Nantwich Museum facts for kids
Nantwich Museum is a cool local museum in the town of Nantwich, Cheshire, in northwest England. It opened its doors in 1980. The museum is inside an old building that used to be the town's public library, built way back in 1888. When you visit, you can learn all about Nantwich's past. This includes its part in the English Civil War, how people made salt and cheese, and even how they used to make shoes, clothes, and clocks!
Contents
A Look Inside the Museum
The museum is right in the middle of Nantwich, on a street called Pillory Street. The building itself has a long history! It was built in 1888 and used to be the town's library. Before that, it was even the site of the old town jail. The building is made of red bricks and was designed by an architect named Thomas Bower. The museum officially opened in January 1980, welcoming visitors to explore Nantwich's exciting story.
What You Can Discover
The museum has lots of different areas, called galleries, where you can explore Nantwich's history. You can learn about:
- Roman Salt Making: Find out how people in Roman Britain made salt, which was very important long ago.
- The Great Fire: Discover the story of the huge fire that burned down much of Nantwich in 1583, during the time of the Tudor dynasty.
- The English Civil War: Learn about the Battle of Nantwich in 1644, a big event during the English Civil War.
- Local Industries: See how people made shoes, clothes, and even clocks right here in Nantwich.
The museum also has special areas. One part has a fun exhibition all about cheese-making, especially the history of Cheshire cheese. There's also a special room called the Joseph Heler meeting room, where you can learn more about this local cheese.
Art and Special Exhibitions
Nantwich Museum also has a community gallery where local artists can show their work. The Millennium Gallery is used for temporary exhibitions, meaning they change often, so there's always something new to see!
Some of the interesting artworks you might find include:
- A painting called Mr Walsh's Perdita, with jockey up, on Nantwich Racecourse by Benjamin Killingbeck. This is the only known picture of the old Nantwich Racecourse!
- A portrait of a local historian named James Hall, painted by his son, Walter J. Hall.
- Works by a Nantwich artist named Herbert St John Jones (who lived from 1872 to 1939).
The museum also has a cool collection of old maps. In April 2019, a brand new area called the Cheshire Civil War Centre opened at the museum, focusing even more on this important part of history.
Visiting the Museum
The Nantwich Museum is open from Tuesday to Saturday. The best part is that entrance is completely free! The museum gets help from Cheshire East Council and Nantwich Town Council, as well as from local fundraising efforts, to keep its doors open for everyone to enjoy.
See also
- List of museums in Cheshire
- History of cheese
- Salt in Cheshire
