Maurice Keen c1947
Maurice William Keen was born at Oaken Grove Farm near Marlow on July 12 1907, the second son of Charles and Emily Jane, and baptized at Marlow parish church on September 1, 1907. His parents were married in the parish church of Marlow on September 29 1902. At the time Charles was a Sergeant in the Oxfordshire Regiment, and living in the Barracks at High Wycombe. Shortly after the marriage Charles left the army and became a farmer, taking a lease on Oakengrove Farm, which is about 1 mile west of Marlow on the Henley Road, now derelict and dilapidated, but 100 years ago it was a thriving dairy farm and smallholding, with 5 acres of orchard - plum, cherry, pear, and apple trees.
Maurice went to school in Marlow, and it was there that his interest in photography started. He bought a camera from a friend at the school, and at the age of 12 was taking his first photographs. After leaving school Maurice was apprenticed to Norman Greville, a photographer with premises in Marlow High Street. After completing his apprenticeship about 1930, Maurice went to work as an in-plant photographer for William Keen Ltd, the furniture manufacturers in Desborough Road, High Wycombe. Unfortunately the depression intervened and early in 1934 he was made redundant. So at the age of 26 he decided to set up on his own, initially working from home (he was still living at Oakengrove Farm), and his former employers asked him to continue to do their photography on a freelance basis.
On March 31 1934 Maurice married Doris Munday, and they went to live in Desborough Rd, High Wycombe, where he set up a studio on the ground floor, the family living upstairs. Later the business was moved to Castle Street, High Wycombe, where a shop opposite the parish church was leased, and the portrait work carried out in a purpose-built brick studio in the garden. Diversification followed, into selling cameras and photographic equipment, and a service to develop and print negatives. The distributorship of the country's first electronic flash, made by Dawe Instruments, was then secured. With this, events such as London Ice shows could be photographed, as the action could be frozen.
Adams Studio in Oxford Road was then acquired, where commercial photography of predominantly furniture was undertaken. It continued for a few years to trade as Adams Studio, but in 1956, following a move to Mill End Road, the company changed its name to M.W.Keen (Commercial), with a much larger studio and purpose-built processing darkrooms.
Meanwhile, in 1952 the retail shop moved to Paul's Row ( just behind the Guildhall and Falcon Hotel) and started to sell a wider range of photographic equipment and related products, including art materials and drawing instruments. Hi-Fi equipment was then added to the range. In 1957 Maurice bought Norman Greville's business and acquired the lease to the shop in Marlow High Street. The Keen business now employed approximately 25 persons in the various companies.
During the 1960's all the Keen businesses were doing well. The commercial photography of furniture, both contract and domestic, and a growing engineering and electronic industry in the town, all of which required photographs of their products for advertising purposes, meant more photography both in the studio and on-location. On the retail side more people bought cameras and accessories, as well as Hi-Fi equipment.
Unfortunately in 1971 Maurice contracted cancer, and died in Wycombe General hospital on January 29 1972. An Obituary appeared in the Bucks Free Press on February 4 1972 under the heading - Photography Was His Life. He was a keen sailor, a member of the St John Ambulance Brigade, and Treasurer of the South Midlands Branch of the Institute of Incorporated Photographers.