Theodore Henry James Charmbury was born on May 14, 1879 in Nuthurst, Sussex, England. He immigrated to Canada at the turn of the century, arriving in Prince Albert on December 21, 1900. In 1902, he married Aphra Rountree Jones. Their children were: Gordon, Robert, Harry, Rose, Pat, Nettie, Mickey and Aphra. T. H. J., as he was known, worked as an assistant to photographer Samuel Gray in Prince Albert for two years, and following that, established a studio of his own. By 1906, he had two studio buildings in Prince Albert, one of which was a brick structure, the city's most modern studio of that time. Due to poor economic conditions in Prince Albert, Charmbury relocated to Saskatoon in July 1918, and was eventually joined in the business by his sons Gordon and Harry. The majority of Charmbury's work involved portraiture, and while much of his work was of the prominent citizens of Prince Albert and Saskatoon, he also took photographs of some of the Native leaders, such as Kahneepotaytayo and Fine Day. Other subjects included weddings, funerals, harvest scenes, theatrical group pictures as well as various contract works for City Hall. The Charmbury studio did much of the early police and forensic work and played a role in setting up the Saskatoon Police Identification Department. Two fires, one in 1931, the other in 1942 destroyed many of the early negatives that Charmbury had accumulated, a huge blow to the visual history of the province of Saskatchewan. By 1938, due to poor health, T.H.J. Charmbury retired and his son, Harry, assumed control of the studio which he ran until 1970. T.H.J.'s son, Gordon, also carried on in the photography business. T.H.J. Charmbury died in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, on December 5, 1945.