John Ives

[1] He was born in Great Yarmouth, the son of another John Ives, a wealthy merchant.

Due to his father's wealth, Ives did not need to take a job, and his growing interest in British antiquities made it undesirable.

Shortly thereafter, Ives began to assemble material for a history of Lothingland, the north-easternmost part of Suffolk.

This was never published, but a manuscript version of it, entitled Collectanea Lothinglandia or The History and Antiquities of the Hundred of Lothingland can be found in the British Library.

With this, he produced a printed copy of the baptismal and burial registers of Great Yarmouth for the preceding nine years in dated 5 September 1772.