The Curtis Museum in Alton is a local history museum in Hampshire, England.
The museum was founded in 1865 by Dr William Curtis (1803–1881).
In 2014, ownership of the museum was transferred to the Hampshire Cultural Trust as part of a larger transfer of museums from Hampshire County Council and Winchester City Council. [1]
It contains a wide range of artefacts and displays including:
In 2010, both the Curtis Museum and the Allen Gallery were under threat of closure, following their receipt of an email to that effect from the Museum & Arts Service. [3] The Museum and Gallery were taken over by the Hampshire Museums and Galleries Trust, which ran both buildings with the help of volunteers, on behalf of Hampshire County Council. As of May 2014, management was transferred back to Hampshire County Council.
Hampshire is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, Dorset to the west, and Wiltshire to the north-west. The city of Southampton is the largest settlement.
Winchester is a cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, at the western end of the South Downs National Park, on the River Itchen. It is 60 miles (97 km) south-west of London and 14 miles (23 km) from Southampton, its nearest city. At the 2021 census, the built-up area of Winchester had a population of 48,478. The wider City of Winchester district includes towns such as Alresford and Bishop's Waltham and had a population of 127,439 in 2021. Winchester is the county town of Hampshire and contains the head offices of Hampshire County Council.
Farnham is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around 36 miles (58 km) southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tributary of the Thames, and is at the western end of the North Downs. The civil parish, which includes the villages of Badshot Lea, Hale and Wrecclesham, covers 14.1 sq mi (37 km2) and had a population of 39,488 in 2011.
Alton is a market town and civil parish in East Hampshire, England, near the source of the northern branch of the River Wey. It had a population of 19,425 at the 2021 census.
East Hampshire is a local government district in Hampshire, England. Its council is based in the town of Petersfield, although the largest town is Alton. The district also contains the town of Bordon along with many villages and surrounding rural areas.
New Alresford or simply Alresford is a market town and civil parish in the City of Winchester district of Hampshire, England. It is 8.0 miles (12.9 km) northeast of Winchester and 12 miles (20 km) southwest of the town of Alton.
The Battle of Alton, of the First English Civil War, took place on 13 December 1643 in the town of Alton, Hampshire, England. There, Parliamentary forces serving under Sir William Waller led a successful surprise attack on a winter garrison of Royalist infantry and cavalry serving under the Earl of Crawford. The Battle of Alton was the first decisive defeat of Sir Ralph Hopton, leader of Royalist forces in the south, and the event had a significant psychological effect on him as commander. More important to Hopton was the loss of men, however, as he was already short-handed in much-needed infantry. The successful Parliamentarians were able, after their victory, to attack and successfully besiege Arundel, a larger and more formidable Royalist outpost to the south-east of Alton.
Alton is a civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The parish includes the adjacent villages of Alton Barnes and Alton Priors, and the nearby hamlet of Honeystreet on the Kennet and Avon Canal. It lies in the Vale of Pewsey about 6 miles (10 km) east of Devizes.
Winchester railway station serves the city of Winchester, in the county of Hampshire, England. It is a stop on the South West Main Line and was known as Winchester City from 1949–67, to distinguish it from Winchester (Chesil) station. It is 66 miles 39 chains (107.0 km) down the line from London Waterloo.
St Swithun's Way is a 34-mile (55 km) long-distance footpath in England from Winchester Cathedral, Hampshire to Farnham, Surrey. It is named after Swithun, a 9th-century Bishop of Winchester, and roughly follows the Winchester to Farnham stretch of the Pilgrims' Way. The route was opened in 2002 to mark the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II.
Bentworth is a village and civil parish in the East Hampshire district of Hampshire, England. The nearest town is Alton, which lies about 3 miles (5 km) east of the village. It sits within the East Hampshire Hangers, an area of rolling valleys and high downland. The parish covers an area of 3,763 acres (15.23 km2) and at its highest point is the prominent King's Hill, 716 feet (218 m) above sea level. According to the 2011 census, Bentworth had a population of 553.
Bursledon Windmill is a Grade II* listed windmill in Bursledon, Hampshire, England which has been restored to working order.
Westbury Manor Museum is the main town centre museum located at 84 West Street, Fareham, Hampshire, England. It features a variety of exhibits on local history, such as the use of Fareham red bricks in the construction of the Royal Albert Hall. It also has a small café and gift shop.
William Herbert Allen (1863–1943) was an English landscape watercolour artist whose career spanned more than 50 years from the 1880s to the 1940s. He was invariably referred to as "W. H." rather than by his given name. Born 14 September 1863 in West Brompton, London, of parents from Alton, Hampshire, Allen was for many years Director of the Farnham School of Art in Surrey. He produced several thousand watercolours, chalk and pencil sketches mainly of the landscapes, traditions and people of West Surrey and North-east Hampshire. In addition, he produced scenes of other parts of the British Isles and various parts of continental Europe. These works included commissions in Italy for the Victoria and Albert Museum, Dublin, Edinburgh and Preston museums. He was made a member of the Royal Watercolour Society in 1903 and the Royal Society of British Artists in 1904 and his work was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1927. He moved from Surrey to Wylye, Wiltshire in 1932 and is buried at St Nicholas's Church, Fisherton de la Mere. Many of Allen's paintings are regularly displayed at the Allen Gallery in Alton. These include landscapes of the local East Hampshire countryside at the beginning of the 20th century.
Rockbourne Roman Villa is a Roman courtyard villa excavated and put on public display in the village of Rockbourne in the English county of Hampshire. The villa was discovered in 1942 by a local farmer and excavated by A. T. Morley Hewitt over the next thirty years.
Aldershot Military Museum in Aldershot Military Town in Hampshire, England, was conceived by former Aldershot Garrison commander Brigadier John Reed (1926–1992). Reed believed that it was essential to preserve the history of the military town and founded the Aldershot Military Historical Trust to raise funds for the establishment of the museum. Reed acquired the two Victorian barrack bungalows in which the museum is still based.
Jane Austen's House Museum is a small independent museum in the village of Chawton near Alton in Hampshire. It is a writer's house museum occupying the 17th-century house in which novelist Jane Austen spent the last eight years of her life, during which time she wrote, revised and made ready to be published all six of her novels, and the fragment Sanditon. The museum has been a Grade I listed building since 1963.
The Church of St Lawrence, Alton is an Anglican parish church in Alton, Hampshire, England. It is a Grade I listed building and is notable both for the range of its architecture and for being the site of the concluding action of the Battle of Alton during the English Civil War.
The Westgate is one of two surviving fortified gateways in Winchester, England formerly part of Winchester City Walls. The earliest surviving fabric is of Anglo-Saxon character. The gate was rebuilt in the 12th century and modified in the 13th and late 14th centuries, the latter including a portcullis in the western façade and two inverted-keyhole gunports, the earliest in the country. The gate was in use until 1959 when the High Street was routed around it.
Eastleigh Museum was a museum situated in Eastleigh, a town in Hampshire, England, which opened in October 1986. In 2014, ownership of the Eastleigh Museum was transferred to the Hampshire Cultural Trust as part of a larger transfer of museums from Hampshire County Council and Winchester City Council.
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