Unrivalled collection of pictures offers a lasting legacy

Reader Clare Rasdell, of Stafford, wrote in to support the bid because she recognised the value of the archive.

On hearing the news about the HLF funding, she said: "The grant is great news because it means this living record of life in the Black Country could be preserved for the future."

"This article contains so much information where he served, his medals, the fact that he was ship wrecked once and even a photo.

"Without the Express & Star photo and report, a big chunk of my family history would be missing. Who knows what else is in the archive for other people.

Steering group panel member Ann Eales, of Friends of Wolverhampton City Archives, said the project represented "an incredibly exciting opportunity for anyone carrying out research of the area".

She said: "Digitisation will allow for quick and easy searching and the possibility of finding pictures of local scenes, and even family members, previously found by trawling through hundreds of folders and pictures.

"Digitisation will allow for quick and easy searching and the possibility of finding pictures of local scenes, and even family members, previously only to be found by trawling through hundreds of folders and pictures.

"The Express & Star picture archive will be of interest not only within Wolverhampton but across the West Midlands area and also to former residents who now live across the UK or overseas including ex pats."

Mick Pearson, another volunteer member of the archive steering group and editor of Blackcountryman, magazine of the Black Country Society, said: "The archive, once digitised, would be of great value not only to to local and family historians but also to the people of our region. The eclectic nature of the photographs and the social history they depicts is unrivalled."

Wolverhampton historian Billy Howe said: "There is no g reater legacy anyone could offer the people of the Black Country that a pictorial history of its past.

"I provide illustrated talks to people with dementia and find that historic local photographs, including some from the Express & Star, stir their memories.

"There is a definite need to make this wonderful E & S collection more accessible to the general public."

Express & Star brand and communications manager Chris Leggett, who chairs the archive steering group, said: "It is a great honour for all of us working on the project to take such a significant step towards sharing this unrivalled collection with local people."

Readers show their support for photographic archive project

The following readers wrote in to support the Express & Star's photo archive bid: Rita Bailey; Peter Bartlett; Paul Bennett; John Bennett; George Alan Bickley; Brian Bould; Dorothy Brookes; Mike Bryan; Christine Buckley; Tony Bucknall; Sally Cartwright; David Clare; James Clothier; Dan Cooper; Sue D'Ath; Alan and Helen Dean; Patricia Dennis; Simon & Christine Dewey; Ann Eales; David Evans; Sue Fellows; Darren Finlan; Laurence Fletcher; Amanda Freeman; Dave Fullwood; Mr JT Gaskin; Clifton Gordon; Terry Gwinnett; Wendy Hemming; John Howes; Kathy Hughes; Sylvia Jackson; R Jarvis; Roger Jeavons; Pat Jones; Roger Jones; Ronald Julian; Marion Kettle; Margaret King; Mary Lea; Bill Leighton; Bruce G Littley; Revd. Bill Mash; Peter Middleton; Gail Millard; Peter Millard; John Miller; B Mills Taylor; Eddy Morgan; David Nock; Stuart Poulton; Claire Rasdell; Clive Roberts; Karen Russon; Mrs A Scarman; John Shinton; John Smith; Jason Smith; Sue Smith; Chris Smith; Jean & Graham Smith; Bob Thomas; Mark Thompson; Rita Turner; Mike Wiliamson; Stuart Williams; Richard Williams; Thomas Willmore; Harvey Woolf; Lewis Wright.

The following organisations and businesses submitted letters of support: AF Blakemore & Son Ltd; Black Country Chamber of Commerce; Codsall & Bilbrook Historical Society; Francesco Group; Free Radio; Great Wyrley Local History Society; the Haywood Society; Ingestre & Tixall Local History Group; Johnson Society; Kidderminster Operatic & Dramatic Society; National Trust; the Newspaper Society; Rotary Club Wolverhampton; the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust; Samuel Johnson Birthplace Museum; Signal 107fm; Staffordshire Industrial Archaeology Society; Staffordshire Regiment Museum; University of Wolverhampton; Walsall Council; Wightwick Manor; Wolverhampton Business Forum; Wolverhampton Partners in Progress; Wolverhampton Wanderers London Supporters Club.

In total, 107 readers have volunteered to work on the digitisation of the photographs: Shazia Akram; Mary Alexander; Raymond Alexander; Sue Baynes; Peter Beech; Christopher Beesley; Chris Beesley; Kim Bell; Christine Bowles; Bill Brazier; Simon Bridgwater; Lisa Bristow; Chris Butler; Greig Campbell; Pupul Chatterjee; Linda Cooper; Ellen Couchman Crook; Christine Cresswell; Joanne Crumpton; Geoff Cullum; Donald Dale; Frances Davies; Ann Davies; Colin Davies; Linda Devey; Chris Dryden; Andy Egginton; Joe Egginton; Beverly Evans; Jack Finch; Sandra Fisher; Barry Fisher; Cedric Fletcher; Michael France; Mark Gauden; Andy Gould; Robert Hanley; Simon Hannon; Paul Harris; Kate Hartland Westwood; Celia Harvey; Marc Heeley; Shaun Hemmings; Paul Hipwood; Gemma Hopkins; Billy Howe; Paul Howell; Patricia Hughes; Kathy Hughes; Lawson Hunt; Anthony Hunt; John Innes; Alan Jeavons; Lexie Jeavons; Alan Johnson; Gary Jordan; Mary Keay Harris; Mark Lakin; Michael Lapper; Brian Lester; Graham Littleford; Simon May; Mrs EJ McCann; Stuart Meachin; Gail Millard; Angela Miller; Rosemary Moss; David Mullard; Rob Nightingale; Janet Parry; Roderick Pratt; Karen Preston; Anthony Price; Craig Radford; Philip Randle; Anna Reece; Glenys Roberts; Nick Rogers; Leigh Sanders; Janice Sear; Bernard Shaw; Anita Shaw; Tony Smart; Jon Smith; Andy Smith; Peter Smith; David Steele; Martin Stephens; Joe Tasker; Nigel Terry; Angela Thomas; Bob Thomas; Mark Thompson; Elaine Tudor; Brenda Turner; Chris Tweed; Linda Ward; Andrew Watson; Andrew Watson; Christine West; Louise Whatton; Bridgit Whitmore; Jared Whittingham; Peter Williams; Ned Williams; Dave Woolf; Mel Worton

Online, the bid's Twitter feed @ESPhotoArchive, which featured uploads of photos and updates on the progress, generated 817 followers.

The Facebook page (www.facebook.com/photoarchivebid) attracted more than 200 likes. Among the prominent local online followers, blogger Brownhills Bob asked his readers to get behind the campaign. He posted some of the archive photos which had no information attached and asked web users to turn detective about the stories and locations.