[1] Mary Evans had been a collector since childhood, especially of illustrated children's books.
[2] Eventually the collection of tens of thousands of volumes, with hundreds of thousands of images, grew too large for their house, and the company moved to a small office near Blackheath station; after a few years there, still growing, it moved again to larger premises, the former parish hall of All Saints' Blackheath.
[3][2] Mary Evans embraced technological change and continued to innovate, and by the time of her death the company employed 14 people, had a website containing nearly one million images, and an annual turnover of over £1 million.
[2] Together with Hilary, Mary Evans wrote several books featuring images from the library, including The Party that Lasted 100 Days: the Late Victorian Season (1976) and The Man who Drew the Drunkard's Daughter: the Life and Art of George Cruikshank (1978).
[2] Mary Evans died on 29 June 2010, at Riverlee Nursing Home, Greenwich.