A decade or so ago, I wrote to the Library Association Record suggesting that there should be a Museum of Librarianship. The idea was considered but rejected; rightly so. Having, myself, been a trustee of another museum competently listed here the problems of running an independent museum are enormous, not least in the turnover of trustees and honorary officers who find the legal and financial problems destructive of their enthusiasm. So I have enormous admiration for all who follow their passion for history, or whatever, and succeed in preserving artifacts for present and future generations. That independent museums – museums not supported by central or local government, universities or other large organizations – succeed at all is a marvel. There is a high mortality rate among small museums and I was pleased to note that the author advises the potential visitor travelling any distance to check first! My congratulations, then, to Christine Redington for charting these brave survivors so attractively and efficiently. This pocket‐sized guide is fun to use; it must have been fun to compile.
Divided into regional areas, this guide claims to be the first comprehensive companion to Britain’s small museums. Although classified as “small”, some museums in this collection cover many acres, but because they receive no subsidy, little publicity and relatively few visitors, they still fall under this heading. (The term “independent museums”, as used within the museums profession is, surely, a better term.) Such museums are run by enthusiasts and can give a more personal experience than civic, national, and the larger museums: the “independents” are a distinctive breed. The UK has an amazingly rich culture of collections and “relics”, with a wide geographical spread. The subjects covered range from lawn mowers and cars to chocolate, dog‐collars and sailing barges. This book gives a clear description of each collection, contact addresses, directions on how to find them, opening times, admission charges, the facilities offered, and background about the collector and the collection. There is an index of places and an index of subjects. There are also some photographs and maps.
Biggar Gasworks Museum, Clydebank Sewing Machine Museum, Northlands Viking Centre, Orkney Wireless Museum, The Freud Museum, the Museum of Garden History, the Mechanical Music Museum, the Brontë Parsonage Museum: what richness! The user should be clear that there will be many other museums in locations covered here, but not featured, because they are run by local authorities, the National Trust, or perhaps because the author has not heard about them (there is a delightful organ museum at Saltaire), or they are too “big” – Crich and Beamish are not here; neither are regimental museums, stately homes, preserved railways and many transport museums.
In Goole, the Waterways Museum is listed, but not the (free) maritime museum on the first floor of the library building. But there are a lot of museums that are here, 300 or so. Returning to the theme of library history, there is at Manvers Street in Bath, in a basement, down a flight of stairs (“and therefore has no access for wheelchairs”), in a former sorting office of the General Post Office, The Book Museum. How this compares with exhibitions at the British Library, the John Rylands, and in other national libraries, I know not, but it is there. Visit it!
As a supplement to the standard sources such as the Museums Yearbook and www.24hourmuseum.org.uk, A Guide to the Small Museums of Britain is a good buy and excellent value for money.
