Village sign erected by Bedfordshire County Council, as one of their many contributions to the 1951 Festival of Britain.

​Elstow Picture Archive

This archive consists of drawings, lithographs, paintings, videos and photographs - old and new - of Elstow.

Titlestyped in green are 'hyperlinks' - left-click on them and you will be taken to the relevant page.

John Bunyan - Pictures of the man, places associated with him and illustrations from his books.

​Modern Elstow - Main page contains several small albums, plus links to the larger albums.

Older Elstow - Main page contains several small albums & links to the larger albums. 

Elstow in the Snow

Exhibits at Moot Hall

May Festivals - The main page has 7 sub-pages, each of which contain a decade's albums.
​

​If you have any photos, watercolours, oil paintings, of Elstow (old or new) or any historical items, documents etc., do ​please send us digital copies (or let us borrow them for scanning) so that we can add them to this village archive.  
​Use the Contact Form to get in touch.  Thank you.  

When you have explored the Picture Archive,
​do also go and take a look at our History Archive

​Recent changes and additions

This slideshow contains samples of the most recent additions to the Picture Archive.
To see more pictures, and their captions, go to the relevant albums - there are green hyperlinks with each of the updates below, that will take you direct to the relevant pages.

 
Picture Archive Updates

2025
13th June - Article and pic added to 1977 May Fest album; 2 photos (of Terry Waite) and a pre-1951 pic of Moot added to Moot Album; 6 photos added to Abbey church; article and photo of Louisa Minney added into Elstow People section; 1 to Old Miscellaneous Pictures; 3  into Old High Street album 
12th June - 9 pictures of 1970 Church End fire added to Old Church End album
6th June - May Festivals: 1 pic added to 1937; 1 to 1940; 5 to 1942; 4 to 1946; 4 to 1949
27th May - 18 pics added to 1974 album
​24th May - 1 or 2  pics added to end of these May festival albums; 1937, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1951, 1955
21st May - May Festival video added to 1934 and 1940 albums.
3rd May - 4 pics and 3 videos added to 2020s May Festival page
23rd March - 68 photos added into the Abbey view album on Church End page. (Yet to be sorted and captioned.)
10th March - Coach outside The Swan  added to High Street album
​15th Jan - Lightening conductor installation at Moot Hall
2024
25th November - pic added to Old Elstow Moot 
18th October - 4 pics of the Aurora Borealis added to The Green album
24th Sept - added transcript of Bunyan's 1675 arrest warrant to Bunyan pics page
20th May - 2 new pages created in May festivals - 2010s and 2020s
3  pics added to 2024 May Festival album
14th May pic added to Lacemakers, people and Events album, pic added to 1938 May Festival album,
pic added to Miscellaneous album,  Bunyan preaching and Town jail added to Bunyan album.
8th May -  Pics added to 2000s May Festival album, 4 to Church End album 2 to The Green
19th April - 2 pics added to Old Elstow page - in the Elstow people and Events album
11th April Jetty 1960 & 1996 to High Street album
21st January 3 pics - 3 pics - Goal list, St Cuthbert's, Town Jail added into Bunyan album, 2 pics added into Old Moot album
​
2023
31st December 2023 single pics added to Moot Hall, the Green West End and Abbey albums
26th Nov - 2 Autumn pics of the green and Moot Hall 
16th October -pic c19890-1900 of (we think) Bunyan chapel Sunday School - added to ​Lacemakers, other Elstow people and events album.  And  1988  Pic of John Bunyan statue added to John Bunyan page
31st August - 1907 pic added to Old High Street
27th August - 1903 Moot Hall and pre-1882 Abbey north door
25th August - Doris Bartram, 1927 May Queen added to 1920s May Festival 
5th July -Programme added to 1952 May Festival album and names added to 2nd photo.
Pics added to John Bunyan album and to Other Exhibits on Moot Exhibits page
7th April - Flowers around Moot
25th March  -Pics added to Old Abbey and Old Elstow High St albums
18th March -Pics added to Old Abbey and Moot interior, maps and engravings to John Bunyan Wall art to Bunyans Mead
25th February - Sunset pics added to the green
12th February - Moot Hall 1882 added to Moot Exterior
25th January - Pic of 2 girls added to the People album on Old Elstow page
21st January - poem added to 1957 May Festival 

2022
​17th December - Two video tours of Elstow (one from the sky) added to Modern Elstow main page
 - video of 1946 May Festival added to end of 1940s album
11th December - Frosty pic added to end of Moot album
10th December - pictures of Moot and Abbey added to the end of green and to Abbey Church albums. Pic of a Jay added to Recent Updates slideshow (above). New album 'Miscelaneous Images added to Modern Elstow main page
2nd December -Misty dark night pic added to Green album
30th November - 2 night-time photos of church tower added to Modern - Abbey church page
29th November - pictures from Muriel Hart's book 'Portrait of Elstow' added to various pages.  Also, several old pics and articles to the 1950s Moot restoration album
​28th October - Added Bunyan's Dream to Illustrations from various editions of "The Pilgrim's Progress"
20th October - 2 pics added to Modern High Street and Church End albums (to show entrance to the green).
Picture of Joseph Bramwell Graham added to Moot restoration album
17thOctober - 7 Fabulous sunset pics added to end of The green album
7th October - photo added to Lacemakers and Elstow people album on Elstow Old main page
8th September - pic of headteacher Bob Wadsworth in toy car put into Schools album
7th August Very old pic of Jetty added to High St Old album  Hyperlink on Old Elstow main page index- (to High St) rectified
18th July - Photos added to Old Moot, 1949 May festival
25th May - Aerial photos added to Abbey, Moot, the Green, Church End and Bunyan's Mead albums
​25th May - pictures moved and captioned in 1958 - 1963 albums May Festival
17th May - new photographs of the restored chapel window on Bunyan page
8th May - 2022 May Festival album added
​8th April - 2 photos added to end of May Festival 1959 and 1960 albums
3rd April- Drawing of old smithy and cottage with well added to Old Elstow High St album
29th March - 4 pics added to end of 1958, and 2 pics to end of 1959, May festival albums.
25th March - Flowers & blossom pics  added to the green and Abbey albums
17th March - Pictures of the green at sunrise/early morning 
27th February - More pictures and text added to Pillbox album 
24 February - Two new albums; 2012 & 2013 added to top of May Festivals 2010s page
​                         -  Five pics added to Elstow in the snow
                         -  Seven pics added from 2013 & 2015 to Moot Modern (inserted in date order) 
​                        -  Two 2013 pics added to Abbey Modern page (inserted in date order) 
​12 February - Crocus pics in Abbey album
30th January - Added two pics to Elstow green
14th January - 2 photos of West end of Abbey and tower.  
12th Janury - New photo of south east view of the Abbey
9th January - 1 picture added to Moot Hall Modern
8th January - 5 photos and a caption to 1965 May Festival