The research methods behind this site have been alluded to throughout. The intention of this project was to create a microhistorical webpage on one aspect of Victorian Era Victoria. While this site attempts to use as many primary source and archival documents as possible, as you can see, much of the information directly about the Maynard's business is no longer available.While there is a lack of information with direct regard to the operation of the business itself, there are thousands of their photographs left in the archives. Further confounding this research, much of the focus on the Maynard's is on Hannah, as she has been acclaimed as a pioneer in artistic techniques and female entrepreneurship.

Nevertheless, what remains can reconstruct the past; in this case it is their photographs. As John Lutz points out on his site, Who Killed William Robinson?, photographs of this era were typically taken for a purpose and required a professional effort to do so. What this means is the Maynard's could provide a service. Their purpose was two fold. One, to sell their services as photographers; and two, to take photographs independently for the purpose of selling them as well.

While there may not be direct documentation of the operations within the Gallery, their travels are well documented and their work mentioned in newspapers and journals very frequently. This tells us that the Maynard's, knew how to not only run their store, but also how to promote and increase their business as well.

One interesting aspect of this is the lack of advertising that it appears the Maynard's put in print. No directories were found containing Maynard advertisements. Likewise, while promotional work was often judicious, newspaper advertising appears to be scarce and only one reference to such was found in the archives. Nevertheless, at the same time, there are a number of articles preaching acclaim for copies of Maynard photographs that were not an extra cost.

The Maynard's were one of the leading entrepreneurs to join the colony and maintained their gallery longer than any other who attempted such operations. They provided their services in a number of ways to help the emerging colony gain recognition, later the province and in turn the nation. Likewise, it appears that both their effort and their skill gained international recognition as well. The efforts of the Maynard's through their Photographic Gallery remain today as a valuable source to the past.