Carrow Road football stands – NCC copyright

Early 1970s photos of football supporters in the stands at Carrow Road, and spectators at Great Yarmouth greyhound racing stadium are among 9,000 new images just made live on Picture Norfolk – an online picture archive, run by Norfolk County Council’s Library and Information Service.

25,000 historic local images are now available to browse, enjoy and buy from www.picture.norfolk.gov.uk, giving people ready access to unique pictures of Norfolk life spanning the last 170 years.

The website shares images held by the Library and Information Service, Norfolk Museums Service and Norfolk Record Office, as well as many held in private collections.

A two-year project to expand the archive has seen thousands of new images added from locations all over Norfolk. They record different aspects of the people, events and the fabric of the county across many decades.

Clare Everitt is Norfolk County Council’s Picture Norfolk Administrator, based at the Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library. Her job during the project has been exploring stores from Norfolk’s museums and archives to identify photographic material to image.

She said: “This project has greatly strengthened and enriched the Picture Norfolk archive, revealing so many stories which were previously hidden. It’s been a real pleasure to be able to bring to the fore the rich sources of evidence about the county’s past which are captured within the photographic record”.

“The project has been fantastic – as well as revealing new information about the very earliest photographers in Norfolk during the 1840s, it has also made available evocative images from the 1950s, 60s and 70s which many people will remember, such as those of the Great Yarmouth and Gorleston area by Brian Ollington.”

Chairman of Norfolk County Council’s Communities Committee, Councillor Margaret Dewsbury, said: “This digital project has ensured that our picture archives in Norfolk will be preserved and available to future generations. This expanded resource is of great value in showing how things have changed in our county and I would encourage residents to have a look for themselves.”

Yarmouth greyhound track NCC copyright

People can use the new resources for all kinds of purposes – from researching their family or house history, to bringing websites, events and exhibitions to life. The images frequently appear in TV documentaries and as book illustrations. Many will enjoy looking at them just for reminiscing, curiosity and enjoyment.

Images can be supplied, for a small fee, as high quality digital files or A4 glossy prints. There are extra charges for publication, print and online use, which are also subject to copyright approval.

The online Picture Norfolk archive is at www.picture.norfolk.gov.uk