Francis Bedford was active from 1857 and produced a large number of views of the UK, mostly in Wales and the West Country. He is widely regarded as having created some of the best-quality scenic and architectural views ever seen. He had the skill of posing a subject within an architectural setting to create an overall effect that magically transports the viewer back a century and a half. Often, a little man in a bowler hat appears in the views; this is widely believed to be Bedford's son. His photographic wagon also appears in a few views.
 The quality of his work, when viewed, is little short of astonishing. I feel that the importance of this record of historic British architecture will come to be recognised to a much greater extent in the next few years. With George Washington Wilson of Aberdeen and William England he has provided us with a priceless record of the condition of many historic buildings before restoration was considered important. His work will surely be used by historical trusts and conservation organizations as a reference point in years to come.

We are indebted to the research carried out by the late, sorely missed, Tex Treadwell and his wife Joleeta who, with all all the collectors who contributed to the list, have added so much to our knowledge of stereography.
 

We have organized Bedford's views into series and put them in the correct numerical order. These are a combination of views carrying the series and view title and attribution to Bedford, and views which bear a title only. The latter have been attributed to Bedford in one of the following ways:

1. An attributed copy is known and has been seen by Treadwell. These are indicated by appending TTto the title.

2. An attributed copy has been reported to Treadwell or is known from a catalog entry. These are indicated by appending TT*to the title.

3. I have attributed the view and it is not in the current view list series #33, fifth edition, December 2002. The view list has been taken over and is currently being updated and corrected. The views attributed will appear in the new list. Views have been attributed by me with great care and almost invariably conform to obvious gaps in the list and tie in with views of the same location and series.  These are indicated by appending 'My attribution' to the title. It can be inferred that the views I have attributed are uncommon, not having been seen by or reported to Treadwell during his research.

Also, we are pleased to say that there is  a choice of over 500 of his views for sale. Please ensure when ordering that you use the order # and not the view #.
 
 

Devonshire Illustrated

Bristol, Chester, Clevedon, Clifton, Devil's Bridge, Exeter, Gloucestershire , Herefordshire, Malvern, Monmouthshire Illustrated

Shrewsbury (Shropshire), Somersetshire,  Warwickshire, Welsh Costume, Worcester Illustrated

 Early Unattributed Views and Views published by Catherall & Pritchard

 North Wales Illustrated

 South Wales Illustrated