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Image © T&DHT
About the museum
Location: The museum can be found in Chapel Street, between the Armstrong and Cossham Halls, and the Wheatsheaf Pub.
Opening Times: Tuesday to Friday, 1pm - 4pm; Saturday, 10am - 4pm (10am - 1pm in Jan. and Feb.)
Closed Sunday, Monday and Bank Holidays and the Christmas/New Year period.
Facilities: Unfortunately we do not have space for either a refreshment bar or a public toilet but these can both be found within just a few yards of the museum.
Disabled access: The Roman Coins exhibition room is wheelchair accessible, the front room has a step down and the upstairs gallery is reached by a narrow staircase with handrails. Display material incorporates best practice for readability although we cannot guarantee this for guest exhibitions.
Car parking: St Mary's Street car park is across the road and waiting in the daytime is limited to two hours. Long term parking is available in both the Rock Street car park, across the road from the St Mary Street car park, and Castle Court car park, accessed from the High Street.
Thornbury is a very small compact town centre and shops, restaurants, cafes, banks and public toilets are all available within a few hundred metres of the museum.
Our Museum Logo shows the Thornbury pump, situated at the junction of the High Street, Castle Street and the Plain, with the old buildings seen through the framework. A simplified version is used to identify the information panels and waymarkers of the Heritage Trail.
Image © T&DHT
We're Accredited by the MLA
Thornbury and District Heritage Trust has been operating as a museum in Thornbury since 1986 and was granted full Registered Museum status in 2002.
However, in 2009 we worked towards and applied for the latest designation, which is Museum Accreditation. This replaces Registration status and is more demanding. We are delighted to say that in August 2009 we became a fully Accredited Museum.
The MLA's Accreditation Scheme sets nationally agreed standards for UK museums. To meet the requirements, we had to demonstrate that we achieve standards relating to how the museum is governed and managed, how we provide services and facilities for users of and visitors to the museum, and how we care for and manage our collection.
We are particularly proud of this achievement since Thornbury and District Museum is an entirely volunteer-staffed organisation. Thank you to everyone who helps out in any way at the museum!
Visitor comments about the museum
We'd thought we'd put a selection of recent visitor comments on our website:
Fascinating Concorde exhibition. Could stay all day long soaking up the nostalgia. Thanks. (A visitor from Almondsbury)
Fantastic local resource. (A visitor from Reigate)
Will definitely visit again. Very pleasant and helpful staff. (A visitor from Thornbury)
Magic. (A visitor from Olveston)
Very good museum. Fantastic to have it in Thornbury. Enjoyed the rolling pins - really didn't realise there were so many varieties! (A visitor from Brussels)
Very good Roman collection. (A visitor from Newcastle, Staffordshire)
Nice to see the regular changing of exhibits. ( Address not given)
So glad to have seen this interesting story of rolling pins! (A visitor from Fareham, Hampshire)
Many thanks to Meg for all her help setting up the GDSA [Glos Dairy Students Association] display. (Contributor to exhibition, from Ingst near Olveston)
Lovely staff. (A visitor from Thornbury)
Great display. (A visitor from Ealing, London)
Excellent - and v. helpful. (A visitor from Swindon)
Very nice museum. (A visitor from Faringdon, Oxfordshire)
Very interesting. Good teaching labels. (A visitor from Austin, Texas, USA)
Fantastic museum. Jane so helpful! (Address not given)
Great - a superb collection of items. (A visitor from Pendeen, Penzance)
A very enjoyable museum which will be worth recommending to others and visiting again. (A visitor from Alveston)
Loved the rolling pins! (A visitor from Cheshunt, Herts)
An interesting and enjoyable museum. The Roman coins were great. (A visitor from Kempson, Bedford)
Enjoyed making a mosaic and brass rubbing in the "Roman" room. (A visitor from Bradley Stoke)
The boys loved the rolling pins. Brilliant, friendly staff. Thanks! (A visitor from Thornbury)
Came to research family tree. Thanks for your help. (A visitor from Coventry)
Sources of funding
Our community museum has no paid staff. It is run solely by volunteers drawn from the surrounding area. It provides a museum service for Thornbury and fourteen parishes of the Lower Severn Vale. We receive a small amount of financial support from South Gloucestershire Council and Thornbury Town Council. The museum raises some funds through, for instance, the small and lively museum shop. The Friends of Thornbury Museum raise valuable funds for special projects. Visitors from this country and abroad sometimes give donations and for these we are extremely grateful.
Shop
We have a small shop where publications of local interest and souvenirs can be purchased. See the Museum Shop page for more details.
Collecting and Research
The Trust's collection includes objects, a document archive, photographs and digital images which all help tell the story of Thornbury and its surrounding parishes. Some of the collection is placed in store and can be accessed by arrangement for research, as well as being used to create exhibitons and displays. Storage space is very limited so we are only able to accept items of local importance and interest into the collection.
The discovery of a Roman Coin hoard in 2004 has given us the opportunity to expand our archaeological displays.
The museum has three research groups:
The Research Group meets on the first Thursday of every month at 7.30.pm at the United Reformed Church and Thornbury Geology Group meets on the third Thursday of the month at 7.30.pm at The Chantry. Both these groups produce a monthly newsletter for members with copies retained at the museum for anyone to read. The Archaeology Group meets weekly to conserve and document material collected from local digs. This group also arranges occasional visits to other sites.
Dealing with enquiries
Museum volunteers endeavour to answer enquiries received by phone, visitor or email whenever possible. This is dependent on volunteers with knowledge of the particular topic being available and so we cannot guarantee to do this. We have various archives, censuses, parish records etc. at our disposal. We do not charge a fee for this service but donations to the “Thornbury and District Heritage Trust” are most welcome.
Educational Outreach
Museum volunteers make visits to local schools and other organisations with presentations, handling materials and talks. Here, a "Roman Day" was organised for local children at The Chantry, Thornbury. Activities included learning about life in Roman times, making a clay lamp, constructing a mosaic picture, dressing up in a toga and pottery sorting. 
Group visits are available by arrangement. The museum can accommodate only small parties and school groups.
Guided walks are organised in Spring, and for Heritage Open Days in Autumn, and at other times by request, if possible.
Image © T&DHT
The Friends of Thornbury and District Museum
This group publishes a regular newsletter and organizes a range of visits and social events. Its core aim is to support the museum with both additional funding for special projects and volunteers for events and museum activities. See the Friends page for more details.
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