Ipswich Maritime Trust archivist Stuart Grimwade handed Richard Smith Memorial Award for services to keeping his collection

The archivist for an Ipswich heritage trust has been handed an award for his service to maintaining its gallery of more than 2,000 photographs.

Ipswich Maritime Trust (IMT) has among the largest – and earliest – collections of photos on the town’s waterfront.

These range from the construction of Cliff Quay, Wet Dock Quays, and the lock from 1881, given by Associated British Ports (ABP) to early postcards discovered by Leonard Woolf.

Stuart Grimwade, who manages the trust’s collection, was awarded Richard Smith Memorial Award, given annually by IMT, for his work.

He was delivered the award by IMT’s chairman Ben Good and photographer Anthony Cullen.

“Even now I continue to receive remarkable old items, including this photo from circa 1850 taken by Robert Burrows, recently sent to me from a correspondent in Sydney, Australia,” he said.

“The then-newly built Custom House is yet to have its clock installed in the tower, and St Clements church can be viewed from the water.

“A sticky fingerprint gives the impression that the second from the right moored boat is covered in netting.”

Stuart said he was messing around with boats at the dock from an early age.

He developed an interest in photography, which led him to record the comings and going of boats on the waterfront during the 1960s.

After retiring from his career in town planning in 2000, he joined the trust at his brother’s suggestion and used his planning experience to negotiate ‘windows’, which he said eventually led to its museum, in Albion Quay.

According to the trust, its image archive also began after Stuart joined.

Chairman Ben Good said: “The Richard Smith Memorial Award is our tribute to the commitment shown by Stuart and other volunteers in amassing our extraordinary collection of images and early photos of the Ipswich Waterfront and making a digital record of each one.”