John William Thomas

J.W. ‘Tommy’ Thomas was a commercial photographer whose career in Oxford spanned the second half of the 20th century. Thomas’s photography covered everything from restoration work on historic buildings to industrial processes and staff parties.

View Thomas collection

Key Facts

  • Size: 93,000 images
  • Coverage: Oxford, Oxfordshire and further afield, particularly London, southern England, including the Isle of Wight, and the Midlands.
  • Date range: about 1946—2000
POX0335835 - Encaenia procession, Broad Street, Oxford, 1975

Background

  • J.W. ‘Tommy’ Thomas set up as a photographer in Oxford after the Second World War and became famous for his images of Oxford’s historic buildings, being awarded an honorary M.A. by the University of Oxford in 1963. His expertise led to contracts elsewhere and he also worked extensively for local firms.
  • The former Oxfordshire Photographic Archive (now Oxfordshire History Centre) purchased and conserved the Thomas Photos collection in 2001-2 with financial support from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Resource / Victoria & Albert Museum Purchase Fund, the Oxford Preservation Trust, the Greening Lamborn Trust and FAMOS.
  • The collection included 80,000 glass plate negatives that had mostly been stored in a garden shed and were badly affected by damp and mould when the collection was bought by Oxfordshire County Council in 2001.