List of museums in Dorset

This list of museums in Dorset, England contains museums which are defined for this context as institutions (including nonprofit organizations, government entities, and private businesses) that collect and care for objects of cultural, artistic, scientific, or historical interest and make their collections or related exhibits available for public viewing. Also included are non-profit art galleries and university art galleries. Museums that exist only in cyberspace (i.e., virtual museums) are not included.

To use the sortable table, click on the icons at the top of each column to sort that column in alphabetical order; click again for reverse alphabetical order.

Name Image Town/City Region Type Summary
Anvil Point LighthouseSwanagePurbeckMaritimeLighthouse open for tours, located within Durlston Country Park
AthelhamptonDorchesterWest DorsetHistoric house15th-century manor house and gardens
Beaminster MuseumBeaminsterWest DorsetLocalwebsite, local history, archaeology, agriculture
Bennetts Water GardensChickerellWest DorsetMultiple8-acre (32,000 m2) garden, collection of water lilies, local history museum
Blandford Fashion MuseumBlandfordNorth DorsetFashionwebsite, costumes and accessories from the 1730s to the 1970s
Blandford Town MuseumBlandfordNorth DorsetLocalwebsite, local history, trades, archaeology, military, railway
Bridport MuseumBridportWest DorsetLocalwebsite, local history, textiles, fossils, art
Bournemouth Aviation MuseumHurnChristchurchAviationAirplanes, engines, cockpits, a double-decker bus
Bournemouth Natural Science SocietyBournemouthBournemouthNatural historywebsite, open for events and open house days, includes preserved plants, birds, mammals, reptiles, insects, eggs and shells, fossils, rocks and minerals, archaeological artifacts and an Egyptology collection
Bournemouth University Atrium GalleryBournemouthBournemouthArtwebsite, works by both university students and contributing artists
Castletown D-Day CentreIsle of PortlandWeymouth and PortlandMilitaryHistory of Portland Harbour's role in the Normandy landings[1]
Charmouth Heritage Coast CentreCharmouthWest DorsetNatural historyFossils and rocks of the Jurassic Coast
Chettle HouseChettleNorth DorsetHistoric houseinformation, 18th century Queen Anne house and gardens
Clouds HillWarehamPurbeckHistoric houseOperated by the National Trust, former home of T. E. Lawrence ("Lawrence of Arabia")
Corfe Castle Town MuseumCorfe CastlePurbeckLocalwebsite, local history, geology, marble industry
Dinosaur MuseumDorchesterWest DorsetNatural historyDinosaurs, full size models, fossils of the Jurassic Coast
Dinosaurland Fossil MuseumLyme RegisWest DorsetNatural historyLocal Jurassic marine fossils, dinosaurs, geology of the Jurassic Coast, shells, evolution
Dorset County MuseumDorchesterWest DorsetMultipleLocal history, natural history, art, archaeology, agriculture, author Thomas Hardy, fossil and dinosaurs
Dorset Teddy Bear MuseumDorchesterWest DorsetToyTeddy bears
The Etches CollectionKimmeridgePurbeckNatural historyFossils
Fiddleford ManorSturminster NewtonNorth DorsetHistoric houseOperated by English Heritage, medieval small stone manor house
Forde AbbeyChardWest DorsetHistoric houseFormer Cistercian monastery, house and gardens
TheGallery at Arts University BournemouthBournemouthBournemouthArtwebsite, contemporary art gallery
Gillingham MuseumGillinghamNorth DorsetLocalwebsite, local history, trades, geology, industry
Gold Hill MuseumShaftesburyNorth DorsetLocalwebsite, local history, culture, industry
Grove Prison MuseumIsle of PortlandWeymouth and PortlandPrisonHistory of HM Prison Portland[2]
Highcliffe CastleHighcliffeChristchurchHistoric house19th century Romantic and Picturesque style castle, grounds laid out by Capability Brown
Keep Military MuseumDorchesterWest DorsetMilitaryHistory of the regiments of Dorset and Devon
Kingston LacyWimborne MinsterEast DorsetHistoric houseOperated by the National Trust, 17th-century house with fine art, Egyptian artifacts, lavish interiors, gardens
Langton Matravers MuseumLangton MatraversPurbeckLocalwebsite, local history, geology, limestone industry
Lulworth CastleEast LulworthPurbeckHistoric house17th century mock castle manor house
Lyme Regis Marine AquariumLyme RegisWest DorsetNatural historywebsite, local fish and marine life of the Jurassic coast, history of The Cobb harbour wall
Lyme Regis MuseumLyme RegisWest DorsetMultipleFossils, geology, Jane Austen, local history, maritime heritage, writers and artists, formerly known as the Philpot Museum
Mangerton MillBridportWest DorsetMillinformation, 3 story watermill
Mapperton HouseBeaminsterWest DorsetHistoric houseElizabethan manor house and gardens
Max GateDorchesterWest DorsetHistoric houseOperated by the National Trust, home of author Thomas Hardy
Museum of Design in PlasticsBournemouthBournemouthArtwebsite, collection of the library of the Arts University Bournemouth, international, historical and contemporary design examples of plastic items and uses
Nothe FortWeymouthWeymouth and PortlandMilitary19th-century fort with important role in World War II, memorabilia, vehicles
Place MillChristchurchChristchurchMillwebsite, restored Anglo-Saxon watermill, art gallery
Poole MuseumPoolePooleLocalLocal history, ceramics and Poole Pottery, archaeology, maritime and social history, local trades and industries, costume and textiles; formerly known as the Waterfront Museum
Poole Old Lifeboat Museum and ShopPoolePooleMaritimeFormer lifeboat station and historic lifeboat
Portland Bill LighthouseIsle of PortlandWeymouth and PortlandMaritimeLighthouse open for tours
Portland CastleWeymouthWeymouth and PortlandMilitaryOperated by English Heritage, 16th century armed castle fort
Portland MuseumIsle of PortlandWeymouth and PortlandLocalLocal history, geology, maritime heritage, archaeology
Priest's House MuseumWimborne MinsterEast DorsetHistoric houseRooms furnished in different periods, local history, archaeology
Purbeck Mineral and Mining MuseumCorfe CastlePurbeckMiningLocated at the Norden railway station, history and equipment for ball clay mining
Red House Museum, DorsetChristchurchChristchurchLocalinformation, information, local and social history, natural history, geology, archaeology, costumes
Royal Signals MuseumBlandford ForumNorth DorsetMilitaryNational museum of army communications
Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & MuseumBournemouthBournemouthArtFine art and Japanese art in a Victorian mansion
Scaplens Court MuseumPoolePooleHistorywebsite, medieval building used for education programs, special domestic life demonstrations in August
Shaftesbury Abbey MuseumShaftesburyNorth DorsetReligiousArtifacts from the ruins of a 15th-century Benedictine nunnery
Sherborne CastleSherborneWest DorsetHistoric houseOperated by English Heritage, 16th-century Tudor mansion and gardens
Sherborne House ArtsBridportWest DorsetArtwebsite, art gallery of the Bridport Arts Centre
Sherborne MuseumSherborneWest DorsetLocalLocal history, trades, industry, household items
Sherborne Steam & Waterwheel CentreSherborneWest DorsetTechnologywebsite, restored 19th century waterwheel used to deliver town's water, formerly known as the Castleton Waterwheel Museum
Shire Hall DorsetDorchesterWest DorsetPrisonwebsite, also known as Old Crown Court and Cells, courtroom, cells and stocks restored to appear as during the trial of the Tolpuddle Martyrs in 1834
Stock GaylardSturminster NewtonNorth DorsetHistoric housewebsite, small Georgian country house, gardens and estate
Sturminster Newton MillSturminster NewtonNorth DorsetMillwebsite, working watermill
Sturminster Newton MuseumSturminster NewtonNorth DorsetLocalwebsite, local history, culture
Sutton Poyntz Water Supply MuseumWeymouthWeymouth and PortlandHistorywebsite, history of water supplying, natural history of watersheds, operated by Wessex Water Services
Swanage MuseumSwanagePurbeckLocalwebsite, local history, geology and history of the Jurassic Coast, stone industry, local development of early radar in the UK during World War II
Swanage RailwayCorfe CastlePurbeckRailwayHeritage railway and museum located in the converted Goods Shed in Corfe Castle railway station
The Tank MuseumWoolPurbeckMilitaryTanks and armored vehicles
Terracotta Warriors MuseumDorchesterWest DorsetHistorywebsite, replicas of warriors of the Terracotta Army found in China in 1974
Thomas Hardy's CottageHigher BockhamptonWest DorsetHistoric houseOperated by the National Trust, birthplace of author Thomas Hardy
Tolpuddle Martyrs MuseumTolpuddleWest DorsetHistoryTrade union history of 19th-century English agricultural labourers who were convicted of swearing a secret oath as members of the Friendly Society of Agricultural Labourers
Town Mill, Lyme RegisLyme RegisWest DorsetMillwebsite, restored working watermill, complex also houses art galleries, a café/restaurant, craft studios and workshops, a bakery, a mill shop and the Miller's garden
Tudor HouseWeymouthWeymouth and PortlandHistoric houseEarly 17th century period merchant's house, operated by the Weymouth Civic Society
Tutankhamun ExhibitionDorchesterWest DorsetHistoryRe-creation of the tomb of the ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamun
Wareham Town MuseumWarehamPurbeckLocalLocal history, T. E. Lawrence, archeology, local pottery
West Bay Discovery CentreWest BayWest DorsetLocalVisitor centre covering the history of West Bay, housed in a former Methodist chapel[3]
Weymouth MuseumWeymouthWeymouth and PortlandLocalPart of Brewers Quay, local history, culture, maritime history
White Mill, Sturminster MarshallSturminster MarshallEast DorsetMillwebsite, operated by the National Trust, part of the Kingston Lacy estate, restored watermill
Wolfeton HouseCharminsterWest DorsetHistoric houseEarly Tudor and Elizabethan manor house

Defunct museums

  • Discovery, interactive hands-on science exhibits, formerly part of Brewers Quay
  • Museum of Electricity, Christchurch, closed indefinitely in 2012[4]
  • Timewalk, formerly located in Brewers Quay, exhibits on 600 years of local history and the brewing heritage of the building. Closed in 2010.

See also

  • Category:Tourist attractions in Dorset

References

  1. ↑ "Portland dockside D-Day museum opens - BBC News". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
  2. ↑ "Grove Prison Museum". Portland History. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
  3. ↑ "West Bay Discovery Centre - Bridport & West Bay". Bridportandwestbay.co.uk. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
  4. ↑ "Spark of hope for Christchurch electricity museum". Daily Echo. March 13, 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.