MORE than 120 years of history involving one of Felixstowe's busiest and biggest churches has been gathered together on a new digital archive.

FELIXSTOWE: More than 120 years of history involving one of Felixstowe's busiest and biggest churches has been gathered together on a new digital archive.

The project by Felixstowe Salvation Army chronicles its activities, leaders and premises from 1887 to the present day and can be viewed on-line by people from all over the world.

It's a fascinating social history photographic archive featuring more than 2,150 images which have been collected from a variety of sources.

It has taken Jim Williams 18 months to digitally transfer all the photographs and information onto the archive using publications such as the book Pictorial History and the church's own bi-annual magazine Focus as a reference.

He said it was vitally important local heritage was available to the public to view via the internet.

“The archive contains accurate and relevant references to enable an excellent 'search' facility within the site, and this has only been made possible with the assistance of church members and Salvationists Bernard Rayner and Stan Cracknell,” he said.

“Stan started to take photographs soon after he joined the Felixstowe Salvation Army in 1946, and has acted as custodian of the much earlier pictures seen within the archive, while Bernard has edited the church magazine and book publications over many years.”

The aim was to ensure the information provided gives viewers a comprehensive experience and pictures can be searched via name, location, event, and date.

It is hoped future generations and community groups countywide will use the site - www.felixsa.org.uk - for historical research.

If anyone has any photographs or information they would like to add to the archive depicting life in the Felixstowe Corps they should contact the Salvation Army via the website.