History: My Virtual Museum; a collection of elite, local images

The story of my journey into collecting old postcards, vintage photographs, and interesting artefacts/ephemera, and the motivation behind establishing a virtual museum, with the generous assistance from others. Throughout, numerous images depicting each stage of my collecting will be displayed, categorised by subject matter. Predominantly featured will be vintage photographs depicting scenes and people from Northem Lincolnshire,

particularly Grimsby and Cleethorpes. Additionally, there will be recent photographs showcasing intriguing collectibles mainly associated with this region. Lastly, I will outline my future thoughts and plans for this venture.

My presentation will commence with a reflection on how my late father ignited my passion for local history, images and art and why my initial focus was on wartime themes. As I found myself with more free time, my passion for collecting and preserving local heritage grew. Now that my children have grown up and moved away, and I've retired, I can devote even more time to

these pursuits.

I will illustrate this journey by sharing examples from my early collection, predominantly featuring photos from the home front during wartime, before transitioning to my collection of Lincoln and rural Lincolnshire images. Following that, we will delve into my collection of historical imagery specifically featuring Grimsby and Cleethorpes. My special interests include Grimsby's fishing heritage and its commercial docks, as well as the lives and works of our early local photographers.