Coldharbour Mill Working Wool Museum

Coldharbour Mill was originally a mill for corn or grist set in 15 acres of land within the village of Uffculme, Devon.  There has been a mill on this site since medieval times, according to the Domesday book.

The name “Coldharbour” is said to be derived from Anglo Saxon, possibly meaning “Old Shelter”.

The area had plenty of resources, such as an ample supply of sheep, and therefore fleeces, and also easy access to the River Culm for a continuous supply of water.

Seeing an opportunity for developing his woollen textile business, Thomas Fox bought the land, complete with buildings and its own water wheel, in 1797 for 1100 guineas.

Thomas then built a large wool-spinning mill on the site to serve his weaving factories in Somerset and opened it in 1799.  In the 19^th century, six of his sons continued their father’s work and the company took the name of Fox Brothers.

Originally the mill was powered by the waterwheel, with a new one installed in 1821, however the Fox Brothers were keen innovators and making use of new technology, they installed the steam engines in 1865 to power the factory’s machines and keep up with production demands.

At this point the Fox Brothers changed their business from woollen to worsted spinning enabling a larger range of products with a higher quality finish more suited to being woven into their iconic textiles.

Coldharbour Mill played a key part in the Industrial Revolution in the South West, as Fox Brothers’ developed a domestic or cottage industry into large scale factory production, distributing textile products throughout the world.

We are proud to be one of the oldest working woollen textile mills in the world. Coldharbour Mill opened as a working museum in 1982 and is a rare surviving example of Georgian architecture, industry and enterprise.

Holsworthy Museum

The museum is housed in part of a building which is in itself a museum piece; a small manor house dating from the 17th century which was used as a parsonage in 1724. There are five separate rooms, individually themed, which cover the history of Holsworthy, local tradesmen’s tools, medical and apothecary items, World War II and a kitchen with its original cobbled floor, copper and fireplace.

The museum was completely refurbished in 1999 and an entrance porch built giving direct access to the museum from the town’s main car park.

Tewkesbury Museum

You are welcome to spend time in the wonderful unspoiled seventeenth century building that is Tewkesbury Museum. Discover Tewkesbury’s rich and diverse history through a collection which ranges from Roman remains through to wartime austerity. Learn about notable Tewkesbury people like Antarctic explorer Raymond Priestley. Study the magnificent diorama of the Battle of Tewkesbury and the unique fairground model.

The building itself is a time capsule. Restored by Abbey restorer Thomas Collins in the nineteenth century and donated to the town as a Museum by an ‘anonymous gentleman’ in the twentieth, it is unique, full of original features, eclectic and eccentric.

The Museum is very child-friendly, with activities to keep them absorbed for hours. Because of its age the building is not disabled-friendly, though the staff are and will do everything they can to help.

As a small independent museum we offer local knowledge, local research and a fascinating glimpse into times gone by.

Didcot Railway Centre

See 175 years of railway history when you enjoy a day at Didcot Railway Centre. Our unique collection of Great Western Railway steam locomotives, carriages, wagons, buildings and smaller artefacts is based around the original 1930s Engine Shed and Coal Stage. We have a replica of Brunel’s Broad Gauge Railway and you can get hands on in our Science Learning & Railways Exhibition. Activities include experieriencing an air raid in our original WW2 Air Raid Shelter, dressing up in Welford Park Ticket Office and watching the trains go by in our Picnic Area from our train themed Play Park.

London Canal Museum

At the London Canal Museum you can see inside a narrowboat cabin, learn about the history of London’s canals, about the cargoes carried, the people who lived and worked on the waterways, and the horses that pulled their boats. Peer down into the unique heritage of a huge Victorian ice well used to store ice imported from Norway and brought by ship and canal boat to be stored. This unique waterways museum is housed in a former ice warehouse built in about 1862-3 for Carlo Gatti, the famous ice cream maker, and features the history of the ice trade and ice cream as well as the canals.

There are two themes in this unusual London museum. London’s canals have a fascinating past and you will learn not only how they came to be built but about the lives of the workers, the cargoes, horses and how canals work. We are a waterways museum first and foremost, but also an industrial museum telling the story of the ice industry in London. It is the only London museum of inland waterways and is situated at King’s Cross, an accessible central location. It is suitable for adults and children and it is fully accessible to all visitors.

D-Day Museum

The D-Day Story tells the story of D-Day and the Battle of Normandy. It holds over 10,000 items – preserving, researching and acquiring objects to share with the public through exhibitions, workshops and other activities. The museum is fully accredited, meeting nationally agreed standards for UK museums.

The D-Day Story is one of six museums run by Portsmouth Museums, part of Portsmouth City Council. Responsibility for the museums service falls under the remit of the council’s cabinet member for Culture, Leisure and Sport.

The aims of Portsmouth Museums are to: reflect the diversity of the city’s culture and communities in our visitors and offer; provide inspirational opportunities for people to enjoy and learn from the collections; and to showcase the national and international heritage of the city.

Cumberland House Natural History Museum

Portsmouth is a very special place for wildlife in Britain. It has many different habitats in a very small area, and at Portsmouth Natural History Museum you can explore them all.

Museum of The History of Science

The Museum of the History of Science houses an unrivalled collection of early scientific instruments in the world’s oldest surviving purpose-built museum building, the Old Ashmolean on Broad Street, Oxford.

We are an active public museum, offering a programme of public lectures, family-friendly events, gallery tours, table talks and much more, along with taught sessions for schools. As well as our permanent displays, visitors to the Museum enjoy special exhibitions highlighting areas of the collection. For those unable to visit Oxford, online versions of these exhibitions are available, along with podcasts of public lectures, stand-alone online resources and a web version of our collections database.

The Museum of the History of Science is a department of the University of Oxford, working hard to maintain the academic importance of its collection through teaching, research, conservation and interpretation.

Berkshire Yeomanry Museum

The museum contains a well displayed and comprehensive collection tracing the history of the Regiment since its beginnings in 1794.

Windsor and Royal Borough Museum

The Windsor & Royal Borough Museum is a registered/accredited, family-friendly and accessible small local history museum in a Grade 1 listed building completed in 1689. Come and discover the history of the town and the area. Listen to the stories of people who lived and worked here.

The collection relates to the history of Windsor, and other towns and villages across the Borough in East Berkshire. The museum has on display a selection of some of the many objects from the collection including a100,000 year old mammoth’s tusk, pre-historic tools, Bronze Age, Roman and Saxon artefacts, together with objects and ephemera from before Victorian times up to World War II, the 1950s and the present day.