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Art, Museums and Heritage

What's on

The Museums Service runs a busy and varied programme of activities both in the museums and out in the community.

What's On: April-October 2008 - our latest leaflet contains all exhibitions and events in the region:

Page 1 - highlights, workshops and how to find us
Page 2 - full calendar of events

You will need Acrobat Reader to read these files; if you do not have it, please download it here. To read pdf documents, you will need a copy of Adobe reader. You can download it free of charge by following this link - OPENS IN A NEW WINDOW

Look!  Learn!  Seek!  Find!  Enjoy!

Hitchin Museum has a wonderful collection, brought to life through imaginative displays and interactives, to tell the story of the town's past.

  • We hold the Hertfordshire Yeomanry collection and impressive costume collection covering 200 years.
  • A Victorian Chemist Shop, 'Perks and Llewellyn', which once stood in the town is complemented by a physic garden in the museum grounds.

Letchworth Museum's Wildlife Gallery shows local birds and mammals in realistic settings.  Don't miss the famous Black Squirrel!

  • Step back in time and explore the heritage of the District in the upstairs Archaeology Gallery.
  • Our impressive Art Gallery has a new exhibition every month.  We regularly show paintings from the Museum's collection.
  • Letchworth Museum also has fascinating collections of pottery and china, costume and social history.

Hitchin and Letchworth Museums both have small museum shops selling a range of books, postcards and souvenirs. Paintings, prints, photographs and craft items such as textiles or ceramics are sometimes sold from temporary exhibitions at both museums.  It is well worth visiting one of our exhibitions if you are interested in acquiring a piece of original art work at a reasonable price.  Items purchased from exhibitions may be collected after the exhibition has ended.

Images of objects from the museums' extensive collections can be seen at the East of England Broadband Network's Gallery.

For further information please ring 01462-434476 Hitchin Museum & Art Gallery or 01462-685647 Letchworth Museum & Art Gallery.

Educational Activities

  • Active workshop learning sessions are available covering all Key Stage National Curriculum topics.
  • Loan Scheme with a range of objects from natural history specimens to hands-on historical and archaeological artefacts for termly hire.
  • Special events are held throughout the year for school groups and families.

Archaeology Service  The North Herts area has a history of impressive archaeological finds and numerous sites, from prehistoric dwellings to medieval religious houses.  The service is a deposit for most of the archaeological material in the area.

The service cares for the collection and interprets the material through reports, popular publications and displays at Letchworth Museum.  An enquiry and identification service is also offered at both Letchworth and Hitchin museums.

For further information please ring 01462-434896

The Countryside Service holds and displays comprehensive natural history and geology collections.and provides enquiry, identification and research facilities.

Other museums in North Hertfordshire

There are five other museums in North Hertfordshire that are not run by the District Council. Follow the links (where possible) to visit the websites of these respective museums.  Please note that North Hertfordshire District Council is not responsible for the content of external websites.

Download a brief guide to all seven museums.

Hitchin British Schools Museum is run by the Hitchin British Schools Trust.  It is on the site of the first school in the county 'for the sons of the labouring poor', opened on Queen Street in 1810.

  • Visit the only surviiving original Lancasterian Schoolroom, built in 1837 for over 300 boys.
  • See the Galleried Classroom built with the encouragement of Matthew Arnold in 1853.

For further information please ring 01462 420144.

Ashwell Village Museum is run by the Ashwell Museum Trust and tells the story of the Domesday borough of Ashwell, now a village reknowned for its history and architecture.

  • Exhibitions on local village life from plague rats to straw plaiting and stone tools to pubs.
  • Finds from the shrine of Ashwell's own goddess, the Romano-British Senuna.

For further information please ring 01462 742956.

First Garden City Heritage Museum is run by Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation. It is housed in the 1907 offices of Barry Parker, the principal architect of the early Garden City.

  • Visit Barry Parker's office, filled with hand-made Arts and Crafts furniture.
  • A regularly changing temporary exhibitions programme explores the social history of Letchworth Garden City.

For further information please ring 01462 482710.

Baldock Museum is run by the Baldock Museum and Local History Society. Housed in the hisotirc town hall, it lies at the centre of the medieval town founded by the Knights Templar int he 1140s.

  • Explore the changing fortunes of the Knights Templar's market town from medieval merchants to Georgian brewers and modern industry.
  • Changing annual exhibitions chart particular features of the town's fascinating history.

For more information please ring 01462 892640.

Royston and District Museum is run by Royston Town Council and Royston & District Local History Society and tells the story of Royston and the surrounding area from prehsitory to the present day.

  • Explore all aspects of Royston life: at home, at school and during both World Wars.
  • The upper gallery houses frequent temporary exhibitions and the Royston Tapestry, which depicts the history of the town, sewn by local volunteers.

For more information please ring 01763 242587.

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