Museum of Gloucester Facts for Kids

The Museum of Gloucester

The Museum of Gloucester is the main museum in the city of Gloucester, England. It's located on Brunswick Road. The museum got a big makeover thanks to a grant from the National Heritage Lottery Fund. It reopened on Gloucester Day, September 3, 2011. In March 2016, the museum changed its name. It used to be known as the Gloucester City Museum & Art Gallery. There's also a smaller museum called Gloucester Life on Westgate Street. It focuses on the everyday history of Gloucestershire.

How the Museum Started
The Museum Building
What You Can See at the Museum
The Art Collection
Museum Activities and Discoveries
Images for kids
See also

How the Museum Started

The Museum of Gloucester first opened its doors on March 12, 1860. It began as a private project in three rooms at a place called The Black Swan. The poet Sydney Dobell let them use these rooms for free. Later, in 1896, the city council of Gloucester took over running the museum.

The Museum Building

The museum is in a beautiful Victorian building. It was built in an early Renaissance style, inspired by the architect T.G. Jackson. This building is so special that it's listed as a Grade II historic building by English Heritage. It was originally called the Price Memorial Hall. Margaret Price had it built in 1893 to remember her husband, William Edwin Price. F.S. Waller designed the building. In 1902, the city council took over the building. They turned it into the City Museum & Art Gallery.

At first, the museum only used the ground floor. But in 1958, a first floor was added. A famous archaeologist named Sir Mortimer Wheeler officially opened this new section.

What You Can See at the Museum

The Museum of Gloucester has many amazing things to explore! It collects items that tell the story of Gloucester and the surrounding area.

Ancient Discoveries

Dinosaur Skeletons: Imagine seeing the bones of giant dinosaurs!
Archaeology: This section includes ancient objects found by digging. You can see the Rufus Sita Tombstone, which is a Roman tombstone. There's also the Iron Age Birdlip Mirror, found in 1879, and the Bon Marché head, discovered in 1934.
Roman and Medieval Items: Discover items from Roman times and the Middle Ages. This includes the Gloucester tabula set, a very rare board game from the 11th or 12th century.

Nature and Art

Natural History: Learn about the plants and animals that have lived in the area.
Fine and Decorative Art: The museum has beautiful artworks and decorative items. These include Delftware (a type of pottery), Staffordshire figurines, and special bowls made by Alfred and Louise Powell from the Arts and Crafts Movement.
Queen Anne Furniture: See furniture from the time of Queen Anne.

Local History Treasures

Local History: This part of the museum shows items related to Gloucester's past. You can find things about the Gloucester Railway Carriage & Wagon Company. There's also a statue of a local preacher named George Whitfield.

A piece of an Anglo-Saxon Cross from St. Oswald's Priory in the museum.

Newnham-on-Severn from Dean Hill by William Turner.

John and Joan Cooke by an unknown artist. Joan Cooke started The Crypt School.

An 1834 painting of a Gloucestershire Old Spot pig.

A tiny painting of Jemmy Wood, the famous Gloucester Miser.

The Art Collection

The museum's art collection has about 300 paintings. These include works by famous artists like J. M. W. Turner and Thomas Gainsborough. There's even a painting of Oliver Cromwell.

In 1977, the museum added a landscape painting to its collection. It's called Newnham-on-Severn from Dean Hill by William Turner of Oxford. The museum got help from The Art Fund to buy it.

Museum Activities and Discoveries

The museum is not just for looking at old things; it also helps discover new ones! In 1976, the museum's team dug at St. Oswald's Priory. They found important new clues about a Saxon church. This church was founded by Æthelred and his wife Æthelflæd in the 890s.