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Essex -
Places of Interest
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Braintree
District Museum
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The Town Hall Centre, Market Place, Braintree,
Essex CM7 3YG
Tel: 01376 328868 Fax: 01376 344345
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In the historic market square (market days
Wednesday and Saturday), Braintree District Museum
is housed in a beautifully converted Victorian school. Visitors are assured of a
warm welcome at this award-winning museum, whose elegant exhibition areas are in
contrast to the somewhat stern Victorian façade; the exception to this is the
faithfully re-created Victorian classroom, where nostalgia lovers will be in
their element and where role-play lessons are provided for schools on a daily
basis.
Braintree was the centre of the medieval wool trade in north
Essex and gained international fame when Courtaulds evolved their revolutionary
silk industry in the town. The permanent galleries tell the fascinating story
of this industry and also of the development of engineering design - Braintree
was also the home of Crittalls. Country crafts such as straw plaiting are
featured, along with the rural artists who made their home in Great Barfield
and became pivotal in the development of fine and decorative arts in the 1950s
and 1960s. John Ray, often considered the father of English natural history,
has a dedicated gallery to his ground-breaking research in the 17th century.
A feature of the museum is the programme of changing
exhibitions, often with a craft base such as ceramics, decorative arts and
particularly textiles. Friendly staff are pleased to welcome visitors with a
free Soundalive audio tour and explain the wide range of craft items available
in the shop.
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 This
entry is in the Country Living Guide to East Anglia.
For further
information on this title please
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