The British Museum
History of the British Museum
The British Museum was founded in 1753, the first national public museum in the world. From the beginning it granted free admission to all ‘studious and curious persons’. Visitor numbers have grown from around 5,000 a year in the eighteenth century to nearly 6 million today.
The eighteenth century: origins of the British Museum
The origins of the British Museum lie in the will of the physician, naturalist and collector, Sir Hans Sloane (1660–1753).
Over his lifetime, Sloane collected more than 71,000 objects which he wanted to be preserved intact after his death. So he bequeathed the whole collection to King George II for the nation in return for a payment of £20,000 to his heirs.
The gift was accepted and on 7 June 1753, an Act of Parliament established the British Museum.
The founding collections largely consisted of books, manuscripts and natural specimens with some antiquities (including coins and medals, prints and drawings) and ethnographic material. In 1757 King George II donated the ‘Old Royal Library’ of the sovereigns of England and with it the privilege of copyright receipt.
The British Museum opened to the public on 15 January 1759 . It was first housed in a seventeenth-century mansion, Montagu House, in Bloomsbury on the site of today’s building. Entry was free and given to ‘all studious and curious Persons’.
With the exception of two World Wars, the Museum has remained open ever since, gradually increasing its opening hours and moving from an attendance of 5,000 per year to today’s 6 million.
Newton Abbot Town and Great Western Railway Museum
The Museum Is An Arts Council Accredited Museum And A Museum Arts Supporter
It is owned and funded by Newton Abbot Town Council, and has one full-time Curator, with one part-time Administrator, and is supported by a dedicated team of volunteers of all ages.
The Museum was opened in 1990. The museum is a small, but lively, museum with a focus on the Town and Great Western Railway history. St Leonard’s Tower (all that is left of the medieval Chapel in the centre of the town) is also managed by the Museum Curator and is open every Wednesday morning during the summer season.
In 2010 the museum was awarded with The Historical Diving Society’s International Nautiek award, for the museum that had done most to promote diving by creating the John Lethbridge exhibition, which includes a full sized model of the 18th century diver’s ‘diving-engine’, and was filmed by the BBC Inside Out programme in 2009.
In 2011 the Heritage Lottery Fund granted £43,700 towards the ‘Heart of Oak conservation & art project’ to restore a 16th century and later, carved oak overmantle, and to fully engage the public with the project through arts workshops and lectures, and finally to display the conserved overmantle for all to see- this was achieved and the carvings can now be seen in the Sandford Orleigh Gallery.
In 2013 the museum featured on the BBC’s Great Railway Journey’s with Michael Portillo and also featured in the BBC’s Celebrity Antiques Road Trip with Tim Brook-Taylor and Will Axton.
Perranzabuloe Museum
Museum History
| The Perranzabuloe Museum Trust was established in 1986 to preserve the history of the parish with a display in the Oddfellows Hall in Perranporth. In 2004, the Trust was able to purchase this historic building and develop a research area together with larger storage facilities and workrooms.Our collection includes objects, maps and photographs and provides an insight into the life and history of our parish from its earliest beginnings, the arrival of St. Piran, the growth of fishing, farming and mining, through to the tourist destination it has become today. Each year we produce special exhibitions allowing us to share new acquisitions or examine local themes, events and culture in more depth. |
Sherborne Museum
Our History
Opening in 1968, Sherborne Museum evolved from the town’s Historical Society, which was its founding body. From the outset, it aimed to be an independent museum representing the history and life of Sherborne and its environs. Its principal benefactor was Frederick Marsden who purchased the Abbey Gatehouse and presented it to the Association, together with an Honorarium Fund. There were few artefacts at the beginning, so founder members of the Association James Gibb and Ruth Gervis created a range of displays and models several of which we still exhibit.
Artefacts continued to be donated by local people and in time the Museum started to run out of space. Then, in 1994 we had the opportunity to purchase the adjoining shoe shop thanks to support from the Heritage Lottery Fund and West Dorset District Council. It transpired that this property was originally the Almonry of the Monastery and increased our display area by 60%, although we still lacked storage and workroom space.
In 2007, the Somerset and Dorset Family History Society moved into what had been the Conservative Club next door and they agreed to sub-let to us what had been the Old Billiard Room. This provided us with a significantly larger area in which to work on conservation and store our reserve collections.
These three major steps aided the development of our town Museum which continues to serve the community of Sherborne and its outlying villages.
A standard from the Code of Ethics for Museums requires that we fulfil all our guardianship responsibilities in respect not only of the collections, but also of all other resources including our premises, which explicitly or morally, we hold in trust for the benefit of the public. Hence we take repairs to the outside of our Grade II listed building very seriously!
In 2014 we were faced with crumbling of the South West corner of the building, deteriorating stonework and grouting and repairs to the flat roof and much of the lead flashing.
Fortunately in the past we had built up specific building reserves with which to fund this kind of project. We also launched an appeal to the public for financial assistance, which met a generous response. We employed a building team with proven expertise with repairs to old stonework, such as that of the Conduit and at Rimpton Church, as we were concerned to maintain the highest possible standards.
This work is now complete and we look forward to preserving our building and its collections for the benefit of future generations.
Read MoreScaplenʼs Court Museum
Scaplen’s History Past to Present
Medieval (1280-1400)
An archaeological excavation in 1985 revealed wall foundations dating to the late 13th or early 14th century. This indicates a building of unknown size. Some of this building may have been incorporated in the later medieval house. Late Medieval (1400-1475).
The first house was massively rebuilt, probably in the late 15th century. This resulted in an “L”-shaped building with a hall range on the street frontage and a parlour range behind. Probable surviving elements from this era are the walls and fireplaces of the hall and parlour ranges and the arch-braced roof over the parlour.
Mid 16th century
At this time floors were introduced to the building to give two storeys. The kitchen and service ranges were probably built in this period. This may have been done to turn the building into an inn as this pattern is rare for houses of the period but it is a common format for an inn.
17th century
By the mid 17th century the building was an inn called The George, described as having “two stables, gardens, outhouses, cellars, courts, edifices and buildings.” The kitchen range became two rooms and the fireplace was altered to incorporate a brick boiler, unusual at this time.
18th century
At the beginning of the 18th century the building, being derelict, was refurbished and was converted into three dwellings. Known occupants include the Scaplens, carpenters who bought the building.
19th century onwards
By the Victorian period the building had declined to poor tenements with the antiquity of the building forgotten. It took major structural damage from a storm in 1925, to reveal the ancient fabric beneath. Prominent local citizens fought to save the building, which led to its current ownership by Poole Borough Council who then restored the building.
Brightlingsea Museum
Displays in the museum include:
* Artefacts from a local Roman settlement
* Brightlingsea’s role as a Limb of the Cinque Port of Sandwich
* Oyster industry and stowboating
* Ship and boat-building
* Brightlingsea in the World Wars
* The railway line to Wivenhoe
Royal Green Jackets (Rifles) Museum
One of the best regimental museums in the country
Situated adjacent to Winchester’s Great Hall and within easy walking distance of the City centre, The Royal Green Jackets (Rifles) Museum, opened in 1989, is one of the best regimental museums in the Country. It is also one of Winchester’s five military museums. Visited by thousands every year, the Museum records, visually, graphically and entertainingly, the history of The Royal Green Jackets and their predecessors who were three of the finest and most famous regiments in the British Army. In the same building, but separate to the Museum, is The Rifles Collection allowing visitors to follow the story of Rifle Regiment into the present day.
Read MoreMuseum of English Rural Life
The Museum of English Rural Life is owned and managed by the University of Reading.
We use our diverse and surprising collection to explore how the skills and experiences of farmers and craftspeople, past and present, can help shape our lives now and into the future. We work alongside rural people, local communities and specialist researchers to create displays and activities that engage with important debates about the future of food and the ongoing relevance of the countryside to all our lives.
We were established by academics in the Department of Agriculture in 1951 to capture and record the rapidly changing countryside following World War II. The Museum is based on Redlands Road in a building originally designed by Sir Alfred Waterhouse in 1880 for local businessman Alfred Palmer, of the Huntley & Palmer biscuit company. The house then became St Andrews Hall of Residence in 1911, and in 2005 a modern extension was built onto the house for the Museum.
The Museum was awarded £1.8million from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) in 2014 for the redevelopment of the galleries, reopening in October 2016. The redevelopment strengthens and renews our links with agriculture as well as enhancing our position in supporting engagement opportunities for students and academics across a wide variety of disciplines, nationally and internationally.
Read MoreWiltshire Museum
Our Mission is to inspire people to explore the archaeology, history and environment of Wiltshire.
Set in the historic market town of Devizes the Wiltshire Museum is housed in Georgian and Victorian buildings – all Grade II listed.
The Museum has been located here since 1874 and contains the largest collection of Early Bronze Age gold ever put on public display in England. Award-winning displays transform public understanding of the era and feature 500 Stonehenge period objects, including 30 pieces of gold treasure, together with archaeology, art, natural history, local history, and an Archive and Library which is open to the public. We have a platform lift for those not able to manage the stairs. More information about our facilities can be found on our Access page.
The Museum is open throughout the year for visitors and researchers and in addition to the permanent galleries offers a variety of events, lectures and special exhibitions for all ages.
The Wiltshire Museum is owned and run by the Wiltshire Archaeological and Natural History Society, a Registered Charity and Company Limited by Guarantee. The Society was formed in 1853 to establish a Museum and Library and for the promotion and study of objects connected with Wiltshire. This works continues today and to support our vital educational work and the long-term care of our nationally important collections please consider becoming a member.
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