Ashwell Village Museum

Ashwell Village Museum is a small local-history museum in a half-timbered building on Swan Street in Ashwell, a village in North Hertfordshire, England. It is run around a simple idea: everything on display has to be connected with Ashwell or its immediate neighbourhood, and the collection reaches from the Stone Age to the present day.

What is the Ashwell Village Museum?

The museum is a community collection of the kind that is increasingly rare. Rather than showcasing famous masterpieces, it tells the story of one village through the everyday things its residents made, used, kept and donated over many generations. The only rule for adding an object is its link with the place, which gives the displays an unusually focused character.

The building itself is part of the attraction. It dates from the 16th century and is timber-framed, with the wooden structure exposed during restoration work in the 1930s. Historic England lists it among visitable heritage sites.

How did the museum begin?

The story starts in the 1920s with pupils of the Merchant Taylors School in Ashwell, who began gathering local objects. A display of the collection at a church fete in 1928 showed that there was real interest, and a committee was formed to find the collection a permanent home.

Two young curators then bought a nearly derelict old building for a mere £25. Its restoration was made possible by a generous donor, Sir William Gentle. The museum opened to the public on 30 November 1930, which makes it one of the long-standing village museums in the region.

How has it grown?

The original building was extended in 1983, and a second, larger extension followed with support from the Heritage Lottery Fund. It was celebrated with a Grand Opening in 2001. The museum also publishes a yearbook, a useful record of its activities and of village history.

What can you expect as a visitor?

Expect a modest, friendly museum rather than a large institution. A visit is best treated as part of a wider walk through Ashwell: the village has a pleasant historic centre, and the museum helps explain how it developed and how ordinary people lived there. Because the collection spans such a long period, exhibits range from very early finds to objects from recent village life.

Practical tips

• The museum is a volunteer-style local venture, so opening times are limited. According to its website, it opens on Sunday afternoons and bank holiday Mondays, and at other times by appointment. Other listings give slightly different times, so check the museum's own website before travelling.
• Allow roughly an hour to look around and chat with the people on duty, who usually know the village well.
• Combine the visit with a stroll along the village's streets to see the older buildings that the museum's displays describe.

Frequently asked questions

When was Ashwell Village Museum founded? It opened to the public on 30 November 1930, after a collection begun by local schoolboys in the 1920s found a permanent home.

What is displayed? Objects connected with Ashwell and its surroundings, dating from the Stone Age to modern times.

Where is it? On Swan Street in Ashwell, near Baldock in North Hertfordshire.

Is the building old? Yes. It is a 16th-century half-timbered house, restored in the 1930s.

Do I need to book? Not during the regular opening times, but visits at other times need an appointment, so contact the museum in advance.