| Aberdeen |
1994 |
By Chris Drury. Underground structure with log
roof. No lens - "Pinhole" only. Projects image of trees and sky. |
| Aberystwyth |
c1880 |
4" lens, in the grounds of the Castle. Re-erected
on Constitution Hill c1896 but gone by the 1920s. |
| Aberystwyth |
1985 |
14" lens (stopped down to 12 1/2 "). f20. 52"
screen. Associated with the Cliff Railway. |
| Alton Towers, Staffs. |
1972/73?-1984? |
In Shot Tower. Built by Horace Dall. Maybe optics
are still there. |
| Arbroath |
c1930s |
In a public park in Arbroath. |
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| Birkenhead, Merseyside |
1849/1874 |
In Birkenhead Park close to the lake, run by
Mr Crookes. |
| Blackpool, Lancashire. |
1920s |
Made from war surplus. Reported by Dall. |
| Blackpool |
Early C20th |
On shoreline. Managed by Mr Boswell. In hexagonal
structure. |
| Blackpool |
? |
Dall made it for Mr K.Dutton of Workington. Erected
at Blackpool. |
| Blackpool |
Till 1907 |
North Shore. Lost to cliff erosion. |
| Blackpool |
1970s |
Rotating sphere inside which visitors sat. (?) |
| Boston |
1997-8 |
Four small camera obscuras, built and used by
David Lowrey, artist from University of Massachusetts in Lowell. |
| Bournemouth, Dorset |
Late 1880s |
On the old metal pier, built in 1890. Temporary
wooden structure. |
| Bournemouth, Dorset |
1999 |
With café on Bournemouth Square. Café
Camera Obscura Ltd. By Peter Drew. 8 1/2 "(212mm) Lens with 6 metres. &
6ft screen. Motorized controls. |
| Bradford, W.Yorkshire |
1990s |
National Museum of Photography, Film & TV.
Various small camera obscuras. Some C19th. |
| Brightling, E.Sussex |
Early 1800s |
At Jack Fuller's Brightling Observatory. |
| Brighton |
After 1807 |
In room of the old Russell House. |
| Brighton |
c1835-1890+ |
At the landward end of the Chain Pier. Possibly
a relocation of the above. |
| Brighton |
1950s |
Unconfirmed. On the West Pier. |
| Brighton |
1950s |
Above the old aquarium's Sun Terrace. Or
perhaps 1946/1949. |
| Brighton |
1787 |
At the Steine. On wheels. Tipped over the cliff
by vandals on October 29, 1787. |
| Brighton |
1998 |
E. Buckwell, Cumberland Rd & family are making
a table-top tent camera obscura using old brass head with prism. |
| Brighton |
1905 |
On West Pier, proprietor Albert Mancktelow.(Source:
Kelly's Directory of Sussex, 1905) |
| Bristol |
1829 - onwards |
At Clifton Down. In old snuff mill. Lens 5",
screen 5ft. Open to public. |
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| Camberwell, Gt. London |
1992 - onwards |
Private. Owned by Terry Jones. By P.Drew. 8"
lens, fl 200". 48" screen. |
| Cardiff |
1997 |
At "Techniques". 3D camera obscura
using Polaroid glasses. Set up for testing only. Not permanent. |
| Cardington, Beds. |
Until 1979/80 |
In 4-wheeled trailer. Lens at about 15/20 deg.
No mirror. Used by RAF/Met.Office. |
| Challock, Kent |
1998 |
By Chris Drury. about 80mm plastic lens, about
4 m fl. Then "pinhole"."Coppice Cloud Chamber". |
| Channel Islands, Gallows Hill, Jersey |
1895 |
Set up by J.Zabrocki. A lens only in a tent.
Entrance fee was 1 shilling. |
| Channel Islands, Grève De Lecq, Jersey |
c1893 - 1940s? |
A circular, corrugated iron shed with a conical
roof. |
| Channel Islands, Grève D"azette,
Jersey |
1836 |
From the Chronique de Jersey, Samedi, 20 Aout,
1836. Advertised with bathing machines, archery grounds, fireworks etc. |
| Channel Islands, La Corbière, Jersey |
? |
An undated Louis Levy postcard shows a camera
obscura here. Probably taken at the turn of the century. |
| Cheddar, Somerset |
1950s |
At the top of Jacob's : Ladder. Limited
information available. |
| Chelsea, Gt. London |
Mid 1700s |
Owned by Dr. Hoadley at Hoadley House. 4 vertical
lenses & screens. One horizontal lens & screen. Camera Place exists. |
| Chester |
1838 |
In Boneswaldesthorne Tower on the NW city wall.
Set up by Mechanics Institute. |
| Chester |
1993 |
Resiting of the Stoke-on-Trent Garden Festival
camera obscura. q.v. for details. Now rarely open. |
| Clacton, Essex |
1880 |
Just above Pier Gap. Lasted for 26 years. |
| Clacton |
before 1914 |
Tent camera obscura. Visited by Dall in about
1917. |
| Clacton |
1903 - 1930s |
On the Pier. |
| Clevedon, Avon |
c 1853 |
In the grounds of Clevedon Hall. Private. Owned
by Conrad Finzell. |
| Cromer, Norfolk |
c1880 |
Erected by photographer Herbert Mace at the bottom
of "The Gangway". |
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| Dalton, Cornwall |
1999 |
Igloo of straw & traffic cone aperture. 15ft
diameter prototype. 60ft model planned to view the eclipse. At a farm near
Fowey. |
| Devil's Dyke, E.Sussex |
1885 |
Still there in 1897 when visited by Arthur Holl. |
| Diss, Norfolk |
mid 1800s |
Owner by photographer Cleer Algar, at 34 Meer
Street. |
| Dovercourt, Essex |
1905 - 1924 |
On lower Marine Parade. Resiting of old Harwich
camera obscura. q.v. |
| Dudley, W.Midlands |
1992 - onwards |
Set up at Dudley Zoo by artist Steve Field. In
Lookout Tower. Now rarely open. |
| Dumfries |
1836 |
At the Dumfries Museum & Observatory. 9",
f16 lens. 12" dished plaster screen. In converted windmill. |
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| Eastbourne, E. Sussex |
c1901 |
On Pier in top of large dome, which still exists.
Closed due to fire in 1970. Optics gone. |
| Eastbourne |
c1870 |
In small polygonal hut at "The Hobby Bank"
Meads. Photo. in book by G.F.Chambers, astronomer. |
| Edinburgh |
1835 |
At the Royal Observatory. |
| Edinburgh |
1853 |
In the Outlook Tower on Castlehill. New optics
fitting in 1947. Multiple lens system with fl 337.7". |
| Edinburgh |
1995 |
Temporary. At the Royal Scottish Academy. By
P.Drew. 8 1/2 " f42 lens. 4ft screen. In skylight of gallery. |
| Edinburgh |
? |
At the Royal Museum of Scotland. A small box
camera obscura presented by Miss Talbot, possibly used by Fox Talbot. |
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| Falmouth, Cornwall |
c1946 |
Built by Dall for Col. Muirehouse in Cornwall.
Moved to Cornwall in 1950s when he died. See next entry. |
| Falmouth |
1940/50s? |
At The Old Observatory, once part of the Royal
Cornwall Polytechnic Society. Resiting of above, perhaps? |
| Fish Hoek |
1953/1954 |
In a shed-type building actually down on the
beach. Possibly only there for one season. |
| Folkestone, Kent |
c1901 |
On the foreshore near bottom of Leas Lift. There
till at least 1907. |
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| Garmouth |
1998 |
Built by J. Skelton. Transportable. Initial temporary
lens plastic 8" then replaced by 6" f18 Sinden lens. |
| Gateshead, Tyne & Weir |
1990 only |
At Gateshead Garden Festival. 12" f24 lens. By
Sinden Optical. Refigured and resited in Portslade q.v. |
| Glasgow |
1810? - 1830? |
In observatory built by "The Society for
Promoting Astronomical Science". |
| Glasgow |
? |
Now at the Dept. of Natural Philosophy, University
of Glasgow. A pocket camera obscura. |
| Grasmere, Cumbria |
? |
On display at the Wordsworth Museum.A typical
artist's camera obscura. |
| Great Yarmouth, Norfolk |
Early 1920s |
On beach/Marine Parade. Gone by the end of the
1920s. |
| Greenport |
1998 |
Under construction. Municipal camera obscura.
To have a 6" f20 lens with 1 metre diameter screen. |
| Greenwich |
1994 |
8" f34 lens. 4ft screen, mirror 9" x 12". By
Peter Drew. At National Maritime Museum. Runs automatically. |
| Greenwich |
1675-1719 |
Two in turrets of Flamsteed House. Reported by
Uffenbach in 1710. |
| Greenwich |
after 1777-1840 |
In western turret. Set up by Maskelyne, 5th Astronomer
Royal. Used by various artists to draw scenery. |
| Greenwich |
C19th |
In the National Maritime Museum. A small camera
obscura. |
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| Hadlow Down, E.Sussex |
? |
Old brass camera obscura head only. Uses prism
with curved face, largest face 3" x 3". Owned by Peter Gillies. |
| Harwich, Essex |
1880s - 1905 |
On Harwich Green, near Low Lighthouse. Later
resited at Dovercourt q.v. |
| Haversham, Bucks |
c1975 |
By P.Drew. Owned by F.N.Humfries. 4.4" fl 100"
lens. Used for birdwatching. |
| Hastings, E.Sussex |
? |
On Pier, where manager's office now stands
- requires confirmation. |
| Hertford |
1778 |
Now in Hertford Museum. A box camera obscura
by William Storer, covered with green-baize.British Patent 1183. |
| Hove |
1861 |
On Ordnance Survey Map 1861 (Nov) (25" Sheet
LXV 12). Shows "Observatory" & "Camera". Near shore. |
| Hull, Humberside |
1840?-1860 |
At the Zoological Gardens. |
| Hunstanton, Norfolk |
1930s |
Near the seafront. Documentary evident required. |
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| Ipswich, Suffolk |
1997-1998 |
Wolsey Art Gallery. Temporary siting of J. Grigg's
Wickham St Pauls transportable camera obscura. q.v. |
| Ilfracombe, Devon |
1995 |
At Watermouth Castle in children's theme-park,
in "Gnomeland". Lens about 5" diameter. Optics on 10 yr. lease. |
| Isle of Man, Douglas |
1892 |
On Douglas Head. The Camera was purchased by the Government and has been renovated. It was built in 1892 by Mr Fielding from Rochdale. The Camera is now operated by the Department of Tourism and Leisure and manned on a voluntary basis by the Isle of Man Victorian Society and is open from Easter to September at weekends, weather permitting. |
| Isle of Man, Douglas |
1890/1894 |
In the Victoria Tower. |
| Isle of Man, Port Soderick |
pre 1887 |
By James Fielding. In small eight-sided pavilion? |
| Isle of Wight, Ryde |
1998 |
Under construction in Science Block of Ryde School.
By Peter Drew. 6" lens f30. 1 metre flat table-screen. |
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| Jersey, Channel Islands |
|
See Channel Islands |
| Jersey Marine, Wales |
1870 |
Built by John Taylor atop a 55ft octagonal tower. |
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| Keilder, Northumberland |
1996 |
By C.Drury. "Wave Chamber". In stone
beehive hut. Mirror & lens produce image of reservoir surface. |
| Kilmarnock |
1800s |
On Morton's Observatory Tower, built in
1818 and 80ft high. |
| Kirriemuir |
1929 |
In a cricket pavilion, donated by J.M.Barrie.
7", f15 lens. Optics by Negretti & Zambra. 4 1/2 ft screen. |
| Knighton |
? |
At the Powys County Observatory. 13" f15 lens
and elliptical mirror 23" x 17". 4ft screen. |
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| Lacock, Wilts |
? |
In the Fox Talbot Museum. Two portable camera
obscuras in mahogany New York boxes. |
| Leeds, W.Yorkshire. |
1998 |
Harewood House. Temporary siting of J. Grigg's
Wickham St Pauls transportable camera obscura. q.v. |
| Leeds |
c1789 |
In ante-room of Harewood House. Type unknown. |
| Leucars, Fife |
1938 |
Bomb aiming camera obscura. Used and reported
by J.E.Breeze now of Sedlescombe. |
| Lewes |
1996 - onwards |
Tent camera obscura. 4" lens, f26. 2ft screen. Tent 8ft x 8ft x 11ft tall.
Lewes based. Run by Willett & Patteson |
| Liverpool, Merseyside |
1830s |
At Mount Gardens. "For terrestrial and celestial
viewing". Owner by astronomer E.Henderson. |
| Liverpool |
-1984 |
Shown on plans for Liverpool Garden Festival
but never erected.) |
| Liverpool, England |
c1960 |
Reported to Jim Skelton to have existed in Sefton
Park, in a shed with a turret. |
| Llandudno |
1859/60 - 1966 |
Built by Mr Lot above "Happy Valley".
Lens was raised/dropped to focus. Vandals destroyed it by fire. |
| Llandudno |
c1986 |
Not always open. Owner J.C.Shields. Next to the
site of the old camera obscura. |
| Llangollen |
Early C20th |
At Castell Dinas Brân, in a building next
to a refreshment hut inside the ruins of the castle. |
| Lochmaddy |
1997 |
"Sea/Sky Chamber". By Chris Drury.
Building of rock & turf. Uses a lens, in a wall, and three mirrors. |
| London, Gt. London |
1710 |
In the Tower of London, in living quarters. Reported
by Uffenbach. Lenses mounted in shutters. |
| London |
1851 |
At time of Great Exhibition, in a domed building
near present site of Albert Hall. 3D model as screen. |
| London |
1951 |
At "Festival of Britain". Reported
but no documentary evidence. |
| London |
1993 |
At Sculpture Garden of St James", Piccadilly.
By C.Drury. "Cloud Chamber". "Pinhole" projection only. |
| London |
1869 |
A "Teleconograph", by Revoil. Prism
in from of lens. Now at the Royal Institute of British Architects. For
drawing. |
| London |
various |
Joshua Reynolds" book camera obscura : "Artist"
camera obscura (c1790) : Storer's "Delinator" (1778). At
Science Museum. |
| London |
C18th |
Now in the V & A Museum. French book camera
obscura. "Optiques et Chambre Obscure par Seangatti". Lens missing. |
| Long Melford, Suffolk |
1993? - onwards |
At Kentwell Hall. 1" diameter lens or "pinhole".
No mirror. One faces w and the other ENE. |
| Lossiemouth |
1920s |
In a private house, "Skerry Brae",
now a hotel. Overlooked Moray Firth. |
| Luton, Beds |
1935 |
Dall's own camera obscura. 4 1/4 " lens
f32. "ft screen.In attic. Also High Power Viewer. Now at Radlett. q.v. |
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| Malvern, Hereford & Worcester |
? |
On Worcestershire Beacon. At 1396 ft, in a stone
building adjacent to a tea room. |
| Manchester, Gt. Manchester |
1995 |
In "Museum of Science & Industry".
Two apertures, indoor view. "Unexciting". |
| Margate, Kent |
1821 |
Between "Fort Point" & "Second
Point". |
| Margate |
1898 |
On the landward end of The Jetty. Existed at
least until 1937. |
| Middle Wallop, Hants |
1997 |
At Explorers" World, Museum of Army Flying.
8 1/4 "(U-boat) lens fl 16ft. 11" mirror. By W.Wakefield. |
| The Mumbles |
c1900 |
On the front near the Pier entrance. Gone by
1909. |
| The Mumbles |
1950s |
On the Pier. Fixed focus only. |
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| Norwich |
1997 |
Temporary exhibit at School of Art. Vertical
lens producing inverted image of Cathedral. By R.Torchia. |
| Nottingham |
1975 |
2" lens, also "pinhole". At Castle
Museum. Simple demonstration of optics & for drawing. Disassembled. |
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| Orfordness, Suffolk |
1928/30 |
Royal Airforce Establishment. To study wind direction
and location of practice bombs. |
| Oxford |
1995 |
At "Curioxity", The Old Fire Station,
40 George Street, Oxford. Tel : 01865 794494. 70mm 1 dioptre optician's
blank set up vertically without mirror. |
| Oxford |
Early C18th |
Small camera obscura with decorated lens tube.
Now in the Museum of the History of Science. |
| Oxford |
1999 |
At Museum of Modern Art. By J.Griggs. 2" lens.
Portable, on pram wheels. Temporary. |
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| Plymouth, Devon |
1827/30 - c1891 |
By Mr Sampson. Plans to erect a new camera obscura
on the Hoe have come to nothing! |
| Polperro, Cornwall |
1997 |
Made by Dall for W.Southern, but maybe never
completed. Now optics in the hands of a collector? |
| Port Soderick, Isle of Man |
pre 1887 |
By James Fielding. In small eight-sided pavilion? |
| Portmeirion |
c1922? |
In a tower on the quay. Built by Barr & Stroud,
utilising salvaged submarine parts for the camera obscura. |
| Portslade, E.Sussex |
1991 |
At "Foredown Tower". 12" lens, f24.
Mirror 18" across, screen 65". Original at Gateshead q.v. In watertower.
By Sinden. |
| Portslade, E.Sussex |
1998 |
Table-top model. 2" f12. mirror about 3" square.
3ft tall, 1ft deep, 1 1/2 ft wide base, 5" at top. Built/owned by Mike
Feist. |
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| Radlett, Hertfordshire |
1998 |
Resiting of Dall's Luton camera obscura.
Privately owned, at a C16th farmhouse. Address withheld. |
| Ramsgate, Kent |
c1827-1966? |
On west pier of harbour in building including
public convenience. 3 3/4 " lens. Optics only in local Maritime Museum. |
| Ramsgate |
1881? |
On the iron Marine Pier. Destroyed by fire during
First World War. |
| Reading, Berkshire |
1938/39 |
At No.8 Emergency & Reserve Flying Training
School. From a service photograph labeled "View of Camera Obscura...." |
| Rochester |
1992 |
George Eastman House. 9" f7 lens produces fixed
view of a sculpture on fabric screen. No mirror. |
| Ryde, Isle of Wight |
1998 |
Under construction in Science Block of Ryde School.
By Peter Drew. 6" lens f30. 1 metre flat table-screen. |
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| Scarborough, S.Yorkshire |
1845-1910 |
At South Cliff. Probably associated with the
Aquarium. |
| Scarborough |
till c1884 |
North Side Camera obscura. Opposite the Queens
Hotel. Burnt down by fire set by boys. |
| Sheffield |
c1980 |
Built by P.Drew for W.W.Mellors. 4" lens 100"
fl. 2ft screen. Used for astronomy, with High Power Viewer. |
| Sherborne St John, Hampshire |
Late C18th |
At National Trust, "The Vyne". Georgian
artist's table-top model. Probably used by Martha & Elizabeth
Chute. 44" high. |
| Shipley, W.Yorkshire. |
c1900 - 1920 |
In summerhouse-type building. Owner by Col. Maude
on his Bracken Hall Estate near Shipley Glen. |
| Soho, Gt. London |
1738 |
Reported to be in the shop window of optician,
Ed Scarlett, near St Anne's Church. Used scioptric ball. |
| Southampton, Hants |
c1963. |
Privately owned & built by Bill Wakefield,
. In attic. 6 1/2 " f21 lens. Replaced easier model. Solar viewing. |
| Southend, Essex |
1892 & 1993 |
On the Pier. Run by Miss Cooper. |
| Southend |
? |
In a typical octagonal building on the seafront
near the entrance to the Pier. |
| Southport, Merseyside |
? |
Shown on an old undated sepia photograph on the
sands next to two photographers" booths. |
| Southport |
? |
A photograph of a group of sideshows shows the
"Empire Periscopes and Camera". |
| Southwold, Suffolk |
1885 |
At Central Cliff. In a small polygonal hut overlooking
the sea. It had "had a prism in the roof". |
| Stoke-On-Trent, Staffs |
1984 |
At the Garden Festival. By P.Drew. Lens 6", fl
180". Optics to Chester. & bldg. at Newchapel Obs. q.v. |
| Stoke-On-Trent |
1998 |
At Newchapel Observatory. 6" fl 147" from periscope
to be fitted soon. Building from above site. |
| Stoke-On-Trent |
1997 |
Staffordshire Uni. Temporary siting of J. Grigg's
Wickham St Pauls transportable camera obscura. q.v. |
| Stranraer |
1820/24 - 1940 |
At North West Castle, owner by Sir John Ross
(1777-1856), arctic explorer. |
| Stratford-Upon-Avon, Warwickshire |
1998 |
An electronic camera obscura on top of the Cox's
Yard chimney.Uses mirror, CCTV camera, PC, projector & screen. |
| Sydenham, Gt. London |
c1870 |
Set up by Negretti & Zambra at the Crystal
Palace, in the SE corner of the gallery. Gone by 1920. |
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| The Mumbles |
c1900 |
On the front near the Pier entrance. Gone by
1909. |
| The Mumbles |
1950s |
On the Pier. Fixed focus only. |
| Todmorden |
1995 |
At the Amateur Astronomy Centre. By P.Drew. 6"
f11 lens. In roof of workshop. Used experimentally. |
| Tunbridge Wells, Kent |
1834 |
Temporary or moveable camera obscura giving "panoramic
views of our furze-clad common". |
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| Upper Norwood,
Gt. London |
c1828 -1860 |
At the Beulah Spa, near Sydenham. Used to view
the scenery and to draw it. Destroyed by vandals. |
| Walton
The Naze, Essex |
1890 |
On the Albion Beach (Albion Corner) in a 10-sided
hut. |
| Weston-Super-Mare |
c1890 |
On the Old (Birnbeck) Pier. Operated to about
1900 but by 1902 it had become a tobacco kiosk. |
| Weymouth, Dorset |
1798 - 1816 |
On Nothe Headland. Operated by Mrs Andrews in
1816. |
| Weymouth, Dorset |
1996 |
Built by C.Isaac using a 2 3/8" telescope lens,
fl 34". In 20" square box with black curtain. Portable. |
| Weymouth, Dorset |
c1895-99 |
At the seaside, in a house-shaped building on
the sands. Information from slide. 2d entrance fee. Run by C.F.Hewitt. |
| Wickham St Paul, Essex |
1997 |
J.Griggs" transportable camera obscura.
At Stoke, Leeds etc. 4" f15 lens by Sinden. Octagonal building. |
| Worthing |
1996 |
Built by R.Wilson. Transportable by trailer.
At Shoreham, Haywards Heath etc. 6 1/4 " f23 lens. 3"8" screen |
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