Sydney Johnson Film Archive: listings

In the previous blog post, Joan Andrews wrote about how Cardiff Naturalists' Society were gifted the Sydney Johnson film archive: http://cardiffnaturalists.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/sydney-johnson-film-archive.html

Here is the listing that was made by Joan, Mike Dean and Mary Salter of the material

Summary of collection

1. Audio and video tapes
2. DVDs
3. VHS
4. Cine reels

Abbreviations

 NAS - Neath Antiquarian Society

 VJ and VE 50 - Victory 50 years on

1. Cassettes - video + some audio
NEATH _ ANTIQUARIAN INTEREST
Eisteddford sites (H8)
Eistedford 1994 (H9)
Eistedford (H10)
NAS??? (H17)
NAS 1995 VE50 ?Victory in Europe 50th Anniversary (H19)
Neath Victory Celebrations
Neath Town- Clive Reed at Pontdulais (Audio)
Joe Evans - History of Coed Cranc?? (Audio)
Neath development (?DVD)
Mayors procession
VE 50 again
A465 - making -2 tapes
VE 50 celebration - another
Local school Gnoll
Reminiscences- Arthur Thomas 1996 (Video)
?? (S21)
Seymour Southwood - interview (Audio)
Neath Valley gunpowder (Video - with Mike)
VJ commemoration (Audio)
St Davids service (Audio)
VJ day procession (Video)
VJ 50 service (Audio)
Neath Antiquarian Society-King Edward Engine, VJ concert (H28)
St Davids Service - master tape -1994 (H12)
VJ celebration -4 tapes - NAS (H21,22,23,24)
Neath civic procession A465- 4 tapes (H30,31,32,33)
Freedom of Neath -4 tapes (H1,2,3,5)
Neath abbey schools (C3)
Jo Hanbury speech (Audio  family)
Neath (?10)
Wedding (S25)
Neath Town - master tape for video projection
Duck Street school - Neath 2000- David Davies (Audio)
Neath & ?Cutty Sark 24 Millenium pilgrimage 1999 (S8)
SIC 4 tapes -unlabelled

AUDIO TAPE COPIES OF RECORDINGS
The Map that changed the World-William Smith BBC 2001 (Audio -with Mary)
Flight of the condor ? Tom Pritchard - gunpowder work (Audio)

NEATH & S WALES - general interest
SS Great Britain (S22)
Canals of Neath Valley (also on video??)
Tramcar sounds (Audio)
Woollen mill sounds (Audio)
Melin Court 1998 -interview - 2 tapes ??
Neath Canal
Neath Abbey tiles
Neath Canal
Neath & Melte
Aberdulais falls
Neath Abbey woollen mill (Audio)
Making canal lock commentary (Audio - Joan)
Gunpowder commentary (Audio)
Cefn Coed museum (Audio)
Neath Abbey - number 4 (Video)
Melin Court & meadows 1988- Wildlife Trust
Neath gas oven (H15)
Commentaries NARP  ??? (C2) (Audio)
Aberdulais falls -water wheel
Aberdulais, Tower bridge, Hampden Court, Stack Rocks (S6)

NOT UK- includes Scilly
Sicily & Carmarthen vans
Holiday USA 1994
Florida part 2
Hawai -2 parts
Mallorca part 2
Scilly Islands -commentary (Audio- Joan)
Cyprus (?7)
USA 1987 3 tapes (C7a,b,c)
Colorado ? USA 1994 (S8A 7B)
Egypt 1990 (A8)
Turkey - master & Craig-y-Nos (A7)

2. DVD
Local antiquarian interest
Gas Tram -(power point)-diverse conductors
Gas Tram drivers and conductors- (Organiser mode)
Llanelli - birth of a town
Library 2006
NAS  Aug 2001- (Box 1:2;3:4)
Neath Town - Journey into Yesteryear-the Conquerors
Neath Town - The Juggernaut of Change
Pontypool -Watt remains at Glyn pits
Neath Town-  Spare duplicates
Neath Town Jan 2006 copy of Neath Town master-626 pics
Neath Jan2003 back up 7 Neath files

SOUTH WALES
Neath Abbey Monastery (on NAS memory stick)
Welsh History Mar 2006
Melin Court 1989 + commentary Mary Gillham
Neath Abbey woollen Mill 1967 & Glyn neath powder works
Craig y Nos
Natural history - plants & birds
Neath Abbey Ironworks
Geology & Scenery in Neath Valley (CD in paper sleeve)
Rhondda 1877 -disaster at Ty Newydd (CD in paper sleeve)
COLLECTION of pictures on CD's (CD in paper sleeve)

OTHER UK
Cornwall Industrial Archaeology
Life of Brunel
Brunel Dock 1882 drawing & GWR at Dock 1930

OUTSIDE UK
Hawaiian pilgrimage - John Perkins

3.VHS TAPES
NEATH ANTIQUARIAN INTEREST
Aberdulais church - last service & demolition
The Eisteddfod returns to Neath - NAS
Last borough council meeting
Freedom of Borough 1993 Royal Regiment of Wales
Neath Town
Neath development - road bridge etc

SOUTH WALES
Gunpowder factory
Gower
Craig y Nos
Making of Canal lock gates
Melin Court
Neath Abbey Woollen mill + Neath Council
Industrial Archaeology (Mike D to check)
Neath Canal restoration
Neath Valley history
Canals of Neath Valley
History of Neath Abbey

OTHER UK
Tower bridge
Kew steam museum

NOT UK
USA 1994
Arizona & Utah 1994
Hawaiian pilgrimage + Local items

PRIVATE
A Richards?? wedding

4. CINE REELS
SOUTH WALES
Geology & scenery
Journey in to Fantasy??
Behind the Dark Cloud - Glam Naturalists Trust (Stripe sound)
Behind the Dark Cloud (Optical triangle)
Behind the Dark Cloud (Optical Sound)
A Gower Tapestry
Neath Valley Social History
Country scrapbook
The Hidden Beauty
Dream Island days - Skokholm
Canals of the Neath Valley
A County awakening - Glam Naturalists Trust (a- film and b-master)
A County Awakening -original master film
A County Awakening -
A Coastal kaleidoscope (unmarked)
Canals of the Neath Valley - Tennant
An Island of Birds
Glamorgan Canal
A place to remember (?? where)

OTHER UK
Fair Isle
The Kentish Scene

NOT UK
New England
New England
Yellowstone
Seychelles
Italian Interlude
Danube Delta
Alpine Glory
Kenya
Nature in the New World

The collection also contains DVD camera tapes in red and blue boxes (about 30 in each, many unnamed but includes some named - e,g. Sker House), and other DVDs.

Sydney Johnson Film Archive

by Joan Andrews

Sydney Vivian Johnson died on 7 May 2014, at the age of 95. Syd never married but had many friends. He worked for BP Oil, at their former-refinery in Llandarcy, but film cameras were his love.

I got to know Syd through the Merthyr and District Natural History Society, where he was a friend and contemporary of Mary Gillham OBE. Mary at that time worked for the Extramural Department of Cardiff University and, as part of her job, organised expeditions to study natural history. Mary and Syd thus were together on many occasions passing on their own considerable expertise. Syd was a film camera enthusiast and recorded what he saw on varying media as they became available, and showed his films at many local meetings. As well as being an excellent naturalist, Syd was interested in industrial archaeology and recorded many scenes of locally-important industries – especially around the Neath Valley where he lived.

I have two memories to share. Firstly sitting down on Gower with Syd, both trying to take a picture of a fulmar, and Syd warning me just in time of their nasty habit of regurgitation. The other occasion, on the Isles of Arran in Galway Bay, where Syd joined in every walk – but always delicately balancing his very heavy camera up and over the numerous stone walls.

His close friend Mike Jones shared many of his archaeological expeditions, such as a particular visit to an old lightship at Britton Ferry that had served at the D-Day landings. These outings continued almost to his death and usually ended with a fish and chip supper, and in Syd bemoaning that “all his pals were going”.

Members may wonder why the Cardiff Naturalists’ Society is commemorating this man. It is because we were gifted his entire film archive. It is a very mixed bag, with some on very old film stock. Many of the films are of industrial archaeology and mention the Neath Antiquarian Society, of which he was a life-long member. Mary Salter, Mike Dean and I have listed all the material, and we have had two films of good quality digitalised: ‘An Island of Birds’, which we will show at the Monday 18 April 2016 meeting, and one about the Glamorgan Canal. He was certainly the best amateur filmmaker I have known and I hope we can preserve his legacy in some small way. If any members have knowledge of Syd, or expertise in his field, we would really value your advice.