The name “Spottswood” can be seen on the back side of a variety of old Jacksonville photographs dating back to 1915. John Gordon Spottswood Jr.(1890-1950), also known as “Jack” had a studio on West Adams Street in downtown Jacksonville according to a Florida Times Union article. His archives are plentiful.  When he died, his son J. Gordon Spottswood III(1924-2009) would take over adding even more photographs to the thousands taken.

Just in looking at the John Gordon Spottswood (Jack-1890-1950) collection there is great variety from Ariel photographs of hundreds of views of Duval County to the complex including trial images and the simple such as a Black boy leaning on a fence.  John Gordon Spottswood took hundreds and even thousands of photographs in and around the Jacksonville area. His son would follow in his footsteps adding even more to the Spottswood collection which can be viewed on the Florida Memory archives site.

J. Gordon Spottswood III,(1924-2009) according to Legacy. com, was a lifetime member of the Professional Photographer Society of North Florida. Spottswood, was a well-known Jacksonville photographer including forensics. In the Florida Times article it mentions he and his wife Judy photographing crime scenes where Spottswood III would testify in cases.

The Spottswood collection can be found in the State Library and Archives of Florida and is said to include over 52,000 images including 50,000 negatives dating back from 1916-1967 according to writer, Jessie-Lynne Kerr.   The Spottswood photographer founder of the business was born in Waycross, Georgia on September 1890 and died on April 18, 1950.  His photography business was located in downtown Jacksonville where his son John Gordon Spottswood III would take over continuing history by documenting it in film. 

Spottswood III attended Bolles school at a time that it was an all-boys military school. After graduating in 1943, he enrolled in the Navy “during World War II where he was in charge of a photography lab in Jacksonville”.  

Over the years he was involved in a variety of organizations including the Ponde Vedra Golf and Country Club, and the Florida State Bowling Association.Spottswood was a member of Baymeadows Baptist Church where his funeral service was held.

John Gordon Spottswood, Sr.(1850-1923), John Gordon Spottswood Jr.(Jack) (1890-1950) and John Gordon Spottswood III(1924-2009) are all buried at Evergreen Cemetery.  

Make a difference today everyone. The Spottswood family did.

See you tomorrow,

Nan

Oh, Interesting to me, there are no photographs of the founder of Spottswood Photography…. Why?

Sources:  Florida Times Union, Jessie-Lynne Kerr, Legacy.com, Evergreen Cemetery, Find a Grave.