FOR REFERENCE ONLY FRANCIS CLOSE HALL LEARNING CENTRE UNIVERSITY OF GLOUCESTERSHIRE Swindon Road, Cheltenham GLSO 4AZ Tel: 01242 714600 VOLUNTEER - RUN MUSEUMS IN ENGLISH MARKET TOWNS AND VILLAGES BRIDGET ELIZABETH YATES A Thesis submitted to The University of Gloucestershire In accordance with the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy In the Faculty of Education, Humanities and Sciences December 2010 ABSTRACT VOLUNTEER-RUN MUSEUMS IN ENGLISH MARKET TOWNS AND VILLAGES Volunteer-run museums in English market towns and villages have been largely over-looked by scholars examining the history and development of museums in England, and work on contemporary museum volunteering or the relations of museums to their communities have not distinguished between volunteer-run and volunteer-involving museums. This thesis attempts to redress the balance by examining a number of volunteer-run museums in Dorset and the characteristics and motivations of the volunteers involved in their development. This element of the project included a survey of museum volunteers in the county and studies of a selected group of museums through interviews and through archival research in museum records. The thesis also presents a historical analysis, through a number of case histories, of the development of volunteer-run museums in English market towns and villages from 1884, demonstrating clearly how the development of these small museums reflects larger changes in the rural community from the paternalism of the late nineteenth century, through growing independence and democracy after 1918, to the counter­ urbanisation of the second half of the twentieth century. 1 Changing perceptions of rural identity are also apparent in the history of these museums. The second element of the project was largely undertaken in the archives of selected institutions founded at different periods, an unexplored source of extraordinary richness. Contextual discussions include an account of three unsuccessful attempts to set up an English folk museum, the importance of the growing interest in local history at a popular level, and the impact of the Festival of Britain in focussing attention on the history of towns as enshrining civic pride and liberties. Taken together, these two elements have enabled a clearer picture to emerge of the importance of volunteer-run museums to their communities, to the participants themselves and to the wider museums community. 2 I declare that the work in this thesis was carried out in accordance with the regulations of the University of Gloucestershire and is original except where indicated by specific reference in the text. No part of the thesis has been submitted as part of any other academic award. The thesis has not been presented to any other education institution in the United Kingdom or overseas. Any views expressed in the thesis are those of the author and in no way represent those of the university. Signed Dated ("")-~ ~~~..Q....~~ "2~ \\. 3 Acknowledgements This project would not have been possible without the kindness and support of many people, nor would I have had so much enjoyment, fun and interest along the way. First of all lowe an enormous debt of gratitude to all the many dedicated volunteers working in the museums that I have visited. Barry Jackson, Mrs Mary Herbert, Leslie Herbert and Alan Broadhead at the Victoria Jubilee Museum, Cawthorne, and John Coldwell, Local Studies Librarian, Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council; Mrs Barbara Edward at Winchcombe Folk and Police Museum; Peter Greener at Ashwell Village Museum; Mrs Diane Blackett at the Swinford Museum, Filkins; J. Kent Tomey at Clun; Chris Morley at Cricklade Museum; Ken Perkins at the Northgate Museum, Bridgnorth; Gerald and Helen Heath at the Almonry Museum, Evesham; Bob Roberts and Tony Moore at the Lanman Museum, Framlingham. In Dorset, I would particularly like to thank Murray Rose and Jenny Cuthbert of Beaminster Museum; Peter Andrews and Sylvia Hixson Andrews of Blandford Forum Town Museum; R.J. Saville and Sandra Brown of Langton Matravers Museum; Lisa Gravett and colleagues at Portland Museum; Sue Turner, Elisabeth Bletsoe, Alex Oxford and Hibbert Binney 4 at Sherborne'Museum; and Mike O'Hara at Wareham Town Museum. All of whom made time to talk to me, and allowed me access to the museum archives, a privilege which is deeply appreciated. David Tucker, Dorset County Museums Adviser, gave me whole-hearted support and encouragement from the start, as did the members of the Dorset Museums Association who, with David, formed a steering group to guide and advise me on the development of the Dorset Survey of Museum Volunteers, Emma Ayling, Trudi Cole, Sylvia Hixson Andrews, Murray Rose, and Judy Lindsay. Other museum colleagues who have contributed to the project at various points are: Matthew Alexander, Guildford Museum; Dr Roy Brigden, Museum of English Rural Life, Reading; Nigel Cox, Gloucester Folk Museum; Tony Cross, The Curtis Museum, Alton; Hugh Hornby for St Michaels-on-Wyre Museum; Brian Ives, Nidderdale Museum; Nichola Johnson, former Director of the Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts and Head of Museology at the University of East Anglia; Dr Nick Mansfield, former Director of the National Museum of Labour History; Louise Pullen, Museums Sheffield (Ruskin Collection); Chris Reeve, Bungay Museum; Julie Reynolds, Gloucestershire Museums Development Officer; John Stevenson, Champs 5 Chapel Museum, East Hendred; Alex Woodall, Manchester City Galleries. I could not have embarked on this project without the help and support of my friends, particularly Anne and Alan Jones and Jean Mayne who have looked after house and garden when I have been in Cheltenham. My family have put up with my fascination with museums for a very long time especially Chris and Sue Yates, Robin Yates and Grace Fong, and Alex Yates and Airlie Fleming. They might, I think, be rather hoping that this will be The End. Finally I would like to thank my supervisors at the University of Gloucestershire Andrew Charlesworth and James Derounian without whose indefatigable support, guidance and encouragement, mugs of tea and poached eggs on toast (twice), none of this would have happened. 6 This thesis is dedicated with love to my brother Christopher St John Yates, 1943-2009 7 CONTENTS Abstract 1 Author's Declaration 3 Acknowledgements 4 Dedication 7 SECTION A: INTRODUCTION AND SCOPE OF THE STUDY Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 The origins of the research 18 1.2 The research journey 21 1.3 The key research questions and themes addressed in the project 28 Chapter 2: The scope of the study 2.1 Introduction to Chapter 2 31 2.2 Why study 'market town and village museums'? 32 2.3 Working definitions of 'market town' and 'village' 34 2.4 Definition of 'volunteer-run' museum for the purpose of the study 36 SECTION B THE LITERATURE REVIEW Introduction: Museums and Museum Volunteering 40 Chapter 3: Volunteer-run museums - a literature review 3.1 Theorizing the history of museums 41 3.2 The New Museology 50 8 Chapter 4 Volunteers and Volunteering in Museums - a literature review 4.1 Surveys of volunteering in museums 56 4.2 The Mattingly and Holmes Surveys 59 4.3 The Institute for Volunteering Research Surveys, 2002 and 2005 65 4.4 Volunteering in Museums- the academic literature 67 4.5 Does Organisational Context Matter? 71 Summary of Section B 78 SECTION C: VOLUNTEER- RUN MUSEUMS - UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEXT Introduction to Section C 579 Chapter 5: Volunteer- Run Museums - Understanding the Context 5.1 Governing Volunteer-run Museums 81 5.2 The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council Accreditation Scheme and Volunteer-run Museums 92 5.3 The Renaissance Programme, the Museum Development Fund and Museum Development Officers 97 5.4 Other Museum Networks and Organisations 101 5.5 Funding Sources and Support for Volunteer-run Museums 103 Summary of Section C 108 SECTION D: THE DORSET SURVEY OF MUSEUM VOLUNTEERS Introduction: the Museum Landscape in Dorset 109 Chapter 6: The Dorset Survey of Museum Volunteers 6.1 The Dorset Survey of Museum Volunteers - Introduction 113 6.2 The Survey responses: some essentials 116 6.3 Why do they do it? Some motivations explored 122 6.4 Volunteer-run museums and the development of social capital 131 Summary of Section D 140 SECTION E: THE ORIGINS OF VOLUNTEER-RUN MUSEUMS Introduction to Section E 143 Chapter 7: Museums and the Everyday - Museums forthe People or Museums of the People? 7.1 Museums in England in the Nineteenth Century - a brief overview 144 7.2 Early Village Museums 148 Chapter 8: The Victoria Jubilee Museum, Cawthorne, 1884- 1915 8.1 Introduction 152 8.2 Background 154 8.3 The origins of the Museum 156 10 8.4 The Cawthorne Museum Society 162 8.5 Collecting for the Museum - Pratt, Ruskin and the wider world 166 8.6 The Museum Visitors 173 Summary of Section E 176 SECTION F: CHANGING THE SUBJECT Introduction to Section F 177 Chapter 9: A Growing Interest in the Everyday 9.1 Appreciating the everyday: the influence of Gertrude Jekyll 179 9.2 An English Folk or Open Air Museum? 185 Summary of Section F 198 SECTION G: THE INTERWAR YEARS 1918-1939 Introduction to Section G 202 Chapter 10: The Growth of Popular History in the Interwar Years 10.1 Background - the place of history 205 10.2 History in schools 207 10.3 Popular Local History 212 10.4 The Women's Institutes and Village History 217 Chapter 11: Going Local 11.1 The Turn to the Everyday' 224 11.2 The 'turn to the everyday' - The Curtis Museum 228 11 11.3 An English Folk or Open Air Museum? The quest