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A collection of early photographs have been donated to The Ipswich Society’s online Image Archive by an old friend of the Society, Nick Wiggin. They were taken by his Great-great- grandfather, John Wiggin (1818-1879), a keen scientist experimenting with early photography who was appointed as Gas Analyst for the Ipswich Corporation and Public Analyst for the Eastern District. He made a whole range of over-the-counter medicines and also produced veterinary and agricultural products including his 'Seed wheat protector’. A pioneering photographer and Ipswich chemist, John Wiggin took photographs using wax paper negatives and glass negatives from the early 1860s. Wiggin & Son chemist’s shop was a fixture on the eastern corner of Berners Street and St Matthews Street in Ipswich from 1840 and, after major road-widening and rebuilding in the early 1960s, on the opposite corner and set back. The shop sold pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, photographic equipment, lantern slide equipment, chemistry sets and other products. Nick Wiggin was, of course, the last of the family line to run a pharmacy from those premises. The images were scanned digitally by David Kindred.
Above: A very early photograph of The Ancient House in Butter Market by John Wiggin.The Wagon & Horses Inn on the left had a history dating back to the 16th century. The lettering reads: 'LATE COACHMAN TO THE YARMOUTH STAR. PORTER & FINE ALES... GOOD STABLING &c.'
Above: The 1835 East Suffolk & Ipswich Hospital (later Anglesea Road Wing of Ipswich Hospital) at the top of Berners Street. The addition of a third storey in 1869 altered the proportions of the building.
Above: Rowing four with cox on the Orwell in front of the Cobbold Brewery. [https://www.flickr.com/photos/ipsoc/albums]