In 2011, the Framlingham Camera Club decided to create a photographic record of Framlingham. The idea was to create a snapshot of life in the town. The result was nearly 3,000 photographs. Many aspects were covered, as can be seen in the list on the Framlingham Photo Project front page.

An overview of the original project is here.

The club had around 35 members in the Framlingham area, and around half of those were actively involved in the project. Shops and businesses were covered extensively, as were events taking place during the period the project was running (mid 2011). Events were recorded in all the schools, although at the moment only pictures from secondary schools are published (as some children then of primary school age may still be minors at the time of publication of this archive in 2024).

The quality of information recorded with the photographs (giving the background to the photographs) varies somewhat, and some sections have more information in captions etc than others. Until now only the “Then and Now” section has been published (and has been on display in the Town’s Lanman Museum and online at https://lanmanmuseum.uk/what-is-in-the-museum/framlingham-then-and-now/).

In 2022 the Framlingham Camera Club was wound up, as local interest in photography waned somewhat and membership of the club at that time was greatly reduced. I felt that the photographic archive was of potential interest now and in the future, and should not be lost. I have put the images together in this online archive. I have collected as much contextual information as I can find. Unfortunately two of the major contributors have now alas died, and some others are no longer in the area, and we do not have supporting contextual information about some of the photos. As a result, some information is missing or incorrect. Nevertheless, the archive captures a wide-ranging record of Framlingham in 2011.

One issue is that the title and the caption of many images are the same. As both are displayed beneath the thumbnail images, this sometimes results in, for example, “Abbotts : Abbotts” appearing under the thumbnail. I hope to correct this in time.

If anyone spots mistakes or has additional information please let me know.

A copy of the collection was also lodged with Suffolk Archives – formerly the Suffolk Records Office.

Simon Garrett
simon.garrett@simongarrett.uk

March 2024