Augustus John, one of Fordingbridge’s most notorious past residents will be the subject of a talk organised by Fordingbridge Museum on Friday 26^th April. His unconventional and bohemian lifestyle  dismayed some locals when he lived in Fordingbridge from 1927 to 1961. The talk, entitled “Brilliant Destiny”, looks at John’s early life up until 1914.  The talk is at Avonway Community Centre in Fordingbridge. It starts at 7.30 and tickets are £10 to include light refreshments. They are available from Fordingbridge Bookshop, Fordingbridge Museum or www.ticketsource.co.uk 

Visitors to Fordingbridge Museum this season will find that the exhibits have been dramatically rearranged and refreshed. The Museum reopens on Tuesday 26^th March after a hectic period of work by the volunteers during the closed winter period.

Fordingbridge Museum is open from 11.00 am to 4.00 pm every day apart from Sunday.

The Museum is closed for the winter season.  Activity goes on behind the scenes however. Our volunteer staff will be working on the photography collection and cataloguing artefacts. Some will be digitising the collection whilst others will be reorganising the displays and cleaning and decorating. We will open the Museum on Tuesday 26th March 2024. 

Entry is free but we have no paid staff and we rely on donations and fundraising to keep open. Fordingbridge is a lovely little town set in beautiful surroundings. We look forward to seeing you in 2024.  

Adrian Green, Director of Salisbury Museum, will give a talk on artist and archaeologist Heywood Sumner on Friday 12^th May 2023 at 7.30 pm at Avonway Community Centre in Fordingbridge. The talk is in aid of Fordingbridge Museum. Tickets at £10 are available from Fordingbridge Museum, Fordingbridge Bookshop or www.ticketsource.co.uk and include light refreshments.

Fordingbridge Museum will open for the summer season of 2023 on Monday 3rd April. During the closed season our volunteers have been working to  revitalise the  existing displays and introduce new ones. Acess to the museum is free but we depend entirely of fundraising and donations to stay open.  We look forward to seeing you to explore our local history in 2023.

The annual general meeting of  the Friends of Fordingbridge Museum will take place on Thursday 16^th February at Avonway in Fordingbridge. Philippa Duckworth will give a talk on the creation of the museum from a private collection of artefacts to the fully developed popular institution we know today. The AGM will be at Avonway and will start at 2.30pm  with the formal meeting followed by refreshments. Philippa’s talk will start at 3.15pm.

The life of Florence Nightingale will be celebrated at a special performance in St Marys Church Hall, Fordingbridge on 21^st May 2022 at 7.30 pm.  The one-woman show will be performed by the acclaimed local writer, performer and musician, Louise Jordan. She will use original song and storytelling to connect Florence’s work in the 19^th century with many issues we continue to face today. Tickets cost £15 and include a light supper and an informal Quiz. The audience is invited to bring their own bottle. Tickets are available from Fordingbridge Bookshop, Fordingbridge Museum or www.ticketsource.co.uk.

Fordingbridge Museum is appealing to the public for items or memories of royal Jubilees in Fordingbridge for a new exhibition to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June this year.

The surprise discovery of a journal kept by a member of a unique local bohemian community involved in pottery, wood carving, ventriloquism and spiritualism will be the subject of a free talk by Sonia Green at the AGM of Friends of Fordingbridge Museum at 2.30 pm on Thursday 17^th February at Avonway Community Centre, Fordingbridge.

Fordingbridge Museum will be closed for the winter season from Friday 29th October 2021 to Easter 2022. Museum volunteers will work over this period to refine the displays and collection of artefacts.  If you would like to volunteer to help in this process please ring 01425 657 850 or 01425 654322.

Fordingbridge residents are in for a treat when they are invited to bring a picnic to watch a demonstration of a working pair of heavy horses in idyllic surroundings. The event organised by Fordingbridge Museum and the son of one of the founders of the museum, David Shering, will take place in a field behind St Mary’s Church on Saturday 25th September.

After a long period of closure because of Covid, Fordingbridge Museum is reopening on Monday 26^th July 2021. Because of a shortage of volunteers it will initially be open from 11.00 am to 4.00 pm for 4 days a week from Monday to Thursday inclusive.

Fordingbridge Museum will not be open until 17th May 2021 at the earliest because of government restrictions. Museum staff are working hard to make the museum Covid secure. Please watch this space for more details.

~~Fordingbridge Museum staff have decided that it will remain closed until April 2021 because of the Covid Pandemic. Museum Chairman Chris Ansell said, “The management team have consulted with our volunteers and looked carefully at Government regulations and reluctantly decided that it is not feasible to open this year. We are very disappointed that we will not be open to welcome visitors this summer.  The museum is proud of being one of the major attractions in Fordingbridge with thousands of visitors and locals coming to explore the heritage of the area each year. This August marks the 20th anniversary of the opening of Fordingbridge museum so we are determined to open with a major relaunch in April next year.” 

~~Fordingbridge Museum will not open on 3rd April this year as planned because of Coronavirus. ~~ If people want to help us through this difficult time by becoming a Friend of the Museum they can do so at a cost of £7.50 a year by ringing 01425 657850 or 01425 654322.

~~Fordingbridge Museum is appealing for people who have memories of, or items relating to, Victory in Europe Day celebrations in Fordingbridge and the surrounding area.

~~Fordingbridge Museum is appealing for anyone who has information or artefacts relating to the Neave family to contact them. The family lived in the town for generations and were important employers as well as being pillars of Fordingbridge society, acting as magistrates and playing a leading role in local events and institutions.

~~Fordingbridge Museum is appealing for anyone who has information or artefacts relating to the Neave family to contact them. The family lived in the town for generations and were important employers as well as being pillars of Fordingbridge society, acting as magistrates and playing a leading role in local events and institutions.

~~A ceremonial staff that was found 28 years ago on a rubbish tip has been donated to Fordingbridge Museum. Managers at the museum are appealing to the public to see if anyone knows what it is and how it was used.

~~The Mayor of Fordingbridge, Paul Anstey, attended a barbeque run by the Friends of Fordingbridge Museum last Saturday (6th July).  It was held in the beautiful riverside garden belonging to Anne Pye and was a poignant occasion because Ann’s husband John, who was for many years a supporter of the Museum, died recently.
Museum manager, Jane Ireland, said, “John worked tirelessly for the museum and would have been tickled pink to think that The Friends had held their barbeque in his garden and pleased that the Mayor had shown his support by attending the event. The museum relies entirely on donations from the public and is staffed by volunteers.  If anyone would like to support this local attraction either by stewarding, by working behind the scenes or by being a Friend of the Museum they can contact me on 01425 654322.”