News

The story of Sarah Enchmarch is the perfect story to tell on International Women's Day 2022. Sarah Enchmarch was the daughter of Merchant Peter Bere. She married Thomas Enchmarch in Exeter in December 1700, who had served his apprenticeship with her father. Thomas...

The Scouts have chosen a good venue for their Jumble Sale in 1922, featured in this advert; it was held in the School in St Andrew Street which is now part of the Museum! Next time you walk down the Street, have a look and note especially the separate entrances for...

We were thrilled to find out that our museum is one of the Finalists in the Small Visitor Attraction of the Year category of the Visit Devon Tourism Awards 2021-22! This means we'll definitely be picking up Gold, Silver or Bronze at the (virtual!) awards day on...

We're looking for enthusiastic people to join our team of front of house volunteers. You'll be the first point of contact for visitors, offering a friendly welcome to the museum. You'll sell admission to the museum and items from the gift shop, gather visitor...

The biggest object in our collection is the GWR steam locomotive 1442, known as the Tivvy Bumper. The name the ‘Tivvy Bumper’ originally applied to all trains working on the branch connecting Tiverton Station and Tiverton Junction at Willand. Between 1884 and 1964...

In February 1921, the Tiverton Gazette revealed: ‘The fascinating craze for home dyeing has without a doubt come to stay. The majority of women seem to take a delight in constantly changing the colour of their blouses, dresses, lingerie etc. No doubt this is is due to...

During WW2 it's estimated that around 3.5 million people were evacuated from big cities and areas that were expected to be targeted by enemy attacks, to more rural parts of the country to keep them safe. Tiverton and surrounding villages were one of the areas evacuees...

In late January 1922, Britain was described in the Tiverton Gazette as a ‘Run Down Nation’. It went on to say ‘The nervous strength of her population has diminished because of the stress and strain of the weary years of war through which her people have passed’. There...

In early January 1922, the effects of the weather were reported widely in the Tiverton Gazette: ‘the full force of the south-west wind was experienced on the hill just above Bolham on which the Mount Pleasant Sanatorium is situated   .... a gust of exceptional...

In the two editions of the Tiverton Gazette in mid to late December, it becomes clear that Christmas is coming. There are advertisements for Christmas presents and special offers on alcohol. Even at 12/6d (62.5p) for whisky and 12/- (60p) for gin this was beyond the...

There was very little in the Gazette of 6th December 1921, apart from this advert for W H Smith, to herald the coming of the Christmas season. There was a report of a ‘Smoking Concert’ held in the Oat Sheaf Hotel in Crediton. These were a popular form of entertainment...

In late November 1921, the football season was well underway. Reports of the matches in the Tiverton and District Association League Charity Cup appeared regularly in the Gazette. This describes the match between Tiverton Athletic and Silverton: ‘a large crowd saw a...