life in London already a seasoned photographer and traveller, his life and attitudes shaped by the ten years he lived in Asia from 1862-72. His prior experiences influenced the choices he made and the opportunities he pursued after his permanent return to Britain. Street Life in London was, at least in part, the product of these experiences.

Adolphe Smith (1846-1924) was a prolific radical writer, crusader for wide-ranging reforms, supporter of women's rights, dedicated socialist and a participant in both the Franco-Prussian War and the Paris Commune.