Private company

J. Lancaster & Son

Logo: Photograph by Clem Rutter, Rochester, Kent. ( www.clemrutter.net )., CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons³

J. Lancaster & Son was a photographic company, formed in Birmingham, England, in 1835 when James Lancaster started an optical firm for the manufacture of glasses, microscopes, and telescopes. The company was an optician and camera maker, based in Irving Street, Birmingham.² It ceased to exist in 1955.¹ Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1832Founded¹

Industryphotography¹
HeadquartersBirmingham¹

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Lancaster View Camera — Photo: Justin Cormack from London, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons⁴

J. Lancaster & Son was a photographic company, formed in Birmingham, England, in 1835 when James Lancaster started an optical firm for the manufacture of glasses, microscopes, and telescopes. The company was an optician and camera maker, based in Irving Street, Birmingham.²

Timeline

1955Dissolved Dissolved¹
1832Founded Founded¹

Links

WikipediaJ. Lancaster & Son
More imagesWikimedia Commons
WikidataQ17092789

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

1
WikidataJ. Lancaster & Son on Wikidata
2
WikipediaJ. Lancaster & Son on Wikipedia
3
Wikimedia CommonsJ. Lancaster & Son logo by Photograph by Clem Rutter, Rochester, Kent. ( www.clemrutter.net )., CC BY-SA 3.0
4
Wikimedia CommonsJ. Lancaster & Son photo by Justin Cormack from London, UK, CC BY-SA 2.0