A local woman with a passion for Frome Carnival has created a website showcasing photos of past carnival entries and royalty.
Sue Latham has launched Frome Past Carnivals, featuring more than 2,100 images from the town’s annual event, which celebrates its centenary next year.
Having loved the carnival since childhood, Sue joined the Carnival Committee in 1981 and served for 20 years, during which time she photographed carnival royalty.
She said, “In 2013 I decided to put all the images I had onto a website which was adequate for the time. Websites today are so sophisticated and mine was looking a little tired, so I decided it needed an update.
“I did some research and put together as many images as possible, trying to have at least one or two for every year since it restarted in 1927, as mentioned on the history page. I also still photograph the carnival royalty and carnival entries which are shown on the updated website.
“There are captions and names where known, but if someone spots a mistake, just send an email and I will rectify the error. If someone has an image they would like included, just email it with names and dates and I will add it to the list. There are a few images from 1907 but mostly from 1929 onwards.”
Sue said the third week in September was always a highlight of the year in Frome when she was a child.
“All my friends were very excited to visit Jennings Fair, which was in the Market Yard for a whole week,” she said. “All the schoolkids had the Wednesday off to go to the Cheese Show and Saturday culminated in the afternoon Children’s Carnival with the main carnival in the evening – it was just brilliant.”
This year’s Frome Carnival is set to take place on Saturday 26th September, with an evening-only procession.
The website is https://www.frome-pastcarnivals.co.uk
