| Description | Thirteen albums of black and white photographs, mostly taken and compiled by John Smith, a builder, keen amateur photographer and member of the South Norwood Amateur Photographic Society and Croydon Camera Club; with six glass plate negatives and digital copies of other miscellaneous photographs. The albums include many photographs of Fittleworth and the rest of West Sussex, as well as photographs of London and the south coast, and photographs of John Smith's family and homes. |
| AdminHistory | John Smith was born in 1852 in South Norwood (Croydon). His father, James Smith, had bought a brickyard in South Norwood and turned it into a successful family business, James Smith & Sons, which traded until it was sold in 2006. A keen amateur photographer, John was a member of the Croydon Camera Club (founded 1890) and South Norwood Amateur Photographic Society, and often entertained members of the latter group at his home in Fittleworth. Whilst at Fittleworth, the Society would travel around the local environs and beyond, and the albums compiled by John Smith feature many photographs of West Sussex and the rest of the south coast, as well as London. In addition to his albums, John Smith also left a typed and illustrated 'Notes for a history of Fittleworth between 1896 and 1916' before his death in 1925. |
| Custodial History | After John Smith's death in 1925, his photograph albums passed to his son, James Stanley Smith, and thence to Peter Smith. John Smith's 'Notes for a history of Fittleworth between 1896 and 1916' passed to his nephew, Arthur Douglas Smith, and thence to his [John Smith's] great niece, Angela Brookfield. |