Bishop’s Waltham Museum Trust runs a small museum in the grounds of Bishop’s Waltham Palace and has substantial archives. The Bishops Waltham Museum Trust building was originally built in the 15th century as lodgings for guests of the Bishop of Winchester, but was converted to a farmhouse after the Civil War. The museum is run entirely by volunteers.
In our care lie objects of interest for Bishop’s Waltham and the surrounding area including everything from prehistoric tools to 20th century local items. The museum has a new exhibition every year to showcase our archives and objects, together with participation from local schools and groups.
Our archives are particularly rich in photographs of the local area due to the work of John Bosworth, a local photographer and collector of photographs. He was interested in every aspect of the local area, and our archives reflect that. We are in the process of scanning all of our photographic archive – a task which has taken years – and we hope to put the catalogue on our website in the not too distant future!
We also have a strong oral history group who have collections of reminiscences on D-Day, Abbey Mill, and the 50s and 60s. The catalogue will be on our new website (http://www.bishopswalthammuseum.com) in late 2019.
01489 894654
bishopswalthammuseum@gmail.com
Contacts: Gill Williams, Penny Copeland
Contributed by Penny Copeland, July 2019
Bishops Waltham, BW00100045 – Railway Station. Waiting for passengers
Bishops Waltham, BW00500330 – Station Road – Pennyfarthing Coffee House interior